Colombo, Nov 21 (IANS): India is funding a $150 million railway line to connect for the first time in decades the former war-torn north of Sri Lanka with the country's south, an official statement said here Monday.

An agreement for the restoration of the Pallai-Kankesanthurai railway line in the Northern Province was signed between Sri Lanka and India, a statement from the transport ministry said.

The project is likely to be completed in 2013, said the ministry.

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) leader V. Prabhakaran was killed by the Sri Lankan Army in May 2009 that ended a nearly three decades old civil war in the country.

The length of the Pallai-Kankesanthurai railway line is approximately 56 km, reported Xinhua.

This project would be funded as a part of an $800 million credit line extended by the Indian government at concessional rates with a repayment period of 20 years.

Another railway project in southern Sri Lanka is also being funded under an additional line of credit of $167.4 million provided by the Indian government.