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Amidst calls for his resignation, besieged Foreign Minister Ravi Karunanayake is seen at a religious ceremony held in Parliament on Friday. The ceremony was held to mark the 40th anniversary of Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe’s entry to Parliament. By Indika Handuwala
PC powers to vest in House during dissolution
A twentieth amendment to the Constitution which the Government wants to introduce seeks to vest in Parliament the powers of a Provincial Council when it stands dissolved. The 20th Amendment will also enable all Provincial Council elections to be held on the same date and for Parliament to determine the date of dissolution of all [...]
New Revenue Bill to accommodate SC amendments
The new Inland Revenue Bill will be taken up for debate after making the amendments recommended by the Supreme Court, State Minister of Finance Eran Wickramaratne said. “We will make the amendments without delay and take the Bill up for debate. This is a much needed piece of legislation for long-term fiscal sustainability,” he said. [...]
10 percent cuts of ministry budgets to give drought and flood relief
Imposing a 10 per cent cut on ministry expenditure will be among a series of measures aimed at raising Rs 65 billion needed for relief for persons affected by the ongoing drought and the recent floods and landslides, a senior Treasury official said. Treasury Secretary Dr. R.H.S. Samaratunga told the Sunday Times in order to [...]
Shangri-La gets another mixed mega development project
The Urban Development Authority (UDA) is to lease out six acres of prime land on James Peiris Mawatha in Colombo 2 to Shangri-La for a mixed development project including condominiums, offices and shopping malls. The sprawling block–located opposite the Beira Lake between the Altair building and the Abans Group’s Colombo City Centre development–will be given [...]
Swiss girl allegedly raped in A’pura shrub, no female JMO to support her case
The non-availability of a female Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) at the Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital has denied the rights of a rape victim, a Swiss girl, who had insisted on a female doctor for the medical examination. The Sunday Times learns the hospital was unable to provide a female JMO as the hospital’s JMOs are all [...]
Different views expressed by coalition partners
Both SLFP and UNP Ministers within the Govt yesterday reacted over the ‘No-Confidence’ Motion against Foreign Minister Ravi Karunanayake Speaking to reporters after attending a public function in Galagedara, Minister of Special Assignments, Dr Sarath Amunugama said, “If anyone had misappropriated public funds, they are not fit to hold any position, whoever they are.” He [...]
SriLankan chief admits need to trim fat, but won’t say how
Suren Ratwatte, the chief executive of indebted, overstaffed, multi-billion rupee loss making Sri Lankan Airlines, has admitted having excess corporate fat, while sidestepping a question on how costs would be cut, in an interview with a US business news broadcaster. Staff costs at the airline which employs 6,959 people, runs into billions and it has [...]
Norwegian expert says Uma Oya project can proceed, but recommends use of special machinery
A Norwegian expert invited to study the Uma Oya project has recommended that it be continued, but pointed out several shortcomings including the failure to carry out out a proper Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) before the project began. The expert, Bent Aagaard, met President Maithripala Sirisena on Friday and handed over an interim report. The [...]
Worldwide tenders for power plants to boost national grid: CEB
The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) will call for worldwide tenders next week to procure several power plants as supplementary power for two to five years, to shore up the national grid. Ministry of Power & Renewable Energy, Secretary Dr B.M.S. Batagoda told the Sunday Times that the main reason for procuring the power plants was [...]
Dalada Maligawa gets new Rs 140m Elephant shelter
The handing over last week of the new Eth Gala (Elephant shelter) for the Dalada Maligawa, took place amidst a distinguished gathering of both clergy and laymen. Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka who supervised the task, handed over the new Elephant shelter. Sri Dalada Maligawa Media and Special Projects Director Krishantha Hissella told the Sunday Times [...]
British High Commission issued a ‘separate joint statement’
The British High Commission in Colombo has responded to last week’s front page report in the Sunday Times headlined “Maldives seeks seat in UN Security Council, Unseats its own MPs.” An e-mail message says, “We would like to address an inaccuracy in it, relating to the British High Commission in Colombo”. The article notes the [...]
