Oct 13 (FT) The delegation of German Industry and Commerce in Sri Lanka (AHK SL) hosted the 9th edition of the Top German Brands in SL to foster cooperation, networking and exchange among global market leaders and industry peers from Germany and SL. This flagship event was held on 20 Sept supported by the German Embassy in Colombo and sponsored by Lufthansa. The gathering was attended by distinguished luminaries, including, German Deputy Ambassador more..

Oct 13 (Island) Hyderabad, where Sri Lanka played their last World Cup game, is an iconic Indian city. It has produced several prominent Indians like the nation’s first Test captain – C. K. Nayudu, former Prime Minister Narasimha Rao, tennis star Sania Mirza and cricket greats like Tiger Pataudi, Mohammad Azharuddin and V.V.S. Laxman. The city is also home to one of the unsung heroes of Indian cricket – Man Singh, who managed the team that went onto win the World Cup in 1983. more..

Oct 13 (DM) We have to adjust to the Indian wickets quickly and getting a chance to take part in a World Cup is amazing experience said SL teams youngest player Dunith Wellalage. The adjustment of the ground conditions and wicket is more important and these two are areas we are more concerned about said 20 year old leg spin all rounder Dunith Wellalage a product of St Joseph Colombo. I always like to get experience from more..

Oct 13 (FT) Cargills (Ceylon) Plc said yesterday it will hold a strategic 49% stake in the new Indo-Lanka dairy venture following a Government-to-Govt deal signed in Colombo on Wednesday. Cargills said a Joint Declaration of Intent (JDI) was signed in July 2023 between the Dept of Animal Husbandry and Dairying of the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying of India, and Ministry of Agriculture of SL for cooperation in the field of Animal Husbandry and Dairying. more..

Oct 13 (DM) Mannar in north-western SL and Madurai in southern India have been identified as the connecting points of the proposed electricity transmission line between the two countries, a source familiar with the process said. The detailed report has almost been finalized to be considered by the working group headed by the power secretaries of the two countries. The grid connectivity has been an idea mooted as far back as 2003, but tangible work has been done only now. more..

Oct 13 (FT) Justice, Prisons Affairs and Constitutional Reforms Minister Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe yesterday revealed that the Sri Lanka Personal Data Protection Authority, established to safeguard personal data within the nation, will be fully functional by early 2024. He made this disclosure speaking at the inauguration of the 9th annual Cyber Security Summit, organised by the Daily FT in partnership with CICRA Holdings. more..

Oct 13 (DM) Opening batter Dimuth Karunaratne and seamer Lahiru Kumara are being considered for Sri Lanka’s World Cup game against Australia on Monday, as they look to bounce back after two demoralising defeats. It’s been a tough two days in office for the SL team as they were at the receiving end of heavy defeats in their first couple of games. South Africa, after hammering a World Cup record of 428 runs in the opener, restricted SL to 326 runs to clinch a 102-run win in the opener. more..

Oct 13 (Island) Members of the Asian People’s Movement on Debt and Development (APMDD) took to the streets yesterday, accusing the World Bank (WB), International Monetary Fund (IMF) and G7 govts of aggravating economic conditions in the global South and of further exacerbating the climate crisis. In Sri Lanka, Center for Environmental Justice’s (CEJ) Advocacy and Campaign Unit Director Janaka Withanage said that the WB had not funded to mitigate fossil fuel issues in SL. more..

Oct 13 (Island) Unreservedly condemning all forms of violence and terror committed by both parties in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) Leader Rauff Hakeem has asked how a world committed to a rule-based order could allow deliberate dispossession, detention and dehumanisation of the Palestinian people. In a statement titled, Encouragement of Hatred in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict Must Cease, the SLMC Leader states: more..

Oct 13 (CT) Health Authorities have cautioned children and adults against a spread of an eye infection, in several areas of the country, leading to the closure of schools and the postponing of school examinations. They said that paediatric and adult patients with eye disease had been diagnosed in Jaffna, Galle and Colombo during the past few weeks. With the spread of the infection steps were taken to close schools, while cancellation of grade exams conducted by schools, more..

Oct 13 (CT) Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella has requested the Attorney General’s guidance on how to proceed in handling the internal stakeholders, accountable for the matter involving Isolez Biotech Pharma AG Limited, which is responsible for the controversial medicinal drug scam of 22,500 vials of Immunoglobulin IV 5g vials. In a letter to the AG, Minister said that despite lack of a purchase order from SPC. more..

Oct 13 (CT) Recent tax hikes and utility bills downed money printing (MP) by at least Rs 2.84 trillion, year- on-year (YoY) to Wednesday (11). Meanwhile, the country’s foreign reserves decreased by USD 284.53 million (Rs 92,189 million) on Wednesday on account of the settlement of Govt of Sri Lanka’s (GoSL’s) foreign debt servicing commitments to multilateral donors. Consequently, the market’s net shortfall increased by 42.48% (Rs 66,347 million) to Rs 222,535 million on Wednesday. more..

