India provides $3 bn development assistance to Sri Lanka 

 
India’s overall commitment of development assistance to Sri Lanka stands at a total of around US$3 billion, out of which $550 million is pure grant assistance.
 
Addressing a ceremony organized to vest the Rabindranath Tagore Memorial Auditorium built with Indian grant assistance of Rs. 300 million at the University of Ruhuna, Matara with the public, Indian High Commissioner Taranjit Singh Sandhu said India has completed so far close to 70 small development projects across the island in all the provinces. 
These projects have been covered several areas including health, education, capacity building, livelihood assistance, women empowerment, skill development, industrial and vocational training, and infrastructure development. 
This was in addition to the Indian Housing Project with a total commitment to build 60000 houses in Sri Lanka (the largest grant project of India abroad) and the 1990 Emergency Ambulance Service.
India on Monday signed an agreement with Sri Lanka to grant Rs. 300 million to build a 5,000-metric ton temperature controlled warehouse to reduce post-harvest losses and price swings in agriculture.
The facility will be in Dambulla in the Central Province, a key farming region. 
Currently there are more than 20 such ongoing, people-oriented development projects under the grant assistance of government of India which include construction of rainwater harvesting units, construction of toilets, upgradation and construction of schools including the tri lingual school in Polonnaruwa, and construction of buildings for universities. (BS)