Apr 10 (Island) A man suspected of having murdered SL journalist Mylvaganam Nimalarajan in Jaffna over 22 years ago, is under investigation, the Northamptonshire Telegraph has reported A Metropolitan Police spokesman reportedly confirmed that a man who was arrested on Feb 22, 2022 remains under investigation and that police enquiries are ongoing. The man was arrested on suspicion of offences under Section 51 of the International Criminal Court Act 2001. more..

Apr 10 (AD) A 23-year-old woman has been attacked and murdered with a blunt object by her husband as a result of a family dispute which had escalated in the Lambutuwa area of Millangoda, Kegalle. Police said that the deceased woman, Kumuduni Deshani Ranasinghe, is a mother of one. She had reportedly been found lying in pool of blood in the kitchen of her house, when the police officers arrived at the scene of the incident based on information received by the Aranayake Police. more..

Apr 10 (TM) A group of civil society activists held a gathering at the Galle Face Green in Colombo yesterday to mark the one year anniversary of the commencement of the aragalaya (people's struggle) protest movement which demanded the resignation of then-Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa, his Govt, and a change in the style of governance in SL last year. The event was attended by religious leaders including Buddhist monks & Catholic priests more..

Apr 10 (EN) Sri Lanka and other countries have benefited from value added tax and there is no evidence to support a claim made by some that VAT is regressive, a top economist who has studied the matter in several countries said. A claim usually made by those who favour direct taxes, where the rulers take away part of the wealth created by people before a gainful economic transaction is decided and made by the citizens themselves, is that value added tax is regressive. more..

Apr 10 (EN) Sri Lanka’s central bank will buy dollars to meet the net international reserve target of an IMF program, based on liquidity availability, CB Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe said. “Whenever we see a [dollar] liquidity availability in the market, we intervene and purchase,” Governor Weerasinghe said. “Even in the last couple of days we purchased. When there is a situation of liquidity availability we purchase. We use the opportunity to build our [reserve] position.” more..

Apr 10 (DM) Those party members who try to divide and destroy the SJB will be brought before a disciplinary Committee, Leader of the Opposition Sajith Premadasa said over the weekend. "There should be discipline within the SJB which is the sole alternative to the present govt," Premadasa said in a special statement. A conspiracy is on to divide and destroy the SJB. There have been no discussions within the party to support President Ranil Wickremesinghe. more..

Apr 10 (FT) SJB MP S.M. Marikkar says party leader Sajith Premadasa must take action against the Ranilists within the party ranks. “Those who are singing praises of Ranil while remaining in the party must be shown the door. A decision must be taken about them,” he said. Marikkar said if Premadasa fails to do so, the party members will be forced to take matters into their own hands. “There are those who have a foot on both camps. There are similar people within our party. more..

Apr 10 (DM) The govt will soon set up a Road Maintenance Fund (RMF) with initial funding of Rs. 100 million to make all main and inter-provincial roads toll-paying roads, Minister, Bandula Gunawardana said. Cabinet approval has been granted to establish the RMF in line with other countries to ensure proper road maintenance and also to slash heavy costs incurred by the govt for road construction & maintenance, he said. more..

Apr 10 (DM) A police constable who took an 18-year-old young woman into the jungle and stripped her was arrested by the Samanalawewa police on Saturday. He is alleged to have threatened a young couple from the Meddegama area on a visit to Samanalawewa Dam that they were suspected of possessing drugs and handcuffed the young man with his motorcycle and taken the young woman into the jungle. She told police that the PC attempted to take video scenes of her nudity, but more..

Apr 10 (FT) Supreme Court last week granted leave-to proceed in the Fundamental Rights petition filed by Transparency International SL (TISL), stating that serious doubts have arisen regarding the quality, safety and efficacy of the pharmaceuticals purchased under the Indian Credit Line from The Savorite Pharmaceuticals Ltd. The petition was filed against the steps taken by the Cabinet of Ministers, Minister of Health, Ministry of Health, and NMRA to procure medical supplies more..

Apr 10 (FT) A United States District Court has denied SL Govt's motion to dismiss the case filed by Hamilton Reserve Bank on behalf of certain holders of International Sovereign Bonds (ISBs), a move which analysts viewed as a setback to the country's critical external debt restructuring. Among other things SL argued that the Cede Authorisation is defective on its face. It is not, the judgement issued by US District Judge Denise L, Cote more..

Apr 10 (FT) Anti-Terrorism Act with its controversial set of provisions including the exceedingly broad spectrum of activities which could be construed as terrorist/terrorism, reflects the true face of this Govt. Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe who is due to present this Bill in Parliament is reported to have said that if one doesn’t hope to become a terrorist, there’s no need to oppose this Bill. His actual words as reported are: “If a certain person does not have a hope to become a terrorist, more..

