Oct 23 (DM) Former US Ambassador to Nepal, Alaina B. Teplitz was sworn in as the incoming US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives on Monday. The USDS said in a tweet that the oath was administered by US Under Secretary David Hale. “Congrats and safe travels, Ambassador,” it said. Her nomination as the next US Ambassador to SL and Maldives was confirmed by the US Senate in September. Ms.Teplitz, who is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, will replace more..

Oct 23 (CT) Recently the Chairman of the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB), K.A. Ansar said a Cabinet Sub-Committee had been appointed to introduce a tariff for water units as water bills have not been amended since 2012. The Sub-Committee will make revisions to the memorandum submitted to the Cabinet by the Minister Rauff Hakeem, to introduce a new water tariff. However, NWSDB Head noted that they were not intending to unduly increase water bills. more..

Oct 23 (CT) Intensifying the internal power struggle within the Joint Opposition, JO MP Kumara Welgama hit out at his party colleague Gamini Lokuge saying the latter was responsible for burning down the Jaffna library. “A person who went to a school would never burn down a library,” Welgama said speaking to media on the current tug-of-war among JO members over the Presidential candidate of the alliance. Welgama has said in no uncertain terms that he will not support more..

Oct 23 (FT) Our policymakers may do the right thing but not do it too well by not communicating the larger purpose of their actions. The current fuss about the proposed Aruwakkalu landfill is one such example. As the Ministry of Megapolis correctly points out, the landfill is sanitary, is located in a sparsely populated area, and Colombo’s waste is everybody’s waste, but protesters are not swayed by such logic. With the memory of the negligence and/or the misdemeanours of the CMC, more..

Oct 23 (USE) A delegation from the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement visited Sri Lanka from October 8 to 12, 2018 to observe U.S.-funded demining activities and meet with some of the beneficiaries of these projects. The projects are part of the nearly Rs. 600 million ($3.5 million) in assistance that the U.S. Department of State has provided towards SL’s demining efforts in fiscal year 2018. more..

Oct 23 (AD) Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Sri Lanka Cricket, who was arrested for alleged financial fraud, has been remanded until Nov 1 by the Colombo Additional Magistrate. Piyal Nandana was arrested on Monday following a complaint lodged by the SLC to the Inspector General of Police. The arrest of the Sri Lanka Cricket CFO is related to an alleged financial fraud, which was unearthed last September. An alleged attempt to transfer to an offshore account USD 5.5 mil more..

Oct 23 (SLN) Galle Dialogue International Maritime Conference 2018 organized by the SL Navy for the 9th consecutive year, under the aegis of the Ministry of Defence, commenced at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo yesterday. On the sidelines of the conference, several foreign delegates called on the Commander of SL Navy, Vice Admiral Sirimevan Ranasinghe and held bilateral discussions. Accordingly, high ranking defence officials from Australia, Canada, China, UK, France, more..

Oct 23 (EN) Sri Lanka has no plans to expand import controls which were slapped earlier this year as the rupee fell Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera said amid fears that more Mercantilist restrictions will be slapped to make up for monetary policy errors. "For the moment we have no other plans to control that," he said on Tuesday. He was responding to a question on whether a list of non-essential items to be slapped with further more..

Oct 23 (NR) Rupee slumped to a fresh low of 174.12 against the US Dollar today, due to importer dollar demand while selling in govt securities pressured the currency further. Currency had touched 172.05 per Dollar yesterday. Rupee has weakened 1.66% against the Dollar so far this month, extending the 4.7% loss in Sept. Rupee has declined 11.99% so far this year. Meanwhile, the govt has taken several measures to strengthen the Rupee including through the limitation of import volumes. more..

Oct 23 (AD) CCTV footage of a mobile phone store has captured a woman stealing a brand new mobile after coming into the shop to repair an old phone. A woman had entered the said shop to repair her old phone and while the shop keeper was away repairing it, she could be seen attempting to steal products on display at the store. After several attempts, the woman manages to steal a mobile phone on the shelf while the shop keeper was processing her payment. more..

Oct 23 (Island) PM Ranil Wickremesinghe says that a Truth and Justice Commission will be established early next year, as a follow up to the Missing Persons Commission. The PM said so, answering questions posed by the President of the Oxford Union Stephen Horvath and the audience during his recent visit to the Oxford University. Wickremesinghe had earlier delivered a speech on the topic more..

Oct 23 (DN) The term of Northern Provincial Council (NPC) ends tomorrow and the administration will be vested with Northern Province Governor Reginold Cooray until the elections are held. Provincial Councils and Local Govt Ministry Secretary Kamal Pathmasiri said that the term of the North Western and Central Provinces too lapsed this month. The elections to the above provinces were conducted on Sept 21, 2013. With the addition of the above three provinces, elections are due for six PCs. more..

