Mar 28 (CT) Senior Vice President of SLFP, Prof. Rohana Luxman Piyadasa said, Minister Namal Rajapaksa should not give the SLFP lessons about setting an example. Against a backdrop of int'l revelations that the SL economy is centred on five members of one family, Prof Piyadasa said it was unfortunate to stand naked in front of the world and criticise the SLFP. He was responding to a statement made by Rajapaksa that he would resign from the ministry if the SLFP sets an example by more..

Mar 28 (EN) Central Bank has banned money changers from selling US dollars above the commercial bank rates as the country grapples from a forex crisis triggered by money printed to keep rates down and a surrender requirement. Sri Lanka has an exchange rate regime with anchor conflicts (flexible exchange rate) which is neither a true float with a domestic inflation anchor nor a credible peg (external anchor). An attempt to shift to a clean float has so far not succeeded. more..

Mar 28 (AD) Indian External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar has called on Prez Rajapaksa and PM Rajapaksa on Monday. Jaishankar, who is in Sri Lanka to attend the Fifth BIMSTEC Summit starting today in Colombo, had met with Prez Rajapaksa this morning and reportedly discussed the economic situation in the country and India’s assistance. Welcoming the Indian foreign minister’s visit, Prez thanked him for India’s more..

Mar 28 (CT) Civil Aviation Authority of SL (CAASL) CEO Themiya Abeywickrama, with the concurrence of State Minister of Aviation D.V. Chanaka, has removed the decades-old restriction imposed on domestic aviators with regard to flights between sunset to sunrise. This restriction had been imposed during the 30-year terrorist conflict in Sri Lanka. While the restriction was practical at the time, it has, however, created undue burdens on the domestic aviation industry in the current context, more..

Mar 28 (EN) COVID-19 years saw an increase in Sri Lankans seeking psychotherapy as the pandemic took its toll on the emotional well-being of the community, experts say. Sri Lankans are going for therapy more than ever after the country underwent several lockdowns since March 2019 which contributed to the uptick in the number of people seeking mental health care and assistance. Dr N Kumaranayake, a psychologist based in Colombo said: “The number of psychologists who more..

Mar 29 (DM) A Sinhala newspaper reported on Sunday that the employees of the cash-strapped Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) has drawn Rs. 4 billion as overtime payments during the past twelve months! It further stated that all efforts by the CPC administration for the past several years to bring the overtime cost down had been futile, owing to the huge trade union pressure. The 48 –hour shift system and the opportunity given to the employees to report for work during holidays more..

Mar 29 (DM) Even vegetarians consume milk and eggs because these are the most cost-effective sources of nutrients. They are versatile foods that can be used in a variety of ways. As a result, they are in high demand, and as in any market economy, market forces determine their prices. We have the option and capability to manufacture most of our food needs here in our country. Yes, we export eggs, but 60% of the dairy needs are imported. Today’s import prices are determined by more..

Mar 29 (TM) The modern polim yugaya (era of queues) does not seem to end, and according to those who lived through the first polim yugaya back in the 1970s, the prevailing situation is much worse than the first one. Everyone’s question is, when is it going to end? The past few weeks saw considerable changes in people’s lives. These changes are not limited to economic hardships. They have developed to a state of social and more..

Mar 29 (DM) Russia is continuing its invasion of Ukraine despite condemnation by international community. Recent news bulletins revealed that Russia has tested their hypersonic missiles on targets in Ukraine. This means that Russian missiles are to violate sovereignty of Ukraine five times the speed of sound, giving no chance for Ukraine to prevent such attacks. Russia claimed that Ukraine’s collaboration with NATO was not favourable to Russia, and that Ukraine should not have more..

Mar 29 (GV) I debated with myself whether SL’s present state was a crisis of incompetence or a crisis of arrogance and settled on incompetence. You could have someone arrogant but competent; it’s not perfect but it’ll do. Someone who is modest but incompetent would at least have the modesty to ask for help. But someone who is arrogant and incompetent is objectively worse. Not only do they not know what to do but they also would not ask for help. I'll call it a crisis of incompetence. more..

Mar 29 (CT) In recent decades, the combination of growth of major cities across the country has increased the presence of vehicles and rapid industrialisation. However, the deficiencies in both planning and environmental regulations have led to increasing air pollution levels, posing dangers to human health. The quality of the air we breathe determines not just the health of our lungs but other organs in our bodies. more..

Mar 29 (CT) IMF in their recent Article IV Consultations on SL, the contents of which were made public on Friday, warned of the possibility of SL losing the GSP+ duty free access facility to the EU, SL’s second largest merchandise export market after the US, with the third being the UK. Generally, on such matters, the UK, works hand in glove with the EU. Therefore, it may be presumed that the possible loss of GSP+ vis-à-vis the EU may also mean the possible loss of duty free access more..

