Foreign Secretary of India Nirupama Rao on Sunday inaugurated the India-Sri Lanka Centre for English Language Training (SLICELT) at a ceremony in Peradeniya, near Kandy. In a statement issued by the Indian mission in Colombo said that while speaking at the inauguration ceremony, the Foreign Secretary recalled her association with the initiative, which went back to 2006 when she was the High Commissioner of India in Sri Lanka, and added that she was happy to see the initiative reach an important milestone as signified by the establishment of SLICELT.She said that India was happy to be involved in an initiative that aimed at developing ‘tools of empowerment’ for the ordinary people. She added that India was interested in a more intensive economic cooperation that led to a development of a balanced relationship between the two countries.She referred to India and Sri Lanka as ‘sister countries’, which shared a ‘model, unique, and time-tested’ relationship. Speaking of the high human development indicators in Sri Lanka, she felt that there was much for India to learn from Sri Lanka and stated that in this sense, relationship between India and Sri Lanka was one of ‘give and take’.The ceremony was also attended by the Minister of Education, Susil Premajayanth, the Minister of Public Administration & Home Affairs and the Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on English and IT, Sarath Amunugama, the Governor of the Central Province Tikiri Kobbekaduwa, the Chief Minister of the Central Province Sarath Ekanayake, Secretary to the President of Sri Lanka, Lalith Weeratunga, and the Indian High Commissioner Ashok Kantha and other senior officials of the Government of Sri Lanka and India.