Oct 3 (Island) One day after I dispatched my last piece to the Sports Editor, a regular reader of this column drew my attention to the Labrooy - Hathurusingha press conference available on youtube, of which I wasn’t aware. Listening to that was revealing; in some ways even stunning!. During the course of Labrooy’s explanation it transpired that Mathews’ cricket fitness was not up to expectations and that he has had a long running hamstring issue. It also transpired that he had been instructed more..

Oct 3 (FT) Cabinet meeting yesterday heated up as Prez Sirisena raised concerns over the conduct of the current IGP, describing the high-ranking official as an embarrassment to the current Govt. Sirisena launched a scathing attack against IGP Pujith Jayasundara, claiming that his behaviour had embarrassed both the Prez and PM as well as the entire Govt. “President highlighted that the IGP’s behaviour had made a joke of entire police more..

Oct 3 (PO) Barmy Army supporters have sought the intervention of Sri Lankan High Commissioner in London and have expressed their concerns over ticket pricing and other facilities, which are being offered to them during English team’s ongoing tour of Sri Lanka. This was revealed by Barmy Army spokesperson, Andy Thompson. Speaking exclusively over telephone from London, he said, “SL High Commissioner listened intently and has promised to refer to the Minister for Sport. more..

Oct 3 (Island) Sri Lanka's tough labour market presents a problem to SL's evolving needs of becoming a strategic trading, manufacturing and investment hub in the region and it needs to be addressed as a matter of priority, Jagath Perera, President of CA Sri Lanka said. He made this remark addressing a discussion forum held at the Institute of CA SL, where State Minister Sujeewa Senasinghe, was the chief guest and High Commissioner of Bangladesh to SL more..

Oct 3 (DM) Ministry of Development Strategies and Int'l Trade categorically refuted the allegations made in the media regarding a project to set up a manufacturing plant for high powered railway equipment. It said that a series of articles appeared in the media regarding the project and by those articles several misconceptions have been created with regards to this project. “It is necessary to point out that more..

Oct 3 (FT) State Minister of Finance Eran Wickramaratne urged the shipping industry to embrace liberalisation, saying it benefitted all and aided the country’s push to become a maritime and logistics hub. Speaking at the national public-private dialogue on maritime, logistics and transport reform held under the EU-funded Trade Related Assistance Project implemented by the Int'l Trade Centre, he said one of Sri Lanka’s greatest resources was its strategic location within the Indian Ocean but more..

Oct 3 (CT) The BOI’s Malwatta Export Processing Park (MEPP) contributed Rs 2,832M (US$ 18M) in export revenue as at end of 2017, a media report stated. MEPP is in Nittambuwa, in the Gampaha District, about 38 km away from Colombo. It was established in 1998 on a land area of 32.8 acres of which 26.32 acres is industrial land. The infrastructure facilities at the zone include water, the processing of waste water and electricity, making it attractive to investors. more..

Oct 3 (DM) UNP seniors have decided that MP Ravi Karunanayake will be given a ministerial portfolio only after Attorney General clear him of any charges. Party seniors have met last evening to discuss the matter and other political issues including the provincial council elections which is to be held next year. It was reported earlier that Prez has decided to have a Cabinet reshuffle where it is expected that both Mr. Karunanayake and more..

Oct 3 (DN) A few days ago, there were unconfirmed reports that the Minister of Sports had instructed SLC to replace the national selection committee. It was also reported that the Minister had wanted Angelo Mathew’s place restored following his removal from the captaincy that he deemed unfair and rightfully so. Amidst all this drama being played out behind the screen, there was a press conference held at SLC attended by the captain elect, head coach, and the entire selection committee. more..

Oct 3 (DM) At yesterday's Cabinet meeting, PM Ranil Wickremesinghe is known to have stressed the need for the government to take a policy decision on the conduct of the provincial council elections. Political party representatives met last week to discuss this matter. The political parties, other than the SLFP, agreeing to conduct the elections under the previous proportional representation system. The SLFP insisted that the elections should be conducted under more..

Oct 3 (Island) The number of human skeletons unearthed from the Mannar mass grave had risen to 146 by yesterday, Prof. Raj Somadeva, who leads the forensic archaeological investigation into the grave said. Prof. Somadeva said those skeletal remains had been dug from a 30 per cent extent of a dig, covering 12 by 8 metre plot, behind the Mannar CWE building. Preliminary identification has determined that there are 17 skeletons more..

Oct 3 (CT) During the recent trade and investment promotion visit to Berlin, Minister Malik Samarawickrama met with the State Secretary (Vice Minister) of the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy, Dr. Ulrich Nussbaum. The two Ministers discussed future areas of cooperation, in light of the SL Govt’s keen interest to grow trade and investment linkages between the two countries. During the meeting Minister Samarawickrama observed, “Over the past few years our more..

Oct 3 (DN) The Labour Compensation Ordinance will be amended to provide more benefits to workers who face industrial accidents, Labour and Trade Union Relations Minister Ravindra Samaraweera said. The compensation amount will be increased to Rs one million from Rs 500,000 together with several other benefits, he said at a scholarship awarding ceremony to 50 students, whose parents had died or sustained permanent disabilities due to industrial accidents. Samaraweera said that more..

