Nov 5 (CI) When Muttiah Muralitharan retired from Test cricket in July 2010, it was assumed that Sri Lanka would never be able to replace him. That assumption was reasonable back then. Muralitharan had retired with an astounding 800 wickets in 133 Tests, at an average of 22.72. At the time, the next-highest wickets tally for a specialist spinner from Sri Lanka was 71, by a bowler named Rangana Herath. more..

Nov 5 (DM) The JVP today welcomed the statement made by the Speaker Karu Jayasuriya that he would have to recognize the previous status quo in Parliament until a clear majority was shown and said it was a brave decision taken by Parliament to defeat the political coup. JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake said that the President prorogued Parliament to buy time to secure a majority in parliament by winning over opposition members to their side using black money. more..

Nov 5 (DM) Kamer Nizamdeen, the Sydney uni student who faced terrorism charges over an alleged plot to kill several Australian Govt members arrived at the BIA this afternoon. The 25-year-old SL University student had been released on bail, after an expert found the sole piece of evidence couldn't be connected to him. Mr. Nizamdeen was arrested in August after a colleague found a notebook allegedly containing details of plans to kill Malcolm Turnbull and his former Deputy Julie Bishop. more..

Nov 5 (CB) Lahiru Kumara has been found guilty of breaching the team's code of conduct and will be replaced by Dushmantha Chameera in the 16 member Sri Lanka squad set to face England in first of three Tests starting Tuesday. Kumara, 21, was impressive during SL's recent tour of the West Indies, picking 17 wickets at an average of 19.88 across three Tests, and was the second-highest wicket-taker of the series more..

Nov 5 (DM) UNP MP Dr. Rajitha Senaratne said today he met with President Maithripala Sirisena on Sunday on an invitation extended by him. He told a media briefing that he carried a message from the President to UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe. “I met with President Sirisena on his invitation. Since I did not want to go alone, I invited MP John Amaratunga to accompany me. President explained to me as to what made him appoint former President Mahinda Rajapaksa as PM. more..

Nov 5 (DM) JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake today met TNA Leader and Opposition Leader R. Sampanthan at his office in Colombo and discussed how they could work in tandem to defeat the current political coup. He told the media, after the discussion, that they were prepared to come forward at any time when democracy was at stake. “We should not allow anyone to form a govt through a political coup. We discussed with TNA leader how we could work together to defeat this coup,’ more..

Nov 5 (AD) PM Mahinda Rajapaksa, addressing the Jana Mahimaya rally, stated that he once again respects the decision taken by Prez Sirisena. Jana Mahimaya rally organized to support the newly established govt is currently ongoing at the Parliament roundabout. Rajapaksa says that this decision taken by the Prez after working with Ranil Wickremesinghe is very important. Prez and I worked separately for a long time and more..

Nov 5 (Reuters) Dilruwan Perera and Akila Dananjaya are likely to partner slow left-armer Rangana Herath, who will retire after the first test, and Chandimal said his team wanted to send the veteran into retirement with a win. “When you look at the Galle pitch, it’s always turning and helpful to spinners,” Chandimal said on Monday. “When we play in Sri Lanka, it’s spinners who take charge. Then again, it’s all about weather and the condition of the pitch.” more..

Nov 5 (CI) It's Galle. It's going to spin. Given it is Rangana Herath's final Test and England are the opposition, it might spin like crazy. Unfortunately, it also looks as if it's going to rain, at least for parts of the Test. The weather forecast is for thunderstorms, generally in the afternoons. That doesn't mean we won't get a result, of course. None of the last 21 Tests in Sri Lanka have ended in draws. Many of those had had to contend with the weather as well. England cruised through ODI series, more..

Nov 5 (DM) Prez Sirisena said today that he offered the premiership to Speaker Karu Jayasuriya first and then to UNP Deputy Leader Sajith Premadasa before considering former President Mahinda Rajapaksa for the post of PM. Addressing a public rally named Rata Surakina Jana Mahimaya, he said the UNP MPs who met him during the past few days asked him why Mr. Rajapaksa was appointed the PM contrary to more..

