Apr 10 (EN) SL is expecting to expand the cultivation of chili with high-yield, disease-resistant variants, with the aim of meeting entire domestic needs by 2025, officials said. SL has an annual requirement of 75,000 metric tonnes for green chili, which is produced domestically. There is another dried chili requirement of 55,000 MT for which 48,000 MT is imported. The govt’s Mahailluppallama Agricultural Research Centre has introduced two new hybrid chili variants called MICH 1 and MICH 2. more..

Apr 10 (CT) Sri Lanka’s women’s team recently came forward to announce a multi-format series against Bangladesh. The side will face Bangladesh for a three-match ODI series and a three-match T20I series. All the games will be played in Colombo, with the P. Sara Oval hosting the ODI games, whereas the SSC Ground will host the T20I series. The ODI series will be played between April 29 and May 4, and the T20I series will be played between May 9 and May 12. more..

Apr 11 (DM) Crimes without criminals is a fact in Sri Lanka, but not something that would surprise anybody, as there have been many incidents one can recall that attest to it. However, one cannot but have to be aghast with a latest incident where five suspects who had been taken into custody in August 2021 with a multi-day trawler laden with a stock of heroin weighing 290kg was discharged days ago, due to lack of sufficient evidence. The video footage of the seizure of the trawler by more..

Apr 11 (DM) Recently, I wrote in this column about how the Galle Face Aragalaya transformed my pessimistic view of SL society. But, almost from day one, there was a campaign to discredit and destroy it. This massive, spontaneous people’s movement against former Prez Gothabaya Rajapaksa and his dynastic family came to be known popularly as the Galle Face Aragalaya. But Galle Face was merely the epicentre. People all over Colombo and elsewhere in SL showed their support more..

Apr 11 (ST) It is the Avurudu season and the Pamunuwa market in Maharagama should be a mass of people. While crowds are still around, traders say the number of shoppers is nowhere close to what it was in previous years. For several decades, the market has been a popular destination for shoppers looking for bargains especially in clothes come Avurudu season. The market though, has also been hit by more..

Apr 11 (DM) Delivering the keynote address at a symposium on Economic Dialogue – IMF and Beyond here on March 30, Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe said that SL’s economic problems would not have arisen if govts had implemented Indian economist B. R. Shenoy’s Report prepared at the request of the Ceylon govt way back in 1966. In the late 50s and mid-1960s, when Ceylon’s economy was experiencing an all-round slide due to the extreme left-wing policies of the time, more..

Apr 11 (CT) The national media carried two news items that seem to reflect the duality our national psyche and this reality bodes ill for the future. One was the 300,000 EUR grant agreement supporting improved monitoring and reporting of air quality in SL. The reason for this is the deteriorating quality of air becoming a more prevalent through national and increasingly through increasing unchecked seasonal air pollution events, generally imported from the industrial pollution from Indian cities. more..

Apr 11 (SO) SL Leopard (Panthera pardus kotiya) is a leopard subspecies native to Sri Lanka and has been considered a vulnerable species according to the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) Red List since 2020. According to data from the Dept of Wildlife, 106 leopards have died in SL due to human activities since 2010. A census carried out in 2015 found that 700 - 950 leopards are living in the country. more..

Apr 11 (Island) Parliament security personnel have recently undergone a special training in countering possible threats of chemical attacks, according to media reports. Proper threat assessment and the anticipation of possible attacks go a long way towards protecting vulnerable targets. In this day and age, everything can be weaponised; anything is possible and therefore nothing should be left to chance in protecting vital institutions such as Parliament. more..

Apr 11 (TM) President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s stock is rising high in the higher echelons of society where there is virtual unanimity that the President’s handling of the economic crisis has been masterful. The President’s achievement is seen in his restoration of order out of the chaos of the aragalaya (the people’s movement to overthrow the then Govt under former Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa) period and by getting the IMF to grant its biggest-ever loan to the country. more..

Apr 11 (Island) There is no doubt that real terrorism is closely linked with other serious anti-social crimes such as drug trade, human smuggling, foreign exchange racketeering and computer crimes. What was the need for removing offences punishable under (i) Ss. 114, 116 -126 of the Penal Code; (ii) Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance; (iii) Foreign Exchange Act; and (iv) Immigrants and Emigrants Act from the list of Aggravating Criminal Acts associated with Terrorism in S.8 of Bill? more..

Apr 11 (ST) In a few days, the country’s hard-pressed populace will be munching their aluth avurudha KKK (kevun, kokis and kiributh), waiting for the new dawn promised by prez Ranil Wickremesinghe celebrating his first traditional avurudha in office. Admittedly, for the vast thousands who have suffered a disastrous few years which they are unlikely to forget in this existence though they would surely like to, this avurudha would seem a better prospect than those in the recent past. more..

