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NPC polls in first week of September
Basil says Govt. keen to “have the election and finish it off” By Namini Wijedasa President Mahinda Rajapaksa will direct the Elections Commissioner to conduct the Northern Provincial Council election in the first week of September, the Sunday Times learns. Although authoritative Government sources declined to name a date, such polls are usually held on [...]
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Drummers beating the heat
Traditional barefoot drummers ran into a spot of bother at the May Day procession of the National Freedom Front in Colombo. With the unbearable heat wave hitting the city, the drummers could not walk barefoot in the noon-time heat. So they borrowed slippers from children who had come to watch the march. Pic by Nilan [...]
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Dengue: Net on death toll, money unspent
By Nadia Fazlulhaq Whilst the scourge of dengue continues to take its toll, the Ministry of Health has only utilised less than a third of the Rs. 300 million allocated for the eradication campaign last year and has now clamped down a ban on releasing death figures. Last year more than 225 were people in [...]
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Personalised number plates for Rs. 1 million
By Damith Wickremasekara A new series of three-letter number plates for motor vehicles will be issued from July, Motor Vehicles Registrar S.H. Harishchandra said. He said that a proposal to offer personalised numbers for Rs. one million each was also being considered. The new three-letter number for cars would start with CAA-0001 while dual purpose [...]
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Pilot dispute over recruitment continues
A two-month dispute between the management and the Airline Pilots’ Guild of Sri Lanka has affected cadet pilot recruitment to SriLankan Airlines, sources said. “The training of old batches of cadets should end in the next two months,” said a guild source who wished to remain anonymous. “There are no more trainees after that.” The [...]
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May Day offer costs CEB Rs. 8 b a month
President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s May Day concessions to sections of electricity consumers will cost the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) eight billion rupees a month, Chairman W.P. Ganegala said yesterday. He said the Treasury had informed him that it would reimburse the loss. “The CEB will now have to look at other cost-cutting measures such as reducing [...]
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Lanka gives assurances to EU on fishing
By Chris Kamalendran Sri Lankan fishermen engaged in illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing in international waters face tough penalties — but talks to resolve disputes over Indian fishermen intruding into Lankan territorial waters have been further delayed. A Sri Lankan delegation led by Fisheries Minister Rajitha Senaratne has informed the European Union that Lankan fishermen [...]
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Lal wins 2012 Gratiaen Prize
Lal Medawattegedera (right), was awarded the 2012 Gratiaen Prize last night for his unpublished manuscript ‘Playing Pillow Politics At Mgk’. He is seen here receiving the award from Prof. Walter Perera, chairperson of the Gratiaen Trust. The Gratiaen Prize which was founded by Michael Ondaatje celebrates its 20th anniversary this year. Organised in association with [...]
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Ranil: UNP to draft new Constitution to address country’s needs
The United National Party (UNP) will, end of this month, start a dialogue to draft a new home-grown Constitution that addresses the needs of the country, as an alternative to the Executive Presidency, said Opposition and UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe. He was addressing lawyers to mark the 40th anniversary of the UNP affiliated National Lawyers [...]
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Hot weather ends, pre-monsoon rains begin
The humid weather experienced during the past few weeks has come to an end and the pre-south west monsoon period has begun, the Met. Department said yesterday. Department Duty Meteorologist Meryll Mendis said heavy showers accompanied by high winds are expected at the end of this week. He added that people should beware of thunder [...]
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Dr. Bandaranayake, two MPs summoned
Appeal Court quashing of PSC findings on CJ 43 to SC By Wasantha Ramanayake The Supreme Court issued notice on the 43rd Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake and Parliamentarians R. Sambanthan and Vijitha Herath to appear in Court in an appeal by the Attorney General challenging the judgment of the Court of Appeal that held [...]
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No faith motion on Dilan over Rizana death
By Chandani Kirinde Parliament will on Tuesday debate a no-confidence motion on Foreign Employment Promotion Minister Dilan Perera, prompted by the execution in Saudi Arabia of Lankan housemaid Rizana Nafeek. The motion signed by 14 UNP MPs accuses the Minister of failing to extend meaningful support in any manner to Ms. Nafeek, who was executed in [...]