Apr 10 (NW) On April 8, a tragic incident occurred in Palapathwela, Matale, where a 19-year-old student, Dushmantha Wijesekara, lost his life while returning from a batch party. Dushmantha was a former cricket captain of the St. Thomas’s College team in Matale and had recently taken his GCE A/L exam. Dushmantha was also part of several SL school cricket provincial squads. After attending a batch party the previous night, Dushmantha was traveling back with several of his classmates in a car. more..

Apr 10 (FT) The first-ever introduction of the fuel pricing formula was in year 2002. At that time, there were at least a few honest politicians and officials. They published the formula in the newspapers in great detail and went on to provide the sources of data and results of calculations. There was a newspaper notice on a fixed day each month, summarising the calculations. As elections of 2005 approached, int'l oil prices rose, and the govt that spoke so highly of the formula, more..

Apr 10 (AD) A special meeting is scheduled to be held between PM Dinesh Gunawardene and the Election Commission (EC) today (10). On March 26, the EC had requested PM in writing for a discussion regarding holding the 2023 LG election. Accordingly, all members of the EC will participate in the relevant discussion today, the Chairman of the commission Nimal G. Punchihewa said. An uncertain situation has arisen regarding the holding of the 2023 LG polls since more..

Apr 10 (FT) Sri Lanka is undergoing the worst of its economic crises in its post-independence history in the current period. The manifestation of the crisis is multifarious. Its total output of goods and services, known as real gross domestic product, has shrunk by about 8% in 2022 and it is widely projected to shrink further in 2023. Any economic recovery will be marginal in the period from 2024 and will not exceed 3% even in 2027. more..

Apr 10 (EN) Net foreign buying into Sri Lanka’s govt securities has nearly tripled to 73,9 billion rupees so far this year, the Central Bank data showed, and currency dealers said offshore investors are gradually buying the island nation’s treasury papers due to higher return. Foreign investors hardly bought any of Sri Lankan govt securities as the central bank maintained the interest rates artificially at record low by printing trillions of rupees of money. The excess money was printed to lend a cash-strapped more..

Apr 10 (FT) President and Finance Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has appointed Prof. Kithsiri M. Liyanage as a Non-Executive Director to the Board of Bank of Ceylon. Currently, Prof. Liyanage serves as a senior professor in the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at the University of Peradeniya, where he has been a faculty member for over 25 years. Prior to this, he has held academic positions at the Uni of Tokyo, Uni of Washington and Uni of Peradeniya. more..

Apr 10 (AD) Recent cases of Chinese nationals who have been trafficked overseas with the promise of high salaries but ended up trapped in illegal activities including telecom scams and online gambling are a warning for Chinese nationals to keep a wary eye on recruitment traps overseas, Chinese Embassy in SL said in a notice. Chinese Embassy had rescued 13 Chinese nationals who were trafficked to SL, more..

Apr 10 (SLN) A special search operation conducted by the Navy off Valvettithurai, Jaffna in the dark hours of 9th April led to the recovery of more than 134kg of Kerala cannabis adrift in waters. The Navy keeps a round-the-clock vigil in the coastal and sea areas of the island with a view to prevent nefarious activities taking place via sea routes. As an extension of these operations, an Inshore Patrol Craft attached to SLNS Uththara in the Northern Naval Command carried out the search more..

Apr 10 (CT) Chairman of SLTB Lalith de Alwis said 300 additional bus routes will commence today from the Colombo Central Bus Stand for the convenience of those travelling to their hometowns for the Sinhala and Tamil New Year. He said the SLTB has prepared a special passenger transport programme for 10 days from 7 to 17 April for city-to-village and city-to-city travel, and that under this system, the number of additional bus trips will be increased to 300 on the three days of 10, 11 and 12 April. more..

Apr 10 (TM) A court in the United States has denied a motion by the Government of Sri Lanka to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Hamilton Reserve Bank following the default by Sri Lanka on a sum of over $ 257 million of bonds and interest. On 24 March, Denise Cote, a judge at the District Court of the Southern District of New York, denied a motion made by Clifford Chance US LLP, the law firm representing the Govt of SL (GOSL), to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Hamilton Reserve Bank. more..

Apr 10 (SLN) SL–India Naval Exercise (SLINEX) -23 came to a successful conclusion in Colombo seas on 08th April. Commenced on 3rd April, SLINEX -23 marked yet another milestone in the maritime cooperation between the two neighboring countries. SLINEX provides an opportunity for the navies of two countries to share their experiences and best practices in various aspects of naval operations and enhance their interoperability. SLINEX -23 was augmented by the Offshore Patrol Vessel more..

Apr 10 (TM) Human Rights Commission of SL (HRCSL) Chairperson, retired SC Justice Rohini Marasinghe said that appointment of individuals who have little or no understanding of human rights as HRCSL Commissioners did little to further the human rights situation in the country. Marsinghe’s statement comes in the wake of a crisis unfolding between three Commissioners of the HRCSL and its Head. more..

