You and I have a special connection: PM Modi’s message to tea-growing community in Sri Lanka

“I have a special association with tea” was how Prime Minister Narendra Modi made an instant connect with the Tamil community members here in the tea-growing Central Province of Sri Lanka.

Modi, while addressing thousands of Tamils at a rally in the presence of Lankan President Maithripala Srisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, also invoked “chai pe charcha”, saying it was not just a slogan but a “mark of deep respect for the dignity and integrity of honest labour”.

He lauded Ceylon tea, saying it was world famous but what was lesser known was the sweat and labour behind it.

“If Sri Lanka today is the third largest exporter of tea, it is because of your hard work. It is your labour of love which is instrumental in Sri Lanka meeting almost 17 per cent of the world’s demand for tea, and earning more than 1.5 billion US dollars in foreign exchange,” Modi said.

He hailed the Indian-origin Tamils, many of them tea plantation workers, saying, “You are that indispensable backbone of the thriving Sri Lankan tea industry that justly prides itself on its success and global reach today.” Hailing the hard work of the tea plantation workers, Modi said their contribution was “deeply …read more