Apr 13 (FT) COVID-19 vaccines were administered to 835 persons on Monday and a total of 17,019,170 persons have received at least one COVID-19 vaccine to date. 14,436,626 persons have received the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and 7,909,478 persons have received the third vaccine dose. On Monday, 503 persons received the booster dose. Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is being administered as the third dose in the country. First dose of Pfizer has been administered to more..

Apr 13 (FT) 60 persons tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday, raising the COVID-19 case count to 662,717. Previous day, 65 persons tested positive for COVID-19. 1,137 PCR tests and 692 rapid antigen tests were conducted on Monday. Since first January, 75,085 COVID-19 patients have been detected. SL’s local cases also include 483,090 persons from the New Year cluster, 82,785 persons from the Peliyagoda cluster, 9,154 persons from the Prisons cluster, and 3,059 persons more..

Apr 13 (TM) Following protests staged by people outside the SLFP headquarters on Darley Road, the parliamentary group of the SLFP boycotted the second round of discussions with Prez Rajapaksa scheduled to be held yesterday to discuss the possibility of the formation of an Interim Govt. MP Duminda Dissanayake said that the decision to boycott yesterday’s meeting was taken in protest over the issue that more..

Apr 13 (CT) Weighted average yields (WAYs) of the 91-day maturity zoomed by a record high of 5.59% to a near 15-year high of 19.71%, while the WAYs of the 182 and 364-day maturities also increased by record highs of 7.37 and 7.67% to new records of 22.73 and 23.36% respectively at Monday’s weekly Treasury Bill auction, due to sustained uncertainty. A higher WAY than 19.71% for the 91-day maturity was last seen in Dec 2007 when the country’s war on terrorism was at one of its bitterest, more..

Apr 13 (SLN) SL Navy apprehended 03 suspects with about 01kg of Crystal Methamphetamine (ICE) and a dinghy, during a patrol carried out in seas off the Delft Island this morning (11). The Navy has been conducting regular patrols in waters around the island to prevent smuggling of drugs and other forms of illegal activities. Accordingly, an Inshore Patrol Craft attached to SLNS Wasaba in the Northern Naval Command detected a suspicious dinghy in seas off the Delft Island this morning more..

Apr 13 (EN) Fitch Ratings has placed has placed 13 state and private banks in Sri Lanka under watch for possible downgrade (rating watch negative) due to forex shortages in the banking system. The rating watch negative “reflects heightened near-term downside risk stemming from constrained access to foreign-currency funding and the resulting indications of stress experienced by the banks in the system,” Fitch said. more..

Apr 13 (FT) Finance Ministry said yesterday holders of all Affected Debts are being requested to capitalise any amounts of principal or interest falling due during this interim period, at an interest rate not higher than the normal contractual rate applicable to that credit, until a restructuring proposal can be presented to the creditors for their consideration. This policy will apply to the following categories of external public debts of Sri Lanka and its public sector borrowers. more..

Apr 13 (AD) A consignment of 11,000 metric tonnes of rice arrived in SL today (12) under the concessional Indian credit facility of USD 1 billion. It was ceremonially handed over by the officials of the High Commission of India in Colombo. In addition to today’s consignment, a total of 5,000 MT of rice has been received in the past few days under the said credit facility. With this, a total of 16,000 MT of rice out of 40,000 MT to be imported by State Trading Corporation from India, stands delivered. more..

Apr 13 (DM) Four bowsers with more than 17,000 litres of fuel, parked inside the premises of a vehicle service centre at Bopitiya in Pamunugama were taken into the custody today, police said. They said these bowsers were owned by an individual who operate two licensed petrol stations in Wattala and Negombo areas. The fuel bowsers were found following a tip off received by the Pamunugama Police. Police said the licenses of fuel stations were cancelled. Two bowsers containing diesel, more..

Apr 13 (DM) Prez Rajapaksa said that his govt is committed to ensuring justice to all the victims of the Easter Sunday attack and enforcing law against all the responsible parties, by means of due and proper investigations. “..the tragic experience of the brutal Easter Sunday attack that happened three years ago continues to resonate in our minds. Therefore, I affirm that our govt is committed to ensuring justice to all the victims of the Easter Sunday attack and enforcing law against all responsible parties, more..

Apr 13 (PTI) China on Tuesday reiterated that it is doing its utmost to provide assistance to debt-ridden SL, even as Beijing maintained a steady silence on Colombo's request for debt rescheduling as well as extending the promised $2.5 billion assistance. Saddled with a huge forex crisis, SL on Tuesday suspended servicing external public debt pending the completion of its discussions with the IMF and the preparation of a comprehensive more..

Apr 13 (TM) Amarapura Sect Chief Sanghanayake Ven. Omalpe Sobhitha Thera showed his solidarity with protestors at the newly-established village dubbed Gota-Go-Gama at the Agitation Site near Galle Face, by joining the protest being staged against the Prez and the Govt, along with a group of monks. The group of monks handed over a petition with their demands to the Police officers deployed on security duty at the entrance of the Prez Secretariat, as they were denied entrance to premises. more..