GMOA to meet other TUs for further anti-SAITM action
The Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA) will meet with all other trade unions on Wednesday (9) to discuss further action to be taken against abolishing the South Asian Institute of Technology & Medicine (SAITM). GMOA Assistant Secretary Dr Navin De Soysa told the Sunday Times that, if the President and the Prime Minister do not [...]
Govt scours, scrambles for potable water for the drought-affected
With the remaining water sources continuing to dry up, the task of finding safe drinking water for over a million people affected by the prolonged drought, is becoming more challenging by the day. In the worst affected areas such as Kurunegala, Puttalam and Trincomalee, authorities are scrambling to transport and distribute drinking water to tens [...]
PUCSL sheds light on power dispute with CEB
The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL), the country’s power sector regulator, has brushed aside Ceylon Electricity Board’s objection to a power generation expansion plan approved by the commission. Last week, CEB General Manager A.K. Amerasinghe conveyed its objections to the Least Cost Long Term Generation Expansion Plan (LCLTGEP), pointing out that the Commission [...]
All must wage war against dengue
The “small things” matter in prevention campaigns, while a strong partnership between the authorities and the people is of vital importance in the war against the tiny mosquito that is the dealer of dengue. This is the crystal clear message from the new World Health Organization (WHO) Representative to Sri Lanka, Dr. Razia Pendse, who [...]
Ravi denies lying under oath but says he cannot remember most things
Former Finance Minister and current Foreign Affairs Minister Ravi Karunanayake, testifying before the Commission of Inquiry probing the Central Bank bond scams of 2015 and 2016, said he was totally ignorant of the transaction to lease out an apartment for his family from Arjun Aloysius who is implicated in the scam. Mr. Karunanayake was questioned [...]
Waste officials draw fine line on city garbage
Unsorted garbage is being left behind by sanitation workers and as a result, piles still remain on the streets, officials say. In some area unsegregated garbage is accepted for the time being, but in many other locations, such waste is rejected. Meanwhile, municipal councils, private sector groups including Abans and Carekleen, as well as government [...]
Measures in the bag to cut vast polythene waste at supermarkets
There are encouraging sings that supermarkets are coming on board to give incentives to shoppers to bring reusable bags the environmental regulator says. Some leading supermarkets generate millions of kilograms of waste every year and contribute heavily to the plastic and polythene menace in Sri Lanka. The Central Environment Authority said officials had discussions with [...]
Nuwara Eliya Municipal Council employs new garbage system
At a time when effective ways of managing garbage are being explored increasingly, the Nuwara Eliya Municipal Council (NEMC) has managed to put in place a comprehensive garbage management system. Only last month, a plastic and polythene recycling centre at the municipality’s sanitary landfill site at Sandathenna(Moon Plains) also commenced operations. Spread over two hectares, [...]
Police raise alarm over shadow of terrorism in re-emergence of Jaffna violence
More than 20 youths have been detained following violent attacks challenging the authority of Sri Lanka police in Jaffna and the police chief has asked for public support to end the re-emergence violence from those linked to the defeated Tamil terrorist group. Many of the youths are below the age of 20, police said. In [...]
Betel tobacco ban: Campaigners tell youths to spit out deadly mouthful
The ban on the age old practice of chewing betel came under heavy criticism by the public citing the double standards adopted by the government, which would not prohibit tobacco smoking. Last week, the government banned smokeless tobacco through a gazette notice after it was approved in parliament in April 2017. The manufacture, sale and [...]
Use of polythene still continues
As debate continues over a Government plan to ban certain polythene items from September 1, the overuse of polythene continues to cause immense harm to the environment. Given that it is easy to use, strong and water resistant, polythene is a favored consumer item. From large coverings used to carry dozens of items, to the [...]
Religious Festivals
Three main religious festivals in the country got underway this week. These were the Kandy Perahera, the Kataragama Perahera and the Nallur Festival, Jaffna.
Pick of the Pix
Pics by Amila Gamage, Indika Handuwala,Sameera Weerasekera,Shelton Hettiarachchi, Kanchana Kumara Ariyadasa, Janath De Silva