Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe arrived to offer worship at the famous hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara at nearby Tirumala.

Prime Minister Wickremesinghe along with wife and other officials arrived at Renigunta airport by a special helicopter from Chennai this evening and drove to the sacred hills, Chairman of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams Chadalawada Krishnamurthy said.

After an overnight stay on the hills, the Prime Minister and his wife would offer worship today morning and leave for Chennai to fly back to Sri Lanka, he said. 

Prime Minister Wickremesinghe's last visit to the temple in his capacity as Prime Minister was in 2002. 

Meanwhile, tight security has been put in place on the hills and at the airport.

Prime Minister Wickramasinghe visited the Guruvayur Sreekrishna Temple earlier this year.