India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will undertake an official visit to Sri Lanka from September 8 to 10. This will be the first visit by an Indian Defence Minister to the island nation in 38 years.

During the three-day trip, Singh is scheduled to hold consultations with Sri Lanka's top leadership on bilateral, regional, and defence-related issues. He will also interact with members of the Indian diaspora in Colombo.

The last Indian Defence Minister to visit Sri Lanka was K.C. Pant, who made the trip in 1988 while serving in Rajiv Gandhi's Cabinet.

According to sources in India's Ministry of Defence, the visit is expected to give fresh momentum to the growing India-Sri Lanka defence partnership. Discussions are likely to cover defence cooperation, including possible collaboration in air-defence systems.