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Identity cards in Sinhala, Tamil soon
The relevant authorities are taking a policy decision to include both Sinhala and Tamil languages in the identity card, Deputy Solicitor General Viraj Dayaratne informed the Supreme Court. The fundamental rights petition filed by A.P. Dananjaya Gamage cited Registration of Persons Commissioner General R.N.S. Sarath Kumara, Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa, National Languages and Social Integration [...]
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Beware of this toxic detergent
Beware of a “suspect” detergent which if accidentally ingested can cause serious harm including death, warned a toxicologist yesterday. With a spate of such ingestions of this detergent or cleansing substance reported from the Southern Province, Dr. Waruna Gunathilake, Department Head of Toxicology and the National Hospital’s Poisons Information Centre said that the authorities are [...]
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Vials of contraceptives packed in potato containers go under the microscope
By Nadia Fazlulhaq The Cosmetic Devices and Drug Regulatory Authority has commenced laboratory tests on samples of Depo-Provera, a contraceptive vaccine for women, which were found hidden inside containers of imported potato. Last week, Customs officials seized 30,000 vials of this drug in a container of imported potatoes. The suspect, a Pakistani national who had imported [...]
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Main parties readying for Northern polls
The two main political parties have begun the process of picking candidates to contest the upcoming Northern Provincial Council (NPC) polls after President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s recent announcement that the much delayed election would be held in September. However, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), the dominant party in the North, said it will wait for the [...]
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Rambukwella, chairs UN Committee on Conferences
27-year-old Lankan one of the youngest to hold chair since its establishment The Committee on Conferences that advises the General Assembly (GA) on matters pertaining to the organisation of United Nations (UN) Conferences, elected Chamithri Rambukwella, daughter of Minister Keheliya Rambukwella, as Chair, for its 2013-2014 term, at its organisational session on April 29. She [...]
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E-waste collection centres to be set up in schools
By Kumudini Hettiarachchi and Shaveen Jeewandara Schoolchildren across the country will act as mediators to draw out e-waste lying in homes, in a major move by the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) this month to ensure its proper disposal without polluting the environment and causing illness. We plan to set up collecting mechanisms in every province, [...]
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Road accidents still No.1 killer with 500 fatalities in 2013
Speed, recklessness, fatigue, poor driving skills due to slack training, weak law enforcement lead to highways of death By Nadia Fazlulhaq The present trend of deadly road accidents will continue being the leading cause of death by bodily injury, if immediate precautions are not taken, experts in the field of transport warned. The warning [...]
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United Nation’s World Press Freedom Day
Media should safeguard the country’s image rather than fuel political animosity, says Keheliya A workshop on the theme “Patriotism and the role of the media” was organised by the Government Information Department to commemorate World Press Freedom Day. A message from Minister Keheliya Rambukwella was read out by the Government Information Director General Prof. Ariyaratne [...]
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Most Lankans in Saudi would escape effect of new labour law
By Wasantha Ramanayake More than half the 450,000 Sri Lankans working in Saudi Arabia would be untouched by a new law that conserves jobs for Saudi nationals but Lankans working illegally in that country would be caught by the new regulation, the Foreign Employment Bureau says. More than 50 per cent of the workers are [...]
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Missing expat worker urged to report assault
Compensation available for victim, says bureau The Bureau of Foreign Employment is searching for the Sri Lankan housekeeper assaulted by a compatriot in Saudi Arabia and says it cannot offer her compensation or take other action until she presents herself at the bureau. “We only have the evidence of a third-party witness,” Deputy General Manager Amal [...]
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Nobody’s kids sans vehicles hitch rides with adult prisoners
Cash-strapped and woefully inadequate Prisons Dept plays foster parent to unfortunate minors with no recourse to what is rightfully due to them. Namini Wijedasa reports The cash-strapped Prisons Dept has appealed for donations of passenger coaches to transport children, some as young as a few weeks old, between certified homes and the country’s various courthouses. The [...]
