Courtesy Adaderana

A bilateral agreement pertaining to increasing the limit of the High Impact Community Development Project (HICDP) implemented in Sri Lanka with the support of the Indian government was signed today (Jan 20), the President’s Media Division (PMD) says.

The Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, Mahinda Siriwardana, signed the agreement on behalf of Sri Lanka while the Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Gopal Baglay signed on behalf of India.

The agreement related to the community development project in Sri Lanka, first signed in May 2005, doubled the individual project limit from Rs. 300 million to Rs. 600 million.

Through this agreement, the total HICDP funds will be doubled from Rs. 5 billion to Rs. 10 billion.

This agreement guides many community development projects in Sri Lanka with the support of the Indian government, the PMD said further.

The documents were signed after Indian External Affairs Minister (EAM) Dr. S. Jaishankar called on President Ranil Wickremesinghe earlier today.

During the meeting, it was agreed upon to implement a joint program between Sri Lanka and India.

Prior to the official meeting, President Wickremesinghe hosted the visiting Indian EAM for breakfast and tea at his official residence at Paget Road, Colombo.

In addition, during the official meeting held between President Wickremesinghe and Dr. S. Jaishankar, many political, economic and social issues as well as investment matters between the two countries were discussed at length.

During this discussion, special attention was paid to the debt-restructuring program in Sri Lanka which had received a positive response from the Indian government.

The Indian External Affairs Minister recalled that in 1991, during the tenure of former Indian Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao, India had to face an economic crisis similar to what Sri Lanka is currently facing. He added that the Indian Government overcame the crisis by pledging the government’s gold reserves.

Therefore, Dr Jaishankar said that India has a good understanding of the situation Sri Lanka is currently facing and said that the Indian government will provide all possible support to solve the current economic problems faced by Sri Lanka.