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In an important event to mark International Women’s Day, some Sri Lankan women reached great heights when they operated gantry cranes at the Colombo Port. Here a female crane operator is seen handling the work as skillfully as any male counterpart. Pic. by Indika Handuwala.
Hambantota Port deal prohibits military activity
Oversight committee to ensure national security; company to maintain internal security By Namini Wijedasa An agreement to be signed between the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) and China Merchant Port Holdings Company (CMPort) for the privatisation of Hambantota Port expressly forbids military activity and envisages the setting up of an oversight committee to oversee national [...]
Protesting Indian fishermen stop Kachchativu pilgrims
By Chris Kamalendran Indian devotees planning to attend the festive mass at the Kachchativu island off Jaffna today were obstructed by Indian fishing societies which declined to provide boats for them to travel. This was in protest against a shooting incident which claimed the life of an Indian fisherman earlier in the week. The [...]
Plenty of paddy in stores, but Govt. goes for foreign donations and imports
By Kasun Warakapitiya Sri Lanka continues to receive donations of rice from the international community while the government and private traders are holding on to millions of kilos of paddy and rice in their stores, a Sunday Times investigation has revealed. In the main paddy production areas of the Eastern, North-central and Northern provinces, Government [...]
NPPD raises red flag over Ruwanpura and Central Expressways
The National Physical Planning Department (NPPD) of the Ministry of Megapolis and Western Development has voiced strong concerns about the proposed Ruwanpura Expressway of the Ministry of Highways. The trace cuts through the “central fragile areas” that are identified as crucial to conservation of the country’s water sources, the NPPD warns in letters to the [...]
Remembering First US Consul to Ceylon, John Black
US Ambassador Atul Keshap on Friday paid tribute to the first US Consul to the then Ceylon, John Black whose remains are buried at the All Saints cemetery in Galle. John Black was the first American Commercial Agent and Consul to Ceylon in 1860. His tombstone says he died on February 17, 1869 and, his [...]
Indian experts blame Tamil Nadu fishermen for Bristo’s death
Dateline Chennai By Kumar Chellappan The death of Bristo, a 21-year-old fisherman from Thankachimadom, a fishing hamlet in southern Tamil Nadu, has once again brought to surface some stark realities. Fishermen who were engaged in fishing with Bristo at Palk Bay alleged he was shot at by Sri Lanka Navy, while they were inside [...]
Kandy gets digital parking meters
Digital meters to charge parking fees from vehicles in Kandy were launched yesterday. Central Province Chief Minister Sarath Ekanayake inaugurated the system by parking his vehicle and obtaining a ticket. From the moment a motorist is issued a ticket, the meter begins to record the time. When he or she returns, the ticket is inserted [...]
Three-months RI, Rs 495,000 fine for lab technicians
Three employees of two medical laboratories in the Akkaraipattu area in Ampara, have been sentenced to three months rigorous imprisonment each, suspended for five years, and fined Rs 495,000 in total, by Magistrate Court judge A.S. Peter Paul, recently. They were accused of possessing medical equipment not registered under the National Medicines Regulatory Authority and [...]
Birth control implant on sexually abused minor; probe ordered
Wellawaya District Judge and Magistrate Kesara Samaradiwakara has ordered the Uva Province Deputy Inspector General (DIG), the Health Superintendent and the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) to hold an inquiry into an incident where a minor, who was a victim of sexual abuse, was allegedly subjected to a birth control procedure at the Hambantota Hospital. [...]
Consumers boiling over reckless utility billing
By Akash Widanapathirana A shortage of meter readers at the National Water Supply and Drainage Board and the Ceylon Electricity Board is disrupting billing services, officials and trade union representatives said. CEB believes that in some cases charges have been estimated and consumers have complained that actual use had been lower. Semakumara Bandara, secretary of [...]
Police swoop on 1246 suspects in island-wide special op
More than 1000 suspects were rounded up in an island-wide special police operation that began at 11 p.m. on Friday and ended at 4 a.m. on Saturday. The five-hour op with 11,792 officers deployed resulted in the arrest of 1246 suspects, Police headquarters said. So far it has been revealed that 110 Island Reconvicted Criminals, [...]
CIDA alleges forceful eviction by Tower Hall Foundation
By Chrishanthi Christopher The Construction Industry Development Authority (CIDA), the apex regulatory organisation in the Construction industry said the Tower Hall Theatre Foundation (THTF) is trying to forcefully move its (CIDA) head office to ‘Sausiripaya’, Battaramulla, by refusing to extend its lease. CIDA Engineer S. Amarasekera said that, despite several requests made to the [...]
Special guards unit to protect ‘travelling’ inmates
The Prisons Dept (PD) intends to form a special Unit dedicated to guarding prison inmates while being transported to courts and back. According to a proposal made to the Minister of Prison Reforms, Resettlement and Hindu Religious Affairs, D.M. Swaminathan, this Unit will comprise of about 100 officers, who will receive specialised training from agencies [...]
