Apr 9 (Island) On successful completion of the 5th Asymmetric Warfare Course conducted from January 9 to April 6, the certificate awarding and insignia pinning among the course participants got off the ground at SLNS Parakrama under the patronage of Chief of Staff of the Navy, Rear Admiral Sirimevan Ranasinghe. He said that the SL Navy was more than happy to share its hard-earned asymmetric warfare experience with more..

Apr 9 (CT) President Maithripala Sirisena in an interview with our sister paper Maubima said that people who elected him are still hopeful that the problems could be resolved through this govt. "I like to unite and not to divide", he said. Q: This is the third year since you were elected as President. Half of the term of the govt is already over. Are you satisfied with your performance in terms of establishing good governance? more..

Apr 9 (SO) The JO will make a request that it should be granted permission again to move the Adjournment Motion on UNHRC Resolution which was cancelled on Thursday due to heated arguments between Govt and JO over time allocation, JO Leader Dinesh Gunawardena said. “As Parliament will meet again only in the first week of May (May 2-3), there is no hurry, but we will make a request to take up the aborted debate,” more..

Apr 9 (ST) A resident of Point Pedro, now living overseas, who was visiting his home town on holiday was approached by a local gang which demanded money so they could have a party with friends. The resident complained to police who then arrested the suspects despite resistance from the villagers, some of whom stoned the law enforcers. In another instance, a family who had celebrated a marriage in Punnaliakattuwan, more..

Apr 9 (ST) If Govt intends to slash its original proposal of 65,000 prefabricated houses down to 6,000 houses for the war-displaced, it must call a fresh tender as many more contractors will qualify for the smaller project and offer better prices, TNA MP M.A. Sumanthiran said this week. Despite sustained opposition to the project, Cabinet Committee on Economic Management (CCEM) last week granted approval for the construction of more..

Apr 9 (CT) The lack of accountability and information, in the modern information-driven age, is rather abhorrent. The acts committed by certain govt institutions, with or without the aid of private organizations in such a background, are just the same and have been happening since God knows when. This is one such story. This story revolves around a certain piece of land in Colombo, formerly the premises of Govt Supplies Dept, more..

Apr 9 (CT) While the Epidemiology Unit of the Ministry of Health has recorded a staggering 30,486 cases of dengue in the first three months of 2017 alone, another infectious disease is slowly rearing its ugly head. There is no doubt that Influenza A (H1N1) could soon reach epidemic proportions, unless prompt action is taken to curb the spread of the virus. Despite attempts by the local authorities to play down seriousness of issue, more..

Apr 10 (CT) Gazette Notification issued on the 24th of March 2017 declared four forest areas North of the Wilpattu sanctuary as reserves, caging the Muslim IDPs returning to their homes in Musali after languishing in makeshift camps for over 25 years. President Sirisena’s hurriedly signed controversial gazette on Wilpattu, inked at the Sri Lankan Embassy in cold Moscow while on an official tour, has generated so much heat that the President is claiming a conspiracy against him. more..

Apr 10 (CT) What the upcoming round of sub-national elections (PCs and PSs) will decide is the respective strengths of the official SLFP and the JO/SLPP. I for one am pretty certain that the JO/Podujana Peramuna will beat the official SLFP into third place in the PS/PC elections—the reason being the official SLFP’s role as the UNP’s tail. After the electoral outcome and on that basis, the two entities can either try vainly to eliminate the other politically and monopolize more..

Apr 10 (SO) Minister Lakshman Kiriella said, even the former Govt endorsed private education and it was during their tenure that the SAITM was set up, and furthermore, former President Rajapaksa allocated Rs.600 million for this educational project and nobody ever raised any objection. He said, incumbent Govt is more committed than its predecessor and strongly believes that private sector has a role to play more..

