Mar 30 (DM) Two contempt of court cases filed by SJB General Secretary Ranjith Madduma Bandara and NPP MP Vijitha Herath against the Treasury Secretary were today fixed for May 22 by Supreme Court. These contempt of court cases had been filed against Treasury Secretary Mahinda Siriwardana for alleged failure to comply with the SC order issued regarding the Local Govt Elections. When the two applications came up before the SC five-judge-bench headed by CJ Jayantha Jayasuriya, more..

Mar 30 (TM) Dubious Prophets, miracle workers, faith healers, prosperity gospel preachers are exploiting the innocent beleivers, reveals a statement by The National Christian Fellowship in SL (NCFSL) today. Releasing a statement to the media, General Secretary to the National Christian Fellowship of SL Rev. Rohan De S Ekanayake, stated that the fellowship condemns the doctrine of local Prophet Jerome Fernando. "We at the National Christian Fellowship of SL are shocked more..

Mar 30 (AD) Minister Roshan Ranasinghe has written to the Chairman of the ICC, Greg Barclay, pertaining to recent media reports claiming that a committee has been appointed to investigate Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). Issuing a release in this regard, Ministry noted that Ranasinghe had written to Barclay, requesting a discussion on media reports claiming that the ICC has appointed a 3-member committee more..

Mar 30 (DM) A teacher of the primary section of a school in Hambantota was arrested today by Hambantota Harbour police on suspicion of sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl in the school. Investigations revealed that the girl was on her way to school on Tuesday morning (28) when the teacher who offered to drop her at the school premises, took her in his car to a hotel and sexually abused her. When the girl was late to return after school, the parents made inquiries from the principal more..

Mar 30 (AD) Former Election Commission Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya has deemed the postponement of the LG election a crime which affects the country’s democracy. Deshapriya stated that the postponement of the LG polls should not be justified under any circumstances, adding that it was a sorrowful situation that no country should face. Deshapriya said he expects that the election will have taken place at least by World Youth Day in August, or on the International Day of more..

Mar 30 (DM) Consumption of kohila (Lasia Spinosa) as a vegetable has gone up by 40% in SL during the height of the economic crisis in 2021 and 2022, a research report released by Hector Kobbekaduwa Agricultural Training and Research Institute revealed. According to the report, most of the people had used whatever vegetable they could get around for food and the consumption of beans had decreased by 30%, more..

Mar 30 (DM) The Midigama Police has launched investigations to arrest the suspects wanted over the shooting of the owner of Cheeky Monkey restaurant in Midigama. The 32-year-old victim, Pasindu Sandaruwan, a resident of Midigama, succumbed to injuries early this morning after he was shot by a gunman who arrived in a van with a group of unidentified individuals last night. The vehicle  used by the suspects for the shooting was found in the Panugalgoda area a few hours after the more..

Mar 30 (FT) Advocata Institute is launching a policy action group, Women’s Policy Action Network (WPAN) supported by the Kingdom of the Netherlands, advocating for policy reforms enabling women’s economic empowerment. The event will be hosted under the theme of reforms to empower women during an economic crisis, envisioning a revamping of a much needed policy reform through advocacy, and will be held on the 30 March 2023 at 6.30 PM at the Lavender Hall BMICH. more..

Mar 30 (CI) While the rained out second ODI in Christchurch would have no doubt been frustrating for both sets of players, the fact remains that its impact on the grander scheme of things was rather minimal - at least in terms of the World Cup Super League. Having shared the points, and despite Sri Lanka also being docked a Super League point for a slow over-rate in the first ODI, the equation nevertheless remains the same for the visitors; win the game on Friday and force South Africa more..

Mar 30 (DM) No decision has been taken to suspend the system of providing police bail for drunk drivers, a police spokesperson said today. Several reports have been circulating in recent days claiming that the police had decided to stop granting police bail to drivers who were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol and that arrested drunk drivers would be produced in court without granting them police bail. However, SSP Nihal Thalduwa said that no such decision had been taken. more..

Mar 30 (TM) Controversy continues to surround the appointment of the Chairman of the Committee on Public Finance (COPF), as Opposition MPs claim that Govt has violated parliamentary rules by appointing a Govt MP to the position. On Monday (20), SJB MP Lakshman Kiriella accused the Govt of intentionally violating the relevant Standing Order, which specifies that the COPF chairman should be a member of more..

Mar 30 (EN) Shares closed lower on Thursday, with investors delaying investments as the financial year comes to an end while also waiting for more clarity on the IMF deal, an analyst said. The ASPI closed down 0.47% or 43.93 points at 9,228.50. The market has been on a downward trend since last week as investors wait for more clarity on local debt restructuring after the IMF loan facility. “Investors are looking at the long-term to contribute to the share,” an analyst said. more..

