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Home » NewsAs floods cause havoc, monsoon from tomorrow
The havoc caused by rains, floods and landslides pushed the death toll to 73 last night with 127 people reported missing, the Disaster Management Centre said. However, Police and rescue workers said that the figures would be much higher as search and rescue operations in affected areas continued. Among the developments last evening was the [...]
Jayanthi makes history on Everest peak
Women’s rights activist Jayanthi Kuru-Utumpala made history as the first Sri Lankan to reach the world’s highest peak of Mount Everest at an awesome 29,029 feet yesterday, the International Mountain Guides website confirmed. She had left Camp 4, one of the base camps in the mountain around 9 pm on Friday with her fellow Sri [...]
Shock in South Asia as Maldives severs ties with Iran
The Maldives’ decision to sever diplomatic ties with Iran on Tuesday has sent shockwaves across South Asia, but Teheran has chosen to snub the Indian Ocean nation by maintaining diplomatic silence. Neither the Foreign Ministry in Teheran nor the Iranian embassy in Colombo has commented on the Maldives’s move, which many analysts see as being [...]
India non-committal on Sampur request
Sri Lanka and India are locked in a tug-of-war over the controversial coal-fired joint venture power generation project at Sampur near Trincomalee. Worldwide tenders for the supply of coal to start the project were due to be called as early as the end of this month. Sri Lanka is now seeking to replace the proposed [...]
Mark Vesak on low-key owing to flood situation: Govt.
This year’s Vesak celebrations will be decidedly low-key in view of the floods that have claimed scores of lives and left over 300,000 displaced. The Government has also appealed to the public to be mindful of the needs of those who have been affected by the inclement weather that prevailed throughout this week. While the [...]
SL receives foreign assistance consequent to urgent Govt. appeals
International assistance for victims of floods and landslides started to arrive in the country on Saturday, following an urgent Government appeal for foreign aid. India, Australia, Japan the United States and Nepal were among the first to answer the call for foreign assistance. Two Indian naval vessels, INS Sutlej and INS Sunanyna arrived yesterday carrying [...]
Vesak reprieve for 70 on death row, 608 others freed
The sentences of 70 inmates who were on death row were commuted to life imprisonment by President Maithripala Sirisena yesterday on a recommendation made by a special committee appointed by the Ministry of Justice. Speaking to the Sunday Times, Prisons Department Spokesman Thushara Upuldeniya however, said there was no possibility of these offenders being released [...]
Busting of fake kachcheri at Hulftsdorp turning out NICs raises many questions
The recent uncovering of a large scale racket where fake birth certificates and National Identity Cards (NICs) were prepared, raise questions over the effectiveness of security measures in place to prevent forgeries of such important documents. Authorities say new security measures and stringent action against offenders are needed in order to eradicate such operations. The [...]
Opposition turbulence rocks SriLankan’s House debate
A two-day debate on the loss-making national carrier SriLankan Airlines (SLA) was held in Parliament this week. The motion was introduced to the House by UNP Kurunegala District MP Nalin Bandara and seconded by UNP National List MP Ashu Marasinghe. Several MPs spoke during the debate. Following are some of the views expressed by them. [...]
Terror of new landslides as villagers dig with bare hands for loved ones
The weeping sound of an abandoned dog echoed through the mountains in Elangapitiya village in Aranayaka, where mud five feet deep covered three villages. A group of villagers who had fled to safety and returned to find their former homes had disappeared without trace started to dig into the mud with bare hands and sticks, [...]
Special reports – Floods
Kelani crisis largely man-made By Anushiya Sathisraja Shrinking open spaces, illegal constructions, the lack of proper waste disposal and inefficient drainage systems contributed to the worst flooding in 27 years in Colombo and its suburbs, a senior official of the Irrigation Department said. People filling up lowlands for construction and choked stormwater drains [...]
Volunteer boatmen, religious groups join hands to provide food to victims
Wading thigh-high through a fetid pool, a young man delivers lunch packets to the residents of flood-hit Nagahamulla Road in Wellampitiya. He makes several trips through the putrid stew to ensure that nobody goes hungry. This is not river water. The black liquid the man is crawling through is drainage overflow and runoff from the [...]
