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Amid a growing crisis over the explosions and fires linked to LP gas cylinders, these workers of Litro gas agents are seen playing softball cricket with a gas cylinder as the wicket as they wait till their call for refilling at the Kerwalapitiya terminal. Pic by Eshan fernando
Talks with India for two more swap deals totalling US$ 1.4 bn
The Government is holding talks with India for two separate currency swap arrangements to the value of US$ 1.4 billion, in addition to an already announced US$ 500 million credit line. Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivad Cabraal told the Sunday Times the terms and conditions for the new US$ 1.4 billion swap deal would be [...]
A century of caregiving: Mallika Nivasa takes mission to the next level
The Mallika Niwasa Samithiya (Society) marked its century celebration (Siyawasaka Jayagarahanaya) with the main celebrations held at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference (BMICH) last Wednesday. The society was founded in 1920 by Mrs. Mallika Hewavitarne. It was a pioneering move to bring forth Colombo’s well-to-do ladies during British colonial rule to start a home for [...]
Pak police arrest 113 over barbaric murder of Lankan factory manager
Sri Lanka yesterday called for a full investigation into the brutal killing of a 48-year-old Lankan factory manager in Pakistan by a politically motivated once banned group as widespread local and international condemnation continues. Pakistani authorities moved in swiftly to arrest 113 people over last Friday’s beating and then burning alive of Priyantha Kumara, a [...]
Brawl in Parliament: SJB MPs walk out, demand security
Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MPs walked out of the Parliament chambers yesterday, claiming that their security within the House was threatened after a confrontation between Galle District SJB MP Manusha Nanayakkara and several Government MPs outside the Parliament chambers on the Opposition side. The confrontation occurred after the SJB MP had just concluded a speech [...]
Business plan between CPC and LIOC for Trinco oil tanks
The Energy Ministry is to finalise a business plan between the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation and the Lanka Indian Oil Company (LIOC) for Trincomalee oil tanks, an official said. To finalise the plans, the Ministry has requested the Survey General Department to carry out a survey of the 677 acre land in which the 99 oil [...]
Gas for domestic use resumes; Govt. reverses decision
The Government has revised its decision to suspend the supply of gas for domestic use, 24 hours after ordering the dealers to stop selling it. Despite an announcement that gas supply to the markets has been suspended, many dealers ignored the government ban and continued to sell gas yesterday. Dealers said they were not informed [...]
Experts urge tighter airport screening to check Omicron
With a Sri Lankan woman who arrived from Nigeria on November 24 being detected with Omicron this week and neighbouring India also reporting this ‘variant of concern’, experts are urging the health authorities to bring in tighter screening of all arrivals at the airport. Many experts stressed that it would be advisable to conduct RT-PCR [...]
Heavy price tag for scarce home gadgets, stationery, spare parts
Sri Lankans will face continuing increases in prices and shortages of stationery, vehicle spare parts and home appliances as a result of the US dollar crisis, importers warn. Forex reserves in the indebted country have depleted to unprecedented levels. What is left is enough for 1.3 months of exports. An international sovereign bond repayment is [...]
Death of veteran journalist: Editors’ Guild issues condolence message
The Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka has issued a condolence message on the death of veteran journalist M.V. Kanamaylnathan. The Guild in a statement said that Mr Kanamaylnathan, who passed away last week, served bravely during the conflict in the north while also giving guidance to journalists, Mr Kanamaylnathan was editor of the northern based [...]
Dr Padeniya prevented from being GMOA President
The Moratuwa District Court has issued an interim injunction preventing Dr Anuruddha Padeniya from being appointed as President of the Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) uncontested for the 2021/2022 period. The interim order prevents the GMOA’s Election Committee chairman from installing Dr Padeniya as the President for 2021/2022. The order by District Judge Daminda R. [...]
Writing on the wall: Yugadanavi name board disappears
With the US-based energy firm, New Fortress Energy Inc. announcing that it had executed a definitive agreement with the Sri Lankan Government to invest in West Coast Power Limited, which owns the 310 MW Yugadanavi Power Plant at Kerawalapitiya, the original nameboard of the ‘Yugadanavi’ plant has been covered or painted over as seen in [...]
Charges and countercharges, as power outage probe focuses on sabotage; more unions mull strike
The probe into Friday’s hours-long countrywide power failure will focus on whether it was caused by sabotage, with several Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) engineers being questioned by the Criminal Investigation Department over a previous outage on November 29. Within hours of Friday’s power outage, CEB General Manager M.R. Ranatunga told the media he suspected sabotage [...]
Tragic tale of tea and roti; many estate workers go to sleep hungry
The hard-working and lowly paid plantation workers were shocked by the recent steep increase in the price of wheat flour and other essential items. In tea plantation estates, families are finding it difficult to have even two meals a day since their monthly salaries are not enough to meet the increasing cost of living. In [...]
