June 13 (AFP) Nigeria's military indicated on Thursday that it could follow the example of Sri Lanka in fighting terror, to bring an end to an increasingly deadly insurgency by Boko Haram militants. A high-ranking military delegation from the South Asian island nation, led by Chief of Defence Staff General Jagath Jayasuriya, was in the capital, Abuja, to meet their Nigerian counterparts to share experience and expertise. more..

June 13 (DM) For centuries, our plate of rice or ‘Buth Patha’ has provided us not only a wholesome meal but has become part of our culture and traditions. Now unknown to most people, often because they are not bothered to know, a serious danger is lurking and it might affect not only tens of thousands of farmers but also millions of people. The activists and truly Patriotic Movement for Land and Agriculture Reforms (MONLAR) which was started by the enterprising civic rights activist Sarath more..

June 13 (DM) The ancient place of Buddhist worship, Thanthirimale Raja Maha Viharaya is situated in a picturesque valley in the North Central Province, not far away from Anuradhapura, the glorious ancient capital of Sri Lanka. The beautiful stream Malwatuoya, carrying the holy water of the sacred city, Anuradhapura flows by the side of the Raja Maha Viharaya. Malwatuoya and the beautiful lake “the wewa” situated by the side of the temple and the Dagaba constructed on more..

June 13 (DM) A little over a year ago on Vesak Day, May 24, 2013 to be exact, Ven. Bowatte Indraratana Thera made the supreme sacrifice by giving up his precious life opposite the Dalada Maligawa. He made this sacrifice so as to draw public attention to a noble cause -- the slaughter of cattle and other living beings in Sri Lanka in the most inhumane fashion. Thera’s self-sacrifice was similar to the martyrdom of more..

June 13 (CI) Two years after being admitted into the Test arena, Sri Lanka played their first match at Lord's at the end of the 1984 summer. Though ultimately a draw, the match would showcase Sri Lanka's defiance, and deflate England further after a dispiriting season. Jonathan Agnew: It was a strange game really because it was coming off the back of England having been beaten up 5-0 by West Indies. more..

June 13 (ST) Sri Lanka is seeing an unprecedented rise in the number of new hotels being built with 52 being opened this year alone — an average of one per week. Some hoteliers are now concerned that, if the number of tourists does not keep up with the industry’s accelerated expansion, the market will be so fragmented many will go out of business. A small group of entrepreneurs with close ties to the Govt recently made formal more..

June 13 (SL) The looming dengue crisis is going to worsen unless speedy action is taken to clear the mosquito breeding sites, especially in the Western Province, says the Chief Epidemiologist Dr Pabha Palihawadana. Thirty-five deaths and 11,900 dengue cases have been reported island-wide as at last week out of which 20 deaths and 60% of reported cases are from the Western Province, said Dr Palihawadana, who added that more..

June 13 (Hindu) The newly formed PM Narendra Modi-led govt and Tamil Nadu will not be at variance in regard to the political needs of Sri Lankan Tamils, Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran has said. Observing that Tamil Nadu was intertwined in the political complexity in India, he said: “Mr. Modi seems to have identified the priorities as far as our immediate needs are concerned. more..

June 13 (CG) The Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association Maina Kiai has received complaints from Sri Lanka, the Rapporteur said in a statement to the UNHRC. “Various practices also threaten and impede the exercise of assembly rights by marginalised groups and those most at risk. For example, women in many parts of the world are subjected to police violence, harassment and more..

June 13 (DN) Those behind the recently detected massive foreign employment scam and the maintenance of a fake website similar to that of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE), had been collecting monies from job aspirants long before the launch of the bogus web, SLBFE sources said. Earlier, it was believed that the web was the main source used by the suspects to swindle millions of rupees more..

