Oct 21 (SAMN) Artistes who distributed pro-Premier Mahinda Rajapakse leaflets requesting people to vote for the candidate opposite the Fort Railway Station, argue with a policeman who brought in an order preventing them. Police prevented The National Organisation of Sri Lankan Artistes distributing leaflets in support of UPFA Presidential candidate more..

Oct 21 (LNP) Addressing a propaganda rally at Kolonnawa junction on Wednesday, the UPFA Presidential candidate said that unlike the UNP leader, he had not forgotten the journalists in his manifesto, `Mahinda Chintanaya`. He claimed that Ranil Wickremesinghe had discarded the journalists like the proverbial `karapincha and rampe` in his `People`s Agenda.` more..

Oct 21 (LNP) The Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) said yesterday that the UNP`s presidential candidate Ranil Wickremesinghe was a pawn of the LTTE and other racist parties such as CWC and SLMC. He is acting true to their dream of separatism. more..

Oct 21 (SAMN) Health Services Trade Union Alliance (HSTUA) Thursday urged the prime minister to investigate into the sudden cutback in the Health Sector salaries by the Health Ministry, which led to an island-wide strike last Wednesday. more..

Oct 21 (DN) Nava Sihala Urumaya Party (NSUP) leader and Secretary General Sarath Manamendra said they will support Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse at the Presidential election. He said the main idea of forming the new political party was to keep the members who supported the Jathika Hela Urumaya, by drifting away from it with displeasure over the way MP Buddhist monks act. more..

Oct 21 (CI) Tom Moody, Sri Lanka's Australian-born coach, has said that the tour of India will be the start of a series of challenges that lies ahead. Since Moody took over as coach four months ago, Sri Lanka have had an easy run at home beating West Indies and Bangladesh in Tests and one-day internationals and winning the tri-series final against India. more..

Oct 21 (Xinhua) The Sri Lankan government has decided to implement a national medicinal drug policy with the objective of ensuring affordability and equitable access to medicine, Daily News reported Friday. more..

Oct 21 (Xinhua) The Sri Lankan government assured that there was no immediate threat of avian flu in the island country despite the spread of the deadly virus in several Southeast Asian and European countries, Daily News reported Friday. more..

Oct 21 (AP) A Sri Lankan man was sentenced to death for possessing 4.64 grams (0.16 ounces) of heroin, following a five-year trial. Judge Sunil Rakapakse of the Colombo High Court said he imposed the death penalty against Lakshman Jayaweera because of his eight previous convictions for possessing heroin and because he sold the drug, more..

Oct 21 (Gulf) The ruling United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) yesterday sparked off a fresh controversy over the ban on display of election posters during the election campaign and blamed the police and sections of the media for misinterpreting election laws. more..

Oct 21 (AFP) Prime minister will scrap proposals to sell state-owned companies if he is elected president next month, his economic adviser said. That would include halting plans by outgoing President Chandrika Kumaratunga to cut the government's 49.5 percent stake in Sri Lanka Telecom, more..

Oct 21 (BBC) The outgoing President Chandrika Kumaratunga has appointed Deputy Minister Dilan Perera as Cabinet Minister for Estate Housing, Infrastructure and Community Development. Dilan Perera was involved in a bitter row with some of the senior figures of the ruling party and reported to have spoken aginst the policies of the JVP. more..

Oct 22 (Reuters) Sri Lanka are determined to make an impact on their first tour of India after an unusually long gap of six years in a one-day series starting next week, captain Marvan Atapattu said on Friday. Sri Lanka have not toured India since playing in a one-day tri-series in 1999. more..

Oct 22 (AP) Relatives of ethnic Tamils who disappeared allegedly after being arrested a decade ago by security forces on Friday demanded that Sri Lanka reveal their fate or compensate the bereaved families. "We have been waiting for our sons to return for all these years. We demand that the government reveal what happened to them," more..

Oct 22 (TN) Mr Mahinda Rajapakse has brought the Sinhala approach to resolving the Tamil National question a full circle by rejecting the concepts of Tamil home land, right to self determination, federal solution, and the P-TOMS, and re-affirming Tamils belief that the Sinhala south is incapable of shedding the chauvinist mindset, more..

Oct 22 (TN) Eighteenth death anniversary of twenty-one persons including medical specialists, nurses, attendants, patients and members of public who were massacred inside Jaffna Teaching Hospital (JTH) by Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) troops stationed in Jaffna Fort on 21st October, 1987 was held at the Jaffna Teaching Hospital Friday, more..