Nov 6 (CT) Currently, the forecasted GDP growth is less than four per cent which is well below expectation. The country is in a severe debt crisis which is leading to an unstable Rupee. What was required was to correct the matrix of macroeconomic fundamentals which would have justified the roll-over of foreign loans to get over with the imminent crisis. Its true Ranil Wickremesinghe did not do it, but careful intervention might have made him work towards that goal because he was the PM more..

Nov 6 (CT) Every one of the 6.2 million who voted Yahapalanaya, is in a quandary why PM Wikremesinghe nor Prez Sirisena, did not take to task the Rajapaksas for Murder and Fraud with an abundance of evidence displayed in the Media, for the last three and a half years. Majority is dismayed and is despondent, why the Rule of Law was not applied to any one of them, thus allowing them to go scot free. It is my belief, that some hand, very, very powerful, restrained them from more..

Nov 6 (SO) “Unlike cultivators in other areas we have to pay an additional one tenth share of our harvest to the ox caravans nsport our produce up to the road,” lamented 30-year-old Kumudini Nirosha while winnowing the last half bushel of this season’s paddy harvest from the two acre plot in the Lamasooriya Valley that they had cultivated on lease. Nirosha’s family is one of the three hundred or more farmer families that more..

Nov 6 (CT) Even as the political crisis continues to drag on the cost to the country is immense. This past weekend I was in Deniyaya to meet with civil society activists for an activity that had been arranged prior to the political crisis. This was to create awareness in the rural areas about the mechanisms that the govt set up during the past three years to enable people to protect their human rights. These are some of the fruits of the reconciliation process of the past 3 yrs since more..

Nov 6 (CT) Now we know why Sirisena the President landed us on the straight single-lane express way to un-freedom. He will not stay even one hour in the presidency if Ranil is made Prime Minister again. So, says the news reports. It is a damned good idea. ‘We, the people must redouble our efforts to make Ranil Wickremesinghe the prime minster just for one day. We will be spared the painful process of an impeachment and GROBR. We can then replace Ranil with a new PM. more..

Nov 6 (SO) Diwali or Deepavali is the most popular and eagerly anticipated Hindu festival, celebrated on the 15th day of the Hindu month, Kartik or Karthigai (Oct/Nov). This year it falls on Tuesday (6). Hindus of Sri Lanka, India and many countries where they reside, either as permanent citizens or as expatriates are celebrating Deepavali, but in Tamil Nadu, the celebrations begin tomorrow (5). The festival is known as Deepavali more..

Nov 6 (FT) The sprawling official residence of the PM of Sri Lanka despite the incumbent Ranil Wickremesinghe getting sacked continues to be occupied by him. However the Navy guards, the maintenance staff, the drivers, the cooks and gardeners and cleaners have all been removed on a directive of the President. The normal complement of 1,000 dedicated security personnel – police, watchmen, bodyguards – had all been withdrawn from Temple Trees. more..

Nov 6 (Island) The crisis situation has taken a turn for the worse with Speaker Karu Jayasuriya refusing to recognise the newly formed govt until it proves that it commands the confidence of Parliament. The President’s side insists that the Speaker is not constitutionally empowered to do so and he is overstepping his limits for political reasons. The Speaker having thus placed himself on a collision course with the President, how the latter will react remains to be seen. more..

Nov 6 (FT) The sprawling official residence of the PM of Sri Lanka despite the incumbent Ranil Wickremesinghe getting sacked continues to be occupied by him. However the Navy guards, the maintenance staff, the drivers, the cooks and gardeners and cleaners have all been removed on a directive of the President. The normal complement of 1,000 dedicated security personnel – police, watchmen, bodyguards – had all been withdrawn from Temple Trees. more..

