Jun 29 (CI) A fourth-wicket partnership of 90 between Essex pair Noah Thain and Luc Benkenstein on home turf at Chelmsford could not prevent England Under-19s subsiding to a 65-run defeat in the first of three one-day internationals against Sri Lanka. Benkenstein was the more flamboyant, hitting two sixes in his 50-ball 51, but Thain anchored the innings with six fours in his 58 from 69 balls. However, when Thain and his captain departed 8 balls apart after a 16-over stand, more..

Jun 29 (DN) Sri Lanka 400 metres champion athlete Aruna Darshana, and promising 800 metres athlete from Walala Central Tharushi Karunaratne claimed major honours and were picked as best male and female athlete at the 102 nd National Athletic championship concluded at Diyagama Mahinda Rajapaksa Stadium On Thursday. Aruna Dharshana clocked an impressive 45.51 seconds to secure victory in the 400m event and his outstanding performance earned him the Vyravanathan more..

Jun 29 (FT) On the 26 June 2024, SL reached a final agreement on its debt treatment with the members of the Official Creditor Committee (OCC) of Sri Lanka’s major bilateral lenders, and also Bilateral Debt Treatment Agreements in relation to the loans owed by SL to Exim Bank of China. Accordingly, through these two sets of agreements reached on 26 June 2024, SL has successfully concluded the treatment of its debt with its major official bilateral creditors, including China & OCC members more..

Jun 29 (FT) The Chief Prelate of the Kotte Sri Kalyani Samagri Dharma Maha Sangha Sabha Aggamaha Pandita Most Venerable Dr. Ittapane Dhammalankara Maha Nayaka Thera, stated that President Ranil Wickremesinghe is the sole leader capable of rebuilding Sri Lanka’s economy and advancing the nation. The Maha Nayaka Thera who is also and Chancellor of the Sri J'pura University, emphasised that the President’s program merits the blessings of the entire Maha Sangha. more..

Jun 29 (PMD) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe highlighted Kenya’s current struggle with a severe economic crisis and incidents of violence, emphasizing the crucial need for economic preparedness in all nations. Speaking at the Presidential Environment Awards ceremony at the BMICH today (28), he underscored that SL’s economic stability has effectively prevented comparable challenges within the country. more..

Jun 29 (PMD) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe presided over the launch of the book The Army Commander’s Promise to the Nation – I will not leave this war to the next Army Commander, authored by Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka, former Army Commander, Member of Parliament, renowned for his exceptional leadership in ending the thirty-year war. The event took place today (28) at Nelum Pokuna Theatre, Colombo. Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka presented the first copy of his book to the Prez. more..

Jun 29 (ST) Some 64,706 emails from a total of 75,927 emails that had been exchanged between the container vessel X-Press Pearl, Colombo Port, and the vessel’s local agent from the time the devastating fire broke out on board the ship had been deleted. CID told the Colombo Chief Mastarate’s Court that the deletion of such a large number of emails from May 10 and May 21, 2021 necessitated the launch of a wide-ranging forensic audit. The vessel caught fire on May 20, 2021 more..

Jun 29 (CT) A letter has been sent to the Election Commission (EC) requesting action against alleged election violations by Southern Province Governor. These violations involve appointing candidates of postponed Local Govt Elections to proposed Community Advisory Committees (CACs). The letter has been sent by the PAFFREL, addressing the EC Chairman. The Executive Director of PAFFREL Rohana Hettiarachchi said that the appointment of members of the proposed committees must more..

Jun 29 (AD) US Dept of the Treasury’s Deputy Assistant Secretary for Asia Robert Kaproth is scheduled to visit SL next week. He is scheduled to meet govt officials, think tanks, and financial sector leaders in SL during the visit. “We look forward to welcoming US Treasury Deputy Assistant Secretary Robert Kaproth back to SL next week to meet with govt officials, think tanks, and financial sector leaders.” “DAS Kaproth’s visit underscores U.S. commitment to supporting SL during more..

Jun 29 (Island) Former CB Governor Dr. Indrajith Coomaraswamy has warned that the period ahead required the continued commitment to disciplined fiscal policy, a data dependent and forward-looking monetary policy, as well as a flexible exchange rate procedure. He stressed that the above mentioned strategy should be strongly backed by a laser-like focus on constructing an outward-looking competitive economy that drives more..

Jun 29 (FT) Govt has announced a new stimulating package worth Rs. 20 billion to support the Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) sector through a State-funded loan scheme. The move aims to provide concessionary credit to eligible MSMEs via selected Participatory Financial Institutions (PFIs), helping these businesses survive, recover and expand, as well as providing seed capital for new ventures. The package includes a Rs. 15 billion funds for investment category more..

