Colombo: Vice President C P Radhakrishnan arrived Sunday morning on a two-day visit to further strengthen the millennia-old civilisational and people-to-people ties between the two countries.
Accompanied by a 49-member delegation, the vice president was received at the Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo by Sports Minister Sunil Kumara Gamage and several other dignitaries.
Radhakrishnan’s visit is the first ever by an Indian vice president to Sri Lanka, officials said.
Later in the day, he is expected to have bilateral talks with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya.
“A number of memoranda of understanding between the two countries are also scheduled to be exchanged during the visit, focusing on enhancing cooperation, including in projects related to Cyclone Ditwah, rehabilitation and development cooperation with the assistance of the government of India,” a Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry release said.
Radhakrishnan will also interact with leaders of the Indian-origin Tamil community and Tamil leaders from the Northern and Eastern regions of Sri Lanka.
Later in the day, the vice president will address the Indian diaspora at a community event in Colombo, where he will virtually hand over houses to beneficiaries from Tamil communities, built with assistance from the Indian government as part of the third phase of the Indian Housing Project.
This visit, which follows recent high-level engagements between the two countries, is expected to further strengthen the millennia-old civilisational and people-to-people ties between India and Sri Lanka, an official statement said.
