The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Jaffna and Talaimannar next week after arriving in Colombo on March 13 for a two day visit of the island.
Whilst in Jaffna, Mr Modi is to inspect the Indian funded housing scheme, handing over houses to locals. He is also expected to flag off the first train restarting the Talaimannar - Medawachchiya service which was reconstructed with Indian credit assistance.
"During the visit, the Indian Premier is expected to discuss defence and security cooperation and push for further energy agreements, including the approval of a 500MW thermal power plant to be built in Trincomalee," Sri Lanka's ministry of foreign affairs said on Friday.
Following a visit by the former Indian prime minister, Manmohan Singh, in 2010, India pledged to construct 50,000 houses in the Tamil areas.
However, the construction of the houses, which India has called the “flagship project of Indian grant assistance to Sri Lanka”, has faced persistent delays, with only 14,500 built in four years.
In August last year, the Indian government announced two further development projects worth Rs. 365 million, including a grant of Rs. 145 million towards renovation of the Duraiappah Stadium, with another Rs. 220 million grant to be set up for the Atchchuvely Industrial Estate.
Visiting the south, he is expected to hold discussions with Mr Sirisena and the prime minister, Ranil Wickremasinghe, and address a special session of parliament.
The visit follows Mr Sirisena's visit to India in January, days after taking office.
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