June 13 (Island) A coffee competition to promote the drinking habit in Sri Lanka and also provide exposure to locals wanting to participate in international contests, would be a feature of the ninth edition of the Hotel Show scheduled to commence at the BMICH today. Chairman of the Organising Committee, Trevine Gomez said that the competition entitled "Sri Lanka Barista Championship" aimed at more..

June 13 (LT) Politics, instead of a business, should be a service for the people says the Leader of the JVP Anura Dissanayaka. He said, “Before the 18th amendment to the Constitution was adopted a person in our country could hold the position of the president only twice. The incumbent president brought the 18th amendment and got it adopted. There are provisions to amend the Constitution. more..

June 13 (AM) A section of university teachers of the Jaffna university have opposed the manner in which Poson commemorations were being held at the university yesterday. They said the military was excessively involved in the commemoration, hurting the sentiments of Tamil students in the university. They said this came in a context where the university was prohibited from commemorating the dead on May 18. more..

June 13 (CT) An IRIN report featured in yesterday's issue of this paper, under the headline 'Dengue down but not out' brings into stark focus the losing battle Sri Lanka has been fighting with the Aedes aegypti. Better detection and care, the report said, has led to a dramatic fall in the number of dengue related deaths, but cause for concern is the fact that there has been no corresponding decline in infection rates. This brings into question effectiveness, or rather the impotency of more..

June 13 (CT) Economists since recently apart from the ones at the Central Bank heed to the view that large scale govt spending financed by even larger public borrowings which depletes the capital available for the private sector is at the heart of Sri Lanka’s economic contradictions. They believe its impact permeates over all sectors of the economy with overwhelming influence and ultimately leads to deterioration of external competitiveness, balance of trade deficits, rise ininternal price levels, more..

June 13 (IL) Director General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Irina Bokova and Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Anura Dissanayake signed the Agreement establishing Sri Lanka’s first UNESCO Category II South Asian Centre for Teacher Development at the headquarters of UNESCO in Paris on 10th June. This is the first such regional Centre in the world under the more..

June 13 (LBO) Shares closed 0.7% higher on Friday ending the week on a strong note. All Share Price Index closed 43.86 points higher at 6,337.22 up 0.7%. S&P SL20 closed 28.45 points lower at 3,476.58, down 0.22%. Turnover was 809.41 million rupees, down from 1.40 billion rupees last Wednesday with 142 stocks closed positive against 56 negative. John Keells closed 50 cents lower at 234.00 rupees with an off-market transaction of 109.51 million rupees changing hands at more..

June 13 (Island) Policemen manning a check point in Pasyala shot dead a person close to midnight on Wednesday. The victim was Subash Indika Jayasinghe (23), a father of one. He was returning home on a motorcycle with a friend of his, 18-year-old Sachin Chathuranga. The pillion rider, Sachin told media that his friend had stopped at the check point where policemen were drunk and one of them had shot Subash at point blank range. Sachin said he had rushed his friend to hospital and more..

June 13 (FT) Firecracker politician Harin Fernando believes he can muster a strong challenge to the Rajapaksa regime at the upcoming UPC elections. However, the UNP MP stresses that he has not made any decision nor expressed any interest to the party leadership about any desire to come forward as the chief ministerial candidate. “Any formal and serious requests made will be considered strongly by me provided my presence would more..

June 13 (Island) The Govt Nursing Officers’ Association (GNOA) yesterday warned that they would stage a six-hour walkout today at the Ragama Teaching hospital if the Health Ministry did not issue instructions to midwives to sign on the registry maintained by matrons. GNOA President, Saman Ratnapriya said that midwives of the Ragama and Peradeniya Teaching Hospitals had also commenced signing in separate books. Nurses at Ragama Teaching Hospital staged a walkout more..

June 13 (Reuters) Rupee edged down from a near a one-year high on Friday as importer dollar demand outpaced greenback sales by banks and exporters while state banks bought dollars to prevent volatility. The rupee ended at 130.25/28 per dollar, little changed from Wednesday's close of 130.25/27, which was its highest since June 28, 2013. Both the forex and stock markets were closed on Thursday for a public holiday. "There was late importer dollar demand," said a currency dealer. more..

