Jun 17 (AJ) On May 17, police in central Sri Lanka arrested Abdul Raheem Mazahina, a soft-spoken 47-year-old grandmother, because of the pattern on her dress. The dress's motifs look like ship wheels, but police told Mazahina, a Muslim, they were arresting her because the pattern resembled the dharmachakra, a Buddhist symbol. Mazahina, who has asthma and hypertension, had worn the dress many times more..

Jun 17 (CI) Seven-nil. On its biggest stage, cricket's most fraught rivalry really hasn't lived up to its billing. None of the six previous World Cup meetings between India and Pakistan produced anything approaching a tight finish, but most of them contained tense passages of play and moments of crackling electricity. Sunday at Old Trafford had none of that. There was plenty of quality cricket, but nearly all of it was from one side. Other side was a shadow, not just of what it had been in past, more..

Jun 17 (Island) MLAM Hizbullah, former Governor of Eastern Province, made some startling statements at the Periya Jumma Mosque in Kattankudy recently. His rant, in tone, contrasted to his mild and defensive public comments in the immediate aftermath of a visit by several Parliamentarians to the Sharia University in Batticaloa and after handing over his letter of resignation as Governor. Key elements of his delivery were; 1 Muslims should live with their heads up. more..

Jun 17 (FT) Asian Development Bank (ADB), Govt, and the Regional Development Bank (RDB) have signed Loan and Guarantee agreements to further assist Sri Lanka in providing affordable and accessible credit to rural micro, small, and medium sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the country. Under the financial agreements, ADB will provide a $ 50 million loan with sovereign guarantee from the Govt. more..

Jun 17 (FT) The destructive deforestation that has occurred at Wilpattu in the recent past has been a matter of great concern to many parties and has met with much public outcry. The repercussions of deforestation pose a severe threat to the environment, the wildlife and people. On 18 May the SL Army, together with Manusath Derana, launched a reforestation project titled Thuruliya Wenuwen Api at Wilpattu. The aim of the project is to plant 2,100 acres’ worth of trees in an effort to more..

Jun 17 (FT) SL Chamber of Small and Medium Industries (SLCSMI) President Rohan de Silva lamented that the micro, small and medium enterprises sector is the worst hit due to the 21 April Easter Sunday terror attacks. He made this observation at a forum of senior representatives from the trade and industrial chambers from Apparel Exporters, Shippers Associations, Export Development Board, Customs Dept officers, and various other trade organisations recently more..

Jun 17 (EN) President Sirisena had discussed with President Vladimir Putin, Russian imports to SL which have come under US trade sanctions at a regional meeting in Tajikistan. The US has imposed sanction on some goods imported by SL from Russia," a statement from the Prez's office said. "The leaders discussed the future course of action on the matter." The regional meeting was held to boost regional co-operated and more..

Jun 17 (AD) A person who had attempted to rob a financial institute in Horana using a toy gun has been hospitalized following injury from police gunshots. The suspect had entered the relevant financial institute early this morning (16) when the alarm connected to the Horana Police had been activated. When a team of officers had arrived at the scene the suspect had attempted to fire at the officers from the first floor of the institute. This had resulted in the police officers opening fire more..

Jun 17 (Island) It’s going to be an uphill struggle for Sri Lanka to reach the semi-finals following the 87-run defeat to Australia but it is still possible. It was a disappointing defeat because they had a great opportunity to get two points but let it slip away. The opening batsmen, Dimuth Karunaratne and Kusal Perera, set up the chase of 335 really well with a brilliant century partnership at 6.5 runs per over. We just needed two good partnerships to get through the two later spells more..

Jun 17 (AD) Issuing a statement on UNP Chairman MP Kabir Hashim, UNP Deputy Leader Minister Sajith Premadasa stated that MP Hashim set an example to leaders across the political spectrum when he sacrificed his cabinet ministry in solidarity with the Muslim community. Premadasa says that Hashim stood up against xenophobia and stood firmly between his colleagues and those who preach hatred & division along more..

Jun 17 (FT) Keeping its promise to its client’s and stakeholders, developers of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Residence, Colombo, The One Transworks Square Ltd. announced that the 30th floor of the 80-floor tower is now completed as per the schedule. The ultra-luxury tower standing at 326 m will house the hotel brand The Ritz-Carlton Hotel at the upper tier and the Ritz-Carlton Residence, Colombo at the lower and the mid-tier of the tower. Complemented by the celebrated The Ritz-Carlton services, more..

Jun 17 (Island) SL Karting Circuit (SLKC) is ready to mark yet another red-letter day in the country’s motor sport history as it prepares to hold the, first ever, eight-hour endurance karting challenge on 13 July 2019. The endurance karting challenge which will test man and machine against the clock in an exciting and extremely challenging event on July 13, 2019 at SLKC Bandaragama. It is organized by Ceylon Motor Sports Club, local representative for FIA-CIK the world governing body of karting. more..

Jun 17 (AD) Speaker of the Parliament Karu Jayasuriya says that he is willing to consider taking up presidential candidacy if he is invited by the UNP. However, he is will not grab the candidacy from someone else, he said. He added that he has not discussed this with the Leader of UNP PM Ranil Wickremesinghe. Sating that there had been instances where he had cried over the country from his heart, Jayasuriya said that more..

