Jul 28 (Island) Human Rights Commission of SL (HRCSL) has decided to summon Director General of Health Services Dr. Asela Gunawardena for failure to address HRCSL’s concerns pertaining to the ongoing Covid-19 vaccination programme. Dr. Jagath Balasuriya, Chairman, HRCSL, on May 28, in writing, requested Dr. Gunawardena to submit a comprehensive report on vaccination programme by June 15. more..

Jul 28 (FT) With the calamities in the political arena, the social media gave rise to a concept of Sri Lanka Pvt. Ltd. to sarcastically criticise the representation of many Rajapaksas in the parliament. This may mean controlling the country by a family or a Junta. Or it may assume the Govt to a family-owned real-estate company, that sells country’s valuable properties. However, for some analysts it makes a big sense and sounds a model for the country’s development. more..

Jul 28 (FT) COVID-19 pandemic and consequent public safety protocols have placed an enormous strain on individuals and the economy. State-imposed lockdowns have brought the economy to a virtual halt. Businesses have struggled to meet their financial obligations, and many have either gone through foreclosure, or limped along under constant stress. In such troubled times the financial sector has remained a bulwark against an economic collapse. more..

Jul 28 (Island) 230 families living in the ancient village of Meemure, bordering the knuckles range received permits for their lands from State Minister Nimal Lansa last Sunday 25. The land permits were issued to the villagers following representations made to Prez Rajapaksa during his visit to the remote village of Meemure in February. The recipients of the official permits were handed over to the villagers at the Kaikawala Maha Vidyalaya in the presence of the central province more..

Jul 28 (AD) A three-member specialist medical team has been appointed to carry out the second postmortem of the teenage domestic worker who died while serving at the residence of MP Rishad Bathiudeen. The team had been named by the Director-General of Health on the recommendations of the Attorney General, SDIG Ajith Rohana said. The medical team includes Dr. Jean Perera, Professor of Forensic Medicine at the Faculty of Medicine in the University of Colombo, more..

Jul 28 (Island) MP Dr. Harsha de Silva, founder of 1990 Suwaseriya Pre Hospital Care Ambulance Service said yesterday that it had been launched amidst various obstacles. He said so on the occasion of the fifth anniversary of the ambulance service, which falls today. Dr. de Silva emphasised that the infrastructure needed to be further developed to improve the service rendered by the ambulance service. more..

Jul 28 (DN) The age at which a person can be employed in this country has been increased to 18 years and laws applicable will be enforced within the next three months, Labour Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva said. In the light of the recent incident involving the death of the 16-year-old domestic aide employed at the residence of an MP, Minister de Silva noted that steps have been taken to increase the minimum age for domestic workers to 18 years by amending the hazardous jobs list. more..

Jul 28 (DM) Despite the dependency on oxygen over COVID-19 patients has fairly gone up, there is no shortage of Oxygen required to provide treatment for COVID patients in the country. Dr. Hemantha Herath dismissed reports that there is an imminent danger of a dearth of Oxygen in the country. “The health system is equipped with adequate stocks of Oxygen plus we also have potential to provide the necessary Oxygen to every hospital where Oxygen has become urgent,” more..

Jul 28 (EN) Opposition lawmaker Harin Fernando arrived at the CID headquarters this morning to record a statement on the 2019 Easter bombings. The CID had summoned the SJB MP to record a statement on a controversial speech he had made in parliament in April this year. Speaking to reporters outside the CID, SJB and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa called for an end to the witch hunt of SJB MPs. more..

Jul 28 (CI) Sri Lanka's Wanindu Hasaranga has leapfrogged Afghanistan's new T20I captain Rashid Khan to be ranked career-best No. 2 among T20I bowlers. The ICC rankings list is led by South Africa's Tabraiz Shamsi, who has a 72-point advantage following impressive returns on the tour of the Caribbean and Ireland earlier this month. As many as six wristspinners feature in the top 10 - the others being Adil Rashid (fourth), Adam Zampa (seventh) and Ish Sodhi (ninth). more..

Jul 28 (Island) Seven political parties currently not represented in Parliament had been invited by the Parliament Select Committee to identify appropriate reforms of the election laws and the electoral system to ascertain their views, said its Secretary and Deputy Secretary General of Parliament and Chief of Staff Kushani Rohanadeera. The committee will meet in Parliament tomorrow (28) at 2.00 pm under the chairmanship of Leader of the House, Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena. more..

Jul 28 (TM) The Cabinet of Ministers granted the approval for the proposal submitted by the Minister Rohitha Abeygunawardhana, under the objective of establishing a service provision centre focusing on the South Asian region, at the Colombo Harbour. Further, the container terminal (UTC) has been identified as appropriate for a construction of an internal cargo operation centre at SLPA with cargo service supply terminal facilities. more..

