Colombo [Sri Lanka], November 3 (ANI): Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Governor of Sri Lanka's Northern Province P. S. M. Charles on Friday inaugurated a State Bank of India branch in Jaffna in the presence of India's High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Gopal Baglay and State Bank of India Chairman Dinesh Khara, during her three-day official visit to Sri Lanka.

The Union Finance Minister had inaugurated another SBI branch in Trincomalee on Thursday.

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"Union Finance Minister Smt. @nsitharaman and Ms. P.S.M. Charles, Governor of Northern Province, inaugurated the second State Bank of India Branch in Jaffna in presence of Shri Gopal Baglay, India's High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, and Chairman @TheOfficialSBI Shri Dinesh Khara during her official visit to Sri Lanka, today," as per the Finance Ministry official handle on 'X'.

Sitharaman noted that the branch at Jaffna would cater to emerging business potential in Sri Lanka's Northern Provinces.

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The Union Finance Minister appreciated that SBI became the first foreign Bank in Sri Lanka to successfully launch pathbreaking direct LKR-INR trade. This initiative has gained momentum and found currency among local corporates, besides giving vital support to the Sri Lankan economy by giving an option to importers of Sri Lanka without dependency on the US Dollar.

"Being the oldest bank in Sri Lanka, SBI is steadily scaling up its remittance services by leveraging a strong digital platform, which includes the SBI Sri Lanka YONO app and online banking, alongside its traditional in-branch operations," the Finance Ministry wrote on 'X'.

After the inauguration of the new SBI branch, the Finance Minister distributed passbooks to new customers in Jaffna.

Sitharaman on Friday also visited the Jaffna Cultural Centre and Jaffna Public Library.

"Union Finance Minister Smt. @nsitharaman visited Jaffna Cultural Centre and Jaffna Public Library along with Ms P.S.M. Charles, Governor of Northern Province, Sri Lanka, and Shri Gopal Baglay, India's High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, during the last day of her official visit to Sri Lanka, today," as per the Finance Ministry's official handle on 'X'.

The foundation stone of the Jaffna Cultural Centre building was laid by Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi in March 2015, during the first such visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Jaffna. The Jaffna Cultural Centre #JCC, a state-of-the-art facility to foster arts and promote cultural pursuits in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka, was built with Indian grant assistance of USD 11 million.

"During the visit to the India corner at the Jaffna Public Library, Union Finance Minister Smt. @nsitharaman paid her respects to the former President of India, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, and Tamil poet and philosopher Thiruvalluvar," as per the Finance Ministry.

The Union Finance Minister on Wednesday embarked on the three-day visit to Sri Lanka. (ANI)

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