AG to CID: Investigate CB Gov.’s complaint on Bond issue
The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) has been advised by the Attorney General’s (AG) Dept to treat a written complaint made by Central Bank (CB) Governor Indrajith Coomaraswamy, in relation to the Treasury Bond (TB) issue, as first information in terms of the Code of Criminal Procedure Act, and commence investigations on that basis. The CID [...]
Sugar prices rise
The price of sugar in the retail market has increased, trade sources said. Sources from Pettah said there has been an increase in the wholesale market price of sugar, which is being sold at Rs 105 per kg. Hence, the retail price too has increased. They claimed that, the increase of prices in the international [...]
Aviation Ministry re-calls tenders for 2 BIA duty free shops, after cancelling earlier tender
The Transport and Aviation Ministry has re-called for tenders to operate two duty free shops at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) after cancelling a tender already called for. The move has drawn strong protests from a company that was hitherto operating the duty free shop since 1977, saying they were one of the top two [...]
Remembering First US Consul to Ceylon, John Black
US Ambassador Atul Keshap on Friday paid tribute to the first US Consul to the then Ceylon, John Black whose remains are buried at the All Saints cemetery in Galle. John Black was the first American Commercial Agent and Consul to Ceylon in 1860. His tombstone says he died on February 17, 1869 and, his [...]
eNIC tender runs into a storm
The tender for the supply of Electronic National Identity Cards, has run into a storm, after the lowest bidder was allegedly left out. Of the 12 bidders, the lowest bidder, an Indian company bidding with a local company, had offered to supply an eNIC at Rs 48, but the company selected had quoted Rs 70 [...]
Govt. decides to freeze foreign loans for at least 3 years
Saddled with a debt repayment of US $ 5.6 billion by 2018, the Government has decided to stop taking any new loans for at least the next three years, Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake told the Sunday Times. Institutions like the Road Ddevelopment Authority (RDA), Urban Development Authority (UDA) have been asked to put mega projects [...]
SAITM dissected in Parliament; calls grow for solution
An adjournment motion on the ongoing controversy regarding the Private Medical College (PMC) SAITM (South Asian Institute of Technology & Medicine), moved by the JVP, was held in Parliament on Thursday. The debate was opened by JVP leader Anura Dissanayake. Moving the motion for the debate, Chief Government Whip and JVP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake [...]
Child labour: Kudos for Lanka, but 43,000 yet to be rescued
Sri Lanka has made significant progress in eliminating child labour, but much needs to be done to rescue more than 43,000 children who are still being employed as cheap labour — most of them in ‘hazardous’ sectors, according to a countrywide survey report. It said that despite tough laws, child labour was being used in [...]
Royal College OBU meets PM and Education Minister to battle out the charges against it
The Royal College Old Boys’ Union (RCU) members met Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and Education Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam earlier this week following accusations by the minister that an “old boy mafia” was engaged in fraudulent admissions to Grade 1 and that 31 cases of forged documents had been detected this year. During the discussion, [...]
High spirited opposition to alcohol distillery in Kalkudah
A liquor manufacturing firm helmed by Arjun Aloysius, is fighting local authorities in the Batticaloa District, over plans to build a grain-based alcohol distillery in Kalkudah. Last year, the Excise Dept gave approval to W.M.Mendis & Co Ltd (of which Aloysius is Chairman) to set up the alcohol manufactory on instructions from the Dept of [...]
SLN, church reps prepare for Kachchativu feast
The Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) and the Jaffna Bishop’s House this week made preparations for the annual St Anthony’s feast on Kachchativu Island. The feast mass will be celebrated today at 6.30 a.m. at the newly constructed church in the island, Parish priest Rev Fr A. Jeyaranjan told the Sunday Times. The SLN rebuilt [...]
CMC insists on Meethotamulla dumping, but lawmaker told of alternative
While a lawmaker who represents people of Meethotamulla says he has been told that Colombo’s municipal officials will look for an alternative site to dump garbage from Saturday, the head of the Colombo Municipal Council insists that waste will continue to be hauled to the foul mountain regardless of resident’s warnings to stop the dumping. [...]
Govt. allegedly in bed with millers to rig rice market
Standing by the roadside, farmers of Polonnaruwa often watch lorries hauling paddy to the stores of private millers. The paddy is being transported from the interior areas of Ampara and Batticaloa, where the harvest has been good. In two weeks, the harvesting is expected to begin in most other districts as well. So why is [...]
PMB stores overflowing with paddy: NE officials
Despite the government’s rush to import rice, the Government Agents and officials in the Northern and Eastern province claim that there are millions of kilos of paddy being hoarded in stores belonging to the Paddy Marketing Board (PMB). The highest is reported to be in the Ampara district with 12 million kilos being stocked [...]
In just 10 weeks dengue infections rocket past 19,400
Dengue infections in the Western Province has risen sharply in the first 10 weeks of the year. Cases have soared by 43 per cent compared with the same period of last year. Data from the Epidemiology Unit of the Ministry of Health show that there were 19,419 cases of dengue since the beginning of the [...]
