Jun 9 (AD) Seven personnel of the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB), including a Sub-Inspector, have been arrested over the death of a Vocational Training Officer in police custody. Accordingly, a Sub-Inspector, a Sergeant and five Constables attached to the PNB were arrested over the death of a 42-year-old suspect. The death of A.G. Samantha Preethi Kumara, a father of two from Hikkaduwa, was reported on 10 January, while he was in the custody of the PNB. more..

Jun 9 (TM) Central Bank of SL announced the recommencement of compensation payments for depositors of Swarnamahal Financial Services PLC (SFSP) under the SL Deposit Insurance and Liquidity Support Scheme (SLDILSS). According to a public notice issued by the CBSL, eligible depositors and relevant legal beneficiaries of SFSP can begin receiving compensation payments starting from today, 9 June. The compensation payments are expected to continue until 12 July, next year more..

Jun 9 (Island) Chairman of the Oversight Committee on National Security Sarath Weerasekara, MP, has warned many countries would endorse Canadian declaration of genocide here unless the govt took tangible measures to counter the Ottawa’s politically motivated lie. The warning was issued on Wednesday when the defence top brass, including the heads of State Intelligence Service (SIS) and Directorate of Military more..

Jun 9 (CT) Six years have gone since the tragic Meethotamulla garbage dump landslide claimed the lives of 32 individuals. Recently, a programme was organised to honour and remember these innocent victims. In a unique and heartfelt tribute, a ceremony was held atop the very same garbage hill, that concealed the victims. This event marked the first time in history that such a worshipful gesture was conducted from a garbage dump, with participants standing 300 feet above the ground. more..

Jun 9 (DM) Sri Lanka’s youth netball head coach Amalka Gunathilake believes that her team can beat hosts South Korea in their first match of the 12th Asian Youth (Under 21) Netball Championships on June 11. "Sri Lanka’s strongest opponents in the preliminary round is Singapore and I believe that we can beat the other teams in our group. My target is to win step by step and qualify for the final," said Amalka Gunathilake. Gunathilake added that all the players in the SL team more..

Jun 9 (AD) A female suspect was arrested by the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) on Thursday (08 June), in connection with a foreign employment scam. Accordingly, the female in question, identified as a 65-year-old resident of Minuwangoda, had obtained a sum of over Rs. 1 million from two individuals, after promising them jobs in Osaka, Japan, despite not being in possession of a valid licence to do so. more..

Jun 9 (DM) Govt has decided to go ahead with the reform of SLT despite the recommendation by Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Security not to do so, a Minister, who did not wish to be named, said today. It was reported earlier that the Sectoral Oversight Committee headed by MP Sarath Weerasekara had recommended not to privatize SLT. "The govt has already decided to go ahead with the reform before the Sectoral Oversight Committee came up with its recommendation. more..

Jun 9 (CI) Sri Lanka's dalliance with Angelo Mathews in ODIs appears to have been short-lived after the veteran was left out from the 15-man squad set to fly out to Zimbabwe for the World Cup Qualifier later this month. Mathews had been recalled to the ODI side ahead of SL's tour of New Zealand earlier this year following an absence of two years. The decision had given the 36-year-old hopes of a World Cup swansong. more..

Jun 9 (DM) It is essential to include sex education in the school curriculum, State Minister Diana Gamage proposed today. “Children of today are unaware of the real facts about sex. This is why they fall into various troubles. Some schoolchildren do not know what a social disease is. Some children may be infected with various social diseases without their knowledge as they are not aware of these diseases. They don’t know even the symptoms of these diseases,” State Minister said. more..

Jun 9 (TM) Police stated that the investigation conducted by the CID regarding pastor Jerome Fernando, who allegedly made a statement insulting Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam, covers all suspicious areas including money laundering activities. Fernando has caused controversy by making a statement allegedly insulting Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam, and their founders. While several complaints have been lodged with the CID against him, Fernando, who is currently more..

Jun 9 (PMD) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe convened a discussion at the Presidential Secretariat yesterday to address the Action Plan for Reconciliation. During the meeting, the Prez instructed the relevant departments to expedite the drafting of legislation necessary for the plan’s implementation. The progress of initiatives within five key areas -legislation, institutional activities, land issues, prisoner release, more..

Jun 9 (CT) Over one million jobs have been lost due to the collapse of the construction sector in the country following the economic crisis. This information came to light at the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Alleviating the Impact of the Economic Crisis. It was found that over one million jobs have been lost, related institutions have collapsed, assets have been destroyed, and professionals have left the country. Many issues such as the lack of institutions for training opportunities for more..

