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Home » NewsFrom the Kandy Lake, a plea for peace
With Russia’s full scale invasion of Ukraine plunging the world into further chaos amidst a pandemic and world economies in recession, in Sri Lanka, this Ukrainian tourist wrapped in the country’s flag stands near the Kandy Lake pleading for peace in her country. Pic by Shane Seneviratne
Basil will go to the IMF in April
Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa is to visit the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank in April when the two lending institutions hold their annual Spring sessions. The Sunday Times learns from high-ranking sources that the Government has initiated contact with both the IMF and the World Bank for the Finance Minister to visit [...]
Indian IT firm given SDP status for US$ 10.25mn investment here
The local subsidiary of an Indian multinational IT company has been granted ‘Strategic Development Project’ (SDP) status with multiple tax breaks in exchange for an investment of US$ 10.25mn and jobs for up to 5,325 Sri Lankans in ten years. The promised outlay is just above the minimum of US$ 10mn required to qualify for [...]
Financial relief for Ukrainian tourists stranded here?
The Government is to consider providing financial relief to over one thousand Ukranian tourists now in Sri Lanka on holiday and unable to go back to their war-torn country. The Tourism Ministry was to recommend to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to make use of funds from either the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority or the Ministry [...]
Beer and wine for tourists at home stays, guest houses
To boost tourism, the Government is to permit the sale of soft liquor — beer and wine — at all hotels, guest houses and home stay facilities registered with the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority. A senior Excise Department official said cabinet approval had been granted for the proposal. He said the proposal would enable [...]
Govt. urged to declare fuel supply as essential for power generation
The Government has been requested to declare the supply of fuel for the power sector as essential under an impending Indian credit line of US$ one billion to meet fuel requirements to generate electricity for the next two months. The move by the Public Utilities Commission has been submitted as a cabinet note with a [...]
Zoo remains headless for fifth consecutive week; probe on DG’s complaint continues
The country’s zoological gardens have been operating without a head for the fifth consecutive week with the probe on the director general’s complaint against zoo employees yet to be completed. Zoological Gardens Director General Shermila Rajapaksha temporarily withdrew from her duties for two weeks following a dispute with sections of the trade unions. On January [...]
West Container Terminal project: Agreements signed with Adani Ports, other partners
The shareholder, site lease and financing agreements for the Colombo Port’s West Container Terminal (WCT) were signed on Friday and the first instalment of a premium of US$ 15mn will be deposited with the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) within days, officials said. “All official matters are completed,” confirmed SLPA Chairman Prasantha Jayamanna. “They previously [...]
Sunday Times journalist receives diploma in journalism
The Sri Lanka College of Journalism yesterday held its Diploma in Journalism Convocation at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute in Colombo. Here Sunday Times Journalist Ruqyyaha Deane receives her diploma from Chief guest Prof Nalin Abeysekera of the Department of Management Studies, Open University. Pic by Nissanka Meegoda
CEB to go to the people with energy conservation mechanisms
The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) issued a circular this week to implement energy conservation among electricity consumers owing to dwindling reserves in hydro reservoirs, limitations in supplying fuel to thermal power stations and increasing demand. Among measures to be taken is to increase solar penetration with a mechanism to be introduced in due course to [...]
Airline offices’ dollar payments to principals pile up
Money owed by general sales agents (GSAs) and local airline offices to principals abroad has further piled up with dollars unavailable to settle the dues, sector sources said. The problem is now months-old and the only reason airlines haven’t cut their frequencies is fear of providing competitive advantage to rivals, they explained. None of them [...]
Dec. 3 blackout: Committee recommends police probe
A committee that investigated the total blackout on December 3 has recommended a formal investigation by law enforcement agencies and independent IT experts after the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) offered no “definitive proof” to support its explanation for the failure’s root cause. The committee also examined the blackout that took place November 29, 2021, because [...]
Bandula Padma Kumara: Prominent voice for free media stilled
Veteran media personality Bandula Padma Kumara passed away earlier this week after a brief illness. He had a stellar career that ranged from a film critic to a newspaper editor, a chairman of a leading publishing house, to an anchorman and author. He was 71. Mr. Padma Kumara began his journalism as a film critic [...]
SriLankan pilots fly the roster, claiming airline boss failed to honour pledge on pay-cut
SriLankan Airlines pilots are “flying the roster” over a protracted dispute with the management. “This is not a work-to-rule action or any form of industrial action,” the Airline Pilot’s Guild of Sri Lanka (ALPGSL) insisted. “It only means that pilots will fly the published 28-day roster only and not extend any cooperation to the company [...]
Chamuditha says he has no faith in police probe on attack on his home
Three police teams investigating the attack on journalist Chamuditha Samarawickrema’s Piliyandala home are questioning some of those he had recently interviewed on his talk shows, including dethroned Mrs Sri Lanka Pushpika de Silva. However, there are still no identified suspects. Ms de Silva has been re-summoned to give a statement in connection with the February [...]
All eyes on Ukraine as Lanka fears conflict will hit already battered economy
As fighting escalates between Russian and Ukranian security forces, Sri Lanka is watching nervously on how the conflict will impact a country already reeling from an unprecedented economic crisis. As Russian forces reached the Ukranian capital Kiyv, there were concerns over the safety of Sri Lankans still in Ukraine. Of the 71 Sri Lankan nationals [...]
