Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Sri Lanka on April 5, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has announced while delivering a statement in Parliament on Friday. Announcing the date of PM Modi's visit, Dissanayake said Modi is visiting Sri Lanka due to the stability of the country. Last week, Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath said, Modi will arrive here to finalise agreements reached during President Dissanayake’s visit to Delhi last year.
The president also told Parliament that the construction work on the Sampur Power Plant in the eastern port district of Trincomalee is scheduled to commence at the same time as the Indian PM’s visit.
India-Sri Lanka agreement
Last month, Sri Lanka and India reached an agreement for setting up of solar power plants in the island country, Health Minister Nalinda Jayathissa announced. “Consensus has been reached between the government of Sri Lanka and the government of India to establish solar power plants capacity of 50 Megawatt (stage 1) and 70 Megawatt (stage 2) at Sampur in Trincomalee on the basis of construction, ownership, and operation by the Ceylon Electricity Board and National Thermal Power Corporation of India as a joint venture between two governments,” Jayathissa said.
Earlier, National Thermal Power Corporation of India was to construct a coal power plant at the same site. The new joint venture sees it being converted to a solar power station.