Apr 11 (DM) US Ambassador Julie J. Chung speaks to Daily Mirror in her first interview with the print media about the current status of bilateral ties and the way forward after the arrangement with the IMF. Q: So, Ambassador, United States of America helped Sri Lanka to get this IMF arrangement approved. In addition to that the US helped SL through its development arm USAID to recover from this economic crisis. more..

Apr 11 (ST) Royal Turf Club (RTC) has made all arrangements to conduct the 2023 edition of the much anticipated Governor’s Cup horseracing event, sponsored by Nippon Paint, at the Racecourse in Nuwara Eliya on Saturday (15). RTC is set to hold its fourth raceday lined up in the VisitSriLanka Horseracing Season 2023, which consist of five racedays. After three racedays conducted monthly through January and March, all eyes will be on the new sensations Mauritania and more..

Apr 11 (ST) Softlogic PLC’s life insurance arm, Softlogic Life is planning to venture into the region. A subsidiary of Softlogic Capital and part of the Softlogic group, the firm has plans to venture into the countries like Bangladesh and Indonesia, Softlogic Life Managing Director Iftikhar Ahamed said recently at an investor forum showcasing the company operations, financial performance, growth trajectory, and future plans. He said that the plan is to acquire companies in those countries and more..

Apr 11 (FT) Leading members of the Lion Brewery and Luxury Brands trade marketing teams were honoured at the recently held SLIM National Sales Congress (NASCO) Awards. The awards recognise that the sales function is crucial to the total marketing strategy and highlight the outstanding contribution of professionals who propel their businesses, brands and industries forward. Now in its 22nd year, the awards for 2021 and 2022 financial years returned to an in-person more..

Apr 11 (FT) Colombo stock market succeeded to close on a positive note as CSE returned to pre-COVID trading hours. S&P SL20 gained by 1.6% or 42 points thanks to Expolanka and ASPI by 66 points or 0.7%. Turnover was Rs. 1.3 billion (as opposed to Rs. 812 million on Thursday) involving 75 million shares. Number of trades was 16,305 yesterday as the CSE expanded trading hours till 2.30 p.m. as in the case of pre-covid in comparison to 1.30 pm as of last week. more..

Apr 11 (CT) The main reason for passengers losing money and valuable items at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) is their own negligence, Airport and Aviation Services (SL) Chairman Major General (retd) G.A. Chandrasiri claimed. He said there was no way passengers could lose valuable items in the airport premises if not for their negligence and their failure to follow the given security instructions. more..

Apr 11 (ST) Central Environmental Authority (CEA) recommended that an alternative route be found for the section of the proposed elevated highway from the New Kelani Bridge to Athurugiriya that crosses the Thalangama wetland, a draft Cabinet paper shows. Proposed Highways Ministry memorandum regarding the highway states that the CEA’s Environmental Council has suggested that it was appropriate to select an alternative area rather than traverse the Thalangama EPA. more..

Apr 11 (FT) SJB has expressed its willingness to form a broad coalition together with the rival UNP which is currently led by Prez Wickremesinghe. SJB MP Nalin Bandara invited the UNP to join hands with the SJB to form a broad Samagi alliance’ led by SJB leader Sajith Premadasa to face upcoming elections. MP said the UNP now has no voter base and its supporters have also joined the SJB. He added that the SJB is prepared to face any upcoming election and it is the only party more..

Apr 11 (FT) SL exporters stressed that the negative image of the country and domestic regulation were key challenges for them during the second half of 2022, fourth Export Barometer Survey conducted by The CCC made public yesterday. The survey, which covers the second half of 2022 and the outlook for the first half of 2023, revealed that the fall in export orders led to significant unde-rutilisation of capacity within more..

Apr 11 (DM) The local rubber sector was severely impacted in the month of March, due to the rupee appreciation. This, along with the gradual decline of natural rubber prices in the regional commodity markets, caused a drastic drop in the prices of all rubber grades, brokers said. According to the Forbes & Walker commodity brokers, the strengthening of the SL rupee has created uncertainty among buyers. As a result, all the grades went unquoted during the March 8, 2023 sale. more..

Apr 11 (DN) SL cricket team will play two test matches against Ireland and the series will commence on April 16 at Galle International cricket Stadium. SL team led by Dimuth Karunaratne and is ready to take up the challenge against Ireland at picturesque Galle Stadium. Dimuth Karunaratne and his team lost the recent NZ test series in NZ and missed a golden opportunity to enter the ICC test championship final and Dasun Shanaka and his team lost both ODI series and T-20 series more..

