Sep 20 (SLN) The passenger vessel Neduntharakai was ceremonially handed over to the Road Development Authority (RDA) in Delft on 19th Sept 2024, following the completion of full docking by the SL Navy. This vessel has been deployed by the RDA for passenger transport between the Delft Island and Kurikattuwan Jetty in Jaffna. In response to a request from the RDA, SL Navy, under the direction and guidance of the Commander of the Navy, Priyantha Perera, undertook the repair more..

Sep 20 (AN) SL’s elections on 21 Sept will be watched closely in neighbouring India. The two countries are linked not only by geography and culture (ethnic Tamils live in both northern SL and in Tamil Nadu, southern India), but also political and strategic issues. China, in fact, has tried to expand its influence in the Indian Ocean, supporting the Rajapaksas and financing infrastructure projects like Colombo’s port, clashing with the commercial and financial plans of Indian-based Adani group, more..

Sep 20 (DW) Two years after violent anti-govt protests, Sri Lankans are preparing to vote in a critical presidential election. "We need hope. We don't need someone who will cheat us again," Colombo resident Priyadarshini Guhan told DW. Sri Lanka is set to hold its prez election on Sept 21, marking the first electoral process since the nation defaulted on its debt and declared bankruptcy in 2022. Nearly 17 million out of SL's population of 22 million are eligible to vote this Saturday. more..

Sep 20 (CI) Left-arm spinner Inoka Ranaweera, 38, has been named in SL's women's T20 World Cup 2024 squad, with 21-year-old seamer Kawya Kavindi making way. Ranaweera had been left out of the squad for the women's Asia Cup, which SL won, in July. She had also been omitted from SL's squads to Ireland, more recently. But with the T20 World Cup likely to be played on pitches that favour spin in the UAE, more..

Sep 20 (NW) The Sri Jayawardenepura University, which was recently closed due to a brawl, will reopen next week. According to the Vice-Chancellor of the university, the university will reopen for academic activities on Tuesday, 24th September. The Vice-Chancellor also announced that all students may return to their hostels starting on Monday (23). Sri J'pura University was temporarily closed from 6 p.m. on September 12 following a clash between two student groups. more..

Sep 20 (CT) Bruno Diwakara, vlogger and founder of the SL-VLOG YouTube channel, has initiated legal proceedings against the CID, seeking Rs 50 million in damages. Diwakara claims he was wrongfully arrested under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) Act in 2023. Diwakara alleges that the charges brought against him under the ICCPR Act were unjust. In May 2023, Diwakara and stand-up comedian Nathasha Edirisooriya were arrested by the CID. more..

Sep 20 (Independent) Kamindu Mendis continued his remarkable start to his Test match career, scoring his fourth century in just 7 Test matches. After receiving a promotion from number 7 to number 5 following his prolific form against England earlier in the summer, Mendis scored another century against NZ on 18 Sept as he helped his side fight back from 106 for four to 305 all out. Against the Kiwis, Mendis scored a fluent more..

Sep 20 (NW) Election Commission (EC) has requested the removal of over 800 posts from social media platforms for violating election laws during the 2024 Prez Polls so far. EC announced that complaints have been lodged with platforms such as Meta, YouTube, TikTok, and Google after thorough investigations into these violations. Of the complaints filed, 121 links have been removed from social media, while 116 links were not taken down by the platforms, as they reportedly do not more..

Sep 20 (FL) The National People’s Power (NPP) candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake is ahead in the SL Presidential race as campaigning closed for the SL Presidential election at midnight on September 18. Dissanayake’s party, Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) is the major party in the NPP coalition. “Earlier, only politicians used to be concerned about elections,” Dissanayake said at his last, well-attended public meeting in Kaluthara, just over 40 km from Colombo late on Sept 18. more..

Sep 21 (DM) As we have discussed in a previous article, the 9th Prez election which is being held today is different from the past eight elections in several aspects. Primarily this is the first three-cornered Prez election in SL whereas all previous eight such elections were duels, despite many parties being in the fray. Secondly, there is a positive aspect in the campaigns by the political parties in today’s election. Although ethnic or religious conflicts took precedence over more..

Sep 21 (DM) The glorious uncertainties of cricket is the greatest attraction of the game. Strange though it may seem, this is how today’s prez election is also poised. There is no clear-cut outstanding candidate who is likely to win the contest outright. The contest this time around is between multiple candidates and the outcome is uncertain. Funnily enough, the aspirants to the presidency in this year’s election are using a tactic popularised by disgraced prez Gotabaya who is reported to have hired more..

Sep 21 (FT) SL’s ninth Prez election will be held today. More than 17 million Sri Lankans are registered as eligible voters. Nominally 38 candidates are in the ring but only three are regarded as the leading contenders. The hectic election campaigns ended on 18 Sept but election fever is high. A large voter turnout is expected on election day. It is indeed an irony that there is so much of enthusiasm over the election of more..

