Feb 2 (AD) The bodies of two females who had reportedly died under mysterious circumstances has been discovered by Deraniyagala Police this afternoon from a house located in the area. While a cause of death, although deemed suspicious, is yet to be identified, a 90-year-old female, believed to be the mother of the victims, is currently receiving treatment at the Deraniyagala Hospital, Police reported. The deceased have been identified as sisters, aged 51 and 49 years. more..

Feb 2 (Island) Another initiative of State Tourism Ministry to uplift the tourism sector in Sri Lanka, a MOU has been inked recently between the State Tourism Ministry of SL and Tawfeeq Travel, one of the largest travel management and promotion corporate in Qatar to bring one million high end tourists from the Middle East region to SL within next 24 months, during the year 2023 and 2024. A grand Ceremony was held amongst large gathering from the industry, business community and media more..

Feb 2 (AD) SL Police have decided to file an appeal against the recent release of Wasantha Mudalige, convener of the IUSF, from the charges filed against him under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). Accordingly, Police Spokesman Nihal Thalduwa stated that the Police Headquarters today requested the Attorney General to submit an appeal, in accordance with all relevant legal provisions, against the recent judgment given by the Colombo Magistrate’s Court. more..

Feb 2 (EN) Sri Lanka has identified 50 sites linked to the Ramayana epic which will used to promote tourism in SL mainly targeting India, along with Buddhist tourism, an official said as the island is trying to revise the sector to get out of the worst currency crisis in its post-independent history. “We have identified 50 Ramayana sites in the country, and we are promoting it in India and also we are targeting to go to the UK, France, Canada and South Africa,” Jeevana Fernando, more..

Feb 2 (PTI) Legendary track athlete and Olympic silver medallist Susanthika Jayasinghe has been appointed by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) to promote women's cricket in the country. Susanthika, silver medallist in 200m at 2000 Sydney Games, had become the first Asian woman to win an Olympic or world championships medal in a sprint event. Susanthika, 47, has got the designation of Consultant and more..

Feb 2 (DM) To coincide with the 75th Independence Day celebrations, President Ranil Wickremesinghe, in his capacity as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, awarded the prestigious Vishishta Seva Vibhushanaya (VSV) decoration that recognizes unblemished service to 77 senior officers of the three armed forces during a dignified ceremony at the President's House in Kandy. During the ceremony, Chief of Staff, General Shavendra Silva also received the Independence Day more..

Feb 2 (PTI) Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan will pay a two-day visit to Sri Lanka beginning Friday, in reflection of deeper bilateral engagement at a time the island nation is reeling under an economic crisis. Muraleedharan is scheduled to meet SL Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe and Foreign Minister Ali Sabry. The trip by Muraleedharan to Colombo comes nearly two weeks after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar visited Sri Lanka. "At the invitation of the govt of SL, more..

Feb 2 (DM) With 2022 bringing on an economic disaster for SL citizens, one would expect the Treasury to reduce its budget allocations for 2023 in almost all areas where it can. However, according to figures released by the Treasury exposing the budget allocations for 2023, little has been reduced from last year and in some instances the allocations have only increased since 2022. One such area is the facilities offered to former Presidents. more..

Feb 2 (Island) Executive Director of Institute for Democratic Reforms and Electoral Studies (IRES), Manjula Gajanayake, said that Prez’s order, made on Tuesday, as Minister of Finance, Economic Stabilisation and National Policies, to further curtail govt expenditure together with a warning to public officials that they would be personally held responsible for whatever goods and services they obtain on credit basis was a sinister ploy to disrupt the EC's preparations for the LG poll. more..

Feb 2 (DM) CEB today gave an undertaking before Supreme Court that no scheduled power-cut will take place until the contempt of court application against CEB and others is supported by SC. Prez's Counsel Uditha Egalahewa appearing for the CEB gave this undertaking when a contempt of court application filed by Human Rights Commission of SL (HRCSL) called before SC. HRCSL had filed a contempt of court application before Supreme Court against Secretary to Ministry of Power more..

Feb 3 (DM) Ragging at universities pops up as a topic for discussion akin to a rubber ball finding its way from under the water after being pressed down by somebody. At present ragging at SL universities is much spoken of and alongside it the role of political parties that influence undergraduates’ thinking. One grievance of parents is that their children, after being admitted to university and having started higher studies, are making their exit from university due to excessive ragging. more..

Feb 3 (DM) In our criminal justice system, the prosecution of trials is normally preceded by the investigation of criminal offences by the police. Investigation of crimes fall within the domain of the police, and for this specific purpose the police have been given a great deal of authority -to arrest, to search, to detain and to use force in certain circumstances in accordance with the criminal procedure code and other relevant laws. The functions of the Attorney General and more..