Jul 28 (TM) After MP Harin Fernando left the CID today (28) following the recording of a nearly five hour long statement regarding his comments over the Easter Attacks, he told The Morning that today’s exercise was a waste of his time. Elaborating further, Fernando said that today’s round of questioning was no different to that of what he has gone through previously. “I have given more than four statements on the same already, I have been questioned by the presidential commission as well. more..

Jul 28 (DM) SL’s foreign reserves have declined to $3 billion from $4 billion with the recent settling of a loan instalment of $1 billion, UNP Deputy Leader Ruwan Wijewardene said today. Mr. Wijewardene who met party activists of Biyagama said this billion-dollar settlement was a loan which the govt had raised by keeping treasury bills as a guarantee. “The foreign reserves stood at $7 billion when we handed over the govt in 2019,” he said. “Govt claims that reserves can be increased, more..

Jul 28 (EN) Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa wants the death penalty imposed on charges pertaining to terrorism and drug-trafficking, à la Singapore. “Singapore gives the best penalties for terrorism and drug trafficking. We will not deviate from that position, but the judicial process must be transparent, fair and free of influence,” Premadasa said. He was speaking to reporters outside the CID hq in Colombo more..

Jul 28 (CT) The railway crossing in Alawwa town closes more than 110 times a day; for more than eight hours on average. It causes severe traffic congestions in the town. Residents and motorists have requested the Govt and authorities for a flyover at the railway crossing to solve the issue. Even though several projects have been launched by the Government to build flyovers in the country, this hasn’t been the case for Alawwa, residents say. Alawwa, which connects the Sabaragamuwa more..

Jul 28 (DM) Govt Nursing Officers' Association (GNOA) today called on the authorities to shut down the ICU of the Kotelawala Defence University Hospital that was dedicated to treat Covid patients, claiming that it was a breeding ground for Covid-19. Its President Saman Rathnapriya said that the nursing staff who were assigned for duties at the ICU have fallen prey to Covid-19. He said eight out of thirteen nurses who were assigned to the ICU for the last two days have been infected with more..

Jul 28 (DM) There is no need to issue a special gazette notification to announce the production, distribution and sale of non-perishable lunch sheets made of polythene from Aug 1, Environment Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said. Addressing a meeting with all representatives of the supermarket chains currently operating in our country at the Ministry yesterday, he said a gazette notification was issued in 2017, more..

Jul 28 (DM) The Fundamental Rights petitions filed by Bathiudeen brothers seeking an order to release them forthwith from the custody of the CID were today fixed for August 25 by Supreme Court. The application requesting that MP Rishad Bathiudeen be restricted to his place of residence from CID custody was yesterday taken up for further support before Supreme Court three-judge-bench comprising Justice Vijith Malalgoda, Justice Gamini Amarasekara and Justice Murdu Fernando. more..

Jul 28 (CT) Colombo Chief Magistrate Buddhika Sri Ragala yesterday ordered ex-Chairman of Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation (SLRC), Wimalasena Rupasinghe and its former Director T.L. Chandrapala to be acquitted from all charges filed against them and to release them from the case, where they had been charged with causing a loss of Rs 5 million to the State while serving in their respective posts from 2010 up to 2014. Chief Magistrate Ragala gave this order following submissions made to him by more..

Jul 28 (EN) A 2.5 million-carat star sapphire cluster found in SL may fetch up to a billion US dollars in the collector market. NGJA Chairman Thilak Weerasinghe said that experts at the authority have valued the 510kg cluster north of USD 100 million. “Almost every gem we sell, we sell it after cutting and polishing, but this is a special stone. The world’s wealthiest will line up to buy it and we expect its value will exceed more..

Jul 28 (SLN) SL Navy took hold of about 417kg and 200g of Kerala cannabis, during a special operation, conducted in the sea area extending from Madagal to Point Pedro, Jaffna in the dark hours on 27th July 2021. The operation also made way to apprehend 03 suspects and a dinghy used for this racket. The Fast Attack Craft P 483 of the 04th Fast Attack Craft Flotilla (4 FAF) together with Inshore Patrol Craft P 177 and P 178 attached to the Northern Naval Command searched a number of dinghies more..

Jul 28 (AD) The Ministry of Health has already made plans to procure the required oxygen reserves even though the need for oxygen in COVID-19 treatment has gone up in the past several days. However, there is no shortage of oxygen supply in the country, the Deputy Director-General of Health Services Dr. Hemantha Herath said. Responding to a question of a journalist regarding the escalation of the current situation of the Delta variant up to an extent that was observed in India, Dr. Herath said more..

Jul 28 (CT) MP V. Radhakrishnan has urged the Department of Education and Police to collaborate on a survey to find out the number of school dropouts in the plantation sector as many who have stopped schooling, he alleged, have gone to work as domestic aides. Several protests were staged yesterday against the death of the 16-year-old maid who worked at MP Rishad Bathiudeen’s private residence. more..

