Jan 15 (ST) Two sisters – 18-year-old Nikini Jayalath (grade 13) and 14-year-old Nethmi Jayalath (grade 9) are promising Karate players studying at Sri Sangamitta girls national school Matale. By now they have achieved several victories in martial art at all island open karate championships held during the year 2017. Nikini won a gold medal for her first place in the U/21 kumite while her sister Nethmi was successful in winning a bronze medal for her 3rd place in U/15 kumite at more..

Jan 15 (ST) Recently, one of my colleagues, an Economics Lecturer, Indrajit Aponso, was explaining to me how disciplined drivers lose against reckless drivers. It is customary that road indiscipline has become a hot topic so that everyday many including all types of media have something to say about it. I remembered speaking on the same subject to another friend, Dr. Nirmal Ranjith who happened to tell me about his observations. Motorists are confused because more..

Jan 15 (Island) Many are the cricketers who have attributed their transformation into more effective players to coach Chandika Hathurusingha. Having promised the fans to start playing the SL brand of cricket soon, the 49-year-old has been moving about forming the nucleus that will help the team to get back to their glory days. Watching Sri Lanka play one-day cricket last year was a painful experience. more..

Jan 15 (DM) The AGM of the Sri Lanka Economic Association (SLEA) was held on Jan 11th 2018 at the auditorium of the Economic Department of University of Colombo. A new Executive Council of SLEA for 2018 was elected unanimously at the AGM. Dr. Upananada Vidanapathirana was re-elected as president. Rev. Prof. W. Wimalarathana, Chandradsena Maliyadda, Dr. Lochana Gunaratna, Dr. Sarath Rajapathirana, Dr. Lloyd Fernando, Raja Korale, M.B. Kiriella, Nihal Rodrigo were more..

Jan 15 (ST) The futuristic and timely schools cricket development programme was launched last week under the auspices of the Ministry of Education, but sans the customary pomp and pageant. At a juncture when the schools sphere is growing in quantity sans quality, a group of cricket doyens grouped to bring about some sanity to this segment of the game that has been the feeder point to the national grid through its history. Besides the customary officials of SL Schools Cricket more..

Jan 15 (Island) SL have dropped promising top order batsman Sadeera Samarawickrama for the two match Test series against Bangladesh. Samarawickrama, who made his Test debut against Pakistan during the tour of UAE, played all three Tests against India and finished with 74 runs in six innings. The 22-year-old is one of the brightest prospects around having finishing the last domestic season as the highest run getter. His close-in fielding earned the praise of former Indian more..

Jan 15 (Island) As many as 1,122 players have registered themselves to go under the hammer at the upcoming player auction later this month for The IPL tournament. Lasith Malinga will lead Sri Lanka’s entourage that includes ODI captain Angelo Mathews, the exciting Niroshan Dickwella and all-rounder Thisara Perera. This is the largest number ever in the 11-year history of the richest and the world’s most popular T20 League, owned by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). more..

Jan 15 (ST) The National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka is governed by the dual jurisdiction of the Olympic Charter and Sri Lanka’s Sports Law, senior legal experts said this week, contradicting the position taken by NOCSL Secretary-General Maxwell de Silva. The incumbent NOCSL General Secretary maintains that the domestic body does not fall under the purview of the Sports Law but the Olympic Charter which more..

Jan 15 (Island) SL’s Index of Industrial Production (IIP) in the month of Nov 2017 has improved by 4.6% from 104.3% in Nov 2016 to 108.9% in Nov 2017. According to provisional data comparing change from Nov 2016 to Nov 2017, manufacture of coal and refined petroleum products rose by a sharp 26.5%, manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations by 17%, manufacture of machinery & equipment by 15.2% and manufacture of textiles by 12%. more..

Jan 15 (LBO) SL’s plans to increase the contribution made by smaller-scale businesses to exports and lift foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2018 were both topics of conversation at a meeting held recently between minister Eran Wickramaratne, and a team from Oxford Business Group (OBG). During the talks, he said the budget for 2018 included measures aimed at bolstering support for SMEs as part of broader plans to hand them a bigger role in SL’s economic development. more..

Jan 15 (FT) The tourism industry yesterday slammed the Government for its inconsistent policymaking and expressed confusion over the uncertainty on the opening hours of liquor shops. On 11 January, the Department of Fiscal Policy of the Ministry of Finance issued an extraordinary gazette notification announcing that steps have been taken to revise the business hours of all licensed liquor shops in SL listing the new business hours. more..

Jan 15 (CT) Global credit rating giant Moody's Investors Service says that of the 24 sovereigns that they rate in Asia Pacific, only Sri Lanka has a negative outlook as of January 2018. Releasing its 2018, Asia Pacific rating outlook Report, Moody's stated that capital outflows are a channel of vulnerability in countries such as Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Mongolia, adding that frontier markets are vulnerable to interest rate and currency shocks. Of the 24 countries rated in Asia Pacific, more..

