Dec 17 (NR) The SLPP says President Maithripala Sirisena has the powers to reject a Cabinet of Ministers that exceeds 30. Chairman of the party Professor GL Peiris speaking at a media briefing this morning said efforts are underway to exceed the number of Cabinet of Ministers. He noted the number of Cabinet Ministers could exceed 30 only when a national govt is established adding the UNP cannot eliminate the restriction by signing an agreement with the SLMC. more..

Dec 17 (DM) The US and Australia have welcomed political developments in Sri Lanka. US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Alaina B. Teplitz welcomed this weekend’s political developments, which upheld Sri Lanka’s democratic and constitutional norms. “Sri Lanka is a valued partner in the Indo-Pacific and we look forward to continuing to develop our relationship with the govt and people of this country,” She tweeted. more..

Dec 17 (AD) Re-scrutinized results of Grade 5 Scholarship Exam will be released online today, Dept of Examination stated. Commissioner General of Examinations Sanath Pujitha stated that the list of the re-scrutinized results has already been submitted to Ministry of Education. The re-scrutinized results can be obtained via the official website of DoE: www.doenets.lk Grade 5 Scholarship Exam was held at 3,050 exam centres across the island on Aug 5. more..

Dec 17 (AD) A discussion concerning the seating arrangement of the MPs is scheduled to take place with Speaker Karu Jayasuriya today, says Sergeant-at-Arms Narendra Fernando. Parliament is scheduled to be convened at 1 p.m. tomorrow. New seating arrangements in the Chamber will be made accordingly if the Cabinet of Ministers swears in before convening the Parliament tomorrow, otherwise the seats would be assigned in accordance with the seniority of the MPs, more..

Dec 17 (DM) The swearing-in of Cabinet Ministers is likely to be delayed since discussions were still underway on the assignment of portfolios to MPs joining the Govt from the UPFA, sources said last afternoon. Initially, the UNP wanted to entertain only 10 MPs from the UPFA. However, party sources said yesterday that 21 UPFA MPs were ready to team up with the new Govt. As a result, they said the Govt had more..

Dec 17 (IC) Sri Lanka have, in recent times, produced a number of quicks capable of clocking 140 kph and above. This includes Nuwan Pradeep, Dushmantha Chameera and Lahiru Kumara. While Chameera and Pradeep are both in and out of the squad due to injury, as well as routine struggles with accuracy, the burly young speedster Kumara has cemented his place in the side of late. After first appearing for SL in the U19 World Cup, Kumara made an impression in only his 2nd Test. more..

Dec 17 (Island) The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) will launch a Multi-Currency Board some time next year which will enable overseas companies to list here and raise capital in US dollars, a CSE official said. 'The CSE is currently working with regulator to obtain necessary approvals, including legal and non legal clearance in order to launch next year, the official said. "The CSE wanted to introduce this system this year but due to unavoidable circumstances it got delayed. more..

Dec 17 (DM) The number of members in the Cabinet might have to be increased a little more than 30 if the need arises, UNP MP Nalin Bandara Jayamaha said today. Mr Jayamaha told a press conference that the number of members in the Cabinet might have to be increased slightly though every effort was made to confine it to 30 members. “We will try our utmost to limit the number of Cabinet Ministers to 30 but we might have to increase more..

Dec 17 (NR) UNP MP Mujibur Rahman says the UNP made several sacrifices to appoint Maithripala Sirisena as the country’s President. Speaking to media at Temple Trees MP Rahman said, despite receiving the backing of the UNP, Prez Sirisena had continued to criticize the party. He said President’s new found anger cannot be justified adding the party sacrificed lives of two UNP members’ to appoint him as the Prez. He said, “If he is concerned about our statements, how should we react to his more..

Dec 17 (NR) Leader of the Opposition R Sampanthan has refuted rumours circulating of a secret pact with the UNP pertaining to establishing a federal rule in the Northern and Eastern Provinces. Speaking to media after a round of talks with PM Ranil Wickremesinghe last evening, MP R Sampanthan said the TNA has never called for a federal state adding the party’s is only request is for power devolution in a unitary state in order to seek a solution to the national issue. more..