‘After a COVID-19 infection, let your body guide you’
“Listen to what your body tells you. Even if the symptoms of COVID-19 have cleared and you have passed the seven-day stipulated period, do not jump back into your routine, if you feel unwell. Rest and be careful.” This is the advice of Consultant Physician Dr. Eranga Narangoda of the Homagama Base Hospital who was [...]
Hypothesis on cold-water showers after a COVID-19 attack
Nandada,epada (Should I bathe or not?) or Kawadada naanna puluwan (When can I bathe?), are some of the questions that keep cropping up from patients, says Consultant Physician Dr. Waruna Gunathilake, who with his team is running a Post-COVID Clinic at the National Eye Hospital, Colombo, since last year. This innovative Physician focuses on what [...]
Immunity, natural infection & vaccines
As Sri Lanka continues to see rising COVID-19 numbers, Consultant Clinical Microbiologist Dr. Mahen Kothalawala attached to the National Hospital of SriLanka (NHSL) focuses on two crucial aspects. Immunity and what lies ahead in the face of the inexorable march of COVID-19 are what interests him. The ‘immune response’ against SARS-CoV-2 (the new coronavirus) A [...]
Vaccination of children
Here are the highlights of Friday’s media briefing at the Health Promotion Bureau (HPB). HPB Director Dr. Ranjith Batuwanthudawe: Children above 12 years of age are being given the 1st dose of the vaccine and those above 16 years of age will be given the 2nd dose if three months have elapsed since the 1st. [...]
Sparks fly as pandemic-hit people now suffer power cut woes
Long rolling power cuts are crippling businesses, disrupting education and affecting the daily activities of people who seem to ask “Is there light at the end of the tunnel?” People lament that power cuts are hitting them hard while they are struggling to cope with heaps of difficulties during the current pandemic period. Adding to [...]
Adding public ire to fuel
Tourist vehicle drivers go from shed to shed on motorbikes in search of fuel Bus operators warn public transport will be crippled, if situation worsens The fuel crisis is causing a ripple effect on all sectors while frustrated angry motorists joined long queues at filling stations. Disappointed drivers were turned away at state-owned Ceypetco (CPC) [...]
More pain awaits Sri Lankans at the grocery and at the pump
Sri Lankans beaten down by unprecedented multiple economic calamities caused by state failures, including simultaneous electricity and fuel woes, can expect to pay much more for their bread, roti, rice, cooking gas, and fuel in the wake of heavy price volatility in global commodities markets. Prices Sri Lankans pay at the grocery shops and wet [...]
Drug importers warn of shortages if delays and dollar problem are not addressed
The delay in certifying imported medicinal drugs is adding to the forex-crisis-driven supply chain disruption, industry sources said. If immediate steps were not taken to address the issue, the country would experience a severe shortage of drugs in the next three months, pharmaceuticals importers warned. The Sri Lanka Chamber of Pharmaceutical industry (SLCPI) President Sanjeewa [...]
Dollar crunch throws supply chains, businesses into disarray
The worsening forex crisis is severely disrupting supply chains, especially of small and medium businesses, and damaging their relationship with foreign suppliers, several sectors lament. “Many banks are asking for collateral in rupees to the values of Letters of Credit we want to open,” said Kavinda Makalanda, Managing Director of Schering Life Sciences, a pharmaceutical [...]
Merchandise export earnings rise to US$ 1,062 in January
Sri Lanka’s merchandise exports climbed by 13 percent to US$ 1,062.63 million in January 2022, compared to the same period in January 2021, Sri Lanka Export Development Board (SLEDB) stated. According to SLEDB data, the merchandise export performance in January 2021 was US$ 936.70 and in January 2020, it was US$ 1,004.90. The export performance [...]
Pick of the pix
Loose ends: On the way to weaving the pattern of life Helping hands: Supporting one another, even in difficult situations Pix by Eshan Fernando
Sea cucumber farming spells death to traditional coastal fishing in north
Once a fisherman, Manualpillai Thoms Dehol (56) now makes a living solely by repairing fishing nets to support his family of four. Hailing from a fisherfolk family at Pasaiyoor in Jaffna, he gave up fishing last year: The reason: His access to the familiar shore and the sea has been restricted by mushrooming sea cucumber [...]
Govt. to expand vessel monitoring as Lankan fishermen continue to fish in foreign waters
The multi-day fishing vessel Sampath 7 left the fisheries harbour in Beruwala in May last year, and its skipper Mahalingam Kanapathi steered the boat into the waters of Seychelles. However, since the vessel did not have a valid licence to fish in foreign waters Kanapathi was arrested along with his vessel by Seychelles coast guards [...]
The masked horror
With millions of face masks disposed daily, a new environmental and health hazard is in the making. For more than two years, the use of face masks has been prevalent due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but the proper disposal of masks has failed to gain attention. Chief Medical Officer of Health – Colombo Municipal Council, [...]
A stinking sight
Garbage will continue to be a cause of concern for those residing in Colombo city next week due to further delays in garbage collection. Colombo Municipal Council Director Engineering (Solid Waste Management), K Ramesh, said a Covid-19 outbreak at the Kerawalapitiya waste power plant had caused the delay in collection. “Several plant operators tested positive [...]
Quality Assurance Bill amendments to be taken up in the House
Amendments to the Quality Assurance Bill will be moved during the committee stage at Parliament regarding the composition of the committee’s members, an official of the Education Ministry said. Under the existing bill of the 15 members to the committee, nine members can be appointed by the Education Minister, but in view of opposition from [...]