Jan 15 (FT) Increasing the pressure on the Speaker to take disciplinary action, the JO yesterday admitted to planning the protest that erupted when PM Ranil Wickremesinghe presented the statement on the bond report to Parliament. JO MP Udaya Gammanpilla said that the group had been unofficially informed that Speaker Karu Jayasuriya would not be tabling the bond report in Parliament despite agreeing to do so at a party leaders meeting the previous day. more..

Jan 15 (FT) Cai Xiaoru, Forbes listed young billionaire of mainland China, has signed the partnership agreement and committed to invest $ 30 million into SriLankan satellite company SupremeSAT through his Shenzhen listed company Tatwah Smartech. Agreement signing was concluded in Colombo, paving the way for SL’s only satellite company to go global using the expertise and resources of the new-found investment. more..

Jan 15 (Island) Manthai police in Mannar have received a complaint that the TNA office and the house of a candidate in the adjacent area were attacked last Sunday. The candidate has complained that banners, posters and buntings kept in the party office were all destroyed and stones and bottles were thrown at his house. When the inmates of the house came out the attackers lit firecrackers before fleeing in a vehicle. TNA has claimed the attackers are EPRLF supporters. more..

Jan 15 (CT) US based SL marathoner Hiruni Wijayaratne rewrote SL record book shattering the Sri Lanka Women's marathon record when she finished 8th at the Houston Marathon on Sunday. Hiruni clocked an astonishing 2h36m35 s renewing her personal best by 7 minutes and shattering the SL record by almost four minutes in freezing weather where it was 2C when the race started. Previous record was set by Geethani Rajasekara (2:40.07 min) in 2015. more..

Jan 16 (DN) Civil Aviation Authority has suspended the licence of the pilot who had flown the civilian aircraft that transported Minister Mahinda Amaraweera and his delegation to Palali without a proper flight plan and endangered the lives of his passengers. A newspaper report was published claiming that the Air Force had flown the Minister to Palali and that the pilot had been uncertain of the route to his destination. more..

Jan 16 (GDI) Department of Survey General has taken steps to revise the geographical map of Sri Lanka after 18 years. The new SL map which consists 92 maps in 1: 50,000 ratio is in progress, Survey General P.M.P. Udayakantha said. During this 18-year period, the geography of the country had undergone several developments including territorial changes adding new Colombo port city. The map, which is developing with satellite technology will be included to the website of more..

Jan 16 (FT) The Court of Appeal fixed for today eight similar Writ Petitions on the rejection of nomination papers over the issue of female candidates. Justice Shiran Gunaratne postponed the matter for today as the bench comprised President of the Court of Appeal Justice L. T. B. Dehideniya, who has been promoted to the Supreme Court. The matter remained listed for yesterday before Justices Dehideniya and Gunaratne. SLPP, SLFP and UPFF have filed the Writ petitions. more..

Jan 15 (FT) President Sirisena has continued to be at the receiving end of strong criticism, even after the SC put an end to speculation about the duration of his term on Sunday. PMD confirmed that the 5-judge bench of the SC which held a public hearing on the question posed by Prez Sirisena about whether his term would end in 5 or 6 years, had communicated its decision to the President that he could hold office for a period of 5 years more..

Jan 16 (DM) Minister Mahinda Amaraweera, who had refused a private helicopter, had returned on an SLAF routine flight this morning from Palali. The pilot of the private helicopter, which carried the Minister to Palali, had reportedly lost way to the runway and had been airborne for over 45 minutes searching for the Palali runaway to land. Minister had come to Palali to attend a Thai Pongal function, however had requested the support of the Air Force following the incident. more..

Jan 16 (DC) To replenish the resources of Jaffna Public Library in Sri Lanka which had lost its rare collections of books and manuscripts to a fire in 1981, the directorate of public libraries has so far collected nearly 40,000 Tamil books from general public and educational institutions. Tamil Nadu govt has launched a drive to collect one lakh Tamil books for the Jaffna public library in October. “We received books through our readers, general public and educational institutions. more..

Jan 16 (DM) Former Prez Rajapaksa said same fate had befallen on both him and Prez Sirisena, because both of their tenures of presidency had been reduced by at least one year. He said he made a mistake by calling for prez election 2 yrs prior to his tenure was expired. “I call it a sacrifice. When things go wrong, let’s call it a sacrifice. (laughter among people). I was labelled as a dictator back then. Whose the dictator now? more..

Jan 16 (DM) The failure on our part of the world in adopting commonsensical social reforms has much to do with the political hypocrisy. Competitive politics, of course, mandate that the politicians grasp the public mood, but in our societies, when politicians do that, they often tend to relate to the fringe; the homophobes, puritans, ethnic and religious bigots and when there is none of them, the bottom of the social gutter. (See the types of people who are generally mobilized for more..

Jan 16 (DM) Though the political focus now is on the February 10 elections to local councils the national unity or consensus government needs to concentrate on vital issues such as global warming with latest reports indicating that solar energy could provide the world’s entire fuel requirements for one year instead of depending on the polluting fossil or coal fuels. CNN in its Jan 16 programme titled eco-solutions, quoted scientists as saying the pure and renewable solar energy, more..