Mar 29 (TM) At a time when the people remain hopeful that the Government will ensure an adequate supply of fuel, even the fuel that is being distributed seems to contain problems. As such, in addition to the fuel shortage, there are now concerns about the quality of fuel. Earlier this week six civil organisations, including the All Island Three-Wheeler Drivers’ Union, the Motorcycle Association, School Bus Service Association, Mage Rata Association, and Samagi Sevaka Sangamaya, more..

Mar 29 (CT) Decades of silent apathy has taken its tragic toll. What was once considered mainstream political activism such as non-violent protests and Satyagraha campaigns, marches towards destinations the majority of Sinhalese Buddhists venerate with supreme devotion, all party conferences which have ended up as meaningless platforms for worthless demagogues, instead of sharpening the sensitivity of the mind, have been rendered feeble and dead. more..

Mar 29 (SLN) The Navy sprang into action to put out a sudden fire broke out in Digiliya Mountain Forest Reserve, Maeliya Polpithigama on the night of 27th March 2022. As of now (28) Navy firefighters are busy in controlling the fire from spreading to other areas. The Polpithigama Police Station turned to the Navy and requested assistance from the Commander Northwestern Naval Area to control a fire broke out in Digiliya Mountain Forest Reserve on the night of 27th March. more..

Mar 29 (FT) CB Governor Nivard Cabraal yesterday sought foreign portfolio and direct investments from the UK, saying Sri Lanka is on a new reset path taking advantage of new horizons post-COVID. He extended this invitation to fund managers and investors who attended the SL Invest Forum in London organised by the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in partnership with more..

Mar 29 (FT) A drop in daily COVID-19 vaccination numbers was seen on Sunday with only 4,125 persons vaccinated against the virus. 2,779 persons vaccinated on Sunday received the Pfizer vaccine as a booster dose. Booster dose has been administered to a total of 7,804,499 persons. The first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine has been administered to 17,006,094 persons and the second dose has been administered to 14,413,773 persons. On Sunday, 379 persons received first dose more..

Mar 29 (FT) SL’s COVID-19 case count rose to 661,053 following the detection of 163 COVID-19 patients yesterday. 93 persons tested positive for COVID-19 the previous day. A total of 73,319 COVID-19 patients have been detected since 1 Jan. In addition to this, 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 from the Divulapitiya cluster have tested positive for COVID-19. more..

Mar 29 (FT) Govt will unveil the Haritha Deyak – National Home Gardening Revolution today, with an investment of Rs. 31 billion to expand crop production. The program aims to provide the basic requirements for gardening to households and public areas with a view to increase agricultural production, whilst increasing the nutritional quality of the produce through which govt plans to increase self-sufficient food production. more..

Mar 29 (ST) Taking a closer look at one of our more popular sports, one can only grimace at the usual grandstanding that the powers that be exercise, once in office. All serious intent is gone and much like the aberrations visible in govt, football too descends to its most morally decrepit proportion. In early March, we saw the departure of the goalkeeping German coach Amir Doksanaltic. Earlier, Head Coach, Amir Alagic was also unceremoniously discontinued without more..

Mar 29 (CB) For the first time, Pakistan is set to stage the ICC Women's Championship fixtures in their home country when they play SL in 3 ODIs and three Twenty20Is in May-June, Pakistan Cricket Board announced on Monday. The matches will serve as a preparation for the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and Asian Games in China. In a bumper season announced for Pakistan, who finished at the bottom of the table in the ongoing 50-over world cup, more..

Mar 29 (Island) The members of the national selection panel have come under heavy criticism after Bhanuka Rajapaksa made them eat humble pie with a blistering counterattack, this time with the bat. In Sunday’s IPL clash between Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore in Bombay, Rajapaksa threw caution to wind smashing 43 off 22 deliveries with two fours and four sixes. The hard-hitting 30-year-old batsman was in great nick and chasing a target of 206, he helped his team get home more..

Mar 29 (Island) Most Sri Lankans earn an honest living, pay taxes and are not in debt. They are decent men and women who value and respect themselves. But thanks to a bunch of shameless, corrupt, failed political leaders, who have helped themselves to public funds, enriched themselves fraudulently, and pauperised this country, over the decades, every Sri Lankan has become a beggar in the eyes of the international community. The so-called leaders of Sri Lanka, more..

Mar 29 (FT) Sri Lanka has welcomed over 274,000 tourists so far this year despite the challenges emanating from the global COVID pandemic as well as multiple economic challenges internally. As per provisional data released by the Tourism Ministry, Sri Lanka has received 95,377 tourists, whilst pushing the cumulative figure to 274,211 as of 27 March. On an average 3,532 tourists arrived daily in the country. more..

Mar 29 (FT) Sri Lanka’s first Angel Fund has, to date, channelled investments up to Rs. 150 million cumulatively into four home-grown start-ups – Niftron, Magicbit, Mintpay and Chakra Suthra – while also helping these companies scale and access new markets both at home and abroad. “Since August 2020, our team has evaluated over 400 start-ups from across the country. It’s important to note that most of these start-ups come from outside the Colombo District. more..

