Apr 24 (ST) Motorcyclists losing control and crashing into other vehicles, lamp posts or veering off the road, and three-wheeler accidents were responsible for most of the accidents over Avurudu week that claimed more than 60 lives and left dozens of others in hospital. Negligence, reckless driving, speeding & driving or riding under influence of liquor caused most of the accidents, which occurred mainly in less-populated areas. more..

Apr 24 (DM) Deputy Minister Dr. Harsha de Silva speaks about the proposed reforms of the UNP and the current status of politics in the country. Q: After the electoral defeat at the local govt elections, you were talking about far reaching political reforms to the party. How do you specify the kinds of reforms you seek? A: I think the UNPers plus the moderates who decide at an election wish to see major changes in the party. more..

Apr 24 (DM) While stating that the PHU is against the proposal of the JVP to remove the executive presidency, General Secretary of PHU Upul Wijesekara said PM Ranil Wickremesinghe was behind the JVP’s proposal. He said premier Wickremesinghe anticipated centralizing executive powers unto his purview by making use of the abolishment of the executive presidency. more..

Apr 24 (Island) The govt has received several proposals to develop natural gas found in the block M2 of the Mannar basin and a contract would probably be signed at the end of this year, said Preeni Withanage, Director Benefits at the Petroleum Resources Development Secretariat. Studies conducted so far had shown that there was a potential reservoir capacity in excess of one trillion cubic feet in two sites, Dorado & Barracuda, more..

Apr 24 (DM) Mirissa has always been a destination frequented by both locals and tourists for its pristine beaches and other tourist attractions. Over the years, various other towns along the Southern coastal belt have emerged as tourist hotspots giving rise to a unique culture. While the tourism industry is reaching its peak, various opportunities are being presented to tourists as means of placing SL on the world map. more..

Apr 24 (DM) The cost-reflective pricing formula for petroleum has not been finalised yet and presenting it to the Cabinet will be delayed until next week since the key personnel in the Finance Ministry are attending the IMF Spring Sessions in Washington DC. “Unfortunately, for the past week, the ministers and higher officials from the Finance Ministry and Treasury were out of the country for official purposes. more..

Apr 24 (DN) The Colombo District Court yesterday permitted the Public Trustee’s Department to open 252 last wills pertaining to the colossal amount of wealth which were under the Public Trustee’s supervision. The documents pertaining to concerned last wills were yesterday produced before court by the Public Trustee. Colombo Additional District Judge Chamath Madanayaka made this order pursuant to a request made by more..

Apr 24 (CT) The Secretary of the Ministry of Southern Development and Youth Affairs and former Controller General of Immigration and Emigration, Chulananda Perera yesterday informed the Court that approving an application with several disparities was an offence. He told the Court that he had failed to take action against it having considered it as a realistic situation. He made these comments while providing evidence in the case, more..

Apr 24 (CT) President Maithripala Sirisena and PM Ranil Wickremesinghe are to meet, in the coming days, for crucial discussions on the impending Cabinet reshuffle. According to Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam, Cabinet reshuffle is imminent and will take place, following the discussions between the Prez & PM. He revealed this yesterday, when addressing the gathering at the Japan Expo 2018, held at BMICH. more..

Apr 24 (CT) Democracy is a messy business and although we SLns boast that we have been practising this form of Govt longer than any other country in Asia, our readers will agree that many of us are losing our patience with the way our leaders are trying to sort out the governance issues in the country. Ever since LG polls were held in March at which the newly-minted SLPP led by former Prez Rajapaksa clearly won most of Councils, govt has been in crisis after crisis, all of its own more..

Apr 24 (FT) This year, in the middle of big-match fever, a Facebook thread of a young woman caught our Eye. She had taken some photographs of school-boys trucking during their big-match weekend, and posted them on her Facebook wall. In the photos, the group of school-boys are holding up lewd hand-painted signs which said SEX TONIGHT and SHOW ME YOUR BOOBS. Facebook post naturally expressed the young woman’s shock and serious concern at the signs held up by more..

Apr 24 (DN) Reports stating that funds worth Rs. 1,000 million were allocated to renovate the Parliamentary complex are false and instead, only Rs. 200 million was allocated, Speaker Karu Jayasuriya said. Furthermore he said that the Parliamentary complex is in dire need of renovations. ‘This 30-year old Parliamentary complex is a public property and like every other establishment this building too needs maintenance’, the Speaker said. more..

Apr 24 (CT) The SLFP may very well fail to celebrate May Day this year due to the current crisis in the party, according to sources close to President Sirisena, who is also the leader of the SLFP. The party is currently in a state of disarray with Sirisena losing further control after 16 MPs including several ministers voting in favor of a no-confidence motion against PM. The party is yet to take a stand on whether or not to remain in the Govt with Sirisena appointing a special committee to study more..

Apr 24 (NR) Court today re-issued an open warrant for the arrest of the former SL Ambassador to the US Jaliya Wickramasuriya. The order was issued by the Colombo Fort Magistrate Lanka Jayaratne. Jaliya Wickramasuriya is charged with the misappropriation of funds amounting to US$ 132,000 obtained for the construction of a new building for the SL Ambassador's office in the US. more..

