Why Indian Prime Minister in Sri Lanka ?

Prime Minister Modi said I believe we are at a moment of great opportunity in our ties with Colombo and he promised another 10K house in addition to the 4K house that India currently funding for Tamilians

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Srilanka, landed in Colombo on Thursday and was received by Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe among other dignitaries. Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena also welcomed PM Modi with a tweet, “As Sri Lanka proudly celebrates Internationa Vesak Day, I warmly welcome Indian Premier @narendramodi who will grace the occasion."

Earlier, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had shared the details of his visit to the neighboring island country via Facebook: “I will be in Sri Lanka for a two-day visit starting today, 11th May. This will be my second bilateral visit there in two years, a sign of our strong relationship. During my visit, I will join the International Vesak Day celebrations in Colombo on 12th May, where I will interact with leading Buddhist spiritual leaders, scholars, and theologians. It is my honor to join these celebrations with President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.  

 He flew to the island's tea growing central district of Nuwara Eliya on Friday to open an India-gifted hospital and address tens of thousands of plantation workers of Indian origin Tamilians community.The nearly one million ethnic Tamils in central Sri Lanka are descendants of indentured labor brought to work in coffee, rubber and tea plantations by British colonial rulers in the 19th century. He promised another 10K house in addition to the 4K house that India currently funding for Tamilians.

      

Permission Denied for Chinese Submarine 

India had always considered its smaller neighbor to be within its sphere of influence but watched Sri Lanka drift closer to China under former strongman President Mahinda Rajapaksa.Modi's visit to Sri Lanka his second since coming to power in 2014 — is being seen as New Delhi's attempt to win back support and counter Beijing's push for closer ties with the Indian Ocean nation."I believe we are at a moment of great opportunity in our ties with Sri Lanka. An opportunity to achieve a quantum jump in our partnership across different fields," Modi told a Buddhist conference in Colombo.His comments came as Sri Lanka rebuffed a Chinese request to dock a submarine at one of its ports.Chinese-backed projects soared under Rajapaksa, who relied heavily on Beijing for economic and diplomatic support as Western nations threatened his administration with sanctions over atrocities committed during the decades-long civil war which ended in 2009.Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena came to power in January 2015 promising to review Chinese-funded projects signed by his predecessor and rebuild ties with India.PM Modi pledged India's commitment to their "Sri Lankan brothers and sisters" and the "indivisible" ties between the two neighbors."We will continue to invest in driving positive change and economic growth to deepen our development co-operation," he said.As Modi touched down in Colombo for a two-day visit on Thursday, a top Sri Lankan defense official confirmed Beijing had been denied permission for a port call by a Chinese submarine.In Beijing, China's foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said they were aware of the reports, but stressed both sides maintained "good cooperation".

Sri Lankan Pime Minister Visit to Beijing

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's office announced he will travel to Beijing on Saturday to participate in China's maritime silk route initiative of economic diplomacy."Attention will be paid to the collective benefits for the countries participating in the initiative of President Xi Jinping," Wickremesinghe's office said in a statement on Friday.Pro-China Rajapaksa's political allies had called for a black flag protest during Modi's visit to Sri Lanka, accusing India of trying to grab land in a strategic port district.But the former president sought a meeting with PM Modi on Thursday night and the two had a "cordial" discussion, confirmed Indian diplomats who provided no further details.