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Drugged and raped: 15 year-old’s ordeal just one more in increasing abuse cases
A sixteen year-old girl from an international school from the suburbs of Colombo went out with her boyfriend early this week. They spent a few hours on the beach where she was offered a soft drink. Hours later she realised that she had not only been drugged, but also sexually abused by her 15 year-old boyfriend. [...]
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Customers will have to take power costs on the chin, says business
Staff layoffs to offset bigger bills By Mirudhula Thambiah Businesses plan to pass on the electricity price increase to consumers, arguing they have few alternatives, and also warn they will be forced to lay off staff or freeze hiring. Hoteliers, industrialists and other non domestic business oriented sectors say they have no other option [...]
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Leprosy on the increase warns top health official
By Kumudini Hettiarachchi The number of people affected by leprosy is on the rise, with Colombo District having the highest number of cases, a top health official said this week. Colombo District reported 446 cases in 2011, while the Western Province had 45% of patients amounting to 1,012, the same year, pointed out Anti-Leprosy Campaign [...]
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He’s a wreck of war but she loves him
Girl meets boy – the boy is a dashing soldier with the aura of having narrowly escaped death in a Tiger attack, and he meets the girl one day in 1996 on his way home on leave. The romance blossoms with the blessing of both their families. Fast-forward 15 years – the boy is now a [...]
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Govt. blinks on May Day as MR pulls plug on power tariff hike
UPFA partners break ranks for separate rallies to voice their displeasure at the ruling party’s policies Bolstered by the growing public opposition to the recent electricity price hike, political parties and groups opposed to the government took to the streets in large numbers on May 1, making it the rallying cry, but President Mahinda Rajapaksa [...]
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Asylum seekers must clearly substantiate fleeing persecution: Aussie Minister
“Candid, constructive engagement is critical, and effective in achieving goals, hence Australia’s PM will attend CHOGM” By Namini Wijedasa The number of Sri Lankan asylum seekers reaching Australia illegally by sea, declined dramatically in 2013. However, some recent boatloads that arrived directly from Sri Lanka, have caused renewed concern. Another group of 42 Sri Lankans [...]
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The Fort Railway Station -the rot sets in
Story and pix by Indika Handuwala The age old Fort Railway Station located in the heart of the metropolis has turned into an eye sore to the many thousands of commuters, both local and foreign with facilities near zero. Rail users are pushed to the edge, but the relevant authorities are not concerned. The station [...]
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Jaffna landowners to file more than 1000 cases against military ‘land grab’
More than 1000 Jaffna landowners are to file petitions in courts against an alleged land grab by the military in Valligamam north that local MPs claim is causing severe concern among civilians. Landowners held a public demonstration last Sunday in front of the Pradeshiya Sabha Tellipalai demanding the return of their lands. Nearly 10,000 acres [...]
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14 SL seamen held hostage by Somali pirates due next week
By Leon Berenger A group of 14 Sri Lankan seamen on board a vessel that was ransacked on the high seas by suspected Somali pirates late last month, are to return to the country sometime on Wednesday, a maritime official said yesterday. The Sri Lankans, part of a larger crew of 19 that included four Poles [...]
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Canada’s CHOGM boycott calls can leave it out in the cold
By Dinoo Kelleghan Britain yesterday joined Australia in committing themselves to CHOGM in Sri Lanka but the Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper signalled that he would be outside the CHOGM tent micturating inwards than inside the fold. Reporting that the Harper regime would not send a “full delegation” to Colombo in November, the US news website [...]
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The end of an epoch
Justice J. F.A. Soza (1919-2013) The demise of Justice J.F.A. Soza, (Anton Soza to many of his friends), the exemplary and eminent judge of the original courts, the outstanding puisne judge of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka, the Teacher of judges and erudite jurist, signifies end of an epoch in the judicial and legal [...]
