Indian companies should be stakeholders in the development of the Colombo Port, Indian HC says
India (along with Sri Lanka) is working towards the resumption of ferry services between Colombo and Tuticorin and between Talaimannar and Rameshwaram, which will make travel easier. Another proposal is to operate a cruise/ferry service between Colombo and Cochin in Kerala. These thoughts were shared by Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Y.K. Sinha when he addressed the 36th National Conference of the Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka in Colombo last week.
The Government of Sri Lanka wants to develop Trincomalee into a regional petroleum hub, a project he says India would be happy to partner with.Making a pitch for a bigger stake in the Colombo port, the High Commissioner said the port is a leading container trans-shipment hub for India. It has been estimated that almost 30 per cent of India’s transshipment cargo passes through Colombo Port, which accounts for nearly 70 per cent of the total transshipment business handled by Colombo Port.“In view of the importance of the Colombo Port to India, Indian companies need to become stakeholders in the expansion of Colombo Port,” he asserted.
On travel between the two countries, he said India and Sri Lanka already enjoy close connectivity by air with 150 flights a week from Colombo to eight destinations in India. “I look forward to a time when a passenger can board a train in Kataragama in southern Sri Lanka and travel to Srinagar, a city founded by Emperor Ashoka, in the northern Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir by train and ferry,” he noted In the meantime, travel industry officials in Colombo said “Herbilan Fortune”, the first passenger cruise liner between Sri Lanka, Cochin (India) and the Maldives, will begin sailing from December 18 onwards.
Mr. Sinha told the audience that countries are coming together to form bilateral, regional and multilateral arrangements to optimise benefits and collaboration and cooperation have become mantras for success rather than confrontation and conflict. The Indian Central Government is working with all state governments in adopting a pan-India GST for simplifying the tax structure. Once implemented this would also positively impact Sri Lankan exports to India. The Prime Minister launched recently an initiative called “Digital India” where digital connectivity has immense potential and Sri Lanka could be a partner in this effort and gain from advances made in the digital world, the Indian High Commissioner told the audience.
India is pursuing a re-invigorated neighbourhood policy of “Neighbourhood First” which puts a premium on greater connectivity, stronger and mutually beneficial cooperation and deeper ties with its neighbours. “There is also recognition that neighbours have a first claim on India and Sri Lanka is amongst our closest and dearest neighbours. India and Sri Lanka have experienced an exhilarating renewal of democracy in recent times,” he said. With the aim of further increasing tourism between the two countries, the first meeting of the joint working group on tourism was held in April 2015 at New Delhi where developing a Ramayana Trail in Sri Lanka and a Buddhist Circuit in India was discussed.
Referring to education in recent years, he said India has been attracting a growing number of Sri Lankan students for tertiary education, and offers a more affordable alternative to other countries without compromising on quality. Prominent Indian institutions of excellence are interested in investing in Sri Lanka, provided the necessary legislative framework is put in place.The keynote speech at the event was delivered by Prof. Rajendra Srivastava of the Marketing Strategy and International Business at Singapore Management University. President of the Institute of the Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka, Arjuna Herath also spoke.