June 13 (Age) When builders set about restoring the original 150-year-old heritage wing of Colombo's classic Galle Face Hotel they made a fascinating, if not ever so slightly salacious, discovery. On the bottom of a bedside table drawer in one of the suites, an Englishman and a Frenchwoman had penned a message, a titillating time capsule, detailing a torrid four days they had spent in 1944 mainly locked in their room more..

June 13 (CT) The international community has resolved to inquire into the violations of the Rule of Law with regard to the last phase of Sri Lanka’s civil war and thereafter. UNHRC has passed three resolutions over the opposition of the Sri Lankan govt focusing on the issue of accountability for human rights, which is an obligation that is binding on all States. This has been decried by the Sri Lankan govt as motivated by ill will and prejudice and as inimical to national sovereignty. more..

June 13 (LBO) China overtook the UK to become the second largest source of tourists to Sri Lanka in May 2014 and is now second only to India. Chinese arrivals rose 160% from a year earlier to 7,082 in May 2014 compared to 6,913 from the UK, up 5.3% from a year earlier. Arrivals from India, the top source of visitors, were up 28.9% to 22,980. In April China was the fourth largest source of tourists to Sri Lanka, coming behind UK (12,380), Germany (8,137) and India (17,192), data showed. more..

June 13 (AM) The controversy which arose in Aluthgama has demonstrated that the Police follow a "different law" in areas where there is a Muslim majority, BBS Galagodaaththe Gnanasara Thera said. Thera said the Police had failed to take action against those who allegedly assaulted a Buddhist monk who was attending an alms-giving. "We know that the majority of Police officers in Aluthgama reside in mosques. more..

June 13 (Island) All passenger transport drivers will be issued with a special driving licence as part of a govt campaign to prevent road accidents. The scheme will come into effect within one month. Deputy Transport Minister Rohana Dissanayaka said those who had driven heavy vehicles for two years would be eligible to obtain the special licence. He said a study had revealed that reckless driving was the main cause of road accidents. Some drivers drove buses under the influence of liquor more..

June 13 (MoD) Jaffna soldiers received a massive public response and support in the grand Shramadana campaign organized by Security Force Jaffna (SF-J) to eradicate polythene, plastics and other waste materials in order to prevent environment pollution in Jaffna on Saturday. During this one day eco-friendly programme organized to mark the International Environment Day, soldiers representing all Divisions, Brigades and Battalions under the Headquarters SF-J collected more..

June 13 (PTI) Hinduja Group flagship company Ashok Leyland has received an order for supplying 2,200 buses to Sri Lanka. The company said it will supply the buses within the next six months. This is the one of the largest purchase by the Sri Lankan Transport Board (SLTB), as the government aims to modernise its existing fleet and significantly improve the country's public transport network, Ashok Leyland said in a statement. more..

June 13 (Island) Asia Pacific Postal Union 2014 will meet in Colombo from Sept 13 to 19. High officials of the Postal Services of 32 member countries, who make up its Executive Council, will attend this prestigious event in the postal calendar. The inaugural event of the APCU took place in Manila, the Philippines in 1961. Sri Lanka got her turn to host this event following the meeting held in Mongolia in 2011. Minister Jeevan Kumaranatunga believes that this is a golden opportunity to more..

June 13 (LT) Councilors of CWC have carried out thug attacks and threats against estate employees who leave their trade union. The Councilor of Haldummulla PS Ashok Kumar and the Member of the Uva PC Senthil Thondaman have assaulted workers of Poonagala Estate. The attack had been due to the workers leaving CWC and joining All Ceylon Estate Workers Union. A complaint (C/104/68) against the assaults was lodged at Bandarawela Police on 6th June. more..

