India backs Sri Lanka’s recovery, wants provincial autonomy

India on Friday came out strongly in support of Sri Lanka’s economic recovery and pledged greater investments in energy, tourism and infrastructure as the island nation battles its worst economic crisis in seven decades.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, on the final day of his two-day trip to Colombo, also reiterated the need for Sri Lanka to devolve powers to the provinces and go for reconciliation with the Tamil minority.

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India has extended financing assurances to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to clear the way for Sri Lanka to move forward because it felt strongly that Colombo’s creditors must take proactive steps to facilitate its recovery, he told a news conference here.

“India decided not to wait on others but to do what we believe is right,” he told the media in Colombo, in an obvious reference to China.

“Our expectation is that this will not only strengthen Sri Lanka’s position but ensure that all bilateral creditors are dealt with equally,” he said in the presence of President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Foreign Minister Ali Sabry.

Indian investments

Jaishankar, who flew in from the Maldives, said India will encourage greater investments in Sri Lanka’s economy, especially in core areas like energy, tourism and infrastructure.

“We know that Sri Lanka’s pathway is one of a strong economic recovery propelled by greater investments. Here too, I have a clear message that I will be sharing with the business community.

“We count on the Sri Lankan government to provide a more business-friendly environment to create a powerful pull factor. I am confident that the gravity of the situation is realized by policy makers here,” Jaishankar was quoted as saying in the Sri Lankan media.

The Minister said his primary purpose of coming to Colombo was to express India’s solidarity with Sri Lanka at a time when it is battling the worst economic crisis since independence in 1948.

Last year, India extended about $4 billion in terms of credits and roll overs to help Sri Lanka.  “For us, it was an issue of ‘Neighbourhood First’ and not leaving a partner to fend for themselves.”

Ranil invited to India

Jaishankar said he had handed over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s invitation to President Wickremesinghe to visit India at an early date to discuss how India can facilitate Sri Lanka’s recovery.

He said India has always supported Sri Lanka’s political and economic stability.

The Indian Minister said the President briefed him on the question of political devolution and his thinking.

“I shared with him our considered view that the full implementation of the 13th amendment (to the Constitution) and early conduct of provincial elections are critical in this regard. Durable efforts towards reconciliation are in the interests of all sections in Sri Lanka,” he said.

The 13^th amendment was an outcome of the 1987 India-Sri Lanka accord and because of which provincial councils were set up across the island nation in a bid to devolve power to the provinces.

Indian Tamils

Jaishankar also spoke of the need to pay special attention to the Indian origin Tamil community which mainly inhabits the tea-growing central hills of Sri Lanka.

“A search for solutions must necessarily encompass the larger region. Only then will Sri Lanka get the full benefit of scale. This country has enormous renewable energy potential that can become a sustainable source of revenue.

“It has the capability as well for Trincomalee to emerge as an energy hub,” he said, referring to the eastern coastal province of Trincomalee.

Jaishankar said India was ready to be a reliable partner on such initiatives. “We have agreed in-principle on a renewable energy framework that would take this cooperation forward.”

Boosting tourism

He felt that there were many more steps that needed to be taken in Sri Lanka to make tourism sustainable.

“Indian tourists are expressing positive sentiments for Sri Lanka in a very practical manner by coming here. But there are many more steps we can take to make this sustainable.

“Strengthening connectivity and promoting travel is therefore a very high priority for all of us. Definitely, encouraging Indian tourists to make RuPay payments and utilize UPI would be most helpful in this regard.

“In a turbulent world, it is essential that India and Sri Lanka steady their trade. The use of rupee settlement for trade is obviously in our mutual interest,” he added.

India, Jaishankar said, was a reliable neighbour, a trustworthy partner and was prepared to go the extra mile when Sri Lanka feels the need.

“We will stand by Sri Lanka in this hour of need and are confident that Sri Lanka will overcome the challenges it currently faces.”