Sep 21 (DM) Sept 26th is of particular significance to a substantial number of SL Tamils. For it was on this day in 1987 that a senior member of the LTTE Thileepan died in Nallur after undertaking a fast unto death. Although the LTTE lost thousands of cadres during the many years it waged war against the Sri Lankan State, the death of Thileepan was different from the deaths of other LTTE fighters. Thileepan’s demise was not due to direct violence but due to non-violent direct action. more..

Sep 21 (CT) Siripala woke up early morning. Under a canopy of a foggy sky, he walked up to the tiny garden in front of his little house and felt the cold of the morning dew under his feet; it was so soothing for the dryness in the previous night had parched his entire body. His skin was not soft, nor was it even as one would expect of a man of his young age would be clothed in. His esoteric needs have been satisfied the previous evening; his young wife’s demands are a few yet rigorous in the time within more..

Sep 21 (CT) The World Health Organization (WHO) defines air pollution as the contamination of the indoor or outdoor environment by any chemical, physical, or biological agent that modifies the natural characteristics of the atmosphere. Common causes of air pollution are the emission of gases by vehicles, household combustion devices, industrial emissions, etc. Air pollution can be categorised into two aspects: more..

Sep 21 (Island) All arrangements have been made for today’s presidential election, and the public looks keener than ever to vote. A record voter turnout is expected, given the staggering intensity of the election campaigns, which concluded on Wednesday night, and the extremely high stakes political leaders and their parties have in the contest. This is the first election since the onset of the current economic crisis, and the people have waited for a long time to have themselves heard. more..

Sep 21 (CT) Democracies have a wonderful way of punishing their crisis managers at the earliest available electoral opportunity. Winston Churchill found it to his great dismay after winning the British end of the Second World War, when his Tories lost to the Labour under Clement Atlee – leading to Independence for nations like India and SL. In India, Indira Gandhi lost the first Parliamentary Elections after the victorious Bangladesh War (1971), interspersed as the season was by a host of more..

Sep 21 (GV) Incidents of election violence escalated significantly in September, culminating in a murder and a potential second incident. Ninety six violations were recorded on Sept 15 alone. Arson, assault, threats and the misuse of removing restrictions on vehicle imports right before the election were some of the violations highlighted in a report by the Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) covering the campaign period from Aug 15 to Sept 18. The report pointed out the possible more..

Sep 21 (EAR) In the run up to elections the NPP, has run a high-gloss, foreign-funded, election campaign to market its policies as a new dawn. Remarkably, the NPP and rival political parties alike had ignored wider geopolitical developments that may contribute to such a dawn given the globally networked nature of Sri Lanka’s poly crisis. Re-orienting the economy toward the BRICS that is challenging the exorbitant privilege of the US dollar as global reserve currency would be one such step. more..

Sep 21 (FT) An election too close to call to pick the country’s ninth Executive Prez kicks off today morning with wide expectations for a strong mandate for the best and a peaceful conclusion. The highly competitive election involving 38 candidates is also decisive given the country’s current status and challenges ahead, according to analysts. On record there are 17.14 million registered voters and the forecast for more..

Sep 21 (FT) Colombo stock market yesterday gained ahead of today’s decisive Prez election and consolidated its year to date positive return. During the week ASPI gained by 2.7% and the active S&P SL 20 by 4.1%. The closing helped ASPI to show a year to date positive return of 2.93% and the S&P SL20 by 1.10% as against negative return of 0.82% and 4.66% as at 12 Sept. Yesterday ASPI gained by 0.75% and the S&P SL20 by 1.3%. Turnover was Rs. 1.4 bil involving 43.8 mil shares. more..

Sep 21 (VoA) Cash-strapped Sri Lanka began voting for its next president Saturday in an effective referendum on an unpopular International Monetary Fund austerity plan enacted after the island nation's unprecedented financial crisis. Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe is fighting an uphill battle for a fresh mandate to continue belt-tightening measures that have stabilized the economy and ended months of food, fuel and medicine shortages. His two years in office restored calm to the streets more..

Sep 21 (ST) As I woke up on Thursday morning, I was greeted by a catchy baila tune. I must confess that I am a lover of the baila…….enjoyed even more with the spirit that matters and often use baila songs in this column to add some spice to it and give it an unusual twist. This time I heard the trio playing the song – Boru…Boru — while conversing under the margosa tree. Boru is another song lampooning politicians and provides ideal fodder for the season of promises, promises and promises. more..

Sep 21 (CI) Dimuth Karunaratne is one of cricket's great nerds. He is also the one of the great openers of his era, and among the most prolific Test batters SL has had. Rangana Herath is a massive cricket nerd as well, if in a slightly different way than Karunaratne. He is the most prolific left-arm bowler in Test cricket's history. The two have played 47 Tests together. Herath has even captained Karunaratne in five of them. And on day three of the ongoing Galle Test, Herath, a bowling more..

