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Home » NewsPresident makes an appearance; state of emergency lifted
A beleaguered President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, under fire to resign and not seen in public during the past few weeks came to honour the fallen soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice during the 30-year separatist insurgency that ended with the defeat of the LTTE on May 18, 2009. The President was Defence Secretary during the final [...]
PSC to identify those responsible for current economic crisis
PM proposes all-party committee instead of presidential commission Probe will also focus on failure to approach IMF and delays to seek international support Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is to propose a Parliamentary Select Committee to ascertain individuals responsible for the current economic crisis that has led to acute shortages of essential food, medicines, fuel, gas [...]
More powers to independent commissions; dual citizens cannot become MPs
Constitutional amendments aimed at strengthening independent commissions, vesting more powers with Parliament and preventing persons with dual citizenship from holding membership in Parliament will be presented to the Cabinet for approval tomorrow. Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe told the Sunday Times that a final review of the amendments would be taken up with Prime Minister Ranil [...]
One billion credit line sought from India and China to buy fuel till December
Sri Lanka is to begin negotiations for fresh credit lines with India and China with the aim of raising US$ one billion for the purchase of fuel for the rest of the year, a senior Treasury official said. He said they were trying to obtain US$ 500 million each from these two countries to ensure [...]
Maj. Gen. (Retd.) Jagath Alwis again writes to CJ, this time to apologise
Public Security Ministry Secretary Major General (Retd.) Jagath Alwis has apologised to Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya, saying the letter addressed directly to him was not intended to be sent to him. The apology came soon after the Chief Justice forwarded the letter to the Attorney General for action to be taken. Attorney General Sanjay Rajaratnam [...]
US Treasury plan paves way for aid to tackle Sri Lanka hunger
Sri Lanka’s desperate poor stand to benefit from a joint action plan initiated by the United States Treasury for a coordinated response to tackle the escalating dangers of global food insecurity. Under the ‘International Financial Institution Action Plan to Address Food Insecurity’, the Asian Development Bank will repurpose existing commitments of about US$150 million (about [...]
Electricity Act amendments to remove bidding restrictions
The government has proposed a Bill to amend the Sri Lanka Electricity Act to remove restrictions regarding participation in a bidding process for energy production. The draft made by the Power and Energy Ministry on May 17 includes changes to sections 8, 9 and 43 of the Sri Lanka Electricity Act No. 20 of 2009. [...]
The mobs destroyed not only our houses but precious memories too, say MPs
When former minister Siripala Gamlath left for Colombo, he had taken clothes sufficient for only two days as he intended to return to his residence in Polonnaruwa after a short visit. On Monday (16), a week after the terrible events of May 9, he and his wife returned to inspect the wreckage of their home [...]
More than 1200 taken into custody after May 9 unrest; Police expect more arrests
More than 1200 people have been arrested in connection with the unrest that erupted in the country following attacks on peaceful protesters outside Temple Trees and at Galle Face on May 9, the Police said yesterday. As part of the investigations, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) recorded statements from Police Inspector General C. D. Wickremaratne [...]
Mobile app and 24-hour hotline for gas distribution to be made available soon
A mobile app and a 24-hour hotline will be introduced to inform people of the availability of gas in their areas. This decision was taken by the Committee on Public Enterprise (COPE) on Friday to end growing protests demanding cooking gas. Litro Gas Chairman Vijitha Herath assured COPE that arrangements were being made to supply [...]
Cabinet office agrees to give citizens access to information in its possession
In keeping with the directives issued by the Right to Information Commission with regard to obtaining Cabinet decisions and related documents under the Right to Information Act, the Office of the Cabinet of Ministers decided to issue relevant information in its custody to the public with the consent of relevant ministry secretaries. The new arrangement [...]
First no fertiliser, now no fuel: Vegetable traders lament
It was 2.30 pm. The vegetables brought in the morning could not be sold and remained at the shops in the Economic Centre at Narahenpita. Traders were desperately wondering how to make money with the vegetables they had bought by spending hundreds of thousands of rupees. P K P Sampath, a vegetable trader for 15 [...]
Study on bird translocation sheds more light on forest-dwelling birds
An important research carried out on the translocation of birds into agricultural and forested landscapes has shed more light on conserving forest-dwelling endemic birds. Principal researcher Salinda Kasun Dayananada, a PhD student from Guangxi Key Laboratory of Forest Ecology and Conservation, College of Forestry, Guangxi University, told the Sunday Times that the four-year long research [...]
Hoarders and corrupt shed owners blamed for long fuel queues
As the queues at filling stations appeared to get longer, allegations of hoarding, selling fuel at higher prices by those collecting fuel, and political involvement in creating a scarcity have also emerged. Appealing to the people to cooperate, Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekara said there were incidents of hoarding fuel, and attempts by political [...]
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Boats stay on land, livelihoods dry up
The wind usually brings fortune to sailors, but the present situation is keeping them ashore The wind on the sails and the water combine to propel a boat through the water. The aerodynamics are simple: The wind blows against the boat at an angle, inflates the sail, forms a similar foil shape, and it pushes [...]
‘I have not benefitted from political connections’
Gnanawathi Jayasooriya, a.k.a. Gnana Akka, in an exclusive interview with Kumudini Hettiarachchi denies wielding powers over President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and other VIPs and says all that she built up through her own sweat, toil and tears now lies ruined after mobs attacked her home on May 9 Some reverently call her Gnana Akka, others Meniyo [...]
More than 8000 people affected by adverse weather
The Southwest monsoon that has now set in has resulted in adverse weather conditions in many parts of the country, while strong winds and thuderstorms have been forecast. Strong winds about (40-50 kmph) can be expected over the western slope of the central hills, Northern, North Central and North-Western provinces and in Hambantota and Trincomalee [...]
Bus operators offload politicians; no more hires for political events
Cash-strapped bus owners have decided not to hire out their vehicles to politicians, trade union activists and protest organisers if the purpose is to take supporters to political events and protests. Private Bus Owners Association Chief Gemunu Wijeratne told the Sunday Times that bus owners were appalled by the ruling party parliamentarians’ failure to address [...]
Tourism sector struggles for survival; pleads for political stability and end to crises
The tourism sector is pleading with the authorities to restore political stability and immediately address the fuel crisis, rising prices and power cuts in a bid to revive the industry and make it once again a key source of foreign exchange flow. The year began favourably, with tourist arrivals reaching 82,327 in January. February and [...]
Mega tourism project on Uchchamunai Island: Ecosystems on the chopping block
Activists allege lease agreement signed without proper studies on environmental harm Say ultra-sensitive ecosystem unable to sustain the impact; fisherfolk’s livelihood threatened What happened to Hikkaduwa and Pigeon Island will happen to Kalpitiya, they warn SLTDA denies charge, says agreement was to help Swiss investor with approval process The Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority [...]
State of emergency ends; but armed forces will remain deployed
A state of emergency declared on May 6, giving additional powers to the security forces to carry out searches and arrests, lapsed yesterday. However, armed forces will remain deployed for security duties as the President has issued a fresh gazette, calling out armed forces to be deployed in all districts from today. The gazette has [...]