Jun 17 (FT) Minister Ranjith Madduma Bandara has attended the XII Integrated Safety and Security Exhibition (ISSE-2019) in Moscow on 5-8 June 2019. Minister Madduma Bandara visited the ISEE-2019 in Moscow at the invitation of Yevgeny Zinichev, Minister of the Russian Federation for Civil Defense, Emergencies and Elimination of Consequences of Natural Disasters (EMERCOM of Russia). The ISSE-2019 is the largest Russian federal level exhibition project, more..

Jun 17 (FT) INSEE Cement, Sri Lanka’s premier producer of cement that has constructed over a third of the nation’s homes, has always been dedicated to building the nation. As the nation reeled from the catastrophic destruction of lives and churches after the Easter Sunday bombing, INSEE Cement stepped forward to help rebuild and restore the nation’s damaged churches due to the unprecedented onslaught. The coordinated terror attack that took place on 21 April damaged more..

Jun 17 (LP) Britain has noted that its bilateral relationship with Sri Lanka is unique. The British High Commission in Colombo and the British Council celebrated Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s 93rd Birthday at Westminster House, the British High Commission in Colombo said today (16). MPs, representatives of the international community and civil society, and religious and business leaders attended the event. more..

Jun 17 (Island) Sri Lanka insurance has declared the largest ever life insurance bonus of Rs.7.6 billion for the year 2019 to its life insurance policyholders, recording the largest life insurance bonus ever to be declared in the insurance industry of SL. This brought total of life insurance bonuses paid to policyholders since 2006 to over Rs. 50 billion total. With this outstanding achievement Sri Lanka Insurance surpass its own record of Rs. 6.8 billion life insurance bonus declared in year 2018 more..

Jun 17 (DM) Dept of Railways was working on a new strategy to prevent animals colliding with trains. This is following a recommendation made by the committee appointed to make recommendations on preventing elephant–train collisions. Committee member Irosh Perera said they had planned to construct over-head tracks and underground tunnel to prevent such collisions. “This project is done in collaboration with the Ministry of Transport, Railways Departement and Wildlife Dept. more..

Jun 17 (CT) Chief Prelate of Asgiriya Chapter, Most Ven. Warakagoda Sri Gnanarathana Thera said, the UNP Minister, who he recently met, stated that the country has been totally destroyed due to the irresponsible behaviour of the UNP. Thera added that the particular politician had also said the UNP was a dying party which could not be resurrected. The Thera further said that country’s future is in a pathetic state. more..

Jun 17 (Island) Police Narcotic Bureau (Ratnapura Division) and STF, on the Poson Poya day (16), arrested 51 persons for consuming liquor and dangerous drugs at a hotel in Balangoda. Police said there were four youth among the suspects who claimed that they were attending some events to mark the Poson Poya. Police recovered heroin, cocaine & other dangerous narcotics. Suspects were also consuming beer. They were from Kandy, Mirigama, Kahawatte and Ratnapura. more..

Jun 17 (HCI) The 5th International Day of Yoga was celebrated at the iconic Independence Square on Saturday 15th June 2019. High Commission of India organized the mega event with the gracious presence of Ministers Rajitha Senaratne, Gayantha Karunathilaka, and Minister Palani Digambaran, as the Guests of Honour with the esteemed presence of High Commissioner of India Taranjit Singh Sandhu. Hundreds of yoga enthusiasts from all over Sri Lanka also participated in the event. more..

Jun 17 (Island) Sri Lanka conducting investigations to find out wherther some Saudi nationals were involved in the Easter Sunday attacks may need Saudi Arabian help to verify the identities of three persons who were here at the time of the April 21 blasts but left the country the following day. Authoritative sources acknowledged that foreign assistance was required in that regard. Police investigating the alleged involvement more..

Jun 17 (Island) Plans are underway to ban single use plastic items like straws, yoghurt cups through a gazette notification, and the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) and Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) are in the process finalising it. MEPA General Manager Dr. Terney Pradeep Kumara said that they were doing their utmost to reduce marine pollution. Noting that Sri Lanka was ranked fifth in the list of countries that released plastic and polythene waste to the ocean, more..

Jun 17 (CT) Governor of SP Rajith Keerthi Tennakoon, revealed that 15,124 schoolchildren, who study in Tamil medium, have lost their right to education due to the lack of teachers. Addressing a ceremony, at which 94 Tamil medium teachers were given letters of appointment, Governor sought forgiveness from the children for that. He said, “We have to ensure the right to education of each and every child in this country. Education is the key to escaping from poverty. more..

Jun 17 (Island) Alleging that Prez Sirisena had appointed UNP lawmakers, Lucky Jayawardene, Buddhika Pathirana and Anoma Gamage as acting ministers in violation of the law, PM Ranil Wickremesinghe has advised them not to function in those positions. UNP sources said that as the MPs had accepted appointments without receiving party approval they shouldn’t expect their move to be endorsed under any circumstances. more..