Dec 17 (DM) Vehicles parked on pavements blocking traffic and pavements would be towed away, Police said. They said that they would take action to remove the vehicles which were parked along the road in main cities blocking roads or parked on pavements during the festival session. They said it had been observed that most of the drivers, who had come to main cities across the country especially during more..

Dec 17 (CI) 244* - The previous highest score by an opener while carrying the bat in Tests, by Alastair Cook in the Ashes Test at the MCG in 2017-18. Tom Latham's 264* in this innings beat that record. Latham is only the second New Zealand batsman to carry his bat through an innings after Glenn Turner, who did twice. Click here for a list of openers to carry their bats in Tests. 0 - Individual scores in Tests higher than Latham's 264* in Tests this year. Mushfiqur Rahim's unbeaten 219 more..

Dec 17 (FT) Southern Province Best Entrepreneur Award Ceremony was held on 11 Dec at the Grand Navro Hotel in Matara. The event was organised by the National Enterprise Development Authority (NEDA), in collaboration with the Hambantota District Chamber of Commerce (HDCC), and supported by the Chambers of Commerce in Galle and Matara. The awards were designed to encourage the business community in the Southern province to improve their standards of more..

Dec 17 (AD) PM Ranil Wickremesinghe says that they will form a new political alliance by the name of National Democratic Front which will be registered as a political party to contest the next general election. “We contested as the United National Front. Now we will register a new alliance as a political party,” the UNP leader said. He revealed this while addressing the victory rally of the UNP organised at Galle Face Green today. more..

Dec 18 (CT) There comes a time in a Nation’s life when the political class stand up for what is right, whatever that right may be, and get counted. Honour and glory thus to the MPs who refused to sell their souls and themselves, for money and ministerial berths, whatever the circumstances. Now is the time to celebrate SL’s maturity as a constitutional democracy. And for a long time to come, political leaders who treat their own kind with the contempt that the class does not deserve, more..

Dec 18 (CT) After weeks of political drama in our Dharmadweepa since October 26th, it was the height of irony that RW was sworn in as the PM for the fifth time this Sunday, before Maithri, thanks to a historic verdict by an independent judiciary and public activism, after having said that he will not appoint RW even if all 225 parliamentarians said so; thereby eating his own words. Maithri also screamed that he will NOT stay in office even for a day, if it happens. more..

Dec 18 (Roar) The Christmas season has finally arrived, and ‘tis the season to do many things. Visit family, have a wonderful vacation, pray with your community, sing songs, send cards, decorate the house and Christmas tree, and exchange gifts – we even treat ourselves to a few nice things. But most importantly, it’s the season for caring and giving, and this season, we’d like to share with you a few examples of ways in which you can give, more..

Dec 18 (CT) Last week I dealt with the Kapatikama that led to the massive inconsistencies of the 19th Amendment. I planned then this week to move on to further examples of cunning which led a few months later, in Aug 2015, to the absurd situation of a two-headed govt. That might, however, have seemed old hat in view of the Supreme Court decision last week, which, even if it has not resolved the current crisis, has made clear the need for swift practical decisions to take us through the next twelve months. more..

Dec 18 (CT) The social media got a boost like no other during the past seven weeks of political crisis that enveloped the country. On Oct 26 itself no sooner was former President Rajapaksa sworn in as prime minister the stormtroopers of his political alliance entered state media organisations and took control. Thereafter they began to give only pro-govt news and views to the nation. Most of the privately-owned media also succumbed voluntarily to the menace of the new dispensation and more..

Dec 18 (Roar) The year is 1996. SL has just won the Cricket World Cup. However, the country is in the midst of a civil conflict, and the LTTE has launched a series of attacks — violence around the country intensifies. A family of five based in Muttur, a village in the east, are among thousands of others who are caught in the crosshairs of this conflict. They are a respected family, left alone for the most part because of their close ties to more..

