India funds Lanka housing scheme named after regime change monk

The Indian government has funded a housing village in north-central Sri Lanka named after a leading Buddhist monk who was instrumental in the ouster of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa in the presidential election in 2015.

A ceremony was held yesterday to lay the foundation stone for the 153-house project at Elapathagama in Anuradhapura named the 'Most Ven Maduluwave Sobhitha Thero Village', the Indian High Commission here said in a release.

The village will be developed using a grant of 300 million Sri Lankan rupees from the government of India, the project is part of India's development cooperation with Sri Lanka," the release said.

Sobhitha was instrumental in galvanising the opposition forces against the regime of Rajapaksa.

Incumbent President Maithripala Sirisena was picked as the common opposition candidate against Rajapaksa by the Sobhitha-led civil movement.

Rajapaksa after his defeat had slammed India and the West for allegedly working against him to ensure Sirisena's victory.

Sobhitha passed away in 2017 after heart surgery.