Apr 10 (CI) In what will be a first if nothing changes in the next few months, not a single captain from the previous edition of the men's ODI World Cup will lead a team at the 2023 men's ODI World Cup later this year in India. There have been retirements and changes at the top in the intervening period, and Kane Williamson is likely to miss the 2023 event after the knee injury he sustained at the IPL. NZ were the only team to have the same captain as the previous edition - Williamson was named more..

Apr 10 (EN) Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) plans to introduce a cashless, QR code-based automated bus ticket issuing system in 2023, Transport Minister Bandula Gunawardena said. Gunawardena said the new system, which will see QR-enabled cards issued to passengers, will be launched in due course. Sri Lanka has been discussing cashless public transit systems for years. In 2012, a prepaid smart card facility was announced for both SLTB and private sector-run buses. more..

Apr 10 (DN) Uncapped player Dushan Hemantha and wicket keeper Sadeera Samarawickrama have been included in the Sri Lankan Test squad for the First Test against Ireland which will commence on April 16 at the Galle Int'l Cricket Stadium. National Selection Committee has picked a 24-member squad for the two-match Test series and sent it to the Sports Ministry which has so far not approved the squad. more..

Apr 10 (Island) Lester James Peries and Sumitra Peries Foundation held a special screening of his 1969 movie Golu Hadawatha (TSilence of the Heart) in celebration of his life and work in SL, Asian and World Cinema on Saturday. April marks for the birth and death anniversaries of the maestro (05 Apr 1919 – 29 Apr 2018) and so it was fitting that this event be held in April. Dr. Peries made twenty films in fifty years, from Rekawa (Line of Destiny) in 1956 to Ammawarune (Elegy for a Mother) in 2006. more..

Apr 10 (TM) The 2023 LG election will likely not be held on April 25, said State Minister of PCs and LG Janaka Wakkumbura. He mentioned this while speaking to the media following the special meeting held between the PM and the Election Commission today. State Minister mentioned that the PM promised to do justice to the requests of the Election Commission in consultation with the Ministry of Finance. “A friendly discussion was held with the EC regarding its future activities. more..

Apr 10 (Island) The discussion organised by the Lanka Democratic Movement focused on the need for political consensus on crucial economic reforms in SL. The speakers pointed out that without a common agreement on key reforms, SL’s recovery and its ongoing programme with the IMF could be at risk. The speakers emphasised the importance of implementing these reforms without failure and adhering to a plan for a reasonable period of time. Convener of LDM, Rasika Jayakody, more..

Apr 10 (DM) European Union (EU) handed over a shipment of 3,820 tonnes of urea fertilizer procured by the FAO to Ministry of Agriculture today. The stock of fertilizer is to be distributed among smallholder paddy farmers and paddy seed farmers in SL. This new shipment of urea fertilizer will be dispatched to over 72,200 smallholder paddy farmers who were severely impacted by the recent economic crisis in Polonnaruwa, Badulla, Ampara, Matale, Puttalam, Kurunegala & Hambantota more..

Apr 10 (EN) SJB will form a grand alliance targeting upcoming elections with party leader Sajith Premadasa as a common presidential candidate, SJB MP Nalin Bandara said amid intense speculation of imminent crossovers to govt benches. Bandara said the UNP, which Prez Wickremesinghe now leads, is welcome to join the proposed alliance as the SJB currently holds 54 seats compared to the UNP’s solitary seat in parliament. more..

Apr 10 (NR) Department Examinations says a decision has been taken to postpone the 2022 GCE O/L Exam by two weeks. The 2022 O/L exam was due to begin on the 15th of May. However, Examinations Department said it is now hoping to conduct the exam on the 29th of May. The conduct of the O/L Exam has been impacted due to the delay in A/L Exam paper marking process. Accordingly, Dept is planning to conduct the 2022 O/L Exam from the 29th of May to the 8th of June. more..

Apr 10 (PMD) President Ranil Wickremesinghe directed officials to develop a formal plan aimed at maximizing the contribution of the Nuwara Eliya District, a major tourist city, to the Sri Lankan Govt’s program to establish a stable economy within a four-year timeframe. During a discussion held at the Nuwara Eliya District Secretariat this morning (10), the President instructed officials to work on a formal plan to maximize the contribution of the Nuwara Eliya District. more..

Apr 10 (DM) At least 564 persons have been killed in 534 fatal road accidents reported across the country from Jan 1 to April 9 this year, police said. The number of minor, as well as serious accidents reported during the period, were 2,446 and 1,345 respectively. He said around 2,500 to 3,000 fatal accidents are being reported each year and more than 90% of those reported were due to reckless driving. more..