Oct 23 (EN) Sri Lanka will soon go to parliament to seek permission to raise 310 billion rupees for liability management under a new law, over and above the budget deficit, Central Bank Governor Indrajit Coomaraswamy said. "And that will give us the headroom to progressively build buffers to address in particular the external financing requirements, that are coming up ahead," he told an economic forum organized by Asia Securities, a Colombo-based brokerage. more..

Oct 23 (AFP) Sri Lanka on Tuesday called for a coalition of the willing to help stabilise free-falling emerging market currencies around the globe, as the beleaguered rupee slumped to fresh lows. The island's currency bottomed out at a record-low 174.12 rupees to the dollar, resisting a slew of measures by policymakers to arrest its steady decline. Rupee has shed more than 12% of its value this year & SL fears it could slide further more..

Oct 23 (DM) It is not legal to pay reparations to those who tried to divide the country and engaged in illegal activities, Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka said today. Minister Fonseka expressed this sentiment at a media briefing held this afternoon when he was asked about his views on the Reparations Bill. “LTTE were those who worked to divide the nation by taking up arms. It is a serious offence according to the Constitution. I don’t approve of paying compensation to them. more..

Oct 23 (PMD) Two new SLFP organizers were appointed and they were presented appointment letters by President Sirisrna at the Presidents office today (22). SLFP organizer for Katugampola electorate Sampath Weerawardena and the former president of Giribhawa divisional secratariat as the SLFP organizer for Galgamuwa electorate R D Gunaratne were presented appointment letters by the President. Former deputy minister Shantha Bandara was also present in the event. more..

Oct 23 (EN) Sri Lanka has received expressions of interest from 88 international companies to purchase the Colombo Hilton and Grand Hyatt building, Minister Mangala Samaraweera said. "We have received expressions of interest from 88 international companies," Mangala Samaraweera said. The deadline for responses was also extended by two weeks to mid November, he said. Opposition member Vasudeva Nanayakkara had written more..

Oct 23 (CT) The Agricultural and Agrarian Insurance Board yesterday (22) said that they have decided to issue identity cards to farmers to provide compensation to them. Assistant Director of Planning and Information at the Board, Kasundari Dissanayake said that there were irregularities which had cropped up recently in relation to giving compensation and therefore, the Board had decided to provide an identification card to identify the real farmer. more..

Oct 23 (CG) Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) has signed a new multi-year partnership with the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), to support education projects in the Kilinochchi district. A funding grant of over US$ 6 million will be used to strengthen access to quality education in 13 schools, serving over five thousand children in the next four years. The Educational Environment Improvement Project in the Kilinochchi District seeks to improve the quality of education more..

Oct 23 (ES) Kumar Sangakkara says cricket’s authorities need to vet players’ agents and limit access to stars to rid the game of match-fixing. It has been a busy few days for the sport, with the ICC announcing last week that Sanath Jayasuriya, a former team-mate of Sri Lanka legend Sangakkara and the fourth-highest ODI run-scorer, had been charged with two counts of corruption while working as a selector last year. more..

Oct 23 (AD) Former DIG Nalaka de Silva has left the CID after giving 6-hour long statement for the 4th day. He arrived at the CID for the third time yesterday and was grilled for nearly 9 hours; accordingly, today is the fourth day of his interrogations. DIG Nalaka de Silva, former Director of the Terrorism Investigation Division (TID), is currently under investigation in connection with an alleged conspiracy to assassinate the President and the former Defense Secretary. more..

Oct 23 (AD) All Ceylon Makkal Congress (ACMC) alleges that there is a conspiracy to assassinate their party leader Rishad Bathiudeen. Members of ACMC filed a complaint regarding this at the police Head Quarters today. They say that former DIG Nalaka de Silva and Namal Kumara, along with another person in France named Thusara Sampath, is plotting the alleged assassination. Director (Operations) of Anti-Corruption Movement, Namal Kumara, had last month uncovered more..

Oct 23 (AD) Permanent High Court at Bar today ordered daily hearing in the case against the former President’s Chief of Staff Gamini Senarath and three others, from Nov 07. The daily hearing of the case was scheduled to commence on Oct 30, however, the defense counsels have informed the court that they have not yet received the documents relevant to the case. Accordingly, the High Court Trial-at-Bar consisting of more..

Oct 24 (CT) Last week, the Ministry of Mahaweli Development & Environment under the guidance of the Minister in-charge of the subject, the President, organized the Environmental Conference and Exhibition titled Sri Lanka Next with the objective of sharing blue-green achievements. I had the privilege of expressing my views, at the Expert Dialogue Forum hosted by the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA), held in conjunction with this said event. more..

Oct 24 (DN) The President has strengthened his security at last. It was several weeks since the story about a conspiracy to assassinate him and the ex-Defence Secretary was reported in the media. That it took so long to strengthen the security of no less a person than the President of the Republic is a sad testimony to the unsatisfactory state of the security situation. The security of the ex-Defence Secretary has not been reported so far. Security of individuals does not and should not depend on more..