Apr 10 (ST) Should SL have to continually contend with two extremes of rule? Must her unfortunate citizenry always be driven to either an elitist and mostly incompetent clique or, (on the other hand), a crowd of corrupt and communalistic villains peddling a poisonous cocktail of hatred? I may be blamed for painting this grim picture with far too extravagant brushstrokes. But let us not forget that these realities recently underpinned the near-collapse of the State as a democratic socialist republic. more..

Apr 10 (Island) ‘What you have learnt is a mere handful; What you haven’t learnt is the size of the world’ is a loose translation of what Chola age Tamil poet Avvaiyar wrote. The verdant verse reminds us that what little we know must not blind us to how much more there is to learn. This is a really tough sell when a country is heading into a referendum around a new constitution, and when polling data suggests how little the majority of voters, whose opinion matters the most, more..

Apr 10 (CT) 65-year-old Rtd. Rear Admiral Sarath Weerasekara, also a former UPFA MP says he is against the UN resolution cosponsored by the govt. "As the Chief Coordinator of the Federation of National Organizations, consisting of experts such as Shenali Waduge, Dharshan Weerasekara, Shamindra Ferdinando, Kalyana Thiranagama and Dr. Wasantha Bandara, I have compiled a dossier with facts, statistics and letters obtained from more..

Apr 10 (SL) Avurudhu Kumaraya is the immortal Prince Charming of SL. He descends on us from the skies above on his magnificent white steed attired in all his regalia for the Avuruddha. He is welcomed by all climbers— political and social— and women young and doddering — the  young lasses  in swings on Kadju Puhulang trees in their  enticing reddha-hettes and even doddering nonagenarian ladies with a twinkle in their eyes and past memories, overstaying in departure lounge. more..

Apr 10 (Island) US President Donald Trump has, in a desperate bid to overcome domestic problems and rally support, emulated his predecessors such as Ronald Reagan, George Bush, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. He has taken to military action overseas. He had a Syrian airfield bombed last week, claiming that President Al-Assad had to face the consequences of chemical attacks on rebel forces. But, the whole world is aware that Trump is no friend of Syrians going through hell. more..

Apr 10 (SO) Yes, Menika means the Theatre of the Absurd with anti-hero Wimal Wee in the lead role, which continues. This column last Sunday treated you to a slice of the drama being enacted. The scene shifts to some yellow robed persons, yes Buddhist monks, intervening and asking the anti-hero to please come off the fast unto death. (Some say, with glucose and water for prison guards to see and what else, we can only guess). So, the brave man takes liquid nourishment only because more..

Apr 10 (ST) Haven’t the doctors belonging to the GMOA anything else better to do than solely think of SAITM? In these last two months they have been acting weird. They seem to think, breathe, eat, drink and do nothing else but brood over SAITM as if possessed by some devil who has cast an evil spell on them and led them astray from the noble, humane ideals of their profession; who has made them transgress their sacred Hippocratic Oath as physicians; and warped their minds and more..

Apr 10 (roar) If you look at the job market today, you will notice that the tech sector continues to dominate globally with highly sought out jobs and high pay. So if you’re a programming enthusiast, there are many countries eager to snap you up as data analysts, software engineers, and developers. But which countries offer the best opportunities for programmers? If you take a look at English-speaking countries, most of the more..

Apr 10 (Island) Olympian Manjula Kumara proved that he has still got the hunger to strive for better heights and triple-jumper Vidusha Lakshani, thrower Ayesha Maduwanthi, steeplechase athlete Nilani Ratnayake, decathlete Ajith Karunathilaka and Suriyawewa athlete Gayanthika Abeyratne established new national records on the final day of the National Athletics trials on Sunday. Lakshani cleared a distance of 13.64 metres to improve her own national record in women’s triple jump. more..

Apr 10 (HCI) Indian Cultural Centre, High Commission of India, Colombo in collaboration with World Health Organisation, Sri Lanka organized a curtain raiser event to celebrate International Day of Yoga- 2017  at Independence square Arcade on 7 April. Minister Rajitha Senaratne and Mr Taranjit Singh Sandhu, High Commissioner of India, participated in the Yoga demonstrations. Sri Vyasa Kalyanasunderam demonstrated Hatha Yoga and Pranayama with special reference to mental more..