Apr 13 (CT) The conduct of Namal Kumara who according to Opposition MPs and civil society activists, allegedly disrupted former Terrorist Investigation Division (TID) Director, Nalaka de Silva from arresting Easter Sunday Attacks suicide bomber Zaharan Hashim, has not been investigated, as there is insufficient information to prove a connection between his conduct and the Easter Sunday attacks, Senior DIG Ajith Rohana said. Kumara exposed an alleged plan to more..

Apr 13 (FT) Govt signaled SL was bankrupt, announcing a temporary suspension of repayment of all external debt as of yesterday, saying the country can no longer honour its commitment owing to poorer financial position caused by external and internal shocks. The move puts an end to SL’s outstanding track record of servicing its external debt obligations since the independence but a negotiated or soft default is viewed as more..

Apr 13 (CT) Arrangements were underway to fly a selected number of victims of the 21 Apr 2019 Easter Sunday Attacks to Italy on 22 Apr. During a visit to St. Sebastian’s Church, Katuwapitiya, Negombo, it was learned that arrangements were being made by the Archdiocese of Colombo including Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith to fly a selected few from among the victims to Italy. But there are concerns regarding the ability of taking victims who were disabled as a result of the explosions more..

Apr 13 (TM) CEB is yet to receive $ 34.6 million that is required to pay for two coal shipments to be used to power the Norochcholai Coal Power Plant, as the Central Bank is struggling to prioritise between payments for medicines and fuel. Official sources at the Ministry of Power said on 11 April that they have informed the relevant authorities, including the CBSL, that $ 34.6 million is needed to open letters of credit so that the two coal shipments can be unloaded before the expected monsoon more..

Apr 13 (TM) Despite the State Ministry of Production, Supply, and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals having claimed that all pharmaceutical drugs are being received in manageable quantities, several hospitals are running out of many drugs and surgical consumable items at present. According to several hospitals islandwide, many drugs and surgical consumable items have been identified to be in deficit or more..

Apr 13 (FT) Sri Lanka is at the moment in a real crisis situation. There is a need for all stakeholders to understand this situation and have a contingency plan. The country has failed in many ways in managing the economy for the last few decades and the time has come to make some serious decisions. In this context, there is a need to revisit the role played by the main institutes in Sri Lanka. There should be drastic changes in the governance of many of those. more..

Apr 13 (FT) The other day we were at a strategic planning session in a company I work for which has a global footprint. The others in the forum were all business leaders from the South Asian region. Let me share the key takes. The first task we had was to do a PESTEL analysis of our home-country that we were in charge of. So I did it on SL. Political – turmoil, Economy – shambles, Social – upheaval, Technology – fallout as no power, Environment – distraction due to poor policy implementation, more..

Apr 13 (SLN) A special operation conducted by the Navy in coordination with the SL Coast Guard, State Intelligence Service (SIS) and Police Narcotic Bureau (PNB) in seas off Dodanduwa, Galle on the evening of 12th April 2022, led to the seizure of a local multi-day fishing vessel smuggling about 300kg of substance suspected to be heroin and about 25kg of drugs suspected to be crystal methamphetamine (ICE). The coordinated operation also made way to the apprehension of 11 suspects more..

Apr 13 (AD) Govt has extended the import restrictions imposed on 367 non-essential goods into SL unless with a valid licence. This was conveyed in a Gazette Extraordinary issued by Minister of Finance Ali Sabry on 09 April. The regulations prescribed in the communiqué are only applicable to the importation of goods, which have the date of Bill of Lading/Airway Bill on or after 10 Apr. Licence to import the specified non-essential items are issued subject to the recommendation of more..

Apr 13 (AD) PM Rajapaksa says the govt is willing to hold discussions with the youths who are engaged in a mass protest at the Galle Face Green. The anti-govt agitation at the Galle Face Green entered its fifth consecutive day today. Scores of people from all walks of life, mostly youths, amassed at the Galle Face Green premises last Saturday (9) in protest of the incumbent govt and the President. more..

Apr 13 (DM) A group of protestors at the Galle Face area now re-named as the Gota Go Gama have written to PM Rajapaksa, declining his invitation for a meeting, but have put forward two demands saying the Prez must resign and all Rajapaksa members must leave the govt. PM Rajapaksa earlier in the day said he was ready to hold discussions with the protesting youth at Galle Face Green. A spokesman from the PM's office confirmed that if the protesting youth are ready to meet him, more..

Apr 13 (EN) Fitch Ratings has placed Bank of Ceylon on watch for possible downgrade as forex shortages worsened after two years of money printing under a highly discretionary flexible inflation targeting regime with a reserve collecting peg. The Rating Watch Negative (RWN) “has been driven by heightened near-term downside risks to SL banks, including BOC, from constrained access to foreign currency funding and indications of stress experienced by banks in system as result” more..