Feb 3 (FT) Call it a no brainer. Whatever Queen Viharamahadevi, the legendary mother of King Dutugemunu, wore, it wouldn’t have been a Kandyan sari (osariya). So why dress up her statue in that garb, jewellery included? Not just any statue, but the one by the Ruwanweli Seya, her son’s most famous construct, and the place Gotabaya Rajapaksa chose to take his presidential oaths in 2019. When the story broke over more..

Feb 3 (GV) The first Independence day celebration I could remember as a kid was 1984. I still remember it simply because the celebrations took place in my hometown, Kalutara. It was an extravagant half day event with a full military parade at the Katukurunda racetrack. Older kids from all major schools in and around Kalutara, including my older brother, were told to participate in the event’s marching parade. Rehearsals happened for days, if not for weeks but I do not remember my brother or his friends more..

Feb 3 (Island) The UNP and the SLFP have started talking about the next presidential election even before the long-overdue local govt (LG) polls are held. UNP General Secretary Palitha Range Bandara has recently said President Ranil Wickremesinghe will contest the next presidential election. Former Prez Maithripala Sirisena himself has told the media he will run for President again, and is confident of securing the presidency as he is the leader of SLFP & the people are with him. more..

Feb 3 (TM) Just over five years ago, in 2018, then-Finance Minister, the late Mangala Samaraweera attempted to overturn the decades-long law prohibiting the sale of any type of alcohol to females. His announcement was met with backlash over cultural concerns and intervention from former Prez and incumbent Opposition MP Maithripala Sirisena, who revoked the decision and reimposed the ban. more..

Feb 3 (TM) The question asked by many crisis-affected citizens in the context of SL’s 75th Independence Day anniversary, which falls tomorrow, is when millions of people do not have enough of an income to make ends meet, at the very least to have a proper meal, and when the people remain in a state of great uncertainty about their future, whether the country really is in a position to celebrate its Independence Day. They further question what sort of freedom they truly more..

Feb 3 (CT) This paper on 31 Jan reported that about 161 medicinal items are in severe short supply at the Ratnapura Teaching Hospital (TH), as well as at hospitals that come under the purview of the Sabaragamuwa PC. This was revealed during the Ratnapura District Coordinating Committee meeting held recently. Director of the Ratnapura Teaching Hospital Dr. Anoj Rodrigo said the scarcity of vital medicinal items has also stalled crucial surgeries being conducted at the hospital. more..

Feb 3 (DM) Dependence is embedded in independence. This is the paradox we need to address as SL prepares to celebrate its 75th anniversary of Independence tomorrow amid an unprecedented economic crisis. Ironically, the origin of the economic crisis could be traced to the country gaining Independence in 1948. Since then govts have worsened the crisis by politicising the economy. Just as no human being is truly independent, no country is truly independent. more..

Feb 3 (Island) SL political leaders exude patriotism from every pore. These rotund grandees never miss an opportunity to suck in their stomachs, puff out their chests and sing the national anthem with gusto, making as they do a public display of their brand of patriotism. We will see them in action again tomorrow, when they are celebrating what the country does not have—independence—on a grand scale. PM Dinesh Gunawardena has, in what may be considered an outburst of patriotism more..

Feb 3 (CT) The indecision of the Govt over holding the LG Elections has raised the eyebrows of many. Numerous reasons are cited to postpone LG Polls, including the economic crisis of the country. Meanwhile, Govt allocating funds to lavishly celebrate the 75th Independence Day of the country drew flak from the public, even on social media. When we reached out to the public to hear their views regarding the long-awaited LG Polls and more..

Feb 3 (FT) PM Dinesh Gunawardene will inaugurate the Tata Steel and Tata Tiscon annual dealer conference in Colombo on 7 Feb, along with the HC for India Gopal Baglay. Over 650 delegates are expected from India for this conference. Tata Steel, is one of the world’s most geographically diversified steel producers with operations that are fully integrated – from mining to the manufacturing and marketing of finished products. They form part of the Tata Group which is India largest more..

Feb 3 (ST) The Musaeus College ‘A’ team and ‘B’ team emerged champions in the Under-16 Girls’ Division ‘A’ and ‘B’, respectively at the All-Island Inter-School Table Tennis Championship 2022 held at the Bandaragama Indoor Stadium. In the Under-10 girls’ age category, the ‘B’ team was placed third in Division ‘B’ while their ‘C’ team became runners-up in Division ‘C’. The victorious Under-16 ‘A’ team comprised of Oneli Lehansa, Shenalie Mendis, Sandinthie Jayasinghe, Dulhara Hulawa more..

