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Home » NewsFreedom Day amid COVID-19 restrictions
Sri Lanka celebrates its 73rd Independence Day on February 4. Rehearsals began yesterday and our picture shows Sri Lanka Army’s Armoured Personnel Carriers being paraded at Independence Square. The main ceremony would be restricted due to ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the economic crisis and related issues. Pic by M. A. Pushpakumara.
Pro-Govt. parties oppose ECT deal with foreign investors
A majority of partners in the ruling alliance want the East Container Terminal (ECT) in the Colombo Port vested entirely with the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA). They are opposed to ceding the ECT for a joint project with India and Japan. Port Supply Facilities State Minister Jayantha Samaraweera told the Sunday Times a decision [...]
CPC seeks tax relief to avoid fuel price hike
The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) is seeking a waiver of staggering taxes amounting to Rs 2.5 billion a month and has warned of possible fuel price revisions if relief is not granted. State Minister for Energy Udaya Gammanpila told the Sunday Times the CPC had communicated its position to the Treasury and was awaiting a [...]
Cremation of Muslim bodies: US urges Govt. to respect religious rites
The Government has come under international pressure to change its decision to cremate bodies of Muslims who die of COVID-19. Just days ahead of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) meeting, where the issue is expected to surface, the United States State Department tweeted: “COVID-19 has taken too many lives. We urge Sri Lanka to [...]
Ayurveda physicians seek approval for 30 immunity boosters
Ayurvedic practitioners are seeking approval for at least 30 ‘immunity boosters’ to help curb the COVID-19 pandemic, a senior official said. Ayurveda Commissioner K.D.C.S. Kumaratunga told the Sunday Times that among those products, at least ten were now being examined by the Formula Committee before approval was given. He said the Ayurvedic Department was concerned [...]
Govt. to gazette Rs. 1,000 daily wage for estate workers without consent of companies
The Government has decided to gazette the minimum wage of Rs 1,000 for estate workers, after failing to reach consensus with plantation companies. The move came following the Cabinet approval granted this week to proceed with the Wages Board process after all three trade unions collectively declared that they would not make any compromise with [...]
Accidents rise as restrictions are lifted
More than 30 people were killed and 450 injured this week on roads around the country – a marked rise in accidents. Police Spokesman DIG Ajith Rohana said the increase in fatal road accidents followed the lifting of quarantine curfew and other restrictions. “During the COVID shutdown few deaths were reported but, sadly, the numbers [...]
Navy in hour-long rescue mission to save pregnant deer
The Navy this week rescued a pregnant deer from drowning in the seas off Trincomalee. The frightened animal who was being bitten and chased by dogs had jumped into the sea and was being dragged away into mid sea by the current when the Navy rescued it in the nick of time. After an hour-long [...]
March-past for a few as virus shutters Feb 4 show
Fewer guests, muted celebrations and no public – that’s how next Thursday’s 73rd Independence Day commemoration will be held at Independence Square in the shadow of COVID. The Ministry of Home Affairs, which is hosting the event, has planned to reduce guests by half, with seats arranged one meter apart. Invitations have been sent only [...]
Duruthu Perahera: To the beat of health precautions
The annual Duruthu Perahera of the Kelaniya Raja Maha Viharaya was held on Wednesday under COVID-19 prevention guidelines. The Perahera did not parade the streets this year owing to the pandemic, but made its way along the ‘Udamaluwa’ (Upper Terrace) of the temple.
No new BOI export processing zones since 2002
The Board of Investment (BOI) has not created any new export processing zones (EPZs) since 2002. Of the two it tried to set up after 2018, one is tied up in legal proceedings while the other is still only inching forward, a report by the Auditor General shows. The BOI oversees 12 EPZs, although its [...]
Final report by Commission of Inquiry on Easter Sunday attack to be handed over to President tomorrow
The Commission of Inquiry (CoI) probing the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks is to hand over its final report to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa tomorrow. The report by the Commission, chaired by Supreme Court Justice Janak De Silva, is expected to explore in detail the circumstances that led to the attacks, their nature and the political and [...]
COVID-19: Operation vaccination begins
The first stage of the vaccination programme to counter COVID-19 was launched on Friday at several key hospitals in the Western Province, with vaccinations in other provinces commencing yesterday. Frontline health workers and triforces personnel will be administered the Oxford AstraZeneca COVIDSHIELD vaccine first. The Indian Government gifted 500, 000 doses of the vaccine to [...]