Oct 22 (TN) The headquarters of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) was declared open Friday evening in Trincomalee town on the eve of the Trincomalee National Tamil Resurgence Convention to be held on Saturday morning. Mr.Mavai Senathirajah, Jaffna district TNA parliamentarian lit the flame of sacrifice. more..

Oct 22 (BBC) Supreme Court has rejected a petition filed by twenty three police officers against a decision by the National Police Commission to interdict them for alleged torture and assault. They have been charged with alleged assault and torture to detainees while in police custody. more..

Oct 22 (WBG) About 220,000 Sri Lankan families affected by last December's tsunami have received up to three installments of cash grants worth US$50 each, with another installment on the way soon. more..

Oct 22 (Reuters) Sri Lankan tea production rose 9.4 percent in September compared with a year earlier, the Sri Lanka Tea Board said on Friday, citing favourable weather and improved agricultural practices. Output of black tea for the month rose to 24.06 million kg from 21.99 million kg in September 2004. more..

Oct 22 (AT) Sri Lanka Arts Council of Australia has condemned the Sri Lanka Police for preventing The National Organisation of Sri Lankan Artistes from distributing leaflets, opposite the Fort Railway Station in Colombo on last Thursday, in support of UPFA presidential candidate Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse. more..

Oct 22 (LT) The country will be developed giving prominence to four main principles said Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse addressing a rally held at Pelawatta in Kalutara. Developing a National economy, establishing a dignified peace without dividing the country, building a lawful and disciplined society and creating a virtuous society for children more..

Oct 22 (LT) A programme to find employment for rural youth will be implemented when he becomes the President says Leader of the Opposition Ranil Wickremasinghe. He said so addressing a meeting held at Manampitiya in Polonnaruwa District. more..

Oct 22 (LT) Muslim National Liberation Front and National Congress have decided to support Mr. Mahinda Rajapakse. An agreement between these parties and UPFA General Secretary Susil Premajayanthe in this regard was signed. more..

Oct 22 (LT) A special meeting of representatives of presidential candidates, representatives of political parties and Commissioner of Elections Dayananda Dishanayake was held yesterday morning. DIG Gamini Nawaratna of the Police Elections Secretariat too participated at the discussion which was held in Elections Secretariat. more..

Oct 22 (TN) Sri Lanka Army (SLA) Friday morning handed over a portion of agricultural lands in Thanankilappu in Thenmaradchy Jaffna coming within the purview of high security zone of Thenmaradchchi south division in Jaffna district for cultivation. more..

Oct 22 (TN) Tamil speaking people in large numbers from north, west and south of the Trincomalee district attended the Tamil National Resurgence Convention held Saturday morning in the Playground located along the Inner Harbour Road in the east port city which is controlled by the Sri Lanka Army. more..

Oct 22 (TN) Jaffna district Government Agent (GA), Mr K Ganesh, in a meeting with election officials and officers of the Sri Lanka Army, informed that the Election Commissioner has directed him to arrange clustered polling booths near Muhamalai area to allow the voters in the Liberation Controlled areas in Vanni district to exercise their franchise, more..

Oct 22 (UNP) UNP presidential candidate Ranil in kanthale said that getting the country under one flag can only be done by providing federal solution to the ethnic crisis. It is President Chandrika Kumaratunga who proposed this solution for the north east problem. more..

Oct 22 (UNP) Addressing Medirigirya and Higurakkgoda rallies, UNP leader Ranil Wickramesinghe told large gatherings that he will stop import of rice in order to protect the local farmers and give Rs. 17 for Paddy. more..

Oct 22 (LM) ‘The Ceylon House', in the Holy City of Mecca, a gift from the late King Faisal Ibnu Abdul Aziz to the Muslim national leader Dr. T. B. Jayah in 1960, for use by Sri Lankan Muslims as a pilgrims rest, is today in a critical situation, former Parliamentary Affairs Minister A. H. M. Azwer says. more..

Oct 22 (LM) The official LTTE newspaper published in Kilinochchi said the rebels were training civilians in armed combat in preparation for a possible war in the future. The publication titled ‘Viduthlai Pulikal' (Liberation Tigers), has said in its front page article that the Tamil community was fed with false promises by the Sinhala leaders continuously and Tamils were prepared to defend their rights at any time. more..

Oct 22 (LM) The Met Department yesterday warned that landslides and floods could follow prevailing monsoonal weather conditions. The lower reaches of the Kelani, Gin Ganga and Kalu Ganga were particularly susceptible, Meteorologist Ajith Weerawardhane told yesterday. more..

Oct 22 (Hindu) A Colombo-bound SriLankan Airlines plane was damaged after hit by a stepladder a few minutes before take-off from Calicut Airport at Karipur on Friday. The incident took place at 10.04 a.m. when SriLankan Airlines flight UL170 was preparing to take off. There were 84 passengers on board. more..