Mar 30 (AD) SL Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) has decided to suspend the admission of women, who have expatriated without registering with the SLBFE and arrive at SL embassies due to issues at their workplaces, to the Suraksha safe houses. SLBFE states that the decision will come into effect from Apr 1, 2023. The Suraksha safe houses have been established under the Labour Welfare Divisions of SL embassies overseas in order to provide shelter & welfare facilities to SL more..

Mar 30 (EN) SL will not re-structure Treasury bills outside of central bank holdings and will engage with major T-bond holders for voluntary optimization Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe said. “There will be some treatment on central bank held Treasury bills,” Governor Nandal Weeasinghe told a creditor presentation Thursday. “Other Treasury bill holdings will not be treated. Treasury bonds we envisage voluntary optimization.” more..

Mar 30 (AD) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe has stated that SL’s ethnic issue cannot be divorced from the main economic issue it is currently facing. Delivering the keynote address at the Economic Dialogue – IMF and Beyond held at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo this morning, the Head of State said that the prevalent ethnic issue in the country cannot be separated from the economic crisis, and must be resolved if the island nation is to progress. Sri Lanka has a final opportunity to progress more..

Mar 30 (EN) SL’s utility price hikes, rising domestic expenses and higher imported material costs are eroding the short-term gains from currency depreciation, at a time when global demand is also under pressure, exporters say. Electricity tariffs were hiked to account for higher rupee costs of coal and liquid fuels. Renewable operators have also asked for higher future tariffs as capital costs go up. New foreign renewable plants have dollar tariffs. After the rupee collapse, power tariffs were raised more..

Mar 31 (DM) The Sinhala-Tamil New Year is fast approaching and people are having mixed thoughts about how much they should spend on purchases. This is the time to buy garments because by the time April dawns it could be a tad too late. If one doesn’t buy garments now one will be left with the riff-raff; or the ones that are slow movers in terms of sales. In fact as a nation we citizens have been slow movers. We’ve moved slowly when those who think fast & are ambitious have immigrated abroad. more..

Mar 31 (ST) Whilst informing Parliament on Wednesday that SL had secured an agreement for an EFF of USD 3 billion from the IMF, Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe appealed to all MPs to support the agreement. The subsequent three-day debate held on his statement made clear that there would be no such unity, as the opposition attacked what it said was a lack of transparency by the Govt regarding the agreement. The previously unscheduled adjournment debate took place after govt more..

Mar 31 (TM) Experts have warned that while the recent earth tremors may be considered harmless, building codes and insurance schemes to safeguard against a possible disaster must be looked into in order to prevent loss of life and economic damage. SL has recently experienced a series of tremors that have raised concerns among experts about the potential dangers they pose. According to Uni of Peradeniya Prof of more..

Mar 31 (AHRC) Three major strategies have been used in this draft bill on anti-terrorism 2023.which create very great confusion about the meaning of the contents of the proposed law and its implications. The first of these strategies is not to define the meaning of terrorism. The meaning of the key word of this document is thus kept wake so that many different and contradictory interpretations can be given in a way that could be quiet detrimental to the basic legal notions held as fundaments more..

Mar 31 (CT) An airport is the very first impression that a tourist gets about a country. It’s the first stop that they make on their journey, and it sets the tone for their entire trip. It is not only about the facilities and services offered, but also about the ambiance, which someone can expect to get on entering an airport. An airport has to be attractive, welcoming and yet professional, with all these elements in place. It therefore has to be designed and built with care, so as not to turn people away. more..

Mar 31 (TM) Eggs are an important nutrient in the diet of people of all ages. The food prepared using eggs attract consumers due to properties imparted by the constituents in eggs. The properties of the eggs are used in imparting characteristics to cakes among Western food, and to Watalappan among SL food. The import of eggs due to the failure of the poultry industry to meet the demand in the country has led to a public discussion and more..

Mar 31 (TM) It is a widespread concern that in Sri Lanka’s efforts to deal with the economic crisis and also the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, which involved the country utilising almost all the resources that it could get its hands on, the country has, to a considerable extent, lost the ability to pay attention and allocate resources for other pressing issues that existed even before the two said crises. With recent reports about the country’s drug issue having worsened, more..

Mar 31 (Island) Some good news has thankfully emanated from the US amidst media reports full of gloom and doom. America is known as the land of opportunity, and with reason. Unfortunately, the US has opportunities presenting themselves to the good, the bad and the ugly alike. It therefore has its share of social evils including the extremely high incidence of gun violence, especially school shootings and the ever-increasing drug abuse. The good news is that US FDA approved more..

