New Delhi: With the help of a Line of Credit offered by India, Sri Lanka has launched a luxury train service that connects the country’s Tamil-dominated Jaffna district to the capital city Colombo.
The Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka called it “another significant landmark in India-Sri Lanka ties”.
The intercity rail service launched on Sunday will cover a distance of approximately 386 kilometres.
The train service criss-crossing the island nation will cater to passengers from Mount Lavinia suburb in Colombo to Kankesanthurai port suburb in Jaffna.
“Powering the railway infrastructure forward!! The train service launched today to the Northern Province highlights 2 key pillars of India's development partnership with Sri Lanka - infrastructure development and country-wide focus,” the Indian High Commission posted in a thread on Twitter.
Under the loan facility, India had provided AC Diesel Multiple Units (AC DMUs) for the train service.
Sri Lanka’s Minister of Transport Pavithra Wanniarachchi undertook the inaugural ride.
India’s Deputy High Commissioner Vinod K Jacob welcomed her at the Colombo Fort Station.
“Hon'ble Minister @pavithrawannia1 inaugurated the AC Diesel Multiple Unit (DMU) supplied by @RITESLimited under an Indian credit line & launched the train service from Mt.Lavinia to KKS. She undertook the inaugural ride & was welcomed at the #Colombo #Fort Station by Deputy High Commissioner,” the high commission said in the thread, posting the tweets in English, Singhalese and Tamil.
“This train service will facilitate people-to-people exchange and will lay emphasis on mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries,” Jacob said.
The transport minister thanked India for the support.
The Indian High Commission also said the supply of AC DMUs is one of the many railway projects undertaken by India in the island nation. Other ongoing projects include supply of passenger coaches under another Indian Line of Credit.
In a statement issued by the mission, India's total development portfolio in Sri Lanka is over USD 3.5 billion, of which around USD 570 million are just grant projects, according to a PTI report.