Mar 29 (DM) SL’s private sector is struggling to retain talent amid an exodus of talented workers moving abroad, eyeing better financial prospects, a recent panel discussion held in Colombo revealed. According to a leading corporate leader, the young talent holding higher educational qualifications such as masters degrees are now leaning towards moving abroad, creating brain drain in the country, driven by the financial crisis, which has led to a record level of inflation and uncertainty. more..

Mar 29 (TM) SL Standards Institute (SLSI) has refused to conduct an investigation into complaints from civil organisations’ and transport union representatives about the standards of petrol and diesel provided to consumers and vehicles in SL, until such complaints are submitted in writing to the SLSI. SLSI Director Sunanda Fernando said that the matter was discussed at the SLSI premises with four civil organisations’ representatives who more..

Mar 29 (Island) Hemas Outreach Foundation, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) arm of the Hemas Group together with AYATI National Centre for Children with Disabilities marked Int'l Day of Down Syndrome on March 16 at the Ayati Centre in Ragama. Held with the goal of raising awareness about their social movement (Treat All Alike) the event also launched a new song that lends a voice to Down Syndrome children. එItමු is aimed at empowering children and families more..

Mar 29 (DN) The FINA world swimming body’s President, Dr. Husain Al-Musallam who came to Sri Lanka for a short visit promised to give his fullest support to uplift the Sri Lanka Aquatic Sports. This is good news for SL swimmers. Captain Husain Al Musallam who also the Kuwait President of FINA and Director General of Olympic Council of Asia arrived in Sri Lanka on a short visit on Friday, on the invitation of the President of the National Olympic Committee of SL Suresh Subramaniam. more..

Mar 29 (CT) SL will have to undergo debt restructuring as strongly suggested by the IMF in order to secure financing from creditors, according to Citigroup Global Markets. The prescription follows IMF’s observation that fiscal consolidation efforts alone to pare debt to safe levels would be too large to be economically and politically feasible. While the IMF didn’t specify what a safe level is, Citi sees reduction to a 79.7% public debt ratio witnessed between 2010 & 2018 as a good benchmark more..

Mar 29 (CT) Govt of SL face value money printing (FVMP) debt increased by 1.16% (Rs 28,634.05 million) to a new record of Rs 2,494,741.48 million (Rs 2.4947 trillion) yesterday due to a persistent lack of revenue. Of this increase, Rs 10,718 million (Rs. 10.72 billion) was demand pull inflationary as it was used to meet a domestic commitment, while the balance was non-demand pull inflationary as it was used to meet an external commitment. GoSL’s highest to the tenth highest FVMP debt more..

Mar 29 (CT) The SL Govt must take prompt action to solve the prevailing Balance of Payments (BoP) Crisis as it can lead to a banking crisis, the recently retired senior deputy governor of the Central Bank of SL (CBSL), Dr Nandalal Weerasinghe warned. “If the Govt becomes insolvent, two state banks will automatically become insolvent leading to a banking crisis on top of a BoP crisis,” he said in a recent webinar more..

Mar 29 (EN) Sri Lanka’s stock index plunged 3 percent on Monday (28) on month-end selling pressure amid margin calls while economic concerns after steep fall in the rupee has dented investor sentiments, brokers said. The main All Share Price Index (ASPI) fell 313.03 points to close at 10,142.29, its lowest since Nov 1, 2021. “As the month comes to an end we see a significant amount of selling and also heavy margin calls, accelerating the selling pressure,” top market analyst said. more..

Mar 29 (AD) An Extraordinary Gazette has been issued by the Health Minister stipulating amended maximum retail prices for several medical devices including intraocular lenses, stents, blood glucose monitoring systems and pulse oximeters. The gazette further amends the regulations under the Medical Devices Pricing Regulations, No. 01 of 2017 published in the Gazette Extraordinary No. 2006/45 of February 17, 2017, as amended by regulations published in Gazette Extraordinary2019 more..

Mar 29 (EN) SL and India has inked several agreements on the first day of a visit by India foreign minister S Jaishankar including a controversial digital identity plan, in the style of a previous one which has led to opposition by freedom activists in the island. SL already has a unique identity (national identity card) which has been in use for decades for every citizen but a digital database will allow the island’s usually authoritative rulers to track more..

Mar 29 (ENS) The Madras High Court on Monday told the Central govt to take action to get the 68 Indian fishermen, who are held and remanded in custody in Sri Lanka, released. The First Bench of Chief Justice Munishwar Nath Bhandari and Justice Bharatha Chakravarthy suggested that the govt explore diplomatic channels to secure the release of the fishermen, while disposing of a petition filed by Amstrong Fernando, national vice-chairman of the All India Fishermen Congress. more..