Officials moving fast to head off threat of plagues
This week’s rains and flash floods have raised fresh concerns about an outbreak of water-borne diseases among the hundreds of thousands of displaced people. To meet this emergency and neutralise epidemic the outbreaks of cholera, dysentery, rat fever, allergies and food poisoning that generally follow massive floods the Health Ministry has moved in with counter-measures. [...]
Kelanimulla: Where the waves took everything away
Residents at Kelanimulla watched in horror as their homes were engulfed in water right before their eyes. Thousands were displaced, others sought refuge on rooftops or the top stories of their homes, awaiting rescue boats. In some homes only the rooftops were visible. Furniture and other belongings were gone with the waters. Some desperate people [...]
Prime Minister visits flood victims
Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe accompanied by Disaster Management Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa and State Defence Minister Ruwan Wijewardene visited flood-hit areas in Biyagama-Kaduwela yesterday. The Premier is seen here in his former constituency talking to flood victims.
Volunteers bring hope to trapped and starving animals
A small team of dedicated and courageous animal lovers are busy rescuing animals trapped by the floodwaters. Let by veterinarians from a privately-funded animal hospital and a group of employees from the Embark charity they have been strategically combing the flood-affected areas. The team began work on Wednesday in the Malwana area. By Friday, the [...]
Flood-hit people in inaccessible areas blame Government
Flood-affected people marooned in unreachable areas complain that flood aid is being distributed haphazardly and that the Government has failed to respon to the disaster with timely relief. These victims say aid and financial assistance are being handed out to displaced people sheltered in camps along the main roads, while destitute families and individuals in [...]
Colombo- Badulla train services resume
Train services on the Colombo – Badulla Main Line resumed yesterday (Saturday) after railway engineers carried out a repair on the line with difficulty following an earth slip close to Ihalakotte railway station on the Kadugannawa incline. The repair was effected on a length of more than 300 metres which was on a steep incline [...]
Armed forces spearhead rescue, relief operations in disaster zones
Members of the armed forces yesterday continued to engage in rescue and relief operations in areas affected by floods and landslides. Thousands have already been safely evacuated but senior officers said operations were still ongoing in many areas. Military Spokesman Brigadier Jayanath Jayaweera said about 1,500 army personnel were involved. About 600 of these were [...]
Vesak at UN an optional holiday now
This year’s Vesak Poya Day will hold special significance for the United Nations, after it was declared an ‘optional holiday’ at the UN for the first time under Resolution 69/250. Up until now, the UN has annually commemorated a Day of National Observance for Vesak. At the UN Headquarters in New York, a special meeting [...]
Sacred Buddha Relics from Pakistan here for exposition till Poson Poya
Religious and political leaders welcomed the Sacred Relics of Lord Buddha from Pakistan’s Gandhara region at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) on Friday. The Sacred Relics includes two Bone Relics of Lord Buddha, a golden Casket which contains the Sacred Relics and a stone reliquary in the shape of a stupa. The Sacred Relics are [...]
UN, PM’s Office and Gangaramaya Temple mark Vesak in joint effort
The United Nations will be taking part in this year’s Vesak celebrations in Sri Lanka by tying up with the National Vesak Festival organised jointly by the Gangaramaya Temple and the Prime Minister’s Office. The festival which began yesterday will continue until May 25 at the Gangaramaya Temple, Temple Trees, and nearby locations around the [...]
We will never forget our war heroes: President Sirisena
President Maithiripala Sirisena in his address on War Heroes Remembrance Day, on Wednesday, said the Government will, without fail, commemorate the valiant war heroes who sacrificed their lives for the sovereignty of the motherland. He also said the Government is committed to the welfare of the families of the disabled war heroes. He said there [...]
SL’s overseas missions make urgent appeal for funds for disaster victims
The Sri Lanka High Commission in London launched an urgent appeal on Friday for funds to help the victims of widespread landslides and floods which have claimed at least 64 lives and affected over 400,000 persons in several districts in the country. The appeal went out to the Sri Lankan community and others on a [...]