Dec 18 (ST) Environment experts said recently that Sri Lanka is the second most vulnerable country to global climate change. In another 50 to 100 years SL will probably be uninhabitable chiefly because of man’s own follies. Why wait fifty years or more to see this land like no other being destroyed when the country’s own politicians are already doing so with such finesse. Those who came to power promising the people that after one term in office they will pack their hamas petti and more..

Dec 18 (Island) It is unlikely that any Sri Lankan politician anytime soon, would beat the record of the UNP’s long-time leader Ranil Wickremesinghe, who last Sunday was sworn in for his fifth term of office as Prime Ministers of Sri Lanka. If some of his terms have been quite short, such as his six-month third term from January to August 2015, the record for the shortest term of office as PM, must surely go to Mahinda Rajapakse for his ill-fated govt of several weeks, exactly how many weeks more..

Dec 18 (ST) It is easy to destroy, difficult to rebuild. This incontrovertible truism is particularly applicable to the current economic situation. Whenever and however this crisis is resolved, restoring political and economic stability and int'l confidence is enormously a challenging task. Rejuvenating and rebuilding the economy after the economic consequences of the political crisis is a Herculean task. Three prerequisites for rebuilding the economy are the restoration of int'l confidence more..

Dec 18 (Island) Cohabitation between the Prez and the PM is essential for the country’s political stability under the present Constitution when they happen to represent two different political parties. Their noncooperation inevitably leads to a political deadlock and plunges the country into chaos, as we have seen recently. It was claimed in some quarters that attempts to bring about a rapprochement between the estranged yahapalana partners, Prez Sirisena and Wickremesinghe had reached more..

Dec 18 (FT) Members of the Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) continued their strike for the third week as plantation companies’ efforts to resolve the labour crisis over demands for a higher wage appeared to fall short. The Employers Federation of Ceylon (EFC) on Sunday had a meeting with the three main plantation trade unions - CWC, Lanka Jathika Estate Workers’ Union (LJEWU) and Joint Plantation Trade Union more..

Dec 18 (CI) Tom Latham batted for more than 11-and-a-half-hours, and played out 489 balls, but for the majority of that time, and for most of those deliveries, SL were convinced they had bigger problems. At the beginning of the NZ innings, on day two, it had been Jeet Raval that worried them. Raval who sent the third ball he faced screaming through extra cover. Raval who socked Suranga Lakmal down the ground, and sent another straight drive purring past the feet of bowler Kasun Rajitha. more..

Dec 18 (DN) EdHat International successfully conducted the International Research Conference in Sri Lanka at Sri Lanka Foundation, Colombo and it was powered by IDM Nations Campus Lanka (Pvt) Ltd. The courses conducted at IDM Nations Campus Lanka (Pvt) Ltd have been accredited by EdHat International from the year 2009. IDM Nations Campus has been a long standing and a well recognised partner of EdHat International in Sri Lanka. more..

Dec 18 (CT) A three-cornered battle looms for the Presidency of Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), as top candidates submitted their nominations for the post. Former SLC Secretary K. Mathivanan, immediate former Vice President Mohan de Silva and former President Jayantha Dharmadasa have submitted their nominations for the top post at the closing date yesterday. Former Secretary Nishantha Ranathunga is more..

Dec 18 (Island) SLFP Vice President Kumara Welgama says that Prez Sirisena should resign from his post immediately. "Supreme Court has found that Prez Sirisena violated the Constitution. One who has acted in contravention of the Constitution should not hold that position. He can be impeached any moment and more than that he should be aware that continuing to hold that post by a person who violated the constitution can give rise to numerous other problems," MP Welgama said. more..

