India -Sri Lanka

• Intro:
• 
  SS Menon in his book Choices describes Sri Lanka an aircraft carrier sitting right in the middle of Indian ocean.
• This makes Sri Lanka an important country in India's neighborhood first policy. 
• In Sri Lanka, worst economic crisis since independence. India has extended about 3.5+ billion dollar assistance since January. India and Japan Working to help Sri Lanka for the essential items such as medicines, food supplies, fuel etc.

• Cooperation:
• Buddhism connect
• Sri Lanka is the first SAARC country to join India's National knowledge network.
• India’s developmental assistance projects for internally displaced persons (IDPs) and disadvantaged sections of the population Sri Lanka has helped further cement the bonds of friendship between the two countries
• The Economic and Technology Co-operation Agreement (ETCA) is a proposed diplomatic arrangement that seeks to add to the existing free trade agreement between the Republic of India and the Republic of Sri Lanka, primarily in relation to trade-in services and the service sector.
• PM- as far as security is concerned Sri Lanka would follow an “India first” policy. New Delhi has now said that the southern neighbor is the nation’s ‘Priority One’ defence partner.
• Both countries also have currency swap agreement to help Sri Lanka tide any BOP crisis
• Completed 45000 houses for Tamil population and more 15000 are on the anvil 
• Upgrading Jaffana-Colombo rail track and providing electricity transmission lines for power imports from India.
• India continues to assist in a large number of high-impact community development projects HICDP in areas of education, health, transport
• India has extended $400 million under the “SAARC currency swap” arrangement and agreed to a partial deferral of a $500 million settlement from Sri Lanka by two months; the $1.5 bn LoC for essential imports is reportedly under way.
• Overall India offered economic aid of $3 B to SL and helped it to prevent from economic default.
• both the countries have set up Joint Working Group on fisheries.
• Both sides have agreed to take further steps
• Joint patrolling
• Setting up of a hotline between two coast guards
• Introduction of effective tracking systems for fishing vessels
• SOPs for handling and Release of fishermen of both the countries
• Measures to phase out bottom trawling in palk bay
• India is the second largest investor in Sri Lanka.
• India's second largest trading partner in SAARC after Bangladesh
• Cultural connect- direct flight between Varanasi and Colombo. SL tourists are among top ten sources for Indian tourism market
• Scholarships under ITEC
• India developing Palely airport in Jaffna
• Trincomalee oil tank farm
• Offer to operate mattala airport near Hambanthota 
• After the Easter Sunday Blasts, claimed by the ISIS, India and Sri lanka have found new avenues of cooperation in counter terrorism.
• cooperation through: SAGAR, SAARC, IORA, IONS,etc
• due to its strategic location, SL is poised to play a major role in Indo pacific region.

• issues:
• Both have an FTA still the bilateral trade hovers around $8B
• china’s strategic advances in SL. Its acquiring of Hambanthota is seen by scholars as part of a larger plan to “contain India” through “String of pearls.”
• China is already the largest investor in Sri Lanka, accounting for 23.6 per cent of the total FDI during 2010-2019 as against 10.4 per cent from India. China is also one of the largest export destinations for Sri Lankan goods and holds over 10 per cent of its external debt.
• China is developing international financial city called the colombo port city project . This has raised concerns of making another “Chinese enclave” in Sri Lanka after the the Hambanthota port.
• 70% of container cargo for and from India is trans-shipped there and Chinese presence may lead to delays in transits and loss of revenue for India.
• Such actions have a direct impact on India’s maritime security in the Indian ocean region
• issue of incarceration of fishermen by both the countries. For this a Joint Working Group has been formed and a hotline b/w coast guards of both countries
• 

• 
  Conclusion: PM has said every other nation is a friend to Sri lanka, but India is a “relative.”