Oct 3 (Island) Northern Province Governor Reginald Cooray, said that the rapid deterioration of the standards of the national legislature reflected continuing uncertainty, instability and political chaos. The abolition of the executive presidency could worsen the situation further, Cooray warned. Unprecedented and sharp drop in lawmakers’ attendance at parliamentary sessions highlighted the crisis that could have catastrophic impact on more..

Oct 3 (DM) Panadura Additional Magistrate Kalhari Liyanage on Monday (1) granted bail in Rs 2 million each to two officials who were charged and remanded in connection with the deaths of four persons, after having consumed illegal drugs, during a Facebook party held at a hotel in Wadduwa on 4 August. The four youths died after being admitted to the Panadura Hospital. The two who were enlarged on bail were identified as K. Anura Pushpakumara and Eranda Danthanarayana. more..

Oct 3 (FT) President Maithripala Sirisena will be arriving in Seychelles next week on his first state visit to the country which will run from 8-10 Oct, Seychelles’ Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a release. President Sirisena will be accompanied by First Lady Jayanthi Sirisena and a high-level delegation. Prez is visiting Seychelles on an invitation extended to him by Seychelles President Danny Faure in March last year, during President Faure’s working visit to Sri Lanka. more..

Oct 3 (FT) Immigration and Emigration Department Controller General Nihal Ranasinghe yesterday said a newly-drafted Act would be enacted by the middle of next year to comply with developments in the international environment and the country’s priorities. “We have been working on upgrading the existing law from 2015. It is now in the hands of the Legal Draftsman. We hope that it will soon be sent to the Attorney General and more..

Oct 3 (CT) Sri Lanka Cricket announced that Ernst and Young (E&Y) will commence a special audit pertaining to Media Broadcasting Rights, Receipts and Payments conducted by the SLC during the 2013 to 2018 period. The audit will commence on 3 October. This initiative was taken by SLC following instructions from the Minister Faiszer Musthapha. SLC was earlier involved in a controversy when their Head of Finance was caught trying to divert USD 5.5 million from Sony Pictures Network to more..

Oct 3 (CT) The hot news doing the rounds yesterday, was that a prominent Minister had got Rs 150 million into his account from overseas. Governor of CB, Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy, responding to a journalist’s query, had said that he is neither aware of the transaction nor whether the said account had been frozen due to the investigations being conducted against the Minister. Governor stated: “Although the Financial Intelligence Unit is affiliated to Central Bank, it functions independently. more..

Oct 3 (FT) With a raft of measures taken and additional inflows in the offing, Central Bank reiterated its reassurance on the rupee and the economy whilst claiming that the excessive public and political furore over the currency’s dip was unwarranted. Whilst declining to indicate what the ideal level was, CB Governor Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy said the rupee was competitive, especially to boost exports whilst more..

Oct 3 (DM) A series of media advertisements for the Yahapalana govt say their reign of three years has given some breathing space for the populace (husma gath wasara thunak). Technically the Govt came to power in Aug 2015 when the UNP formed a quaint alliance with the SLFP, yet politically it is neither correct nor ethical to say that this regime is only three years as opposed to 3 years and another 8 months starting the count from Jan 8, 2015. Given the momentum of the tremendous victory of more..

Oct 3 (DM) The Supreme Court has put an end to a three year long wrangling and all controversies over the SAITM by accepting the plea by one of the students graduated by the institute to be provisionally registered with the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC). Needless to say it is a judgment not only on the petition filed by Malshani Sooriyaarachchi to be provisionally registered, rather it is a judgment on the standard of the SAITM, which was abolished by the govt under pressure by more..

Oct 3 (EN) Onions, potatoes and rice which are now grown in the country will cushion the people against currency collapse, CB Governor Indrajit Coomaraswamy said, as the rupee's unstable soft-peg with the US dollar began a run in 2018 amid unsterilized excess liquidity. SL was no longer the country it was when it got independence in 1948, as it is producing more rice domestically & in a good rainfall year, no rice is imported, more..

Oct 3 (CI) Kumar Sangakkara has labelled England the best all-round side in any conditions, and expects them to challenge Sri Lanka in the three-Test series in November. Although England will begin the ODI series as favourites - they are the top-ranked team, while Sri Lanka are eighth - Sangakkara said Sri Lanka will have to be on top of their game in Tests, in order to defeat England. This, despite Sri Lanka having more..

Oct 3 (DM) The CID had commenced recording statements in connection with the New York Times report which alleged that a Chinese company had funded the campaign of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa in Jan 2015. Following the New York Times article, the National Movement of Web Journalists had lodge a complaint with the FCID on June 29 requesting conduct and inquiry into the allegation. more..

Oct 3 (Island) My approach in this article is to make as little comment as possible, and to let the documentation, consisting of authoritative Resolutions, Statements and other material, speak for itself. I. Address by President Sirisena at the UNGA In his address at the UNGA on 25 Sept 2018, President Maithripala Sirisena made the following strong remarks: "My request here is to let us solve our problems. more..