Dec 18 (DN) Sri Lanka has made significant progress in its IoT (Internet of Things) ventures says a research report filed by www.wiseguyreports.com. According to the report, in 2018 the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka formally approved a significant investment for network expansion and upgrades work on 4G mobile and fixed broadband services. Sri Lanka has seen a very strong increase in mobile broadband penetration over the past five years. Report says that in contrast, more..

Dec 18 (FT) SLFP MPs yesterday decided that they would not support the UNP Govt, ending days of speculation over possible crossovers. “We discussed the issue with the President and he said we should not remain in the Govt and that is our final decision,” SLFP MP Dayasiri Jayasekara said. The 21 SLFP MPs who remained in the coalition govt till its abrupt end on 26 Oct met Prez Sirisena last evening to discuss more..

Dec 18 (DN) A high profile delegation of the US including David Ranz, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State, Alaina Teplitz, U.S Ambassador, Joanna Pichette, Political Officer, U.S Embassy Colombo, Partha Mazumdar, Economic Chief, U.S Embassy Colombo, Eduardo Garcia, Economic Attaché, U.S Embassy Colombo, Jason Evans, Desk Officer for SL, SCA/RA, MJason Briggs, Bureau Planner, SCA/RA and Marcus Carpenter, Political Officer, U.S Embassy Colombo made a special visit more..

Dec 18 (Island) Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) successfully held Waste Flow and Recycle Industry Survey, and Information Dissemination Seminar together with Central Environmental Agency (CEA) and says that the recycling industry development needs to be one of SL's policy targets to address the challenge. Notably JICA says this while actively continuing to support SL to improve its waste management mechanism by working closely with the people, more..

Dec 18 (Island) The management of SriLankan Airlines had not conducted a systematic investigation into a case where 34 passengers left for Germany in May 2010 without return tickets, the PCoI was informed. The 34 passengers had not returned, Sajith Vinodhahewa, Head of Investigations at the airline said. He said that officials, entrusted with checking documents, were expected to detect those without more..

Dec 18 (Island) Officers from Welambada Police, Udunuwara, arrested two drug distributors and the vehicle they were travelling in. The two men said to have links to an underworld gang running a drug cartel from inside the A'pura Prison. Police also recovered 100 grams of heroin and Rs. 100 000 that they had earned from selling drugs. Suspects have allegedly confessed that they belonged to a drug ring led by a person named Fiyaz Nana, in the Anuradhapura Prison. more..

Dec 18 (DM) The new govt will present a fully-fledged budget for 2019 in Feb after the Cabinet was sworn in, it is learnt. Besides, it will present a Vote on Account (VoA) to allocate money from the Consolidated Fund to carry out the govt’s functions. UNP MP who is slated to take oath as a Minister said a fully-fledged budget could not be debated and passed in Parliament during the remaining weeks of this month. “We will bring a Vote on Account first to find money for a couple of months. more..

Dec 18 (CT) The GMOA yesterday, called for the newly elected Govt, headed by Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe, to learn from mistakes it made during the last three years. GMOA Secretary, Dr. Haritha Aluthge called for it to come up with a Govt facilitated National Policy on Trade keeping in line with the recommendations made by the Presidential Committee appointed to look into the SL-Singapore Free Trade Agreement. more..

Dec 18 (DN) The Foundation of Goodness (FoG) signed a memorandum with the National Olympic Committee (NOC) to harness and enhance training and development of rural talent. The signing took place at the Olympic House recently, while former cricket stars Muttiah Muralithran, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardena with FOG founder and Chief Trustee Kushil Gunasekara and NOC senior officials were present on this historic occasion. FOG Founder & Chief Trustee Kushil Gunasekara more..

Dec 18 (Island) Vice President, Development Research Center (DRC) of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, Dr. Long Guoqiang declared open the new office of Pathfinder Foundation’s China-Sri Lanka Cooperation studies Centre (CSLCSC) located at the Riverpoint complex of MMBL-Pathfinder group at Peliyagoda on Friday 14, December. The event was witnessed by a high-level delegation from the DRC and senior officials of the Embassy of China. more..