Sri Lankan PM Mahinda Rajapaksa arrives in India on four-day visit

Sri Lanka Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa arrived in New Delhi on Friday evening. He is on a state visit to India from February 8-11 at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The main engagement day is on Saturday (February 8) where he will hold delegation-level talks with PM Modi. 

Rajapaksa will also call on President Ram Nath Kovind and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will call on the Sri Lankan PM.

Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said, "On PM Narendra Modi’s invitation, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka Mahinda Rajapaksa arrived in India to a warm welcome, on his 1st overseas visit since assuming office. Sustained exchanges at the highest level continue to energize India-SL ties."

After his official engagements in Delhi, Rajapaksa will travel to Varanasi, Sarnath, Bodh Gaya, Tirupati before he leaves for Colombo.

There has been a series of high-level visits between the two countries. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa chose India as the first destination to visit after he assumed his position as the President immediately after his election victory.