The India-Sri Lanka Foundation has greenlit 13 projects worth approximately Rs. 21 million focused on education, culture, and technology, while calling for enhanced financial resources to expand its scope.

The India-Sri Lanka Foundation approved 13 collaborative initiatives during its 41st Board of Directors meeting held in New Delhi on August 28. The projects, valued at around Rs. 21 million, span multiple sectors including education, culture, agriculture, science and technology, with the aim of deepening bilateral relations between the two nations.

The approval process involved rigorous selection from a substantial pool of applications. According to the foundation's Colombo Secretariat, more than 500 project proposals were initially received. Following a vetting procedure, this number was narrowed to 137 shortlisted candidates. Of the 20 proposals ultimately presented to the board for consideration, 13 secured approval.

The meeting, co-chaired by Sri Lankan High Commissioner to India Mahishini Colonne and Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Santosh Jha, revealed notable interest in the foundation's work. The New Delhi Secretariat received 149 proposals from Indian nationals despite not formally soliciting submissions due to budgetary limitations, suggesting growing engagement in both countries. Board members emphasized that the foundation's financial capacity requires strengthening, with an expanded Corpus Fund needed to facilitate additional people-to-people exchanges and support more initiatives.

Established in 1998 through an intergovernmental agreement, the India-Sri Lanka Foundation functions as a conduit for bilateral cooperation across economic, scientific, educational, technical and cultural domains. The foundation coordinates exchanges involving students, academics, researchers, professionals and artists between the two nations.