President flags off 'drug-free country' train on its maiden journey from Colombo to Jaffna

President Maithripala Sirisena yesterday (Jan 27) flagged off an Indian funded train on its maiden journey from Colombo to Jaffna.

The train has been named ‘Drug Free Country’ to promote the eradication of drugs according to the President’s media division.

The train equipped with modern facilities commenced its journey from Colombo Fort to Kankasanthurai in the North.

The train (self-propelled Diesel Multiple Unit-DMU) was procured under Indian concessional financing by Sri Lanka Railways, a statement from the Indian High Commission said.

The DMU train is a 13 coach set which comes with the amenities with fully rotating seats in the Air-Conditioned Chair Cars, on-board Infotainment system, GPS-based passenger information system and modular interiors. It can travel at a maximum speed of 120 kmph.

The contract agreement for supply of 6 DMUs and 10 locomotives to the Sri Lanka Railways was signed between M/s RITES Ltd., India and Sri Lanka Railways in March 2017. The total contract is worth around US$ 100 million.

High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka Taranjit Singh Sandhu along with Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation, Arjuna Ranatunga, General Manager, Sri Lanka Railways, Mr. M.J. D. Fernando, Chairman and Managing Director of M/s RITES Ltd., Mr. Rajeev Mehrotra attended the event.

President Sirisena and the High Commissioner travelled from Fort to Maradana in the new train while Minister Ranatunga continued till Jaffna.