Mar 31 (ST) It seemed like a day for true confessions. Briefing the media after last week’s cabinet meeting spokesman and minister Bandula Gunawardena admitted that SL has been cheating the IMF over the years. Not twice, not five times, not even ten times. It was sixteen times. “We have cheated the IMF 16 times before this by not acting in accordance with the conditions we agreed upon”, he told the media proving–if proof was necessary–what the media has been saying for years. more..

Mar 31 (CT) “In Sri Lanka, children is a topic that is just like a bridge which is about to collapse. Now, with the impact of the economic crisis that is just like a whirlwind, everyone can see this about-to-collapse bridge clearly,” Clinical Psychologist Lakmal Ponnamperuma said in a recent interview. SL is a nation plagued with increasing instances of child cruelty. From physical and sexual abuse to neglect, children are exposed to many kinds of violence from both parents and other adults. more..

Mar 31 (FT) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday declared that Sri Lanka is at a crossroad and it was the nation’s last chance to forge ahead or fail. He made this point during his address at the Economic Dialogue- IMF and Beyond panel discussion organised by the CA Sri Lanka at Galle Face Hotel attended by several Ministers, State Ministers, MPs, business leaders and professionals. Prez asked the forum: more..

Mar 31 (Island) Sprinter Aruna Dharshana registered the second fastest time by a Sri Lankan in the men’s 200 metres and Dilshi Kumarasinghe returned to winning ways as they created new meet record marks on day two of the 58th Army Athletics Championships at Diyagama on Thursday. Dharshana who had to face disappointment after being disqualified for a foul start at the same venue at the first selection trial 10 days ago, overcame the disappointment yesterday when he clocked more..

Mar 31 (DN) Creating Sri Lankan diary history a consignment of Pelwatte Ceylon Butter was exported to the Maldives from Colombo yesterday adding a new commodity to Sri Lanka’s export basket. Chairman Pelwatte Dairy Ariyaseela Wickramanayake said this is the first time they exported butter and the main reason for this is excess supply in Sri Lanka. “Our target is to export around 100 toons per month of Pelwatte Ceylon Butter to the Maldives.” more..

Mar 31 (FT) Top professional Reyaz Mihular has been appointed to the Board of Sri Lanka Telecom as an Independent Non-Executive Director with effect from yesterday. Mihular is a Fellow Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of SL, was the former Managing Partner for KPMG SL & Maldives since April 2012, a Member of the International Accounting Standards Committee (lASC) based in London, from June 1995 to Dec 2000, a Member of the International Ethical Standards more..

Mar 31 (DM) The use of Indian rupee (INR) in SL-India bilateral trade is facilitating traders from both countries to cut transaction costs by over 50% while enabling same day trade settlements. Joining a panel discussion themed Indian rupee denominated trade settlements between India and SL and the impact to importers organized by Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, Bank of Ceylon Deputy General Manager - Int'l Treasury and Investments, R.M.N. Jeewantha highlighted that traders from more..

Mar 31 (ST) The local recognition process of the watchdog of medical education in Sri Lanka has secured its own recognition, after stringent evaluation and review, from a prestigious Geneva-based international body this month. World Federation for Medical Education (WFME) has granted accreditation on March 7 to the 2019-established Accreditation Unit (AU) of the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC). more..

Mar 31 (Island) When Janindu Lakvijaya clocked 13.82 seconds to win the second heat of the men’s 110 metre hurdles at the Selection Trial held at Diyagama last week, former St. Peter’s College athlete not only established a national record but also earned himself and his employer, a special place in the annals of the country’s track and field history. Spectators and the athlete himself did not know immediately that a new national record had been established as the time display board more..

Mar 31 (AD) Prof. Chandima Jeewandara of Uni of Sri J'pura has been shortlisted for the Early Career Research Excellence Award conferred by the British Society for Immunology (BSI). He is the only SL national to be nominated for the 2023 BSI Immunology Awards, which aims to celebrate the remarkable achievements of individuals and teams shaping the future of immunology. Prof. Jeewandara is among five other finalists announced for the BSI Early Career Research Excellence Award, more..

Mar 31 (TM) Ministry of Justice, Prison Affairs and Constitutional Reforms stated that a special programme has been implemented to prevent any irregularities in Govt Analyst's (GA) Dept regarding drug samples handed over by the Police for testing purposes. GA's Dept, the only forensic laboratory in SL, consists of two major divisions, namely, Food Science, and Forensic Science, & is currently under said Ministry. more..