May 01, 2026 06:23 am (IST)
Follow us:
facebook-white sharing button
twitter-white sharing button
instagram-white sharing button
youtube-white sharing button
‘Not necessary to humiliate me with arrest’: Pawan Khera to SC over remarks on Himanta Biswa Sarma’s wife | ‘Let’s not choose for people capable of choosing’: Supreme Court to Centre on teen pregnancy termination | I-PAC co-founder Vinesh Chandel gets bail after Bengal polls conclude | Exit Polls Give Bengal to BJP—But One Survey Begs to Differ | Big defence push: Rajnath Singh to hold high-stakes talks with Italy’s Defence Minister | “Voting without fear”: PM Modi hails record turnout in West Bengal polls | Mamata Banerjee trying to intimidate Hindu voters, alleges Suvendu Adhikari in Bhabanipur | Operation Sindoor boost: India is now fifth-largest military spender at USD 92.1 billion in 2025, Pakistan's spending is also up | ‘Got the guts?’ Derek O’Brien dares Modi to quit if Mamata Banerjee wins Bengal polls | ECI ‘harassing’ TMC, dancing to BJP’s tune: Mamata Banerjee in Bhabanipur
Narendra Modi
Image: Namal Rajapaksa Twitter page

Sri Lankan Minister hands first copy of Sinhala-Tamil translation of Bhagavad Gita to PM Narendra Modi

| @indiablooms | Oct 20, 2021, at 11:01 pm

Kushinagar: Sri Lankan Minister for Youth and Sports Namal Rajapaksa, the son of Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, on Wednesday handed over the first copy of the English Sinhala and Tamil translations of the Bhagavad Gita to Prime Minister Narendra Modi here.

Namal, who led the Sri Lankan delegation that arrived on the inaugural flight from Colombo to Kushinagar, had in his speech at the inauguration of the airport thanked Prime Minister Modi for extending a grant of $15 million to Sri Lanka for strengthening the Buddhist ties between the two countries.

He posted a series of tweets on his meeting Prime Minister Modi. He also said the translation of the Bhagavad Gita was commissioned by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa as a symbol of the people to people friendship and cultural similarities between the two countries.

“The greatest gift Sri Lanka received from India is Buddhism! We have always shared a close relationship between our nations and our people! It is the vision of HE President GotabayaR

& HE PM @narendramodi to strengthen this bond between our nations and our people.

“Handed over the first copy of the English Sinhala & Tamil translations of the Bhagwad Gita to HE PM @narendramodi today. The translation of the sacred text was commissioned by HE

@PresRajapaksa as symbol of our people to people friendship and our cultural similarities,” he tweeted.

Separately, Prime Minister Modi offered prayers at the Mahaparinirvana Temple in Kushinagar as part of the Abhidhamma Day prayers and also planted a Bodhi tree sapling.

He performed Chivar Dana (presented robes) to all the monks present there, including the 100 monks from Sri Lanka, and also to the statue of the reclining Buddha inside the temple.

Meanwhile, Indian PM Narendra Modi inaugurated Kushinagar International Airport on Wednesday.

Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister said that India is the centre of the faith of Buddhist society around the world.

He termed the facility of Kushinagar International Airport, launched today as a tribute to their devotion.

This region, the Prime Minister said, is witness to the entire journey from the enlightenment of Lord Buddha to Mahaparinirvana.

"Today this important region is getting directly connected to the world," he said.

(With UNI inputs)

Support Our Journalism

We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism

IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.

Support objective journalism for a small contribution.