Jun 17 (DM) Sincerity is the greatest quality in human beings and it is children who have it in abundance. Children are devastatingly honest. That is why religious leaders have warned us and the punishment that await those who abuse children. Such criminals should be thrown into the deepest sea with a millstones tied around their necks. On June 12, the International Labour Organization (ILO) launched the World Day Against Child Labour in 2002 to focus attention on the global extent more..

Jun 17 (DM) Household indebtedness is now a critical factor in disrupting social life. Furthermore, rising and unsustainable household indebtedness has also contributed to national economic crises, including the global economic crisis of 2008. The global crisis was triggered by financial instability linked to subprime mortgage lending in the US, particularly to low-income communities that drastically increased household debt and defaults. High levels of global household debt are more..

Jun 17 (DM) It does not take a political scientist to feel that the mass resignation of Muslim Ministers is in bad faith. More so when they took place barely six weeks after Islamic terrorists unleashed a serial carnage, killing over 250 Easter worshippers and tourists and injuring many hundreds more. Worse still they resigned en masse in an awkward defence of two Muslim governors and a Minister who were accused more..

Jun 17 (EN) Developing more mini-hydropower plants in Sri Lanka is becoming increasingly difficult since costs have increased sharply in recent years while rates at which electricity is sold have not, Resus Energy has warned. The Resus Energy group has operational minihydro power plants in the regions of Kandy, Kegalle and Nuwara Eliya and has begun building solar power plants in eastern Amparai. more..

Jun 17 (EN) Sri Lanka's central bank has pegged strongly to the US dollar in May 2019, buying US$ 45 million from the interbank forex market to stop the rupee from appreciating, official data show. The central bank bought US$ 45 million from the interbank market in May 2019, deploying a strong-side convertibility undertaking and had sold US$ 40.5 million to enforce a weak-side convertibility undertaking, central bank data showed. more..

Jun 17 (FT) In analysing Sri Lanka’s business landscape post-Easter Sunday attacks, it is crucial that the state of affairs across multiple sectors be looked upon both individually, as well as a whole, so as to gain as informed an understanding as possible. First and foremost, it must be acknowledged that the industry impacted the most, by a considerable distance, is the tourism sector. 300+ flights a month have been cancelled, more..

Jun 17 (Island) LSSP Leader Prof. Tissa Vitharana has urged the four party TNA not to align itself with the UNP, which, he says, is seeking US intervention here. Prof. Vitharana discussed the issue in a recent speech delivered at the Jaffna Managerial Forum. Prof. Vitharana strssed the need for Tamil leaders who thought first as Sri Lankans and then only as Tamils to be elected to Parliament, if national issues were to be resolved. more..

Jun 17 (DM) The Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) probing the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks, is said to be in a dilemma after President Maithripala Sirisena vowed not to send intelligence officers presently in service to testify before it. The committee members are set to meet the Speaker tomorrow morning in order to clarify his stance and how he would like them to take the process forward. more..

Jun 17 (ST) The Chinese company that recently received a letter of intent from the Road Development Authority (RDA) to carry out civil works related to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)-funded port access elevated highway project has been debarred by the World Bank (WB). The WB, on June 5, announced a nine-month debarment of China Railway Construction Corporation Ltd (CRCC), its wholly owned subsidiaries and more..

Jun 17 (CT) Threatening that he would immediately leave the Govt if it permitted the import of cigarettes from any foreign country, Minister Rajitha Senaratne, claimed that the Commissioner General of Excise is currently under pressure to issue a licence to import cigarettes from China. He added that when he heard a powerful Minister in the Govt remark about offering licences to import foreign cigarettes, he spoke to Chairman of NATA more..

Jun 17 (DM) The Vedda Chieftain Uruwarige Wannilaththo rejected Sri Lankan politics as a stinking cesspit while stating that he felt disgusted to see the behaviour of the rulers of the country who act as pre-school children after the Easter Sunday attacks in which innocent men, women and children were killed. He said some people who visit him call on him to contest the Presidential election but said he did not want to fall into this cesspit. more..

Jun 17 (DM) The govt has not given up the effort to work in unity, upholding the principles of Lichchavi administration, PM Ranil Wickremesinghe said. PM expressed these sentiments in Mihintale as he was responding to remarks made by the Chief Incumbent of Mihintale Rajamaha Viharaya Ven. Walawahengunawewe Dhammaratana Thera that nothing will get done in this country if there is no unity in the govt and more..

Jun 17 (AD) The sixth round of talks between the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) and the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) which was set to be held today (17) has been canceled. The fifth round of talks between the two parties on a possible alliance was held on 7th June and the next round was scheduled to be held today. Accordingly, the sixth round of discussions will be held again on the 26th of June, stated SLFP General Secretary MP Dayasiri Jayasekara. more..

Jun 17 (CT) June being the Nutrition Month startling revelation has been made by Consultant Community Physician Dr. Lakmini Magodarathne on health issues of the younger generation. The excessive open market policy has even paved the way to various food items from several parts of the world to flow into the island rapidly sidelining the traditional food items. It is not only the imported food items even the internationally well known food restaurants have even established their branches in more..