July 29, 2017 marks 30 years of the signing of the historic Indo-Lanka Accord, which sought to end the civil war in the island nation.
It was under the accord, signed by the then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and President J.R. Jayawardena, that the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) was sent to Sri Lanka's Northern and Eastern provinces, to “guarantee and enforce the cessation of hostilities” between the Tamil separatist groups and the government. However, the situation turned into a military confrontation between the IPKF and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), which refused to disarm and join the political mainstream.
The IPKF-LTTE conflict that began on October 10, 1987, and lasted till 1990 saw the death of over 1,200 Indian soldiers and 660 LTTE cadres.