Apr 10 (AJ) Edward de Alwis was born in 1928, the youngest of nine siblings. He was only 14 years old when a public health inspector on a school visit noticed the patches on his face. It was leprosy. It meant the end of the life de Alwis had known. He was taken from his family and quarantined at the Hendala Leprosy Hospital. "There were five checkpoints, and 12 policemen who stood guard all the time. You could not escape," more..

Apr 10 (EN) Three Acre Farms, a unit of Singapore controlled Ceylon Grain Elevators group said it had upped exports of parent day old chicks to South Asian countries and were looking to expand the business.  In 2016, rupee export revenues from parent broiler chicks rose 83% to 85.6 million rupees. "Management team has identified opportunities in regional export markets as potentially lucrative areas capable of generating substantial improvements to the Group’s more..

Apr 10 (AD) It is surprising to witness the unethical effort of Sirasa TV to telecast a news with respect to a letter which was issued personally by the Secretary of the Media Ministry to TV Derana, on its main news bulletin at 10.00 pm yesterday (8). It is highly suspicious as to whose and what need were fulfilled by the publicizing of the contents of the personal letter directed to a competitor TV channel, violating media ethics. We have decided to put forward the true fact more..

Apr 10 (PSL) President Maithripala Sirisena says that youth of the country have been empowered to get connected with the export trade using the mobile phone and internet, at present, instead of mere traditional agriculture. The President said that a complete array of organizations is in the operation to provide loan facilities and guidance for them to embark such initiatives and give a new facelift to traditional agriculture. more..

Apr 10 (Island) Nothing is dearer to the living being than his or her own life, as wise Queen Mallika confessed to King Kosala’s total disappointment. Love of life, with the exception of an Arahant in whom the notion is non-existent, does not extinguish with one’s death, hence the endless process of recurring existence. As Ven. Rerukane Chandawimala Thero notes in his masterly rendition on intricacies of insight meditation, this primordial love of life in man called sakkaya ditthi more..

Apr 10 (Independent) Our destination was the Olcote In Ceylon boutique hotel in Sri Lanka. Olcote is an acronym for 'Our Little Corner Of The Earth', and this was to be the luxurious base from which we explored a fascinating little country (we were surprised to discover Sri Lanka is not much bigger than Ireland). Olcote is owned and run by Sri Lankan-born Tess de Kretser, who married an Irishman, the late Cathal Ryan. It's lovely to be in this faraway land, yet see the strong Irish more..

Apr 10 (Island) SL’s middle distance queens of Suriyawewa, namely Gayanthika Abeyratne and Nimali Liyanarachchi improved on the women’s 800 metres national record with stunning feats on Sunday and effectively doused the controversy theories of Olympic medalist Susanthika Jayasinghe and former national record holder of the distance Sriyani Dhammika Menike. Olympian Dhammika Menike, who held National record more..

Apr 10 (Cau) It was the turn of Australia's Under-19 bowlers to dominate and they did not disappoint in reducing the Sri Lanka Under 19s to 9-149 in 44 rain-affected overs in Hobart on Sunday. Paceman Zak Evans was the pick of the bunch with 3-57 from 12 overs, while leg-spinner Lloyd Pope and the seam of captain Will Sutherland saw both pick up two key wickets late in the day. After the Australia U19 batsmen had piled up 6dec-309 on Saturday, the Sri Lanka batters were unable to more..

Apr 10 (Island) Two doctors who attempted to climb a 200-foot tower holding a giant water tank at the National Hospital around 11 pm on Saturday were taken into custody by Maradana Police. The suspects told police that they were lovers and hoping to enter into wedlock soon. The male doctor is aged 33 years and his lover 29. They were on their night shift at the hospital when they thought of climbing the water tank tower, according to their statement to police. more..