Sep 21 (SKY) "We have to save our country," 22-year-old Dhruva tells Sky News, as he breaks into slogans with dozens of others supporting presidential candidate Anura Dissanayake. Atmosphere is charged on the last day of campaigning. The enthusiasm among the young is palpable - they desire change and it is evident. They want change from the dynastic families that have dominated SL politics and ruled more..

Sep 21 (DN) Rashmika Sewwandi gave a strong all-round performance as Sri Lanka U19 Women beat New Zealand U19 Women by 69 runs in the U19 Women’s T20 Tri-Series at Alen Pettigrew Oval in Brisbane, Australia, yesterday. Batting first, Sri Lanka scored 148 runs in their twenty overs. Rashmika top-scored with an unbeaten 36 off 19 balls. Opener Sanjana Kavindi added 30 runs from 38 balls, and skipper Manudi Nanayakkara contributed 19 runs off 24 balls. more..

Sep 21 (ST) Recently, while I was engaged in some other work, I found an interesting piece of information: I noticed that there were 2,597 export-oriented manufacturing firms as recorded by the Export Development Board (EDB) as of 2021. When I tried tracing public limited companies among them, I could locate only seven firms as listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE). In total, there were 296 companies listed on the CSE in the same year. This means that, more..

Sep 21 (AJ) Ahead of SL’s prez election, no issue is more central than the economy. With the South Asian country still struggling from its worst financial crisis in decades, Saturday’s ballot amounts to a referendum on austerity measures imposed by the IMF last year. In a crowded field of 38 candidates, all eyes are on three men: incumbent Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe and his two closest rivals, Anura Kumara more..

Sep 21 (DM) Air China, one of China’s largest airlines, is set to launch daily flight operations to Sri Lanka, starting from Oct 2024. The airline’s move represents a significant increase in connectivity between the two nations, as Air China only recently resumed its flights to SL, following a brief hiatus. In July 2024, the airline restarted its operations with three weekly flights from Chengdu Tianfu International Airport to Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport. more..

Sep 21 (DN) Consortium of Thailand investors are keen to invest over USD 4 billion in three key projects in Sri Lanka, said Chairman, DG Enterprise Co. Ltd, Business Solutions, Damrong Theeramoke. He that these three projects include solar power generation, supplying fuel to Sri Lanka and also building sugar processing factories. He said that they have a series of discussions with the board of investment and they are keen to go ahead with these projects. more..

Sep 21 (DM) Sri Lankans will go to the polls today to elect the ninth Executive President of SL to run the country for a period of five years. The presidential poll holds significance this time since it is the first election to be conducted after the country went through its worst-ever economic crisis since 2022. The election was declared on July 26 and the nominations concluded on August 15. As many as 39 candidates representing political parties and independent groups handed over more..

Sep 21 (FT) Sri Lanka’s announcement of reaching agreements in principle to restructure approximately $ 17.5 billion of external commercial debt is a pivotal step towards achieving debt sustainability, according to Advocata Institute Chairman and JB Securities CEO Murtaza Jafferjee. Speaking on the significance of this development, Jafferjee highlighted the long journey toward this moment and its potential to shift the country’s economic trajectory. Reflecting on Sri Lanka’s financial situation, more..

Sep 21 (Island) SL’s agro-economic regions will be increasingly affected by extreme weather events, leaving the population more vulnerable to the impacts of climate change in the coming decade, Ananda Jayaweera said at a recent event organised by the Institution of Engineers, SL (IESL). “Wet areas will experience more rainfall, while dry zones will expand. The intermediate regions of the country will become hotter, and SL’s agro-economic areas will face extreme events such as floods, more..

Sep 21 (AP) Sri Lankans began voting Saturday in a prez election that will determine the course of the country's recovery from its worst economic crisis and resulting political upheaval. The election, contested by 38 candidates, is largely a three-way race among incumbent liberal Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe, Marxist-leaning lawmaker Anura Kumara Dissanayake, and opposition leader Sajith Premadasa. There are 17 m eligible voters, more..

Sep 21 (ST) LOLC Divi Saviya has successfully completed Phase 03 of its education initiative, impacting 4,100 schools across Sri Lanka. This milestone achievement extends the programme’s reach to 40 per cent of the entire school system in the country, endorsing LOLC’s commitment to supporting the educational needs of students nationwide, the company in a media release heralding a programme that has captured the interest of the nation. more..

Sep 21 (ST) With over 2.2 million registered voters spread across its three districts, Central Province is a major battleground for candidates contesting the upcoming election. The estate community is likely to play a vital role in electing the ultimate victor in the province and various political parties in the estate sector are already hard at work promoting their preferred candidate. More than 1.1 million voters in the Kandy district are eligible to go to the polls on Sept 21 and victory more..