Jul 28 (EN) Over half a million Sri Lankans still awaiting their second dose of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine may cautiously look forward to 728,460 doses expected to arrive in the island Saturday. Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi told reporters Wednesday (28) afternoon that half of a previously promised 1.45 million doses of AstraZeneca from Japan will arrive on Saturday through the COVAX facility and that people who have received their first dose of the vaccine more..

Jul 28 (TM) In a notice issued by the British High Commission in Colombo today (28), the High Commission has alerted potential civil society implementing partners to an opportunity to bid for grant funding to deliver project activity promoting human rights and democratic values in Sri Lanka. Accordingly, activities will focus on a set of priority themes. The High Commission has encouraged suppliers to identify target areas within and across these themes, and justify their focus. more..

Jul 29 (DM) When a child is physically harmed or sexually abused, the ideal response is for Doctors to treat injuries, therapists to counsel the child, law enforcement officers to arrest the offender, and Attorneys to prosecute the offender. This is possible only if the govt agencies and organisations involved have an established process in place for collaborating on child abuse cases. But, most importantly, SL lacks a national child protection framework. The topic of child abuse draws more..

Jul 29 (DM) Seed; technically it refers to the unit of reproduction of a flowering plant, capable of developing into another such plant. As such, it has immense metaphoric applications. Just google seed + quotes and you will get dozens. By and large it has positive connotations, after all anything that can generate more of the same does sound rich. Seed is a wholesome word because it is all about renewal, regeneration. There are of course negative uses, a flip that tells if you will, more..

Jul 29 (TM) The 43 Brigade political organisation’s Women’s Collective has handed over a letter to the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA), urging the relevant authorities to take appropriate action against acts of child abuse taking place in the country. The 43 Brigade is a political organisation affiliated to Opposition MP Patali Champika Ranawaka. The letter stated that at present, in SL, there is a relative increase more..

Jul 29 (DM) Sacred scriptures tell us that the entire law is fulfilled by obeying one commandment—loving your neighbour as you love yourself. Neighbour means not just the people who live next door but who are in need of food, shelter, clothing, proper education in life and other essential facilities. We are also told that those who have the greatest love are those who risk or give their lives to save others. Canadian American physician Daniel David Palmer has said the most wonderful study more..

Jul 29 (CT) The Tokyo Summer Olympics opened with much fanfare on last Friday (23) despite suffering setbacks due to the global pandemic. The games was supposed to be hosted in 2020 but was postponed to this year. However, thanks to tireless efforts by the Japanese authorities and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), athletes from around the world can still have their shot at glory without waiting for another four long years till COVID is over. more..

Jul 29 (CT) COVID-19 is spreading with an alarming speed infecting millions of people, deteriorating their ability to survive as healthy individuals. In this second, 194 million cases have been reported so far, with 4.16 million deaths. Even though the recovered count was recorded as 176.6 million, most of them are being affected repeatedly during the existing waves. Many economies around the globe have mainly being affected more..

Jul 29 (CT) Everything depends on the people themselves. Tolerance and democracy of the State is predicated on tolerance between communities. A remark in the Colombo Telegraph comments section caught my eye “We need to modulate our nationalisms and tone down the rhetoric of identity politics”. True and that depends on the people. There’s a lot to say for the view: “It’s the leaders’ fault that things have gone awry”. It is common to eviscerate leaders, charging that they are more..

Jul 29 (ST) These days when allusions to military doings of one sort or the other seem quite au fait, a reference to the charge of the Light Brigade is quite in place surely. Especially so if it refers to the ill-conceived and thoughtless actions of the SJB-led opposition that charged at the solid phalanx of the govt ranks though its target was a solitary minister of a minor party in the alliance. Alfred Tennyson recounting the disastrous charge of the British cavalry against the Russian troops more..

Jul 29 (Island) Following the onset of Covid-19, people nave realised the importance of quarantine as it helps to prevent or at least to slow down the spread of this deadly human disease, from one country to another, and also within the communities. Human quarantine is only one aspect of the concept of quarantine. Plant quarantine & animal quarantine laws are followed by almost all the countries around the world, for centuries, to prevent the entry and spread of exotic pests & diseases. more..

Jul 29 (DN) SL’s Mathilda Karlsson, who is due to compete in equestrian at the 2020 Olympic Games here, studied her schedule and had a good workout today. 36-year-old Hamburg based Lankan will be the last of the 9 SL competitors to be seen in action on Aug 3. Since equestrian is not a popular sport in SL, Karlsson had to battle till the very end with the organisers although she made a direct qualification. Now that she has won that battle, Germany based SL is determined to make her presence felt. more..

Jul 29 (Island) A group of concerned SL environmentalists has appealed to Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa to intervene to stop the oil leak from the X-Press Pearl wreck. “We strongly believe that Your Excellency’s intervention is vital at this stage. We hope you can access all of the relevant videos, photographs and daily reports which are in the hands of the Insurer, Caretaker Company, and Oil Response Team to understand, for yourself, more..