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Diplomatic smiles but no cross handshake

Diplomatic smiles but no cross handshake

Senior US State Department officials Nisha Biswal and Tom Malinowski were in Colombo this week for talks on various issues. Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera, a key player in US-Sri Lanka ties, apparently wanted a cross handshake with the two US officials but they appeared not to be keen. Recently, a similar attempt between the leaders [...]

Fly by night at BIA from January to April

Hundreds of flights to be rescheduled or cancelled to revamp 30-year-old runway By Sunimalee Dias For three months next year, Sri Lanka’s main international airport — the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) – will permit flights mostly at night due to the revamping of its 30-year old runway. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) informed the airline [...]

Lasantha’s killing: Army intelligence officer arrested

CID detectives yesterday arrested Sergeant-Major Udulagama of the Directorate of Military Intelligence (MI) in connection with the assassination of Lasantha Wickrematunga, former Editor of The Sunday Leader. The arrest was made yesterday morning when the sergeant-major was in the company of a senior MI official. He was attached to his unit. Mr. Wickrematunga was assassinated [...]

India to develop Palaly as regional airport

India to develop Palaly as regional airport

India is carrying out a feasibility study on the Palaly airport to assess its suitability to be utilised as a regional airport. This airport is now a Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF)-run facility and is used for military and civilian flights in Sri Lanka. The Airport Authority of India (AAI) is now carrying out a [...]

Ceiling on charges for surgical operations, scans and lab tests

By Damith Wickremasekara A ceiling on charges for surgical operations and scans at private hospitals will be enforced soon, the Health Ministry has decided. Health Services Director General Palitha Mahipala told the Sunday Times that the required regulations would be gazetted under a Health Act through which private hospitals could be regulated. He said the [...]

Speaker Karu Jayasuriya unseated

Speaker Karu Jayasuriya, constitutionally the third in line of succession in Sri Lanka in the Order of Precedence after the President and the Prime Minister and requiring urgent medical attention overseas, was offloaded from an Emirates Airlines flight from Colombo to Singapore minutes after he took his First Class seat last Tuesday (July 12). He [...]

Editors’ “Right of Readers to Reply” resolves 278 complaints: PCCSL

The Press Complaints Commission of Sri Lanka (PCCSL ) received 142 complaints last year, of which 85 were valid complaints falling within the purview of the PCCSL mechanism, with the editors publishing a ‘Right of Readers to Reply’ to 38 of them, PCCSL CEO, said in his annual report for 2015. The report was read [...]

Green chilli causes heartburn at Rs 1,150 a kilo, vegetable prices rocket

Green chilli causes heartburn at Rs 1,150 a kilo, vegetable prices rocket

The eye-watering price of green chilli in the market is leaving a pungent taste in the mouths of millions who get by on pol sambal and rice, especially the poor. Green chilli, mainly grown in the dry zone districts including Moneragala, Vavuniya, Ampara, Kurunegala, and Puttalam, is now retailing at an unprecedented Rs 1,150 a kilo [...]

BOI, JEDB slam private firm over land dispute

The Board of Investment (BOI) and the Janatha Estate Development Board (JEDB) yesterday accused a private company of unscrupulously holding on to a lease of 24 perches of prime land in Colombo out of 254 perches owned by the JEDB. BOI Chairman Upul Jayasuriya and JEDB chairman Kennedy Gunawardena told a news conference that the [...]

Lord Naseby accuses UK, US of double standards over Sri Lanka

From Neville de Silva in London Lord Naseby, president of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Sri Lanka, has accused Britain and the United States of double standards in asking the UN Human Rights Commissioner to investigate allegations of war-time abuses by Sri Lanka whereas Britain’s role in the Iraq war was investigated by British [...]

Namal Rajapaksa remanded on misappropriation charge

Namal Rajapaksa remanded on misappropriation charge

By Wasantha Ramanayake UPFA Hambantota Parliamentarian Namal Rajapaksa was remanded last Monday by the Colombo Fort Magistrate Ms. Lanka Jayaratne, until tomorrow, allegedly for misappropriating Rs. 70 million. He was arrested on charges of misappropriating the money given by an Indian company to promote rugby in the country.The Magistrate refusing bail to former Sri Lankan [...]

