Poj Hornpol, the Ambassador of Thailand to Sri Lanka, met with former Diyawadana Nilame Neranjan Wijayaratne yesterday (20), to discuss the Thai government’s focus on providing an elephant hospital with facilities to Sri Lanka.
The ambassador expressed regret over the improper treatment of Muthu Raja, the tusker , which led to his removal from Sri Lanka. He highlighted that if proper treatment had been provided, Muthu Raja could have remained in the country.
As Muthu Raja was a diplomatic gift to Sri Lanka, the ambassador urged the Sri Lankan government to pay more attention to the well-being of such elephants.
The former Diyawadana Nilamaya told the ambassador that the tusker had been given to Kanda Vihara by the former President and if the same tusker had been given to Dalada Maliga instead, this kind of thing could have been avoided.
The ambassador and former Diyawadana Nilamaya engaged in conversation for about 3 hours at the resident of the Neranjan Wijeyratne where they discussed about the friendship between Sri Lanka and Thailand.
