Indian Union Minister for Finance & Corporate Affairs – Nirmala Sitharaman, will be embarking on an official 3-day visit to Sri Lanka from today (Nov. 01).

During the visit, Ms. Sitharaman give the Keynote Address as the Guest of Honour at the ‘NAAM 200’organised by Government of Sri Lanka to commemorate the 200th anniversary of arrival of India-origin Tamils (IOTs) to Sri Lanka, on Nov. 02, at the Sugathadasa Indoor Stadium in Colombo.

She will also deliver the keynote address at the India Sri Lanka Business Summit on the theme ‘Enhancing Connectivity: Partnering for Prosperity’, being jointly organised by Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), Indo-Lanka Chamber of Commerce & Industry, and the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, on Nov. 02, at Hotel Taj Samudra in Colombo.

As part of the official visit, the Union Finance Minister will have call-on meetings with Sri Lankan President – Ranil Wickremesinghe and PM Dinesh Gunawardena.

She will also witness the exchange of the Memorandum of Understanding for Solar Electrification of Religious Places in Sri Lanka wherein India will allocate INR 82.40 crores out of the GOI grant assistance of INR 107.47 crores earmarked for the promotion of Buddhist ties.

Ms. Sitharaman will also inaugurate SBI Branches at Trincomalee and Jaffna on Nov. 02 and Nov. 03 respectively.

She will also visit the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic in Kandy, Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura, Thirukoneswaram Temple in Trincomalee and Nallur Kandaswamy Temple in Jaffna during the course of her visit to Sri Lanka.

Besides the above engagements, the Union Finance Minister is also slated to visit Lanka IOC Oil Tank Farms, Jaffna Cultural Centre and Jaffna Public Library during her visit.