Nov 6 (Island) He was just eight years old when he saw the cartoon. The devil with horns, a snake for a pen and a skull for an ink well. And the only thought that passed this impressionable kid’s mind was what the devil was Salman Rushdie doing. The cartoon was done by an Iranian extremist about Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses. The cartoon germinated, in his young mind, an early enthusiasm for cartoons. Although 37 years old now, and is a renowned cartoonist in his own right more..

Nov 6 (Island) It was very clear what we wanted in 2015. We wanted to get rid of a corrupt, lawless and an indecent culture and bring about the opposite: a clean, decent, civilized and a law-abiding governance and culture. But what went wrong in the whole magnificent political exercise was that we trusted the wrong people. A small part of the dream came true, but it was just not enough. We realized that the responsible people were as crooked more..

Nov 6 (CI) "What an incredible lad he is. So calm, so understanding, and he's always there for everyone. For the youngsters, especially, having an influence like that is very, very good. Rangana Herath is very approachable to anyone. When you come into the int'l set-up, everything changes - the rewards and everything around you. You have to react positively to that. To help the youngsters with that, Herath has played a big role. On the cricket side, once Murali retired his numbers tell the story. more..

Nov 6 (ST) At two different forums that I attended recently I had the opportunity to listen to some comments centred on two questions. I write below the comments I was listening to, because the views embodied in the comments are not random, but widely held views. One was about export growth in relation to the current exchange rate problem: “How can we say that Sri Lanka does not have sufficient foreign exchange earnings, when we export more than US$11 billion worth goods a year and more..

Nov 6 (FT) Hemas Hospitals yesterday announced the divestiture of Hemas Southern Hospital, taking a significant step to intensify its growth strategy and new business lines. An experienced healthcare service provider Asiri Hospitals has acquired the Hemas Southern Hospital for a value of Rs.450 million. “We identified Asiri Group of Hospitals as the best fit due to their capability of providing high quality patient more..

Nov 6 (CI) The retiring Rangana Herath is as good in home conditions as the greatest Asian spinners, Muttiah Muralitharan and Anil Kumble, according to former SL coach Paul Farbrace. Currently the England assistant coach, Farbrace worked with Herath in two separate stints with the SL team. The first came as Sri Lanka's assistant coach, between 2007 and 2010. The second was in 2014, when he was briefly the head coach. "In subcontinental conditions, Rangana's up there with Murali, more..

Nov 6 (Island) Executive Vice President of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) David Bohigian and other U.S. govt officials visited Sri Lanka from Oct 3 to 5. The trip promoted U.S. investment in the region and strengthened cooperation with regional allies to drive economic growth and stability. The delegation met with Minister of Finance and Mass Media Mangala Samaraweera from the govt of Sri Lanka as well as representatives of American businesses more..

Nov 6 (CI) As Rangana Herath, the last active Test cricket from the 1990s, bids farewell with the Galle Test against England, here is a look at what his first ten team-mates have been up to. Sanath Jayasuriya: Retired from international cricket in 2011, Jayasuriya was named Sri Lanka's chairman of selectors in 2013. After serving for two years, he resigned from the post only to make a comeback a year later. During his first stint, more..

Nov 6 (CT) A cross section of society speaking to our newspaper were of the view that President Maithripala Sirisena’s move to remove former PM Ranil Wickremesinghe was commendable but there is an opinion which does not condone with this view and say that President Maithripala Sirisena’s decision was unethical and immoral. Excerpts: Nazar (43 yrs), Fort Trade Centre: The whole world including almost all the western Countries are in favour of Ranil Wickremesinghe. more..

Nov 6 (Island) There was a slight distraction for Sri Lanka ahead of the three match Test series against England as fast bowler Lahiru Kumara was sent home on disciplinary grounds on the eve of the first Test here in Galle. Dushmantha Chameera was called up as replacement, but more of a concern for the Sri Lankans will be the weather in Galle. Both teams were forced to train indoors as the entire ground was covered due to inclement weather. The hosts will be hoping that the weather clears more..

