Modi, Sri Lankan President launch India-backed railway projects in Anuradhapura

Colombo: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on Sunday travelled to the historic city of Anuradhapura and launched two India-backed railway projects, reflecting New Delhi’s support for cooperation aimed at developing the island nation’s transportation sector.

A day after the two countries finalised crucial agreements to deepen energy and defence ties, the two leaders emphasised the religious and cultural links between India and Sri Lanka by visiting the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi temple in Anuradhapura, a world heritage site and one of the oldest continuously occupied cities in Asia.

Modi and Dissanayake joined a ceremony to inaugurate the 128-km Maho-Omanthai railway line refurbished with Indian assistance of $91.27 million. They also launched another project to build an advanced signaling system from the railway line from Maho to Anuradhapura with an Indian grant of $14.89.

These railway modernisation projects implemented under the bilateral development partnership will help strengthen north-south rail connectivity in Sri Lanka, Indian officials said. The projects will also facilitate the fast and efficient movement of passenger and freight traffic across the country.

“Boosting connectivity and enhancing friendship! In Anuradhapura, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and I jointly inaugurated the track upgradation of the existing Maho-Omanthai railway line,” Modi said in a social media post.

“The signalling project which involves the installation of an advanced signalling and telecommunication system along the Maho-Anuradhapura section was also launched. India is proud to support Sri Lanka in various aspects of their development journey,” he said.

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India has provided concessional financing of more than $2 billion to Sri Lanka through credit lines funded by EXIM Bank for development projects, especially in the railways sector. This has included a credit line of $167.40 million for upgrading the coastal railway track, two credit lines worth almost $800 million for upgrading the northern railways, and another credit line of $318 million for passenger coaches, rolling stock and signalling systems.

Earlier, the two leaders went to the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi temple and offered prayers at the Mahabodhi tree, which is believed to have grown from a Bo sapling brought to Sri Lanka from India by Sangamitta Maha Theri in the third century BCE. Sangamitta, a Buddhist nun and the eldest daughter of Emperor Ashoka, and her brother Mahinda travelled to Sri Lanka to spread the teachings of the Buddha.

The two leaders also sought blessings from the head monk of the shrine and interacted with other monks.

“Offered prayers at the sacred Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura with President Dissanayake. It’s a deeply humbling moment to be at one of the most revered sites in Buddhism,” Modi said in another social media post. “It is a living symbol of peace, enlightenment and spiritual continuity. May the teachings of Lord Buddha always guide us.”

In recent years, India has stepped up efforts to build on ancient Buddhist ties with several countries across the region, including Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand, as part of efforts to counter China’s attempts to use Buddhism to enhance its influence in South and Southeast Asia.

In 2022, Modi announced a grant of $15 million for promoting Buddhist ties between India and Sri Lanka. The first project under this grant was the solar electrification of Buddhist shrines at a cost of $10 million. Last year, India sent sacred relics of the Buddha on a tour of several cities in Thailand.

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Modi departed directly from Anuradhapura for Tamil Nadu, where he was set to inaugurate several projects. In a message thanking Dissanayake and the people of Sri Lanka, Modi said: “Be it in Colombo or Anuradhapura, this visit has reaffirmed the deep cultural, spiritual and civilisational ties between our two nations. It will surely add momentum to our bilateral relations.”

As he flew to Tamil Nadu, Modi said in yet another social media post: “On the way back from Sri Lanka a short while ago, was blessed to have a Darshan of the Ram Setu. And, as a divine coincidence, it happened at the same time as the Surya Tilak was taking place in Ayodhya.”