Jan 16 (DM) The upcoming LG Election has been a much anticipated event in the local political calendar. In the run up for positions, both known and unknown faces have begun their campaigns abiding to stricter laws than what was seen during the previous regime. With a new electoral system, both citizens and those contesting are expecting further change. Among those contesting from the Green Party, Rosy Senanayake, more..

Jan 16 (DM) SLPP Chairman Prof. G.L. Peiris, spoke about the controversial bond transaction, its implications and the Supreme Court’s opinion on the President’s term. Q: What is your position on the Supreme Court’s opinion that President Maithripala Sirisena’s term is five years? A: This is typical of the quality of advice the President acts upon. The law is crystal clear. The President simply invited a stinging rebuke more..

Jan 16 (FT) An analysis of the historical performance of Mihin Air shows a very healthy growing young company with impressive growth trajectories. Passengers Carried was growing at a CAGR of 14% from inception in 2007. CAGR or Compounded Annual Growth Rate shows the average annual growth rate over a defined period. The passenger numbers grew from around 200,000 in 2008 to around 600,000 in 2016, more..

Jan 16 (Rediff) A two-member central team visited the refugee camp in Mandapam, Ramanathapuram district, Tamil Nadu, to find out if the Sri Lankan Tamils want to go back to their country nine years after the civil war that devastated the island-nation ended. The Mandapam camp, which houses 850 refugees, is the receiving camp for those coming from Sri Lanka before being sent to other camps in Tamil Nadu. more..

Jan 16 (ST) The Power and Renewable Energy Ministry has brushed aside warnings of countrywide power-cuts in March and April due to trade union (TU) action by the CEB Engineers’ Union (CEBEU). Deputy Minister Ajith P. Perera said, he did not believe the CEBEU would resort to a measure as extreme as one that would lead to a countrywide power crisis. He was speaking in the wake of warnings by the Engineers more..

Jan 16 (DM) The very first attempt at forming a govt with the help of the UNP was by former president Rajapaksa in 2007 and giving leadership to the yahapalana govt was nothing unusual, President Sirisena said. He said he and Minister Anura Priyadharshana Yapa were asked to return during an official visit to Beijing by the former president in Jan 2007 to sign the two-party agreement to form a coalition govt. more..

Jan 16 (DN) The present govt had saved Rs.22,000 million after servicing all its debts last year through proper financial management, Minister Champika Ranawaka said. He said the country’s economy was burdened by the loans taken by the previous Rajapaksa regime and the govt through proper financial management was taking the country out of this debt trap. He said that following the defeat of Rajapaksa regime, more..

Jan 16 (CT) The JVP alleged that once the content of the report compiled by the PRECIFAC established to probe 34 such acts that took place during the previous regime would be revealed, even the names of those close to President Maithripala Sirisena would come to light. General Secretary of JVP, Tilvin Silva, meanwhile, urged all forces and groups which acted to defeat the corrupt family rule of former President more..

Jan 16 (Island) President Maithripala Sirisena was surrounded by advisers who would lead him to his own destruction but the UNP would never let those sinister forces to achieve their goal, UNP Assistant Leader MP Ravi Karunanayake said. Former minister said that it was sad to observe that the President was being manipulated by some forces. "We will not leave the President at this hour of need. We will protect him. more..

Jan 16 (CT) Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran refuted the claim that he was standing in the way of a practical and pragmatic solution to the Tamil problem as projected by some political figures to the media. When questioned Chief Minister why he had opposed the interim proposal while the TNA leadership has welcomed it, the outspoken CM pointed out that the ethnic problem or the Tamil problem or more..

Jan 16 (CT) It was Minister Faizer Mustapha who had convinced President Maithripala Sirisena that he is entitled to serve until January 2021 and that he should seek a Supreme Court ruling on the matter, sources close to Mustapha told CT. Supreme Court ruled that Sirisena’s term ends on January 8, 2020 effectively quashing a plea submitted by Attorney General Jayantha Jayasuriya to the effect that the term-reducing measures in the 19th Amendment did not apply to Sirisena. more..

Jan 16 (FT) As we all know, President Maithripala Sirisena has sought the opinion of the Supreme Court that whether, he, as the person elected on 9 Jan 2015, has any impediment to continue in the office of President for a period of six years. In terms of the Article 30(2) of the 19th Amendment, President shall hold office for a term of five years. It is important to analyse the socio-political considerations apart from the legal and constitutional validity of granting a 6-yr term more..

Jan 16 (EN) Central bank said it cannot make comments on alleged frauds at the Employees Provident Fund and bond sales before 2015 until a forensic audit is completed by a third party. It said in a statement that there has been a call for an immediate statement from the CB on whether there have been any irregularities in the issuing of govt securities during the period 2008-2014. It referred to the statement issued by Monetary Board of the CB on 11th Jan 2018 where a forensic audit more..