External Minister S M Krishna arrives in Colombo on Thursday on a four day official visit to boost up bilateral relations, amid growing Chinese footprints in Sri Lanka.

The highest ranking Indian leader to tour the country after the war with the LTTE ended 18 months ago, Krishna is likely to press for greater devolution on the island where thousands of Tamils are still struggling to be repatriated back to their homes.

“The minister will arrive in the afternoon”,Indian High Commission official in Colombo said.

His Sri Lankan counterpart G L Peiris told parliament on Wednesday that Krishna’s visit will be beneficial to Sri Lanka in terms of financial assistance.

The two external affairs ministers will preside the Joint commission in Colombo to review the progress of five years of since its last meeting in 2005.

The commission reviews the bilateral commitments by two countries.

Apart from bilateral talks with the President Mahinda Rajapksha and other government representatives Krishna will declare open two Indian consulates in Island’s north and south.

He will be flown to Hambantota, the ancestral home town of President Rajapksha in the south to open one of two consulates on Friday where Chinese assisted island’s second international harbour is being built.

The other consulate will be opened in Jaffna, northern most city in the island where the Tamil militancy was born.

Krishna will be the first Indian foreign minister to travel to Jaffna after K Natwar Singh in 1989.

In north he will also participate in the of work on thr 50,000 housing development project for the war displaced persons and a railway development project.