Apr 13 (Island) A group of academics, in a statement issued, says that the origins of the present crisis are political, having been brought about by authoritarian policies of successive govts. Such authoritarian rule has been consolidated for decades through Sinhala Buddhist majoritarian mobilisations, one of the most recent one being mandatory cremations, after a COVID death. It is built upon the notion that powerful, rich, more..

Apr 13 (NR) MP Dayasiri Jayasekera says people are chanting slogans Rajapaksa’s Go Home and Gota Go Home and called for the negative implications of such requests to be considered especially in terms of the Prez being removed. MP said in the event the President vacates the post, a vote must be held in Parliament and one individual must claim 113 votes. However, the MP noted that failing to do so will result in no alternative stating that the failure of one individual to more..

Apr 13 (FT) Hameedia, the leading menswear brand in Sri Lanka has taken the next step towards revolutionising the foodscape of the country with the Group’s latest initiative: Green Mart. SL is in the midst of unprecedented turbulent times, where food has become increasingly unaffordable and access to it is more inconvenient. Hameedia is offering a solution that is sustainable, efficient and cost-effective to give back to the community. Situated at No. 50, Borupana Road, Ratmalana, more..

Apr 13 (CT) The Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) organised the first Spiralation Demo Day for 2022, with the goal of generating USD 3 billion in foreign exchange revenue through the knowledge services and technology sectors by the end of 2024. Director of Start-up Ecosystem Development of ICTA, Sachindra Samararatne said, “The start-ups that we see today are the country's future, and the founders behind the ventures will business leaders more..

Apr 13 (CT) State Minister of Organic Fertiliser Production, Shantha Bandara said, he accepted the position of State Minister following the failure to form an Interim Govt, as suggested by the 11 parties. He was sworn in as the State Minister of Organic Fertiliser Production, Promotion, and Supply Regulation, as well as the Promotion of Paddy and Cereals, Organic Food, Vegetables, Fruits, Chilies, Salt, and Potato Cultivation, Seed Production, and High Tech Agriculture. more..

Apr 13 (CT) Before giving fertiliser subsidies as promised in the PM’s address on Monday, Govt should be able to import fertiliser, National Organiser of All Ceylon Farmers’ Federation, Namal Karunarathne said. Therefore, PM’s pledge to provide a fertiliser subsidy to farmers is a Media stunt to detract people’s protests against the Govt, he added. “Farmers do not have fertiliser to manage the Yala season. more..

Apr 13 (NR) The JVP says the govt is attempting to divert the course of the public struggle. JVP Chief Secretary Tilvin Silva said the govt is attempting to diminish the aim of the protests. He stated the govt is attempting to incite racism to divert the direction of the protests against the present administration. He said the govt is attempting to use political and religious pawns and other groups in an attempt to change the nature of the protests which hold a justifiable objective. more..

Apr 13 (EN) SL was blocked from going to the International Monetary Fund for assistance by the then Presidential Secretary, Central Bank Governor and Treasury Secretary, Finance Minister Ali Sabray said. “The former Secretary to the Treasury Attigala, former governor Ajith Nivard Carbral and former president’s secretary P.B. Jayasundara did not wanted to go to the IMF when all most all the cabinet ministers in favor of going,” Sabry said. “They were talking about a home grown solution instead.” more..

Apr 13 (DM) GotaGoGama – that is what the protesters call the Agitation Site at the Galle Face Green which has now transformed into a colony of people from diverse backgrounds and walks of life. What commenced as a mass protest on April 9 now continues to its fourth consecutive day. Donations now come in handy to boost the spirits of protesters. One can find everything from sanitary napkins to toiletries, water bottles, dry rations including more..

Apr 13 (FT) SJB MP Dr. Harsha de Silva yesterday said it was a sad day for SL after the Govt announced plans to default on external debt servicing. “A sad day for #SriLanka. Govt of Pres@GotabayaR has defaulted on its foreign debt. Didn’t have funds to pay mere USD 78m and USD 115m Chinese debt due on 18th notwithstanding @an_cabraal nonsense of denial of any #SriLankaEconomicCrisis,” Harsha said in a tweet. “All our efforts to point out to the arrogant more..

Apr 13 (AD) Former PM Ranil Wickremesinghe says elections or constitutional amendments at this point will not solve the ongoing crisis in SL. In a statement made today, UNP leader stated that SL is unable to make a USD 200 million loan repayment next week as the govt decide to suspend all external debt repayments. This will place further pressure on the banking sector, he added. This decision is an announcement by the govt that the country is bankrupt, Wickremesinghe said further, more..

Apr 13 (CT) Former NPC member, M. K. Sivajilingam was of the view that an Impeachment Motion against the President or a No-Confidence Motion (NCM) against the Govt should be tabled in Parliament and a minimum of 113 MPs must vote in favour, if it is to become a reality. Tamil representatives must also agree and sign it. He said, several political parties, including the JVP, SJB, and Tamil Parties, are currently focusing on impeachment and no-confidence motions more..