Apr 24 (AD) Inspector of Police (IP) Neomal Rangajeewa and Prisons Commissioner Emil Ranjan Lamahewa, who were arrested over the Welikada Prison clashes in 2012, have been further remanded until May 8 by the Colombo Magistrate’s Court. IP Rangajeewa of the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB) was arrested by the CID on Mar 28 over the alleged killing of inmates at Welikada prison during the clashes in 2012. Lamahewa, who was the then Prisons Superintendent in charge of more..

Apr 24 (DM) While claiming that Central Bank lacked sufficient funds to pay back the Treasury bonds and bills before their date of expiry, MP Bandula Gunawardana said the bond market could collapse due to the prevailing situation. He said the govt needs to pay back the funds of the Treasury bonds and bills before the date of termination and that they were short of funds to do so. “It is with responsibility that I say the CB doesn’t possess sufficient funds to pay back the Treasury bonds more..

Apr 24 (GDI) Sri Lanka Coast Guard lifeguards reached another important milestone in their lifesaving activities passing the 1000 mark in rescued lives when lifesavers attached to the Hikkaduwa lifesaving station rescued three local youth from being swept away to sea.The three youth, aged between 19-21 years are residents of Gampaha District were saved by Coast Guard lifeguards on duty in Hikkaduwa last week (17th). more..

Apr 24 (ND) Speaker of the SL Parliament, Karu Jayasuriya, has arrived in Hanoi, beginning his official visit to Vietnam from April 23 to 27, at the invitation of Chairwoman of the National Assembly, Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan. His entourage includes Senevirathne Bandara Nawinne, a member of the Parliament and Minister of Internal Affairs, Cultural Affairs and Wayamba Development; some members of the Sri Lankan Parliament; and Sri Lankan Ambassador to Vietnam, S.H.U. Dissnayake. more..

Apr 24 (PMD) A group of Investors from several companies of Pakistan has arrived to Island to find out about the new investment opportunities where they met with President Sirisena today. The representatives from leading companies in Pakistan informed Prez that they are ready for new investments in the fields of health, housing, tourism, science and technology in SL. Thus attention was given to the new investment opportunities in the fields of building highways & oil exploration. more..

Apr 24 (AD) IGP Pujith Jayasundara says SL’s former Ambassador to Russia Udayanga Weeratunga has been arrested in Abu Dhabi by the authorities in that country according to their laws and regarding an offense committed there. “Our investigations are being carried out within the scope of his activities as the SL Ambassador to Russia,” he said. However, we need to bring him here in order to record his statement and more..

Apr 24 (EN) United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in SL has partnered with the National Youth Services Council (NYSC), Cisco and Citi to train youth in digital and entrepreneurial skills. They will conduct e-learning programmes in 20 locations across SL to build on national priorities placed on strengthening the knowledge on Information and Communication Technology skills among youth, a statement said. “eLearning is a powerful tool that has the potential to connect more..

Apr 24 (AD) The actions of certain individuals to gain power, has left the country without a guardian, says Minister Duminda Dissanayake. Current govt has the responsibility of running the country until 2020 and the President or the govt should not be worried over results of a LG election, says the Minister. He made this observation while attending the inaugural ceremony of a program for compensating farmers for damages to crops. Under the program, nearly 500 farmers were compensated an amount of more..

Apr 24 (FT) SL Navy Vice Admiral Sirimevan Ranasinghe has expressed his support for the Belt and Road Cooperation between China and Sri Lanka, the Chinese Embassy said in a statement. This support has been expressed when Ambassador of China Cheng Xueyuan on 20 April met Navy Commander at the Navy Headquarter. Both sides exchanged views in depth on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and more..

Apr 24 (EN) SL's banking regulation is weakened compared to international standards by political interference and conflicts of interest but is improving, Standard and Poor's a rating agency said. S & P said the operations of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka was closely tied to the govt through its supervisory structure. "The appointment of the governor appears to be susceptible political influence," the report said. "A new governor tended to be appointed with every change in govt." more..

Apr 24 (DN) Education Ministry has drawn attention to establish a zonal base teacher pools to cover duties of the teachers, who are on leave for long periods. It has been revealed that around 10,000 teachers are on leave annually citing various reasons such as maternity leave, accident leave, training etc. This situation is a great hindrance for the smooth function of school education, Education Ministry said. Expressing his concern, Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam instructed more..

Apr 24 (DW) Tortured asylum-seekers can claim subsidiary protection in Europe, if on return to their home countries adequate medical care would be withheld, says the European Court of Justice. The case involves a Sri Lankan. The European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled Tuesday that protection applied under the European Convention on Human Rights if the health of an asylum applicant with severe physical or more..