Drug trafficking on a high despite major detections in the recent past
Sri Lanka can no longer be considered a ‘soft’ transit point for narcotics given the record number of drug detections in the past few years and continuing, authorities say. According to the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB), while 46kg of heroin were seized in island-wide raids in 2015, last year the amount seized had increased to [...]
Populism versus prosperity
By Bill Emmott LONDON – Marine Le Pen, the leader of France’s far-right National Front, claims that the twenty-first century’s defining battle will be between patriotism and globalism. US President Donald Trump appears to believe that it will be between “the very fake news media” and himself, backed by “the people” he claims to represent. [...]
Bond Commission warns MP, expresses concern over false reports
The Central Bank Monetary Board Secretary, H A Karunaratna, has been notified to appear on Tuesday before the Commission of Inquiry (COI) probing the issue of Treasury Bonds. He will be asked to explain the decision making process of the Monetary Board. Former CBSL Governor Arjuna Mahendran, from whom a statement was recorded by [...]
Stop landfilling and building on reservation land: Farmers in Kataragama
Farmers’ Associations in Kataragama have petitioned the Environmental Unit of the Presidential Secretariat alleging that their cultivation plots adjacent to traditional irrigation tanks are being indiscriminately destroyed to make way for the fast expanding tourism industry. They allege marshy wetlands are being filled to build hotels, rest houses and restaurants and that around 1000 acres [...]
German Embassy seeks help to trace missing tourist
The German embassy in Colombo has sought the assistance of local authorities to trace a German tourist reported missing since November last year, after being last seen at a guest house in Negombo, police said. The embassy sought help after the tourist’s son, who arrived in Colombo earlier this month, appealed to the embassy, while [...]
AG’s assistance sought regarding bogus fuel efficiency claims
A resident in Kandy has complained to the Attorney General that the new car he purchased from a private company did not conform to the fuel efficiency specifications and public advertisements published by the company. Lionel Wijesundera -a former public servant and resident at Wriyapola Sri Sumangala Mawatha said the company in its advertisements and [...]
Maldivian Opposition against Govt. selling island to Saudi
The Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), the main opposition party in the Maldives, said Friday, the Maldivian government’s policy of selling islands to powerful countries in the world, would be a dangerous move for the whole Indian Ocean, due to the strategic location of the archipelago. At a news conference held in Colombo, MDP member [...]
Probe into birth control procedures at Dambulla hospital
Birth control procedures at the Dambulla Base Hospital have been temporarily suspended after a doctor at the hospital was accused of forcing such procedures on mothers without their consent. The Director of the Central Province Health Services Dr. Shanthi Samarasinghe told the Sunday Times that she had sent a team to carry out a preliminary [...]
CIDA alleges forceful eviction by ‘landlord’ THTF
The Construction Industry Development Authority (CIDA), the apex regulatory organisation in the Construction industry said the Tower Hall Theatre Foundation (THTF) is trying to forcefully move its (CIDA) head office to ‘Sausiripaya’, Battaramulla, by refusing to extend its lease. CIDA Engineer S. Amarasekera said that, despite several requests made to the THTF, it has not [...]
Fishermen playing deadly games with dolphins
Deaths of a dozen dolphins trapped in a beach seine net (ma dela) last Wednesday evening in Trincomalee has stirred strong emotions. A video captured by an onlooker shows some of the dolphins being hauled in while alive, contesting claims by fishermen that they had released some. Nine Trincomalee fishermen who were arrested were denied [...]
Wildlife officers, conservationists honoured for their commitment
The Ministry of Wildlife and Sustainable Development has recognised its officers and others for their outstanding efforts at conserving Sri Lanka’s Wildlife. The awards ceremony was held on March 3, under the patronage of President Maithripala Sirisena, to mark ‘World Wildlife Day’. The awards scheme was named in Sinhala as ‘Seva Prasadini’ recognising Wildlife officers [...]
Mysterious deaths of sea turtle
Wildlife officers are concerned over the mysterious deaths of sea turtle along the country’s southern coast. Sea turtles are a protected species, yet carcasses of several have washed up along the beaches in Tangalle and Hambantota. Wildlife officers also discovered a dead dolphin washed up on a beach in Tangalle. The carcasses of three dead [...]
Land demarcation in Mannar villages halted after complaints
By P.A. Antony Mark The Mannar District Coordinating Committee has urged Forest Department officials to halt work on boundary marking in the villages of Madhu and Manthai in the Mannar District. Villagers have complained that some of their lands were being appropriated by the Forest Department on the pretext of preparing a survey map. Minister [...]
Investigation into forced birth control procedures at Dambulla Hospital
Birth control procedures at the Dambulla Base Hospital have been temporarily suspended after a doctor at the hospital was accused of forcing such procedures on mothers without their consent. Central Province Health Services Director Dr. Shanthi Samarasinghe told the Sunday Times that she had sent a team to carry out a preliminary investigation into the [...]