Apr 10 (DM) China National Machinery Import and Export Corporation engaged in the extension work on Matara-Beliatta railway line has sought police protection after a man who broke into the room of one of its employees had slashed him with a knife before getting away on Saturday. Project manager Gu Feng said company was seriously concerned about the safety of its 2,300 workers of whom 380 were Chinese. more..

Apr 10 (DN) The Legal Aid Commission in collaboration with the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) and the Ministry of Justice organized the National Law Week Programme 2017 under the theme Justice for you from Feb 27 to March 5. This is a significant annual event organised by the BASL with projects, workshops and activities focusing on initiating dialogue in the legal arena and educating the public, law students, legal and other professionals on laws applicable to them. more..

Apr 10 (Island) The long awaited Inter-Provincial tournament got off to a cracking start yesterday with Kandy recording a thrilling one wicket win while the game between Dambulla and Colombo ended in a tie. Chasing a target of 290 to win, Colombo slumped to 104 for six and were facing a heavy defeat. But captain Dinesh Chandimal teamed up with 19-year-old Wanindu Hasaranga and came up with a rescue mission adding 172 runs for the seventh wicket. more..

Apr 10 (Island) NUA leader Azath Salley alleged that close on the heels of the raging controversy over the naming of Ramanathan Kannan as High Court judge, Jaffna, under controversial circumstances, the yahapalana administration had interfered in the proposed appointment of the new President of the Court of Appeal. An irate Salley flayed the yahapalana rulers for following the Rajapaksas much to the disappointment of more..

Apr 10 (Island) JLanka Technologies, together with The Ceylon Institute of Builders (CIOB), successfully concluded a forum and networking reception aimed at promoting the second phase of the public power-generating programme Surya Bala Sangramaya (SBS). The event titled The Key Aspects of Utility Scale Solar PV Project Planning’, was facilitated by the Ministry of Power and Renewable Energy, CEB and the SL Sustainable Energy Authority, with an objective to clarify how to successfully more..

Apr 10 (DN) Sri Lanka’s oldest living cricketer Bertie Wijesinha breathed his last yesterday. He was 96. Bertie Wijesinha was a household name in Sri Lanka whether it was as a cricketer, coach, writer or commentator, he was versatile in every field. Wijesinha celebrated his 68th wedding anniversary with wife Dorothy on March 30 and a few days later he was admitted to Sri J'pura Hospital for pneumonia where he passed away. In recent years Wijesinha’s health had been deteriorating more..

Apr 10 (DN) Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) has completed drafting the minimum standards for medical education on Friday, Dr. Upul Gunasekara said. Dr. Gunasekara, a member of the SLMC, said that in accordance with the Medical Ordinance, the SLMC is to send the standards to all  medical faculty boards for observations and recommendations. “There are eight State medical faculties and more..

Apr 10 (DM) The Tamil youth held under detention as political prisoners, could be given bail in the same way Opposition MP Wimal Weerawansa was granted bail, Minister Mano Ganesan had urged President Maithripala Sirisena in a letter. According to the letter that had been sent to Tamil media by the Ministry, Ganesan had requested the President to make arrangements to grant bail to Tamil political prisoners and to rehabilitate them and release them into society. more..

Apr 10 (Island) Dr. Nalinda Herath, spokesman for GMOA said that it was not agreeable to the proposals by the govt by way of solving the SAITM issue. He warned that if the govt implemented its proposals, which he said, were loaded in favour of the SAITM, country would be plunged into chaos. He said the govt had to agree to the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) conditions. He stressed that the govt should take over not only the Neville Fernando Hospital, but also the SAITM Medical Faculty. more..

Apr 10 (CT) The country's reserves were bludgeoned by a massive US$ 514.81 million last month to protect the rupee, thereby bringing down the island's reserves by 9.14% to US$ 5,119.85 million, latest official data showed. On the basis, that the average buying price of the exchange rate for telegraphic transfer (TT) among banks on Friday was Rs 150.03 to the US dollar, a sum of US$ 514.81 million is equivalent to Rs 77 billion. more..