Jun 9 (TM) Minister Susil Premajayantha said on Tuesday that the Ministry of Education has already taken measures to grant interest-free loans to the seventh batch of undergraduates who study in non-State universities following discussions held with the Bank of Ceylon (BOC), the People’s Bank, and the National Savings Bank (NSB). Speaking in Parliament in response to a question raised by MP Dullas Alahapperuma on the status of the granting of the loan scheme for private university more..

Jun 10 (ST) Although it’s two years now, the X-Press Pearl containership disaster is still making headlines in the Sri Lankan news media. When you recall each and every detail of this disaster and of its subsequent affairs up to now, they all point to one thing; the gross inability of the country as a nation, and nothing else! And it’s the inability of an island that has been boasting about its strategic locational advantage for 100s of years. What’s the point that I am trying to get across? more..

Jun 10 (DM) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe seems to be of the view that he and the people of this country are on the same wavelength about elections, given the speech he made at the 2023/2024 National Law Conference held in Nuwara Eliya on June 3. He said that the majority of the population, including the youth lacked trust in elections and politics. At a time when elections are postponed using executive powers and other political expressions such as protests are suppressed, more..

Jun 10 (CT) President Ranil Wickremesinghe declared, during his address at the 2023/2024 National Law Conference held at the Grand Hotel, Nuwara Eliya last weekend, that although all political parties in the Parliament are united, none of them currently possess a 50 per cent voter base. He emphasised the need for unity among the parties, not solely for the purpose of elections, but to steer the country towards more..

Jun 10 (DM) LTTE organization ceased to be a functional entity in Sri Lanka after being militarily defeated by the armed forces in May 2009. The LTTE known widely as the Tigers was a powerful armed militant group which ruled over swathes of land in the N&E Provinces of the Island for several years. In its heyday, LTTE exercised autocratic control over Tamil public life in SL and even amidst the global Tamil Diaspora. The tigers brooked no political dissent or criticism among Tamils. more..

Jun 10 (DM) In the aftermath of the breakup of the Soviet Union, the US assumed the role of the world’s sole super power. However the US efforts of world domination were challenged by a resurgent Russia and the rising economic cum military power of China in Asia. In an effort to contain Russia the NATO military pact countries led by the US expand into countries which were once part of the old Soviet Union. Warnings that the move could lead to a tragedy were ignored. more..

Jun 10 (CT) Religion is a deeply sensitive and personal issue in many parts of the world. In SL, it is even more so, due to underlying political connotations, which sometimes threaten to disrupt harmony between religious communities. The latest in the series of events that gave rise to public discourse is, one, the comments made by a self-styled prophet who made disparaging remarks about several religions, and two, much-criticised more..

Jun 10 (Island) Cassandra was struck by three untruths (lies if the real term needs to be used) spluttered out this last week. The Island on Thursday June 1 carried this headline on page 1: Aragalaya group behind project to cause religious disharmony. That is a blatant lie for the very simple reason that one feature the Aragalaya in its true form was uniquely known for was that it fostered and demonstrated spontaneous amity among ethnic and religious groups. more..

Jun 10 (GV) The Sri Lankan government is once again in the eye of the storm for the arrest of comedian Nathasha Edirisooriya over a joke about Buddhism using the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) Act, the very mechanism established to protect freedom of expression and information under the UN umbrella. A person who shared her content, social media activist Bruno Divakara, was also arrested. Both have been remanded until June 21. more..

Jun 10 (Island) PM Dinesh Gunawardena and Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa crossed swords in Parliament, on Thursday, with the former reminding the House that the latter’s late father, Prez R. Premadasa, had violated people’s democratic rights blatantly. What one gathered from the PM’s line of reasoning was that he thought the Opposition Leader, as President Premadasa’s son, had no moral right to talk about allegations of human rights violations against the present govt. more..

Jun 10 (CT) We are saddened by the passing of Mr Shyamon Jayasinghe, a strong-willed and well-known community activist in Melbourne. Shyamon was much senior to us at the Uni of Peradeniya. He was multi-talented as a stage artist, senior administrator, writer, author, political analyst and community and social worker. He has held executive positions in many community organisations in Victoria. Everyone knows him as an accomplished person both in SL and as an expatriate. more..

Jun 10 (ST) Most bakeries in the city of Colombo are producing poor quality bread, which also weighs less. Consumers complain that bread has the consistency of a paste or raw dough. The main reason for this is that bakers use low quality flour and baking ingredients. Loaves are not fully baked due to lack of firewood, while some bakers cut electricity use by shutting down their electric ovens. more..