Countrywide power outages: Similarities, differences and questions
Sri Lanka experienced two total blackouts between February 2020 and December 2021 with Friday’s outage prompting suspicions of sabotage amidst trade union action by Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) engineers. There have also been two serious partial blackouts during the same period. Meanwhile, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has questioned several CEB staff regarding the power [...]
Myanmar rice unlikely to stop skyrocketing keeri samba prices
Rice traders like K. Ananda Thavam believe that the Government’s decision to import rice from Myanmar will control the skyrocketing prices in the retail market, but doubt it could bring down the prices of keeri samba, a variety much in demand in urban areas. The Cabinet this week decided to import 20,000 metric tonnes rice [...]
Official apathy over M’rajawela flooding
“I am standing in ankle-deep flood water as we speak, this has been happening for 20 years.” Sixty-year-old company secretary A.H.W. Mahinda has been a resident of ‘Nilsirigama’ scheme in Muthurajawela for the past 21 years. And twice a year without fail, his house gets flooded when the monsoon arrives. The drains and irrigation channels [...]
Inhumane and degrading living conditions in line houses: UN special rapporteur
A visiting United Nations rapporteur has urged the government to improve the living conditions of all workers, particularly plantation workers, noting that the community continues to face multiple forms of discrimination based on their origins. “Child labour is particularly severe in poor rural areas populated by Tamils and some children are forced to drop out [...]
National outrage halts exploding Litro cooking gas can of worms
As the domestic cooking gas crisis deepens with multiple explosions reported across the country and suppliers refusing to take responsibility for the disasters caused, the government on Friday temporarily stopped Litro Gas distribution. In the past two weeks, an average of 10 explosions were reported every day from homes. Many Sri Lankans have reported gas [...]
People fear to cook by gas, some switching to alternative modes
Amid the fear of COVID-19 and the rising cost of living, many Sri Lankan families have had another tale added to their woes. This concerns the use of cylinders of Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) for cooking, after several gas cylinder incidents and explosions took place over the past few weeks. More than 40 cooking gas [...]
Omicron is here; but don’t panic, says top expert
Omicron is in Sri Lanka. “Don’t panic. Vaccines work. Get vaccinated to prevent hospitalization, severe disease and death and take all preventive measures,” is the advice of Prof. Neelika Malavige. It is Prof. Malavige’s team that worked exhaustively night and day to perform genetic sequencing in over two days and alerted the Health Ministry on [...]
SLDA marks 89 years amidst pandemic challenges
It is amidst many challenges particularly in the unprecedented times of a pandemic that the Sri Lanka Dental Association (SLDA) celebrates its 89th birthday tomorrow, December 6. The simple celebration will be the launch of its brand-new website, as usually the SLDA’s flagship event including its scientific sessions is held in June. Before dealing with [...]
Satellite-tracked gull reveals migratory secrets
A migratory gull’s return to Sri Lanka from northern Russia has been charted in a milestone joint project in which researchers used a global positioning system transponder fixed to the bird. The team tracked a Heuglin’s Gull which flew to the edge of the Arctic in northern Russia from Mannar. It was tagged on April [...]
Coastal-dwellers alerted to cyclone heading from India
A cyclone is heading for the coastal areas of India and Sri Lanka’s forecasters are predicting heavy rainfall. They have asked coastal-dwellers to take precautions. A deep depression over west-central and near the south of the Bay of Bengal has moved north-west and is likely to move north-west, the weather forecasters say. This has intensified [...]
SC rejects objections made by AG, grants CEJ leave to proceed in elephant ownership case
The allegation that the Prime Minister, the Minister of Wildlife and the rest of the Cabinet are interfering with the statutory powers of the Attorney-General by directing him to withdraw all cases against those illegally keeping tamed elephants and hand the animals back to them “has far reaching ramifications” if true, the Supreme Court (SC) [...]
BOI resignations expose crisis within
This week’s mass resignations at the Board of Investment (BOI) were partly catalysed by staff resentment against a Finance Ministry and Cabinet-backed move to recruit private sector professionals to a new special unit at salaries far higher than internal scales. But the chairman, three directors and the director-general — all private sector draftees — were [...]
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Highway access: Broken Kerawalapitiya Road rolls out as symbol of disconnected development
A key access road to the Outer Circular Highway at Kerwalapitiya in Wattala is in a state of neglect and, according to road users, rolls out as a symbol of disconnected road development. From the Kerawalapitiya Junction near the Wattala Pradeshiya Sabhawa to the Kerawalapitiya highway entrance, the road has been poorly maintained over the [...]