The Confederation of Indian Industry has sought more flights to Sri Lanka for boosting bilateral trade between New Delhi and Colombo.

CII was pressing the government to allow private airlines to operate flights and help ease the pressure on Indian Airlines, which offers only limited number of seats to Colombo, CII chairman of trade fairs, Subodh Bhargava, said.

"It is time that India allowed private airlines to go at least to the neighbouring countries," Bhargava said. "There is a great need for more seats between India and Sri Lanka."

He said hundreds of Indians who arrived here for the ongoing 'Made In India' trade fair found it was a welcome change to receive visa on arrival at the Colombo international airport and wanted New Delhi to reciprocate.

He said bilateral trade hit a billion dollars last year with India exporting goods worth $831 million while Sri Lanka sent goods to the value of $167 million.

The free trade agreement between the two countries was boosting trade despite teething problems, Bhargava said.

He said there were tremendous opportunities for Indian education institutes to set up campuses in Sri Lanka where there was a crying need for higher education. Similarly, India could learn from Lanka's successful tourism industry, he said.

Some 130 Indian industrialists are exhibiting their products and services at a major trade fair, which ends Saturday. The fair was opened by Sri Lanka's Constitutional Affairs Minister G L Peiris on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Ram Naik arrived in Colombo om Wednesday to inaugurate Indian Oil Corporation's first gas station in the island nation.