Apr 24 (PHC) Govt of Pakistan through its High Commission in Sri Lanka has awarded scholarships to 182 meritorious Sri Lankan students of A’ levels under prestigious Jinnah Scholarship programme. The award ceremony was held at BMICH on April 23, 2018 with the presence of a large gathering including Vice Chancellor Uni of Sri J'pura, Prof. Sampath Amaratunga, Vice Chancellor Uni of Moratuwa, Prof. K.K.C.A. Perera, Ven. Olande Ananda, Rev. Fr. Quintus Fernando more..

Apr 24 (DM) Doctors attached to all Govt Hospitals in the Eastern Province warned that they will launch a strike after Thursday (26) unless their demands were met. GMOA said their members, deployed for work in the East, would resort to a work stoppage due to the failure on the part of the authorities concerned to make their overtime payments. GMOA Secretary Dr. Haritha Aluthge said Eastern Province Governor Rohitha Bogollagama had instructed officials to pay the arrears before more..

Apr 24 (NR) The Chairman of the Elections Commission Mahinda Deshapriya called on all political party leaders and secretaries to enact new provisions to hold the impending Provincial Council elections. He noted that elections for six provincial councils can be conducted by October this year. He said the legislature must pass required provisions in order to hold the election. more..

Apr 24 (FT) The late Lalith Athulathmudali, one of SL’s greatest statesmen, was assassinated on April 23, 1993. Commemorating the 25th anniversary of his untimely passing, President Sirisena issued the following memorial statement: “A few decades post-Independence, our Motherland felt the loss of intellectual leaders most keenly. A nation is always in need of educated, intelligent leaders who put the nation before the self. Lalith Athulathmudali, who was lost to this country 25 years ago, more..

Apr 24 (NR) Department of Excise will launch a special programme to inspect liquor stores island wide during the Vesak season. Programme is scheduled to be carried out from the 27th of April till the 3rd of May. Programme was launched with the intention of inspecting liquor stores that have obtained the license from the Excise Department as well as the liquor supplying process. A special 24 hour mechanism will be active at the headquarters of the Department of Excise to monitor more..

Apr 24 (DM) Former Minister Chandima Weerakkody said the 16 former SLFP ministers, state and deputy ministers who quit the yahapalana govt would soon expose the frauds and misdeeds of the members of the govt. When asked why they were now going public with these allegations, he said they were earlier bound by collective Cabinet responsibility and the concept of decency and therefore were not more..

Apr 25 (CT) If the Joint Opposition’s aim in bringing a No-Confidence Motion against the PM was to weaken the UNP, it is clear by now that the parliamentary exercise had the opposite effect. Instead of weakening the PM, the exercise has in fact weakened the President. Perhaps this was not the result that the leaders of JO desired? Yet, in the aftermath of the No-Confidence proceedings and a well deserved break during the Sinhala and Hindu New Year, elected politicians to Parliament more..

Apr 25 (CT) In modern days, the term called Social reform has been exponentially grabbed much attention of various parties and also became the focal point of every discussion being held at various level locally and internationally. It is widely suggested by many intellectuals and experts that if any society desires to enrich its standard and livelihood and to be an exemplary society that succeeded tremendously in attaining its pinnacle in various spectrum of prosperity, more..

Apr 25 (SO) The 16 SLFP Ministerial rebels who walked out of the Unity Govt after voting in favour of a No Confidence Motion against PM Ranil Wickremesinghe earlier this month, claim they will collaborate with the Joint Opposition when a new Parliamentary session begins on May 8. However, former Minister S.B. Dissanayake, who sat down for an interview, insisted that they would also continue their politics with President Sirisena. more..

Apr 25 (DN) The trick is to isolate the manageable issues; the manageable issues, he repeated emphatically, a gleam in his eye as he drove his point home. His well attuned business leaders’ audience took his point well. They were listening well not simply because they knew they were on the threshold of new economic era of opportunity and challenge but, also, because they had the utmost respect for the speaker, for his political office as well as his personal stature. more..

Apr 25 (CT) Sri Lanka can boast of a diverse coastline, which is ecologically and economically valuable. Our shores provide livelihoods to many people, and act as our first line of defense in case of natural disasters. The fisheries they support also act as an important source of nutrition. When a natural ecosystem provides invaluable services to people as well as fauna and flora, it is afforded protected status. The efficient management of these Protected Areas (PAs) ensures that these benefits more..

Apr 25 (Roar) The internet. That glorious realm of connectivity and information that encompasses the whole world and deposits it at our fingertips. In this day and age, all it takes is five seconds and the swipe of a screen (or the click of a mouse) to hear all about the latest Kim Kardashian fashion faux pas, receive a memo from your boss or send a suggestive selfie to your significant other. We live in the era of smartphones & computers, more..

Apr 25 (DN) Missaka who roamed Yala National Park for 35 years, was found severely injured on Sunday (15). He had sustained injuries to his jaw and front left leg. The tusker was suffering from these injuries for nearly two weeks when it was finally found near Bandu Wewa, close to Kataragama. The officers of the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC), including Veterinarian Vijitha Perera and Veterinarian Ananda Dharmakirthi, provided Missaka with medical more..