Feb 3 (TM) A nation that cannot celebrate its Independence does not have a future, claimed PM Dinesh Gunawardena, adding that former Prez and incumbent Govt MP Mahinda Rajapaksa had ensured that the Independence Day was celebrated considering the nation’s future even in the midst of terrorist threats. He made these remarks while speaking to the media on Wednesday following a SLPP meeting. “We salute and respect all war heroes who sacrificed their lives more..

Feb 3 (FT) University of Colombo has once again retained its position as the top university in SL in the first edition of the 2023 Webometrics Ranking. UOC’s global ranking is 1468th (up from 1531 previously) and 41st in South Asia. This is the 20th Anniversary Edition (2004-2023) of the Webometrics Ranking, which evaluates the impact of a university’s web content, citations in top Google Scholar profiles, and top-cited papers during the five-year period from 2017 to 2021 in Scimago. more..

Feb 3 (FT) The latest SL Opinion Tracker Survey (SLOTS) polling shows that the public continue to have deeply unfavourable views of all major political party leaders. UNP Leader Prez Ranil Wickremasinghe has the least negative favourability ratings, although by a small margin. The past three months have seen a fresh decline in favourability for most, giving back some modest gains since August. In November, Prez Wickremesinghe more..

Feb 3 (FT) Two members of the Public Utilities Commission of SL (PUCSL) have resigned with immediate effect. They are Deputy Chairman Engineer Udeni Wickramasinghe and Communication Specialist Mohan Samaranayake. Of late there have been differences of opinion within the PUCSL, of which Chairman Janaka Ratnayake has been spearheading the effort to minimise power cuts as well as fair increase in electricity tariff. However, Govt views him as irrational more..

Feb 3 (DN) ICC Chief Match referee Ranjan Madugalle highly praised the present facilities at the Mercantile Cricket Association (MCA) at Wijerama Mawatha. The former SL cricket skipper Madugalle made these remarks at the opening ceremony of MCA Floodlit Practice Nets on Wednesday at the MCA premises. “When I was a club player at NCC I had good memories at this MCA grounds. After 40 years today, MCA gets a new look with more facilities and it’s nice to see the massive more..

Feb 3 (ST) A five-page statement from Ministry of Finance announcing a sovereign debt default takes creditors by surprise. Among them is Japan International Cooperation Agency, SL’s longstanding friend and development partner. Like others, JICA only learned the news via media and the wordy official notice on the internet. Agency didn’t receive so much as a phone alert to flag what was being planned, more..

Feb 3 (Island) A mouth-watering contest began this week at the Galle Int'l Stadium between SL ‘A’ and England Lions and the future stars will have a feel of a venue where many a great like Steve Waugh, Shane Warne, Brian Lara, Sachin Tendulkar and Babar Azam have had their moments, gave local fans brief pains but ended up stealing our hearts. How can you not fall in love with Chris Gayle smashing sixes to Galle bus stand and then upon reaching his triple hundred lying down more..

Feb 3 (EN) SL has seen a remarkable growth in the online trading of goods and services which is popularly known as e-commerce, but lack of knowledge and mistrust over digital payment methods have been the key barriers, a report done in the island nation has found. The report, based on a survey of a sample population of 4,670 between March and July 2022, showed provinces close to and further away from capital Colombo and the Western Province are not lagging behind more..

Feb 3 (Island) Hayleys Advantis, the transportation and logistics arm of the Hayleys Group, recently donated a pre-fabricated research laboratory in support of the scientists involved in the accelerated natural regeneration of mangroves at Anawilundawa. This project was completed under the first phase of the Advantis Blue C programme, which was launched as a strategic sustainability initiative with the aim of conserving and restoring blue carbon ecosystems. more..

Feb 3 (DN) A study by USAID and CCC on SMEs’ technology adoption capacity found that the ICT sector was having the highest digital maturity at 79%, followed by tea at 64% and rubber and rubber-based products at 61%. Study findings reveal a wide variance in the digital maturity of SL SME exporters. Study calculated a maturity score for each SME based on the survey responses and on to what extent technology and digital processes were integrated into business’s day-to-day ops. more..

Feb 3 (TM) Reacting to yesterday’s announcement that the Govt would release 108 acres of land in the North today, TNA noted that the decision to release these lands was taken as far back as 2018 and that the Army had even vacated the lands although the lands had not been handed over to the people in the North by the time the administration changed in late 2019. TNA’s Spokesman MP M.A. Sumanthiran noted: more..

Feb 3 (DN) The National Transport Commission (NTC) and the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) has taken steps to issue a prepaid card for the convenience of commuters. This card is valid for both SLTB as well as private buses. These prepaid cards are issued through People’s Bank and NSB and top-ups of these pre-paid cards can be made through CDM machines of the respective banks instantly and conveniently. Banks will take steps to issue cards free under the first phase. more..