CEB engineers say not happy with power sector policy decisions, warns of TU action

The Ceylon Electricity Board Engineers Union (CEBEU) has threatened to take trade union action in protest over what it claims are ad-hoc decisions by the Government regarding the country’s power sector. CEBEU President Athula Wanniarachchi told the Sunday Times their members as an initial mark of protest would not take part in Technical Evaluation Committees [...]

VIP prisoners at Welikada get home comforts

By Jayantha Samarakoon Prison authorities are getting more and more accustomed to hosting ‘VIP’ prisoners with the latest addition to the spate of members of the former regime to be in the lock up at the Welikada Prison being UPFA MP Namal Rajapaksa. The former President’s son who was remanded on Monday had to be [...]

PM moves for pay hike to Bribery Commission DG

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe will present a motion in Parliament to revise the salary of the Director General (DG) of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery and Corruption (CIABOC) Dilrukshi Dias Wickramasinghe, to be on par with the entitlements of an Additional Solicitor General (ASG). She will also be entitled to telephone and fuel [...]

New bus ticketing system to be pioneered in Pallekelle Provincial Council area

By L.B. Senaratne In a move to ease congestion in buses, while at the same time ensuring the rights of bus owners, and ensuring a better service to commuters,a debit card system which will do away with cash tranactions between commuters and bus conductors is to be launched. The scheme will be launched at the [...]

Man dies of serpent bite

A man bitten by a serpent while collecting mangoes in his garden in Hokandara, succumbed to his injuries, the Coroner’s court was told. The victim, Nimal Jayararne, 49, was immediately taken to Homagama Hospital and then transferred to the Colombo National Hospital where he passed away. The deceased’s wife, W.A. Chandrani giving evidence before the Coroner, [...]

National Payment Platform for online payments to promote digital commerce

The Government is to set up a National Payment Platform (NPP) to handle online payments to encourage digital commerce. Cabinet this week approved a proposal by Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake to set up such a platform to ease digital transactions. While international credit cards have become the most convenient way to pay for goods and [...]

Man gunned down by unknown assassins

Unidentified gunmen shot dead a man inside a vehicle in Piliyandala last night, Police said. Several rounds were fired from a vehicle driving alongside the other vehicle killing its driver. By last night the victim had not been identified.  No arrests have been made.

Enact National Audit Bill: State auditors petition all MPs

Enact National Audit Bill: State auditors petition all MPs

By Chandani Kirinde Frustrated by the Government’s delay to introduce the National Audit Bill to Parliament, officials in the Auditor General’s Department have written directly to all 225 lawmakers, urging them to ensure that legislation is taken up as a matter of priority. Along with the Audit officials, the delay in introducing the National Audit [...]

18,400 deserters respond to amnesty offer; hunt on for another 18,400

18,400 deserters respond to amnesty offer; hunt on for another 18,400

By Sandun Jayawardana Military deserters who failed to surrender during the amnesty that ended this week will be tracked down and arrested in a countrywide operation involving the military and the police, officials said. The move to launch the countrywide manhunt comes after almost half of the armed forces personnel who were listed as being [...]

VAT’s the matter

VAT’s the matter

Ad hoc policies add to confusion  Lifting exemptions, wholesale, retail trade liable for VAT worsen situation By Namini Wijedasa In November last year, Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake criticised the manner in which successive Governments had levied the Value Added Tax (VAT). The system was severely distorted due to “ad hoc polices adopted time to time”, [...]

Supreme Court suspends VAT, NBT increases

The revision of the Value Added Tax ( VAT) and the Nation Building Tax (NBT) without the approval of Parliament was in violation of the Constitution taking away the control of Parliament over public finance, noted the Supreme Court suspending the tax revisions dated May 2. The court held that notice of the respondents to [...]

Revised revisions and how VAT stands today

The Government has suspended all Value Added Tax (VAT) revisions introduced either by the 2016 Budget or by way of a subsequent Cabinet decision which was formally announced in April. This was after the Supreme Court issued an interim injunction preventing implementation of the planned VAT and NBT revision until the relevant legislation is passed [...]

Malabe private college issue reaching crisis situation

Malabe private college issue reaching crisis situation

State medical faculty chiefs hold emergency meeting Joint statement expected on Thursday after talking to Higher Education Minister By Kumudini Hettiarachchi As the controversial Malabe private medical college issue reached flashpoint with cross-country protests, heads of the eight state Medical Faculties held an emergency meeting yesterday in the backdrop of fears of a 1987-89-like situation [...]

