Forgotten fruits are the best
Indigenous fruits such as beli, masan, mora, himbutu, nelli, katu anoda, veralu and lawulu fast vanishing Top researcher calls for steps to save and popularise Lanka’s underutilised fruits Bovitiya, dan, palu kan ware me nowe podi nango Kurundu kele sudu welle ma dan wehi wehela nango Sihiwana vita thola katada themei me ma yanawa nango [...]
After Trump’s America first, now Abe’s Japan first
TOKYO – Even whales have now been affected by US President Donald Trump. This year, Japan will withdraw from the International Whaling Commission and resume commercial whaling. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s conservative government claims that eating whale meat is an important part of Japanese culture, even though the number of Japanese who actually do so [...]
Accessible tourism is tourism for all
There is an increasingly strong financial incentive for those involved in tourism to make their facilities safe and accessible equally to everyone. For different reasons — including rapid ageing, numerous debilitating medical conditions (that often go unnoticed), accidents, convalescence and even being pregnant — nearly 25 percent of the world’s travelling population find their physical [...]
Religious and racial amity is the way forward
The year 2018 was a period of economic setbacks. Apart from the sharp depreciation of the rupee, the ever-increasing repayment of debts, depletion in the foreign reserves and a drop in remittances sent by expat workers, a cloud of darkness prevailed due to a constitutional crisis which nearly brought our country to its knees. The [...]
Diplomacy and identity crisis
Prior to the December 14 Supreme Court decision which led to the reinstatement of the Wickremesinghe government, two former Sri Lankan ambassadors from the pro-Rajapaksa front had been publicly pushing the notion of the diplomat as “messenger” with a duty only to convey messages between the sending state and receiving state through the formal channel [...]
The bacteriologist who battled diseases and famine in colonial Ceylon
Between the two World Wars, Sri Lanka was ravaged by diseases and famine. Malaria had wiped out a vast slice of the rural population. Cholera and smallpox were a permanent threat in the ghettoes and slums of the urban centres — often introduced by migrant labour from neighbouring South India. Yaws was rampant in the [...]
‘Faked dynasties’ in Third World democratic polls
Joe Stalin, whatever his achievements and failures may have been, was certainly not considered an authority on democracy and free and fair elections. But his quip on elections made, perhaps well over half century ago — ‘People who cast votes decide nothing. Those who count votes decide everything’ — is quite relevant to the 21st [...]
Virakesari, Thinathanthi sign collaborative agreement
Sri Lanka’s leading Tamil newspaper Virakesari has signed a collaborative agreement with India’s Thinathanthi newspaper, which has a daily circulation of more than 1.8 million. The Thanthi group also has TV and radio channels. Up-to-date news from the sub-continent and the world will now be available through the pages of Thanthi in the Virakesari. A [...]
Prof. Silva of Surrey University awarded prestigious Physics prize
Professor Ravi Silva of the University of Surrey, UK, has been awarded the James Joule Medal and Prize by the Institute of Physics (IOP), UK for his distinguished contributions to the development of carbon nanomaterials for use in cross-disciplinary advanced technology applications relevant to materials, optoelectronics and sustainable energy. Prof Silva has contributed to research [...]
Seminal exhibition of Sri Lankan heritage art opens in Los Angeles
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) recently opened an exhibition titled, ‘The Jewelled Isle: Art from Sri Lanka’ – the first comprehensive survey of Sri Lankan art organised by a U.S. museum. Drawn in part from LACMA’s collection of Sri Lankan art, and including numerous domestic and international loans, the exhibition presents some [...]
New Year party at UNP’s Borella office
Western Province Councillor and the United National Party’s Borella Chief Organiser Jayantha de Silva was the chief guest when party supporters held a New Year celebration at their Bawa Place office. The party’s Lak Vanitha Peramuna members are seen distributing kiribath and sweetmeat at the event.