Jun 10 (Island) Inter-School Under-14 Football Tournament will be played under the CBL Samaposha banner for the twelfth consecutive time. Organised and conducted by the SL Schools’ Football Association (SSFA), the CBL Samaposha Under-14 Inter-School Football Championship 2023 will kick off with a bang on the 13th of this month. Almost 12,000 students will participate, showcasing the overwhelming response the event has garnered through the years. more..

Jun 10 (FT) Construction Power & Energy Expo 2023 is proud to announce its highly anticipated exhibition, set to take place from 7 to 9 July at BMICH. This exceptional event is poised to revolutionise the industry by bringing together multiple sectors under one roof, including Power, Energy, Construction, Housing, Interior, and Building & Materials. This event is organised by Lanka Exhibition & Conference Services (LECS), a presidential award-winning company for more..

Jun 10 (FT) Manufactured and distributed by Darley Butler & Company Ltd., Amritha Incense Sticks, a leader and pioneer in the locally produced incense stick market, has achieved a historic milestone by acquiring Sri Lanka Standards (SLS) Certification. This certification guarantees that Amritha Incense Sticks are manufactured in compliance with the highest safety, quality and environmental standards set by the Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI). Established in 2011, more..

Jun 10 (ST) Farmers of the Puttalam District battling wild elephants destroying paddy fields, are now forced to fight two new pests affecting paddy cultivations. A caterpillar species and a worm species have started to wreak havoc in paddy fields. Farmers say it is difficult to safeguard their crops from the swarms of caterpillars and worms which are spreading fast. Bathalagoda Rice Research and Development Institute and officials of the district’s Deputy Agriculture Director’s Office more..

Jun 10 (CT) The Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) has a gigantic outstanding income of more than Rs 6.2 billion for the year 2022, it was revealed at Parliament watchdog COPA. The purpose of the meeting was to examine the Auditor General’s reports and assess the current performance of the CMC for the years 2020/2021. CMC’s total outstanding income for 2021 was Rs 5.5 billion and Rs 4.4 billion in 2019. more..

Jun 10 (FT) Commercial & Industrial Workers Union (CIWU) President and human rights lawyer Swasthika Aruligam yesterday accused the management of the SL Insurance Corporation (SLIC) of engaging in unfair labour practices over its recent decision to transfer Insurance General Employees Union (IGEU) General Secretary Diwakara Athugala. Aruligam said Athugala has been transferred without any justifiable cause. She also accused management of blocking him more..

Jun 10 (ST) Connect with nature by stepping into one’s own home gardens, is the message from the Field Ornithology Group of SL (FOGSL), as tomorrow (5) marks World Environment Day. Most home gardens in SL still harbour a lot of biodiversity, but we do not pay enough attention, says FOGSL president Prof Nihal Dayawansa, explaining the objectives of an initiative named Garden Birds and Biodiversity Watch 2023 (GBBW 2023). At least a dozen birds can be observed more..

Jun 10 (Island) SL citizens’ freedom of expression is being restricted and threatened by administrative and criminal sanctions, the Bar Association of SL (BASL) has said. The BASL has in a media statement said it believes that the right to protest, as manifested in the freedom of assembly, association, and expression, is an important feature of a democratic society. “This right is vital for the healthy functioning of a democracy, and while more..

Jun 10 (FT) SJB MP Eran Wickramaratne yesterday submitted a private members Bill to amend the VAT Act, No. 14 of 2002 to transfer the powers vested in the Minister of Finance to Parliament. The new bill proposes that any order made by the Minister of Finance shall come into force only upon the approval of the Regulation by Parliament. As of now the Finance Minister has the powers to impose, remove, increase or reduce the VAT levy at his whims via Gazette notifications overnight. more..

Jun 10 (TM) The Miracle Dome, Katunayake based church built by Pastor Jerome is not closed for the public, but is under police security due to the risk of clashes that might break out between people, says SSP Nihal Thalduwa. "The church or church building is not closed to the public. But there is tight security around the Dome as there have been threats of a clash that would take place. We don't want violence and to maintain peace, we have placed police security with barricades," more..

Jun 10 (Island) All Ceylon Health Trade Union Federation (ACHTUF) alleged that the govt only bore 40% of the total health costs. The private sector already accounted for 60% of the total health infrastructure, ACHTUF General Secretary, Dr. Jayantha Bandara said. “There are crippling medical shortages in state-run hospitals. There are no equipment or materials for testing. Most machines are broken. The best doctors and other staffers are leaving the country,” he said. more..