SAITM operating illegally from the start, say medical unions

By Minushi Perera and Kaveesha Fernando From the start SAITM has been operating illegally and there is mismanagement within the university, said the Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) Secretary, Dr. Nalinda Herath, alleging that it has obtained the sponsorship of government officials. Pointing out that up to now neither the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) [...]

Denuding of forest reserves challenged

By Wasantha Ramanayake The Court of Appeal on Monday gave a final date to Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen to file objections in a case challenging the denuding of forest reserves adjoining the Wilpattu National Park (WNP) and establishing illegal settlements. Justice Vijitha Malalgoda (President) and Justice Preethi Padman Soorasena asked counsel appearing for [...]

Over 350,000 Coconut trees felled in the South to arrest disease

By Kasun Warakapitiya Authorities have felled over 350,000 Coconut trees in the Southern districts of Galle, Matara, and Hambantota, to prevent the spread of a Coconut leaf wilt disease. The disease first spotted in the Weligama area has now been restricted to the southern coastal belt with the felling of the trees, Coconut Research Institute, [...]

Jumbos for pageants, but not those going back to the wilds

Jumbos for pageants, but not those going back to the wilds

By Kumudini Hettiarachchi The perahera (pageant) must go on but not at the cost of elephants which are born free and are to be gently guided back into the wild to live free.  This is the categorical consensus among many environmentalists in the wake of a Cabinet paper last week to “source” elephants for peraheras [...]

Under-fire Milco yard vehicles to come under the hammer

Under-fire Milco yard vehicles to come under the hammer

Vehicles left exposed to the elements in a yard of the Milco Company that came under the purview of the Ministry of Rural Economy are to be auctioned shortly, an official said. The vehicles, including cars, cabs and jeeps, were brought to the spotlight after Palitha Thewarapperuma, Deputy Minister of Internal affairs, Wayamba Development and Cultural [...]

Bus fares up but commuters’ rights to better service not addressed

Bus fares up but commuters’ rights to better service not addressed

This week, private bus operators got yet another increase of 6% on fares, but passengers complain that their right to a better service has failed, as always to draw attention during negotiations.  Complaints include overcrowded buses and the uncouth behaviour of conductors and drivers who treat passengers like herds of cattle. Critics argue that although [...]

Heavy downpours in the offing after winds wreck homes

Heavy downpours in the offing after winds wreck homes

By Anushiya Sathisraja Strong winds wrecked more than 100 houses in various parts of the country, especially in the coastal areas of the Western, Southern, Central and North-western regions this week. But prepare for more rain and wind, weather watchers predict. According to the Disaster Management Center, strong winds gusted through Gampaha, Galle, Badulla, Puttalam [...]

Tragedy in 2014 leads to discovery of killer sting

Tragedy in 2014 leads to discovery of killer sting

A research team’s work following the death of a labourer two years ago in Puttalam  has led to the documentation of the first-ever reported case of fatal stinging by the  Large Carpenter Bee, earlier considered to be harmless It is a first, a tragic first though, in Sri Lanka. When a humble manual labourer set [...]

Vavuniya economic centre site tussle lands on district official’s desk

Vavuniya economic centre site tussle lands on district official’s desk

As northern politicos are at loggerheads over a venue for a proposed dedicated economic centre in Vavuniya, the cabinet directed the District Secretary last week to hold the District Coordination Committee meeting to decide whether Thandikulam or Omanthai should be selected. District Secretary of Vavuniya, M.B.R. Pushpakumara, told the Sunday Times that he has been [...]

POISONED

POISONED

Officers of the Department of Wildlife Conservation’s (DWC) Hambantota recently uncovered a racket taking place within the precincts of forest reserves and jungles in the Mahaweli basin in the Hambantota district. The method used by poachers is to poison small waterholes and/or actually dig waterholes which they poison. Several suspects have already been arrested. On [...]

Dengue fight goes to waste, mosquito’s blood-meal exacts heavy toll

In the past three years alone, the dengue virus has claimed 594 lives including children, while public health and municipal authorities continue to fight a losing battle to contain the menace, which now has spread to the far reaches of the island. So far this year, 40 people have lost their lives and 23,000 have [...]

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