Nov 6 (FT) Sri Lanka’s new destination brand, So Sri Lanka, debuted yesterday at the opening day of the World Travel Mart (WTM) 2018 in London. Encapsulating the essence of SL, its authenticity, diversity and all of its richness is an expression that sums up the travels and tales of a SL experience. At the launch of the new strategy and slogan, newly appointed Tourism Minister Vasantha Senanayake said that more..

Nov 6 (DM) The world’s second largest cargo aircraft, Antonov An-124-100-150 Russian Long-Range Heavy Transport Aircraft was landed at the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA) for the eighth time this afternoon, Airport Manager Upali Kalansuriya said. He said the cargo aircraft was being refuelled and that its crew was resting. The aircraft arrived from Karachi Airport landed at MRIA at 1.50 p.m yesterday and scheduled to leave for Jakarta, at 3.00 a.m. today,” he said. more..

Nov 6 (ST) The clash in the final of the 66th National Snooker Championship played at the Moors SC billiards table saw M.F.M. Fahim of Moors SC clinch his maiden national snooker title in style with a convincing six frames to one win over experienced Ryan Somaratna of Otters AC. Fahim was on course to lift the title when he took a comfortable five frames to one at the end of the first session in the 11 frames encounter. The final encounter was expected to be a closely contested affair more..

Nov 6 (AD) A special discussion was held between the Secretary to the Ministry of Finance and the Ceylon Workers’ Congress (CWC) today (5) regarding the increment of basic daily wage of estate workers, says the Vice President of the Congress, S. Arulsamy. The discussion was held with the mediation of PM Mahinda Rajapaksa, according to Arulsamy. During the several rounds of discussions that were held between more..

Nov 6 (DN) Residents around Hangidiyahena hillside in Ovilla Gramaseva Niladari division, Ukuwela who were evacuated for fear of landslides, are not provided with lands to settle in. At present, 35 families temporarily reside in the Ovilla public hall while several other families, who were evacuated, are residing at their relatives’ houses. They said since 2012, they were evacuated from time to time during rainy seasons as trees and mounds of soil slide down the slopes. more..

Nov 6 (DN) National Savings Bank has recently raised a US$ 100 million loan facility supported by Commerzbank AG. The excellent relationship that NSB enjoys with its banking partners has allowed NSB access to a competitive interest rate despite the current global trend of interest rate increases. The facility was arranged jointly by Dubai based Alpen Capital (ME) Limited and NDB Investment Bank of SL. The funds were required as part repayment of US$ 750 million which more..

Nov 6 (FT) Following is an extract of the interview Rauff Hakeem had with BBC. Q: SLMC has seven MPs. What is your position on the current political situation? A: We have called for an immediate convention of the Parliament. Upon our individual and collective requests, the Speaker had arranged today’s discussion. Meanwhile, we have pointed out to him that we have more majority than the requirement. more..

Nov 6 (FT) Indian Ocean Rim Association held its 20th Committee of Senior Officials and 18th Council of Ministers sessions from 31 Oct to 2 Nov in Durban, South Africa on the theme: Uniting the people of Africa, Asia, Australia and the Middle East through enhanced cooperation for peace, stability and sustainable development. In the country statement to the Council of Ministers, SL’s head of delegation, Saroja Sirisena, Director General of Economic Affairs (Multilateral) of more..

Nov 6 (CT) A severed head of an unidentified woman has been found near Kiribbanweva, Sewenagala. On a call received through Police emergency line, the said head was found on 4 Nov near Kiribbanweva in the Relapanawa area after it had been spotted floating in a river by a group of youths who had gone for a bath. The identity of the deceased woman or the cause of death has not been revealed yet. Police suspect that the deceased woman might be a foreigner more..

Nov 6 (FT) President Maithripala Sirisena yesterday stood by his PM, insisting that he had the 113 MPs needed to hold Parliament and defended the move as a last ditch effort coming after he had offered the position to Speaker Karu Jayasuriya and UNP MP Sajith Premadasa. Thousands of supporters flocked to show support to President Sirisena’s controversial move to appoint Prez Rajapaksa’s as PM on Monday. more..