Or_nct 3 (DM) The online registration for the 2020 Diversity Visa Lottery Programme (DV-2020) of the US will open at 9.30 p.m. tonight, the US Embassy in Colombo said. The Diversity Visa Lottery allows randomly selected applicants the opportunity to interview for an immigrant visa and become legal permanent residents of the US. The Embassy cautioned applicants not to be tricked by fake websites more..

Oct 3 (CT) In a bid to control the deadly Dengu menace in the city, the Colombo Municipal Council is pulling out all stops and has introduced the Ovitrap. CMC Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Ruwan Wijayamuni said his main concern was that 13 per cent of the houses in the city had prospective mosquito-breeding sites, as had been revealed during a recently-concluded mosquito control programme implemented in the City. more..

Oct 3 (CT) An expert on power and energy, Dr. Tilak Siyambalapitiya said owing to the Govt not revealing the fuel price formula, the existence of an apathetic Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) and an inefficient CEB, questions will definitely arise if a price formula for electricity is introduced. He said he was a part of the team which formulated a calculation relating to the 2010 electricity bill, but lamented that the PUCSL more..

Or_nct 3 (ST) The Education Department’s Publication Division keeps making glaring mistakes in Hinduism textbooks issued to schoolchildren, the All Ceylon Hindu Congress (ACHC) has charged. ACHC General Secretary V. Kandasamy said there were more than 700 mistakes in the Hinduism textbooks printed for students from grade 1 to grade 11 in the past two years. They lamented that the errors kept recurring more..

Or_nct 3 (DM) A Sydney-based SL university student who has been accused of plotting terror attacks is known for his Elvis impersonations at parties. Kamer Nizamdeen, 25, was arrested in August after a notepad was found allegedly containing detailed terror plans to kill Mr Turnbull, his former Liberal deputy Julie Bishop and former speaker of the house Bronwyn Bishop. Uni of New South Wales student and IT worker, more..

Oct 3 (DM) The ICC says they are currently investigation into serious allegations of corruption in cricket in Sri Lanka. The world body did not elaborate the details with regard to the ongoing investigation but said they provided a detailed briefing to the SL President, PM and Sports Minister. “We are currently in Sri Lanka as part of our ongoing investigations into serious allegations of corruption in cricket in the country,” more..

Oct 3 (CT) State Minister Sujeewa Senasinghe, yesterday, likened the impact of imported foreign labour to the import of Fijian ruggerites to the local rugby scene. Addressing a seminar on imported labour organized by the Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CASL), Human Resources Development Council and the International Chamber of Commerce and held at the CASL premises in Colombo, he said that local rugby improved within a few years due to the Fijian input. more..

Oct 3 (AD) Severe traffic congestion has been reported in Borella and Rajagiriya areas due to a train breaking down across the Cotta Road railway crossing. The Awissawella-bound train which had departed the Colombo Fort Railway Station at 5.20 p.m. has broken down at the crossing obstructing traffic movement along the road between Borella and Rajagiriya. The engine and compartments of the train have reportedly separated due to a technical fault. more..

Oct 3 (CT) A pupil at Colombo International School, founded by veteran educator Elizabeth Moir, and one of SL’s leading international schools, is currently undergoing the most problematic violation of their fundamental rights. The pupil [in line with our journalistic ethics, The CT refrains from mentioning the name of the underage child, also in an effort to respect the privacy of the child and their family] had expressed an interest in using a rainbow flag as part of their outfit for a fashion show. more..

Oct 3 (FT) Amidst the doom and gloom vibes that Donald Trump’s economic measures have given countries like Sri Lanka, there emerges some fallouts that bring more than a smile on our faces. Here is one and let us celebrate: the oppressively unfair practice of bequeathing the politico elite with duty free permits for luxury cars will go. This is among the latest series of policy decisions by the Govt in a war to cut down our import bill in order to save the rupee. more..

Oct 3 (CI) The ICC's anti-corruption unit (ACU) has briefed SL's president, PM and sports minister about ongoing investigations into serious allegations of corruption in cricket in the country. The investigations began more than a year ago, with rumours about corruption circulating around Sri Lankan cricket for several weeks before that. The ACU's general manager, Alex Marshall, has also seen it fit to plan to brief cricketers more..

Oct 3 (PSL) President Maithripala Sirisena garlanded a portrait of Mahatma Gandhi at the President’s Office, today (02). President Sirisena honoured Mahatma Gandhi, on the occasion of the 150th Birth Annivesary of him. He was the pioneer in the independence movement of India and world renowned as the father of the non-violence movement. A distinguished gathering, including the High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, Taranjit Singh Sandhu participated on this occasion. more..

Oct 3 (EN) CB Governor Indrajit Coomaraswamy said he was unaware that forex dealers had been threatened with police investigations for sharing market information with journalists reporting on currency movements. "I'm not aware of that," Coomaraswamy said when asked whether dealers were intimidated by the Central Bank. Journalists said dealers had been told that police will monitor their phone records to establish if they communicated with reporters, who will also more..