Oct 24 (SO) So, at last I’ve blurted it out, she tells me, tears streaming down her face. I’m stunned. Let’s call her Aysha, though that’s not her real name. We have known each other for years, shared our lives, valued each other’s opinion, agreed, disagreed and worked together through hard times. A calm persona, I’d never seen this woman in tears, ever. The scars run deep. Against the tirade of emotion charged words, more..

Oct 24 (CT) In my previous writings, like many other writers on the subject of economics, I was critical about what had happened and what is happening. Yet, no solution was proposed other than hinting what ought to be done. From this piece, I am going to suggest a possible solution. As you may understand, here in this column, I could discuss only the concept based on theoretical and empirical evidences, but theories would not be discussed. In order to put our solution more..

Oct 24 (DN) World Development Information Day falls tomorrow. The UN General Assembly in 1972 established this day to draw the world attention to development problems and the need to strengthen international cooperation to solve them. The Assembly also decided that the date for the event should coincide with United Nations Day. The UN Assembly believes that improving the dissemination of information and the mobilization of public opinion, particularly among young people, more..

Oct 24 (CT) Explaining about the enduring Laser Three Dimensional Mapping projection of the Sigiriya Frescoes, Professor Emeritus of the Kelaniya Uni, Prof. B.D. Nandadeva said that there is nothing to be worried, because this technology is fully-environment friendly and fully-guaranteed. He further said that this seems to be new to us but this technology is used worldwide, and it has been successful from its inception. more..

Oct 24 (CT) Over the last few years I have had the tiring, but rewarding task of sorting through my father’s papers. Tiring because he kept so much and in so many places, rewarding because he had wide-ranging interests and there is much to learn from all this stored up material. After the laborious task of sorting out his library, giving many books to the schools he attended, as well as the Jaffna Public Library and Sabaragamuwa University, I finally got down to the closed cupboard under more..

Oct 24 (Island) Chairman of the National Election Commission (NEC) Mahinda Deshapriya is said to have, in a strongly-worded letter, registered his protest with the govt against polls postponements. His missive may have gone down well with the public, but it will serve little purpose where elections are concerned. The govt is afflicted with what may be called polls phobia and no amount of exhortation or criticism is going to jolt it into holding elections. Making a rabid dog drink water more..

Oct 24 (CT) On 11 Sept 2018, Cabinet approved a Bill for the Counter Terrorism Act (CTA) which is to replace the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) – a piece of legislation which has been used arrest and detain suspects with little due process. Though enacted to combat the JVP and LTTE movements, in practice the legislation has been a tool for state terror against labour activists and racially profiled Tamil citizens. The new CTA Bill was touted as part of regime’s good governance more..

Oct 24 (Island) The confirmation of the murder of Jamal Khassoggi by Saudi authorities opens more attempts at fooling the world, on the repressive monarchy that holds sway in Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has a frightful record of deceit with regard to this murder. Initially they said Khassoggi had left its Istanbul Consulate. Twelve days later they said he had died after being choked in a brawl. Now, the Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al Jubeir, calls the killing a rogue operation and a huge mistake. more..

Oct 24 (CI) Sri Lanka have inflicted upon England the heaviest defeat - in terms of runs - in their ODI history to clinch a morale-boosting victory in Colombo. Despite not having won any of their five most recently completed ODIs, SL took advantage of a fine batting track and a slightly under-strength England attack to produce a vastly improved performance with the bat. And, after their top four all scored half-centuries - first time since 1998 more..

Oct 24 (FT) Central Bank Deputy Governor C.J.P Siriwardena has been appointed the Inland Revenue Department Commissioner General, the Finance Ministry said in a statement yesterday. The appointment was made on the recommendation of Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera, the statement added. Siriwardena has been Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of SL since 19 August 2017. Siriwardana served as Assistant Governor of the CB from 15 June 2010 to 19 Aug 2017 more..

Oct 24 (CI) England were extremely poor in defeat against Sri Lanka in the fifth ODI, according to their captain, Eoin Morgan. But while Morgan, who left himself out for the match so England could take a look at Sam Curran, also labelled his team's attitude as very poor, he felt the overall experience could prove beneficial for the side ahead of the World Cup campaign. He promised there would be no papering over the cracks when they reviewed what went wrong, having lost by a record margin of 219 more..

Oct 24 (Island) Just hours after Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe last Thursday (18) categorically denied Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) role in an assassination plot, targeting President Sirisena, Shiral Lakthilaka, one of the closest associates of Sirisena, reiterated serious concerns over the SL leader’s safety and security. Samarasinghe cleared India of any involvement, whatsoever, in a plot allegedly hatched by more..

Oct 24 (CT) It was on a Vap Full Moon Poya Day that King Devanampiya Tissa sent an embassy to meet Emperor Dharmasoka as religious emissaries. It was led by Prince Arittha. After Arahant Mahinda’s mission, the King inquired from Arahant Mahinda whether Buddhism has taken root in SL. Arahant Mahinda replied that Buddhism would be established firmly once a Sinhala child ordained. This also happened on a Vap Full Moon Poya day. The time has come for a Buddhist revival in SL more..