Oct 22 (TP) Sri Lankans are so particular about their eating habits that even deportees and jail inmates cannot do without the flavour of their country’s tea. And, the Sri Lankan embassy in Doha ensures that stocks of aromatic Sri Lankan tea, sugar and other essentials are supplied to them on a regular basis. more..

Oct 22 (Xinhua) Sri Lanka Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake called on the political parties of the 13 presidential candidates to review steps that should be taken to ensure a free and fair poll on Nov. 17, Daily News reported Saturday. more..

Oct 22 (PIS) The agricultural sector in the North and East, especially paddy cultivation, has enjoyed a phenomenal growth rate since the signing of the ceasefire between the government and the LTTE, with this year’s paddy harvest in particular registering landmark figures not seen since 1983, more..

Oct 22 (SAMN) Justice Minster John Seneviratne yesterday suspended the Justice of the Peace appointment of Lal Peiris alias Kudu Lal and hailed the media for exposing his identity which the police had allegedly tried to acover up. more..

Oct 22 (SAMN) A number of documents related to the assassination of Army’s 2nd Intelligence Corps Commanding Officer Major Tuan Muthaliff were found in the possession of an inmate of the Welikade Remand Prison. Prison authorities refused, due to security reasons, to reveal the identity of the prisoner, who is being held in connection with the assassination. more..

Oct 22 (LNP) A jailer was nabbed in the act of accepting a bribe by Bribery Commission officers at Borella yesterday. A group of foreigners, visiting their friend, the British Paedophile suspect in the Remand Prison hospital had complained to the Bribery Commission that they were regularly being approached by prison officials more..

Oct 22 (LNP) Finance Minister Dr. Sarath Amunugama on Thursday stressed the need to reach equality within the economy in a bid to do away with the differences between prosperity and poverty.One of the areas of difference is in trying to create islands of prosperity in a sea of poverty, more..

Oct 22 (LNP) Costly military operations may have stopped because of the CFA, but yesterday we reported a police op had cost the public dearly. It is not a foray into the underworld or any other crime busting offensive. It was against the wayside election posters. more..

Oct 22 (DN) TRAFFIC detections by Police for this year had increased to 156,000 as against last year's 136,000, IGP Chandra Fernando said yesterday. So far, 16,000 vehicles had been damaged in accidents. More than 24,000 vehicles were damaged last year. There were 1,537 major road accidents last year. This year's tally so far is 1,518, the IGP added. more..

Oct 22 (LeN) TNA parliamentarian Nadaraja Raviraj says the party is exploring the possibility of supporting a third candidate without aligning with either Ranil Wickremesinghe or Mahinda Rajapaksa. He said the party is contemplating their support for a third candidate as the Tamil people cannot be expected to be benefited by the two main candidates. more..

Oct 22 (LeN) Sri Lanka Freedom Party leader, President Chandrika Kumaratunga has sounded a warning to SLFP members about a conspiracy hatched by the Janatha vimukthi Peramuna with the support of a faction of her own party to destroy the SLFP and the Bandaranaikes. more..

Oct 22 (PTI) I cannot help but begin on a note of discord. I am extremely disappointed with the itinerary for the present one-day series between India and Sri Lanka. All the matches are scheduled at little-known centres. The Indian board must have had their reasons for spreading the game in the hinterland but it does not do Justice to the status of the number two team in the world. more..

Oct 22 (Xinhua) The Sri Lankan Rugby Sevens team will take part in the Commonwealth Games on March 16-17, 2006 in Melbourne, Australia. The Lankans have been drawn into Group C along with Australia and Cook Islands, President of the Sri Lanka Rugby Football Union Priyantha Ekanayake was quoted as saying. more..

Oct 22 (TP) Mangala Samaraweera, campaign chief of Prime Minister and Presidential candidate Mahinda Rajapakse on Thursday accused the opposition United National Party (UNP) of being behind Sunday night’s attack on the printing press of The Sunday Leader and Irudina newspapers. more..

Oct 22 (CI) A no ball from Dilhara Fernando and Sawant scampering across for a risky single saw the hosts attain a three-wicket win in the last ball of the 50th over. The MCA President's XI who were off to a steady start later suffered a near-collapse as the asking rate spiked. more..

Oct 22 (AP) Supporters at a rally held in eastern Sri Lanka Saturday urged the European Union to be "realistic" and lift a travel ban clamped on Tamil Tiger rebels. The EU announced earlier this month that representatives of the LTTE will be refused entry into member states until the bloc considers whether to add the guerrillas to its list of terrorist organizations. more..