Shantha Ratnayake was former president of Kandy Bar Association
The Kandy Bar Association has drawn attention to a news item which appeared in the Sunday Times of January 17 under the caption ‘Kandy Bar Chief calls for new courts complex in land earmarked by President Premadasa.’ The report quoted Shantha Ratnayake PC, as the President of the Kandy Bar Association. However, Mr Ratnayake was [...]
World tourism begins baby steps again after trillion-dollar losses
More than a week after Sri Lanka reopened its borders to international tourists, some 550 international holiday-makers have entered the country – but uncertainty dogs the sector. Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority Director-General Dhammika Wijesinghe said on Friday that the country had received 435 Ukrainian tourists, with the remainder being mostly from Germany. Ms Wijesinghe [...]
Strengthening medical rehab for all the people her vision
Emphasis on stroke and geriatric services as well as psychoactive substance rehabilitation The august gathering was all eyes and ears as she turned the spotlight fully not on the usual and popular medical issues but on topics which get little attention. With strong facts and figures, the 127th President of the Sri Lanka Medical Association [...]
“They keep saying they will take our lands”
The Central Environmental Authority (CEA) must direct the Road Development Authority (RDA) to avoid the Thalangama wetland when building the proposed elevated highway from Rajagiriya to Athurugiriya, the Attorney General strongly advised this week. The 10.4km stretch of highway is the second phase of a 17.3km project from the New Kelani Bridge in Orugodawatte to [...]
Shift to online compelled by viral paralysis of services
Digitalisation has gained traction in Sri Lanka partly as a result of the coronavirus pandemic that has now lingered for more than a year. Start-ups and e-commerce platforms have emerged to fulfil needs ranging from deliveries of services to groceries. Even the public sector began delivering limited services online. Education moved online, although issues like [...]
Sustainable craft
A youth from Ma-Eliya, Weligampitiya is creating stylish, well-made, self-assembled furniture, using 100% sustainable plywood and pallets which are discarded. Murali Seeniwaasagam is engaged in the health sector. He started making these items as a hobby. Murali’s creations include table designs, clothes hooks, book shelves and accessories of different shapes. His designs include plywood setteebacks, [...]
Concern over MPs’ COVID vulnerability: PCR tests and self-isolation recommended
With the number of COVID-19 infected MPs rising to seven, health officials are urging Parliamentarians to immediately self-isolate and get themselves tested if they suspect that they may have contracted the virus or come into contact with someone who has. Kandy District Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) Wasantha Yapa Bandara and State Minister Arundika Fernando [...]
Fears of virus spreading among students; few turn up in class
Only half of the student population turned up at school last week when classes resumed for grade 11 in the Western Province. An average of 50 percent attendance was recorded in the 11 education zones in the province. In the Colombo zone, schools had a record low turnout of 26.81 percent on the first two [...]
Park-and-ride service coming to Kandy; but commuters long for circular service
The park-and-ride facility will be introduced to Kandy City also to overcome the traffic congestion, said State Minister of Transport Dilum Ammunugama. The service was introduced on January 15 in Colombo, enabling those travelling to Colombo to park their vehicles at the Makumbura car park in Kottawa and take the luxury City Bus which operated [...]
Rolled up sleeves as rollout of vaccines for health workers begins
The much-awaited first stock of vaccines against COVID-19 arrived in Sri Lanka on Thursday and healthcare staff began getting their jabs on Friday. The 500,000 doses of COVISHIELD were handed over to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa by Indian High Commissioner Gopal Baglay soon after an Air India flight brought the stocks from the Serum Institute on [...]
Unique mangrove restoration project takes root in Puttalam
Sri Lanka and Britain are together supporting a unique mangrove “caretaker” programme in the Puttalam District which aims to regenerate these vital plants in a manner that will “set an example to the world”. The project, led by Professor Sewwandi Jayakody, senior lecturer at the Wayamba University, eschews the traditional mangrove restoration approach of merely [...]
Daylight robberies, murders trigger alarm over security
A spate of robberies has prompted the police to alert financial institutions, pawn shops and banks to be extra vigilant. Among the incidents that has caused alarm, is the robbery in Miriswatte, Gamapaha, two weeks ago, when two suspects fled with more than Rs 4 million from a financial institution. Two armed men in full-faced [...]
Pick of the Pix
FROM OUR READERS Shutterbugs out there, we would once again appreciate your contributions to this picture corner. Please send your captioned photograph along with your name, and the location of the photograph, to: pictures@sundaytimes.wnl.lk We would also appreciate if you mention the camera or cellphone that was used. Pic by Priyanka Samaraweera, Pic by Hiran [...]