Jun 29 (DM) Sri Lanka registered its concerns with India on the death of a navy sailor in his attempt to seize an Indian fishing boat poaching in SL waters, an informed source said. The ten Indian fishermen, arrested for allegedly engaged in illegal fishing in the SL waters on Monday, will be charged with the death of a Navy sailor, who was killed in an operation to seize their trawler, authorities here said. A senior sailor from the Navy Special Boat Squadron sustained critical injuries due to more..

Jun 29 (FT) SJB MP Mujibur Rahman has accused the Cabinet of continuing corrupt practices and alleged Prez Wickremesinghe has not taken any steps to put a stop to them. He said there is no transparency in the procurement processes. Citing National Lotteries Board (NLB) as an example, Rahman alleged the Prez has allowed the NLB to print all things including tickets issued without calling for tenders. more..

Jun 30 (SO) July 2 is known as the date that divides the year in half. As this is a leap year, by July 2, 183 days of 2024 have already been added to the history books while there are exactly 183 days to go before 2025 dawns. A special session of Parliament has been called on such an important day. A country that was on the verge of collapse two years ago, now leads a mostly comfortable existence. That did not happen automatically. Economic growth does not take place in a vacuum. more..

Jun 30 (CT) In a country where the literacy rate is among the highest in the region, education up to the university level is free for the public and recently declared, no longer bankrupt, both Govt school and university education came to a standstill due to trade union action. Teachers and principals continued to protest by going on sick leave, which disrupted educational activities in 10,000 Govt schools islandwide. Their demands include taking swift action to address salary anomalies more..

Jun 30 (CT) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe was all set to address the nation at 8 p.m. on Wednesday and Director General of Govt Information Dinith Karunarathne announced this to all media outlets on Monday (24). Speculation surrounded the Prez’s forthcoming address, with expectations that he may declare SL’s emergence from bankruptcy. The focus was anticipated to include updates on the country’s economic more..

Jun 30 (TM) A decade ago, many were the pundits who predicted a swift end to the newspaper business taking into account the rapidly emerging social media platforms, which 10 years later are still on an upward growth trajectory, and incidentally, so is the news business. Having prophesied the obvious, these pundits – at least in SL – forgot to predict that news organisations need not sit around and be fossilised like their political counterparts and that they have the option of choosing more..

Jun 30 (CT) JVP/NPP has launched an all-out campaign in the run-up to the Prez election due in Oct 2024. There has been a flurry of seminars, public meetings and international visits by Anura. A sample can be found in the pages of Colombo Telegraph: NPP a reformed mature movement; NPP the unrivalled choice; An election like no other are articles on the Colombo Telegraph website. Some pieces are sugar-highs, others balanced. The talk in 3-wheelers and among my contacts more..

Jun 30 (TM) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe and his Govt were last week busy taking victory laps over the finalisation of the restructuring of SL’s bilateral debt amounting to around $ 10 billion (Official Creditor Committee – OCC of the Paris Club and China’s Exim Bank) and the anticipated gains made in Wickremesinghe’s planned Prez Election campaign. Wickremesinghe and his camp nevertheless failed to muster anticipated more..

Jun 30 (ST) Has SL’s drained-out economy turned the corner or was Wednesday’s presidential address to the nation the soft launch of Ranil Wickremesinghe’s prez campaign? It would seem it was a little bit of both. The brief address was something to be expected from the presidential propaganda czars. The glad tidings from Paris that saw the Official Creditors Committee (OCC), co-chaired by France, India and Japan, and separately from Beijing by China, allow SL time till 2028 more..

Jun 30 (ST) My dear Uncle Ranil, I thought I must write to you after hearing your aaranchiya subayi. What you said has certainly provoked comment. If one goes by the theory that any publicity is better than no publicity, you got plenty of it, although some of it was not the type of exposure you hoped for. I’m not sure why you thought of calling it suba aaranchiya because that is what they also call the Gospel. So, what you delivered could be called The Gospel according to Ranil. more..

Jun 30 (ST) In fairy tales, a kiss is all you need to turn a frog into a prince. In real life, neither a kiss nor a magic wand will work, but that doesn’t stop the public from expecting such transformation. We keep searching for that magical coach who’ll weave spells and turn mediocre players into world champions. There’s no such black magic in cricket. Coaches like Graham Ford, Chandika Hathurusingha, Mickey Arthur, and Chris Silverwood have all tried to turn the tide but failed. more..

Jun 30 (DM) Judicial Service Association of SL (JSASL), the organization representing all the District Court Judges and Magistrates in the country, has decided to call a Special General Meeting tomorrow (30) to discuss unwarranted criticisms directed at the judicial system. It is learnt that this meeting will be held tomorrow in Colombo to discuss the negative impacts of malicious statements against judicial decisions, judges and related issues, following the requests of its members. more..