Oct 13 (DN) Agriculture Minister Mahinda Amaraweera has proposed to give a compensation of Rs.250,000 per hectare to the farmers whose crop was damaged in the last Yala Season due to drought. In the 2023 yala season, about 58,770 acres of paddy and other crops were damaged due to the inability to provide sufficient water, and as a result, about 54,000 farmers have been affected. Minister presented a proposal to the Cabinet regarding compensating the affected farmers. more..

Oct 13 (TM) A group of MPs led by Opposition MP Lalith Ellawala, who initially planned to bring a no-confidence motion (NCM) against Public Security Minister Tiran Alles and instead planned to enter into a negotiation-based approach with Alles and the relevant officials, including the IGP, regarding the elimination of crimes in the country, has again decided to move an NCM against Alles. Ellawala, who was earlier a ruling SLPP MP and is now representing FPC led by MP Dullas more..

Oct 13 (FT) Colombo stock market bounced back yesterday on the back of improved investor sentiment and bargain hunters after a five-day fall. Both indices gained by over 1.3% though turnover was below the Rs. 1 billion mark at Rs. 999.3 million involving 29.1 million shares. Asia Securities said following five sessions of downward momentum, the market witnessed a respite as investors returned to front-line stocks cashing in on recent price drops. ASPI, having lost 405 points over more..

Oct 13 (Island) The National Catholic Committee (NCC) has presented a five-point proposal to Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe, spelling out how it expects the concerns relating to the 2019 Easter Sunday carnage to be addressed. The proposal includes the suspension of Senior DIGs, Nilantha Jayawardena, former head of State Intelligence Service (SIS) and Deshabandu Tennkoon named by the Prez Commission of Inquiry which more..

Oct 13 (TM) Bar Association of SL (BASL) has sent reminders to Prez’s Secretary, Minister of Public Security, and Police Dept to inform the association of the progress of the investigations that are being carried out into the resignation of Mullaitivu District Judge T. Saravanarajah and the factors that led to it. Through a letter dated 23 September 2023, addressed to the Judicial Services Commission (JSC), Saravanarajah tendered his resignation from a range of posts that more..

Oct 13 (DN) Lady Ridgeway Children’s Hospital’s ophthalmologist Dr. Hiranya Gunasekara said that 15% of schoolchildren suffer from poor eyesight of distance. He said that parents, elders and school teachers should be aware of children’s eye diseases and if any child is suffering from any eye disease, they should be referred for treatment immediately. He said this yesterday while participating in the press conference held at the National Eye Hospital on the occasion of World Sight Day. more..

Oct 13 (FT) Govt on Wednesday formally announced it has reached an agreement on the key principles and indicative terms of a debt treatment with the Export-Import Bank of China. The Finance Ministry said the agreement in principle covers approximately US$ 4.2bn of outstanding debt. “It constitutes a key step towards restoring SL’s long-term debt sustainability and will pave the way to a prompt economic recovery,” more..

Oct 13 (FT) Mohammed Mihilar Mohammed Hanzeer alias Azad Maulana was the main whistleblower featured in the Channel 4 documentary on Sri Lanka that was aired on 5 Sept 2023. Azad Maulana made some startling revelations against former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, State Intelligence Service head Maj-Gen. Suresh Salley and State Minister Shivanesathurai Santhirakanthan known widely as Pillaiyan in that film. Gotabaya, Suresh and more..

Oct 13 (FT) A funny thing happened on the way to the forum. I went to a play and actually liked it. Well, when I say ‘liked’ – I mean I was (like the late Sir Arthur Clarke’s response to a question about his alleged ‘gaiety’) mildly cheerful about it. And that means a lot to a reformed dyspeptic theatre critic. And, when I say ‘play’ – I say that about mutton dressed as lamb, a.k.a. ‘Julius Caesar: the Musical’ (written by our untiring prolific ‘bard’ of sorts Feroze Kamardeen), more..

Oct 13 (DN) National Eye Hospital Deputy Director Dr. Chinthaka Batawala said that there is no shortage of lenses for eye surgery. He said that a donation of 5,000 contact lenses worth Rs.500 million was received from the UK and the eye surgeries were never stopped due to lack of lenses. He stated this yesterday while participating in the press conference on the occasion of World Vision Day. Reducing Eye Hazards at Workplace is the theme of this year’s National Vision Day. more..

Oct 13 (AD) The roadway from Colombo to Hambantota of the landslide-hit stretch of Southern Expressway will be reopened for traffic from 6 p.m. today, RDA says. Accordingly, two lanes will facilitate vehicular movement for both ways, the RDA Director General explained. But the other two lanes stretching from Hambantota to Colombo will remain closed until further notice. On Wednesday night (11), an earth slip was reported near the 102km Post between Pinnaduwa and Imaduwa more..

