The 8th Construction, Power & Energy Expo 2023 was declared open on Friday at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) by India’s Deputy High Commissioner Vinod K. Jacob.
It is the premier exhibition in Sri Lanka’s construction, interior products, power and energy-related sectors. This year’s exhibition was held from July 7 to 9 and also included international pavilions containing stalls from China and India.
After declaring the exhibition open, the Indian Deputy High Commissioner walked through the Indian pavilion and visited many of the stalls.
Those who were in attendance also expected he would visit the Chinese section of the exhibition. The Deputy High Commissioner however, left immediately after visiting the Indian section and made no move to step into the section containing Chinese stalls.
Many of those in attendance wondered openly whether geo-political tensions between the two Asian rivals had forced the diplomat to pointedly avoid visiting the Chinese side of the exhibition and if it amounted to a violation of sovereignty
Sunday Times. SL
