A special discussion was held at the Ministry of Defence under the patronage of the Author and First Trustee of the ‘Deegawapiya Aruna Trust’, Defence Secretary, Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuiyakontha (Retd) today (Jan. 21).

During the discussion, special attention was paid to the construction of the hemispherical dome of the ‘Stupa ’ and the plans and work to be completed in the pilgrims' rest hall.

Renovation work of the ‘Deegavapi Stupa’, which is considered to be an ancient Buddhist sacred religious, has made great progress. The Defence Secretary instructed the officials to carry out the renovation work in the hemispherical dome of the ‘Stupa’ conforming to proper standards and to complete the pilgrims' rest and other construction work as required. He also emphasized that the advice of experts should be sought regularly and necessary arrangements should be made in this regard.

Ven. Mahaoya Sobitha Thero, Incumbent of the Deegavapiya Temple, Ven. Boralande Vajiragnana Thero, Incumbent of Sri Sambodhi Temple and Chairman of the Buddhist Channel, Director General of the Archaeology Department, Director General of the National Building Research Organization, General Officer Commanding 24^th Infantry Division Headquarters, officers of the Central Advisory Bureau for Engineering, officers of the National Engineering Research and Development Center of Sri Lanka, Senior Project Management Officer, as well as a group of officers including architects, designers, development officers involved in the project, were present or this discussion.