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Home » ColumnsPassengers tell of terrible experience on diverted SriLankan Airlines flight
Feedback is pouring in on our story last week about SriLankan Airlines flight UL195 that was diverted from New Delhi to Jaipur for refuelling. The aircraft reached its destination three hours past the scheduled time of arrival on February 12. The New Delhi-bound flight carried some high profile personalities, including Indian High Commission diplomats, a [...]
Govt. sidesteps queries on public finances used for President’s trips abroad
By Chandani Kirinde, Our Lobby Correspondent The fact that Parliament has been relegated to a mere rubber stamp is not exactly news, but going by the growing disregard Government shows to issues concerning the use of public finances, by sidestepping questions relating to how Sri Lanka’s taxpayers money is being spent, one wonders how exactly [...]
Lessons from past economic development experience
The economic development experience of post-independent years provides ample lessons and guidelines for economic policies for the future. Ignoring these, as well as the development experiences of other countries, could limit the country’s development potential. Pragmatic economic policies based on economic development experience rather than ideology and political populism is vital for economic development. Healthy [...]
Will Jayalalithaa’s political opportunism backfire?
A series of dramatic events relating to the seven convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case seemed to reveal yet again, the opportunism inherent in Tamil Nadu politics and the strain it imposes on a beleaguered Indian Central government. On Tuesday India’s Supreme Court commuted the punishment given to three of the prisoners from death [...]
Pillay report next week: Western powers likely to base resolution on it
Even the help of deities is being sought to defeat the latest United States backed resolution on Sri Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva next month. President Mahinda Rajapaksa flew from Colombo to Nuwara Eliya in his Air Force helicopter on Friday to take part in a special Pooja according to Hindu rites. [...]
Jaya’s poll dance with Rajiv killers
My Dear Jayalalithaa, I am writing to you because I heard you had taken action to order the release of those who were responsible for the killing of your former Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi. I must say that you took me by surprise, even though I know that you sometimes act in curious ways. I [...]
Packaged horror may go up in smoke
Both smoking and non-smoking members of Parliament crossed partisan borders this week and united to vote for the Government’s decision to plaster the face of cigarette packets with gruesome pictures of the tragic consequences of smoking. The anti-smoking lobby having successfully campaigned to achieve this notable goal as followed in western countries is already inhaling [...]