June 13 (CG) Ministry of External Affairs in coordination with the Sri Lanka High Commission in Nairobi has arranged the repatriation of two Sri Lankan seamen, Mr. S M M Bisthamy and Mr. S D A N Perera, employed on “MV Albedo”, a Malaysian cargo vessel, which was hijacked by Somali pirates in late Nov 2010 with 23 crew members on board, including six Sri Lankans. Due to unusual weather conditions, ship sank on more..

June 13 (SM) Trade Unions charge that the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation incurred a loss of three million rupees daily as a result of a rupture in a pipe-line of a loading buoy anchored off-shore, to supply fuel to the country. The trade unions point out that this situation has arisen as a result of the improper maintenance of the buoy. Representatives point out that the CPC is incurring a loss due to this issue for the past three weeks. Chairman of Petroleum Public Workers Union, Ashok Ranwala said: more..

June 13 (AD) Koswatta Police have arrested a suspect responsible for selling ‘Kerala Ganja’ in the area while 3 kilograms and around 200 packets of ganja were recovered from his residence. The suspect was arrested following a search carried out at a residence near the Kirimetiyana Temple, following a tipoff that he is responsible for selling marijuana across the area. The suspect, a resident of Central Kandy, who had been released after serving a 10 year prisons sentence, more..

June 13 (DM) JVP today submitted an amendment to the Govt motion, which opposes the UNHRC inquiry into allegations of violations of human rights during the last stages of the war. JVP amendment calls for a domestic independent inquiry into the alleged violations of human rights. JVP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake said that they had already handed over the amendment to Parliament General Secretary seeking more..

June 13 (AM) UNP MP Ravi Karunanayake is to present a Parliamentary motion seeking to prevent MSD officials from providing security to family members of MPs and Ministers. There had been a number of instances where MSD officials, who actually belong to the Department of Police, were compelled to provide security not only to family members of MPs, but also to their pets. Recently, a female MP of the UPFA came under criticism for ordering MSD officers to cook and more..

June 13 (Xinhua) Sri Lanka's govt is to begin bunkering facilities at a US$ 360 million Chinese funded port in the southern part of the country, the port authority said in a statement on Friday. Launched on Jan. 15, 2008, the Hambantota Port is being constructed by the Chinese companies China Harbor Engineering Company and Sinohydro Corporation. The total cost of the first phase of the project is estimated at US$ 360 million, excluding US$ 76.5 million for the bunker terminal. more..

June 13 (DN) Defence and Urban Development Ministry launched a massive project spanning over three years to renovate the Beira Lake to enhance the beauty of the city and to redevelop lands adjacent to the lake, for more productive uses creating thousands of employment opportunities on the directive of Gotabhaya Rajapaksa. According to project director N.A.S.N. Nissanka, objective of this project is to reopen Beira Lake to the public. more..

June 13 (AM) Veteran film director Somarathne Dissanayake, who was at one point a staunch supporter of the govt, threatened to topple the present regime if it did not remove the Chairman of the National Film Corporation. "I have more than 5 million fans. I will put forward this mater before them. Supporting the govt does not necessarily mean that maintaining stoic silence over its wrongful deeds. If the govt acts in this manner, the people will certainly be disappointed with the govt. more..

June 13 (LT) The govt is planning to present a resolution in Parliament regarding the move by the UNHRC to visit Sri Lanka for an investigation. The resolution to be presented to Parliament on the 17th would prevent the investigating committee from visiting Sri Lanka if it is adopted says PM D. M. Jayaratna. When asked the General Secretary Tilvin Silva regarding the stand of the JVP regarding this he said, “Ours is a political party that works for the country. Country is first in all our moves. more..

June 13 (CG) The Parliament debate on the investigation to be launched by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) will be conducted on June 17 and 18, Deputy Speaker Chandima Weerakody said today. He said the decision was taken following a party leaders meeting held this morning where the issue was discussed and the dates were decided on. Deputy Speaker said that if required a vote more..