Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Gopal Baglay today handed over humanitarian supplies worth around Rs. 3.4 billion donated by the people of India to Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Sabry PC and Minister of Health and Water Supplies Keheliya Rambukwella in Colombo.
Member of Parliament Jeevan Thondaman and Ceylon Worker’s Congress leader Senthil Thondaman also attended the event, the High Commission said.
The large humanitarian consignment consisting of 16,594 MT of rice, 200 MT of milk powder and around 38 MT of medicines was donated by Government of Tamil Nadu.
This was the third such consignment from Government of Tamil Nadu, which have donated a total of 40,000 MT of rice, 500 MT of milk powder and more than 100 MT of medicines whose total worth is more than USD 22 million.
Critical medicines like 25,000 doses of anti-rabies vaccine formed a part of these supplies.
These supplies are distributed among the beneficiaries by Government of Sri Lanka and the humanitarian supplies which were handed over on 26 July 2022 are also expected to reach the beneficiaries in different parts of Sri Lanka in the coming days, the statement said.
“The people of India have been complementing Government of India’s efforts in standing with the people of Sri Lanka towards addressing their diverse needs. To this end, overwhelming and multi-pronged support of over USD 3.8 billion by Government of India to the Sri Lankan people during the year was strengthened by independent initiatives of various hospitals, Indian community organizations in Sri Lanka and several other entities based in India who donated generously for their brethren in Sri Lanka.”
“The coming together of the people and Government of India towards the cause underscores the abiding people to people connect between India and Sri Lanka and the mutual care and concern for each other,” the Indian High Commission added.
