Sri Lanka Navy is providing assistance to thousands of devotees expected to attend the annual festival of St. Anthony's church dedicated to St. Anthony, the patron-saint of seafarers.

The Navy has taken steps to provide the island with necessary facilities for the feast in addition to the security for the festival.

The Navy says it has provided all infrastructure facilities, including development of all by-roads and installation of sanitary and drinking water facilities in the island to conduct the feast in a grand scale.

Also, jetties have been made ready for people to secure their boats conveniently. The Navy has renovated and newly painted the Church for the Feast.

The navy will deploy special lifesaving and medical teams to ensure the safety of the devotees attending the annual festival.

Fishermen of both Sri Lanka and South India participate in the feast of the St Anthony's Church in the uninhabited island.

The devotees from India continued to attend the festivities of the St. Anthony's Church which was established in 1905. The practice was interrupted during the three-decade long conflict during which the public was not allowed to visit the island due to security situation.