Jun 30 (SO) UNP and a section of SLPP will jointly carry out the President’s election campaign islandwide starting from Matara today afternoon under the theme Ekwa Jayagamu (Victory through Unity). Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe, who has yet to announce himself as the common candidate for the scheduled prez election, will preside over the meeting at the Mahinda Wijesekara playground, named after the father of Minister Kanchana more..

Jun 30 (Island) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe’s address to the nation last Wednesday was a clear indication that SL’s political establishment is back to business as usual in these pre-election weeks. A deafening roar of firecrackers lighted by UNP supporters and RW aficionados plus the kiributh feasts served in many places by political aspirants looking ahead towards next year’s general election followed prez’s declaration that the economic repair job he had undertaken following the more..

Jun 30 (Island) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe chose the CWC May Day platform, in Kotagala, to announce the increase of the plantation workers’ daily wage to Rs 1,700.00. An unexpected presidential fiat, delivered just a few months before a possible election by a potential presidential candidate, was made public from the political platform of a major plantation trade union, generally seen as pro-govt. Self-evident political implications do not merit either debate or elaboration. more..

Jun 30 (Island) Lushani Kodituwakku, Founder and Managing Director of Luminii Consulting, was recently awarded the Women in Business/Entrepreneurship award at the Women in Management UK Professional & Career Women Awards 2024. In Nov 2023, she was named CEO of the Year in Market Research and Intelligence in the UK. In April 2023, she received the award for Commercial Due Diligence Provider of the Year at the European Private Equity Awards. more..

Jun 30 (ST) SL’s High Commissioner to New Delhi, Kshenuka Senewiratne, met India’s External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, and conveyed the SL Govt’s concerns over the incident of a naval officer being killed while encountering Indian fishermen illegally operating in SL territorial waters. Ms. Senewiratne met Indian Minister in New Delhi on the same day of the incident taking place in SL’s northern waters, where Indian fishermen have been engaged in illegal, unreported & unregulated (IUU) fishing more..

Jun 30 (CI) Suryakumar Yadav snatched a boundary catch for the ages, Jasprit Bumrah snuck in two electric final overs, and Hardik Pandya pilfered the two big wickets as India pulled off one of their great heists to win a World Cup, finally. With five overs to go, South Africa were rampant. Heinrich Klaasen, one of the great hitters in the game, threatening to throw off decades of painful big-match history for his team with a hail more..

Jun 30 (TM) Sumith Liyanage, an iconic figure in Sri Lankan sports history, celebrated his 88th birthday on Monday (24). Known for his remarkable boxing career, he boasts of sharing the ring with the legendary Cassius Clay, later known as Muhammad Ali, during the 1960 Rome Olympics. Sumith Liyanage was born into a family with a rich tradition of boxing. He attended Ananda College for his primary education, where he discovered his passion for the sport. more..

Jun 30 (SO) Kyle Abeysinghe and Ganga Seneviratne have received wild card entries to the Paris Olympic Games having reached the pinnacle of their swimming careers. They became the swimmers with the highest points at the World Aquatic Championships held in Doha 2024. Abeysinghe and Seneviratne will swim for Sri Lanka at the Paris La Defense Arena in the Men’s 100m Freestyle event and Women’s 100m Backstroke event respectively. more..

Jun 30 (TM) Road Development Authority (RDA) is awaiting the green light from the External Resources Dept (ERD) to recommence the construction of three major expressway projects that have been on hold for the past 4 years due to the country’s prevailing economic situation. Accordingly, RDA plans to restart the construction of Ruwanpura Expressway Project (REP), Central Expressway Project (CEP), more..

Jun 30 (DM) In the backdrop of the death of a Navy sailor in the attempt to contain IUU (Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated) fishing, Fisheries Minister Douglas Devananda said the central govt of India alone could not address this issue without the cooperation of the state govt Tamil Nadu which is still maintaining stoic silence despite its impact on livelihoods of SL Tamil fishermen in particular. The 10 Indian fishermen, arrested for allegedly engaged in illegal fishing in SL waters, more..

Jun 30 (EN) Many Sri Lankan mercenaries fighting in the Ukraine front have become Russian citizens, making it difficult to give them diplomatic support, Foreign Minister Ali Sabry said. So far 446 complaints have been lodged by family members asking for govt help to bring back menfolk trapped in the Ukraine warfront, he said. “They have taken Russian citizenship at the moment,” Sabry told reporters on Friday explaining the difficulties faced by Sri Lanka in getting back citizens. more..

Jun 30 (AD) UNP General Secretary Palitha Range Bandara’s son Yasodha Range Bandara, who was arrested in connection with a car accident in Karuwalagaswewa area in Puttalam, has been granted bail by the Puttalam Magistrate’s Court. However, the court has temporarily suspended his driving license. After being presented to the court, Acting Puttalam Magistrate has ordered the suspect to be released on a personal bail of Rs. 500,000. He was arrested by officers following more..