Apr 11 (Island) There will be a historic game later this week in Galle as the first-ever Test between SL and Ireland gets underway on Sunday. The Irish arrived in Colombo on Easter Sunday and were transferred to the coastal town of Galle and are putting up at Lighthouse resort, the most popular hotel in the south for visiting cricket teams over the years. The Irish have an opportunity to get a first-hand experience of SL culture and traditions as they spend the avurudu week down south. more..

Apr 11 (DM) The sound of Asian Koel (Koha) is a familiar feature when it comes to Sinhala and Tamil New Year period when one focuses on nature. This is other than the blooming of Erabadu flowers and bearing of fruits. The sound of Koha is said to be more frequent this year, an environmentalist said. Environmentalist Jagath Gunawardene said that the sound of the Koha is heard more frequently this year. “It was observed that the bird’s sound began by end of March this year. more..

Apr 11 (Island) The IMF owed an explanation as regards the recent govt declaration that domestic debt restructuring was part of the programme implemented in terms of Sri Lanka’s agreement with the lending agency, top Opposition spokesperson Prof. G.L. Pieris, MP said yesterday (10). Having repeatedly assured that domestic debt wouldn’t be restructured, govt had announced the controversial move, Prof. Peiris said more..

Apr 11 (CB) Hashan Tillakaratne, Bangladesh women's head coach, feels that playing two-day cricket will help his charges prepare well for the upcoming 3-match ODI series against SL. BCB recently launched the Bangladesh Cricket League, women's two-day cricket tournament, with the leading cricketers of the country divided into three teams in Khulna. Following the tournament, Bangladesh began their week long training camp at Abu Naser Cricket Stadium on Monday (10) more..

Apr 11 (MFA) Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Sabry convened a briefing on current developments in SL for the Colombo-based diplomatic corps on Monda. Minister of State of Foreign Affairs Tharaka Balasuriya, Chief of Staff to the Prez Sagala Ratnayaka and Foreign Secretary Aruni Wijewardane were associated with the briefing. Opening the meeting, the Minister thanked the international community for the support extended to SL towards economic recovery and briefed more..

Apr 11 (DM) The SLPP is in the process of preparing to announce the name of its presidential candidate after the Sinhala and Tamil New Year, SLPP MP Prof. Ranjith Bandara said. He said they have many problems to solve and should not move to a point where there is a need for a sudden election of a person. They have the time for that. "We should present a better and more sustainable program to the people with which we can help solve all the problems in the country. more..

Apr 11 (TM) SJB MP Nalin Bandara Jayamaha claimed that there is strong opposition from the ruling SLPP Party MPs to SJB MP Dr. Rajitha Senaratne possibly joining the Govt and that this opposition has caused the delay of his crossover. He also said that no crossover can break the SJB into parts. “Senaratne has crossed the Floor several times. He is not someone who has not changed parties. So, it is nothing new for him. Other thing is that Rajitha is not a frontrunner of our Party. more..

Apr 11 (TM) TNA MP Shanakiyan Rasamanickam said that the TNA is entitled to get a position in the Constitutional Council (CC) not just due to being the largest Tamil representation in the Parliament but according to the country’s Constitution. He said this when he was contacted by The Daily Morning to inquire about the lack of minority Opposition parties’ representation in the CC. more..

Apr 11 (Island) The SL govt has decided to allow 3 foreign companies to sell fuel at prices lower than those of the CPC if they so desire. Earlier, Minister Kanchana Wijesekera told the media that three foreign companies would commence operations within the next two months. Minister said that agreements would be signed with the foreign companies within the next two to three weeks. He said that the three companies were keen to commence operations in Sri Lanka more..

Apr 11 (CT) Minister Mahinda Amaraweera advised the Registrar General of Pesticides to take steps to amend the Pesticides Control Act immediately as there is a fake and substandard pesticides and herbicides racket in the country. "Under the existing laws, fines imposed and prison sentences levied in connection with the sale of substandard pesticides and herbicides, as well as illegal importation of pesticides & herbicides, that are smuggled into SL, do not have enough impact on traffickers," more..

Apr 11 (FT) PHU Leader MP Udaya Gammanpila accused Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena of violating the parliamentary privileges of MPs and misleading Parliament through his announcement on SC determination on the Central Bank Amendment Bill. On 4 April, Abeywardena announced to Parliament that the SC had informed him the bill can be passed by a simple majority in Parliament as it was not unconstitutional. more..

Apr 11 (FT) A few weeks ago I was surprised to read a comment by the President with regard to SOEs and questioning why the Govt should be in business and capping it off by saying that it did not happen in the time of D.S. Senanayake, the first Prime Minister of independent Ceylon. I knew for quite some time that Ranil Wickremesinghe’s political and economic thinking was way off, but expected him to get the historical aspects correct, which he seems to have missed. more..