Sri Lanka is celebrating its 77th National Day today. The official celebrations were held at Independence Square in Colombo, featuring a military parade, cultural performances, and a special address by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake. The president urged the nation to focus on building a brighter future rather than looking back at past challenges. He emphasised the collective hope and expectation shared by all Sri Lankans to unite in the quest for a modern, progressive nation.

While the people faced crises over the last few years, the president pledged to heal Sri Lanka’s economic woes by the end of his five-year term. The government of the debt-stricken nation had decided to keep the expenses for the celebration at a minimum by reducing the amount spent as compared to previous years. Last year nearly 200 million Sri Lankan rupees were spent on the celebrations, in contrast to 87 million rupees being spent this year.

External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar also conveyed his greetings on the 77th Independence Day to his counterpart Vijitha Herath and all the people of Sri Lanka in a social media post and said that he is committed to advancing the multi-faceted partnership benefitting the people of both nations.

As the island nation of Sri Lanka marks its 77th Independence Day, there is renewed talk of unity, with President Dissanayake calling on all Sri Lankans to work together towards national recovery and development. Having faced severe economic and political crises in recent years, people have reposed fresh hope for stability and progress in the new government. While challenges remain, the new government appears to be making efforts, as has been seen in cutting expenses while celebrating Independence Day as well.