An election without end: Why it takes so long in India
As India heads towards the eighth phase of its marathon general election on Wednesday, many are asking whether the world’s largest democracy deserves such a protracted voting exercise. For those not up to speed, India’s 16th general election for its 543 parliamentary seats is currently being held in nine phases from 7 April to 12 [...]
New Delhi’s next foreign policy: Beyond NAM
NEW DELHI – Next month, India will complete its marathon election. A new government is expected to assume power at the end of May, and, if the polls prove correct, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has named Narendra Modi as its prime ministerial candidate, will lead that government. With India’s sluggish economic performance having [...]
Sri Lanka to host its first ever global Thalassaemia meet
The first-ever international conference to be held with regard to Thalassaemia in Sri Lanka is set for May 10 at the auditorium of the Sri Lanka Medical Association. Held in connection with the World Thalassaemia Day which falls on May 8, participation for this ‘International Conference on Thalassaemia and Iron Overload’ was fully booked three [...]
Rukshan launches DVD of songs with Rotarian themes
“Experiencing Rotary Through Music” – a DVD of singer Rukshan Perera’s eclectic songs that closely link to Rotary themes and values will be launched on May 10 at the Rotary Assembly. This DVD released by the Rotary Club of Colombo Metropolitan is dedicated to all Rotarians who volunteer to serve the underprivileged by implementing humanitarian [...]
An evening with T20 champs
The celebratory mood surrounding Sri Lanka’s Twenty20 World Championship triumph was resurrected at the Taj Samudra on Thursday, when several cricketers from the victorious team were hosted for a soiree at the hotel. The reception was hosted by President of the Executive Committee of Sri Lanka Cricket Jayantha Dharmadasa and the Director Operations, TAL Hotels [...]
Galle Face North Wing to re-open with old splendour and new look
The iconic Galle Face Hotel is nearing completion of a restoration project of its North Wing, originally built in 1864. Keeping in time with the expected completion date, Galle Face has completed restoration of the façade, lobby areas, corridors, Grand ballroom and the Jubilee room. Meanwhile work on the Verandah restaurant, Executive Club Lounge and [...]
Mediterranean diet may slow diabetes progression
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) – For people recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, eating lots of olive oil, fish and whole grains slows progression of the disease more than restricting fat, according to a new analysis. In a trial that followed participants for more than eight years, those following a so-called Mediterranean diet went significantly [...]
VSO Sri Lanka leaves behind a story of success
British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, John Rankin, praised Voluntary Service Overseas’ (VSO) achievements when he spoke at an event recently to mark the closure of the country programme. The international development charity has been placing volunteers in Sri Lanka for more than 40 years, initially through the British Council, and since the late 1970s [...]
Bring in your Vesak lanterns
Union Bank of Colombo PLC (UBC) has launched a Vesak lantern competition to celebrate Vesak season. The competition is available in all areas where the Bank’s branch network is present, enabling people to participate and display their creative talents. The competition is open to all age groups. UBC is offering 50 cash prizes of Rs. [...]
Twin train blasts in Chennai: Playing politics over terror
Chennai on Thursday woke up to twin blasts at the Central Railway Station that left a 24-year-old woman techie dead and 14 others injured. The two low-intensity bombs went off in quick succession in S4 and S5 coaches of the Bangalore-Guwahati Express about 10 minutes after it chugged into platform number nine at 7.05 a.m. [...]
How India’s iconic Gandhi cap has changed sides
India’s Congress party, fighting an uphill struggle to return to power in the current elections, has the Gandhi family on its side, and Rahul Gandhi leading its campaign — but the iconic Gandhi cap has changed sides. This simple white cap, a bit like an upturned boat, has made a political comeback in India’s election [...]
Scores killed, as Ukraine crisis take dangerous turn
SLAVIANSK, Ukraine, May 3 (Reuters) -Dozens of people were killed in a fire and others were shot dead when fighting between pro- and anti-Russian groups broke out on the streets of Odessa on Ukraine’s Black Sea coast on Friday, opening a new front in a conflict that has split the country. In the east, pro-Russian [...]
Palestinian Unity: Hope and gloom in the Beach Refugee Camp
For years, Palestinian factions have strived for unity, and for years unity has evaded them. But is it possible that following several failed attempts, Fatah and Hamas have finally found that elusive middle ground? And if they have done so, why, to what end, and at what cost? On April 23, top Fatah and Hamas [...]
Climate change is damaging fish brains and causing them to lose their survival instinct
Fish are losing their survival instinct as the world’s oceans become more acidic because of climate change, researchers have claimed. The study confirms laboratory experiments showing that the behavior of reef fishes can be seriously affected by increased carbon dioxide concentrations in the ocean. Carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere is absorbed into ocean waters, [...]
Asian pollution causing ‘dramatic’ strengthening of storms in North America, say NASA scientists
Air pollution in China and other Asian countries is causing storms in North America to become stronger and changing weather patterns across the Northern Hemisphere, a new Nasa study has claimed. Researchers found that pollutants are strengthening storms above the Pacific Ocean, which feeds into weather systems in other parts of the world. The effect [...]
Risk of asteroid hitting Earth higher than thought: Study
CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) – The chance of a city-killing asteroid striking Earth is higher than scientists previously believed, a non-profit group building an asteroid-hunting telescope has said. A global network that listens for nuclear weapons detonations detected 26 asteroids that exploded in Earth’s atmosphere from 2000 to 2013, data collected by the Comprehensive Nuclear [...]
Afghan landslide: Over 2,000 people buried under mud up to 100 metres
KABUL, May 3 (Reuters) – Afghan officials gave up hope onSaturday of finding any survivors from a landslide in the remotenortheast, putting the death toll at more than 2,100, as the aideffort focused on the more than 4,000 people displaced. Officials expressed concern the unstable hillside above thesite of the disaster may cave in again, [...]
Samsung ordered to pay US$ 119 m to Apple
SAN JOSE, United States, May 03, (AFP) – Jurors late Friday ordered Samsung to pay just a fraction of the big-money damages sought by Apple in a high-stakes Silicon Valley case over smartphone patents. The jury in federal court in California found that Samsung violated some patents and ruled that the South Korean consumer electronics [...]
First US case of deadly MERS virus confirmed
WASHINGTON, May 3 (Reuters) – A healthcare worker who had travel led toSaudi Arabia was confirmed as the first U.S. case of Middle East Respiratory Virus (MERS), an often fatal illness, raising new concerns about the rapid spread of such diseases, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Friday. The male patient [...]
MH370: No answers, only hope as father heads home
BEIJING, May 03, (AFP) – Almost two months after he dashed to Beijing following the disappearance of his son’s flight, Yan Jiacheng finally left a hotel he shared with other desperate Chinese relatives, still clinging to the hope that he could be alive. “I don’t want to leave of course, but I have no choice,” [...]
Brazil: Football versus freedom
NEW YORK – Last year, Brazilian authorities were taken by surprise when a wave of protests erupted during the Confederations Cup soccer tournament, a sort of warm-up to this year’s main event, the World Cup, which will be staged in 12 cities across the country beginning in June. The protesters, complaining that the $11 billion [...]
Adam’s arrest rocks N. Ireland, 16 years after peace deal
BELFAST/ANTRIM, Northern Ireland, May 3 (Reuters) – Northern Ireland police are planning to extend the detention of Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams for questioning about a 1972 murder beyond the initial two days, his party said, raising the stakes in a case that has rocked the disputed British province. Adams’ arrest over the killing of [...]