Oct 13 (EN) Sri Lanka has received a proposal from private bondholders and is assessing it, a senior govt source said as efforts are underway to also restructure official debt. Bondholders have proposed macro linked bonds where the coupon will adjust downwards if Sri Lanka’s growth is lower than forecasted, as well as regular bonds, Reuters, a news agency reported. The proposal includes hair-cuts and coupon reductions, the report said. more..

Oct 13 (DM) Sajitha Anthony, son of late Jackson Anthony said his father was breathing with the help of a ventilator donated to the hospital by his relatives until his last breath. He said this while speaking at the funeral of Jackson Anthony. He said people took to social media criticizing his father being ventilated for such a long time just because a few people who had a row with his father wanted that to happen. “My father breathed until his last breath with the help of a ventilator donated to hospital by my relatives more..

Oct 13 (AD) Supreme Court has determined that the decision of Our Power of People Party or OPPP to expel Venerable Athuraliye Rathana Thero from the party is not legally valid. Verdict was delivered when the petition filed by Rathana Thero was taken up before SC Justices Buwaneka Aluvihare, Janak de Silva and Murdu Fernando today. Disciplinary committee of the political party had announced the decision to revoke Rathana Thero’s party membership, by way of a letter dated more..

Oct 13 (TM) In the wake of Minister Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe reportedly planning to put forward a proposal to amend the Parliamentary electoral system, Parliamentary Opposition parties called for a transparent and collaborative mechanism in order to achieve the best results. When contacted, the main Parliamentary Opposition Party, SJB and NPP said that they will support these amendments only if the Govt can prove its genuineness in this effort, more..

Oct 13 (EN) Sri Lanka civil society representatives will have a forum on debt and governance on the sidelines of an International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings in Morrocco with the participation. IMF Senior Mission Chief for SL Peter Breuer, Verité Research Executive Director Nishan de Mel, Transparency International Sri Lanka Executive Director Nadishani Perera and Global Sovereign Advisory Senior Research Analyst Theo Maret will be on the panel. more..

Oct 13 (DM) An extraordinary gazette has been published placing the Ministry of Environment under the purview of President Ranil Wickremesinghe. As per the gazette, the President, in consultation with the PM and under Article 44(3) of the Constitution, has decided that the ministerial responsibility for Environment should be under his control. The gazette was issued by Secretary to President Saman Ekanayake to come into effect from October 11. more..

Oct 13 (DM) Chamari Athapaththu has been named as the ICC Women’s Player of the Month for Sept 2023 after inspiring Sri Lanka to a historic series triumph over England. Athapaththu beat out South Africa pair Laura Wolvaardt and Nadine de Klerk to earn the award after an outstanding month that included leading Sri Lanka to a stunning series victory. SL Women’s captain starred as her side claimed their first-ever series win over England in any format when coming out on top more..

Oct 13 (DM) SL Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) confirmed that it would have to go through a recommendation process by three establishments when issuing visas for Sri Lankans who intend to seek employment in Israel, following the latest developments with the escalation of the war in the Gaza Strip. “Potential employees seeking employment in Israel should have to obtain clearance from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, SL Embassy in Israel and importantly from more..

Oct 13 (DN) SL can reap even bigger economic benefits by developing the regional harbour networks and this area is now being pursued, said Chairman (SLPA) Keith Bernard. He said that all the regional harbors are engaged in international business in both passenger and cargo. “We have observed that developing them could yield more revenue to the SLPA” He said that the SLPA invested around Rs. 500 million and more..

Oct 13 (DM) In what appeared to be a startling revelation, the COPE unearthed an incident in which Rs.27.4 million had been spent on litigation related to the case involving the theft of just two kilos of pepper valued only Rs.400 at Elkaduwa Plantations. The officials of the company admitted it before the COPE when the MPs inquired about it. The COPE decided that action should be taken against officials who resorted to litigation in this regard at such a cost. more..

Oct 13 (EN) SL has confiscated a stock of 17 tonnes of undu grain (ulundu or vigna mungo) hidden in a container of chickpeas imported from India, a statement from Customs said. Stock was worth 31 million SL rupees and the govt stood to lose 5.1 million rupees in taxes. A levy of 5.1 million rupees for a 17 metric tonne consignment of undu indicates border taxes of about 300 rupees a kilogram. Ulundu is the key ingredient of thosai and vadai, popular foods in the country. more..

Oct 13 (FT) UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Minister for the Indo-Pacific, Anne-Marie Trevelyan arrived in SL this week for a three-day official visit. The visit to Colombo and Jaffna marks the celebration of 75 years of diplomatic relations between the UK and SL. It is also the Minister’s first visit to SL in her role and coincides with the 23rd meeting of the Indian Ocean Rim Association, the chairmanship of which is SL. more..

Oct 13 (DM) A SL woman, identified as Nayana Dilrukshi, 45, from Gothatuwa, employed as a housemaid in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, shared her dreadful experience after her female employer caused her serious burning injuries using petrol. Dilrukshi, who departed Sri Lanka to Riyadh on Feb 8 earlier this year, received the burn injuries nearly a month later, on March 7, after her female employer had complained about not feeding the youngest of her three children. more..