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Home » NewsAt the waterfront, not with water cannons
These women police officers are not on a sight-seeing tour, but taking a break by the floating market in Colombo’s Pettah area after dispersing an anti-government protest rally which mercifully passed off without incident in Colombo on Wednesday. Pic by Akila Jayawardena
No more vehicle takeaways for retiring SOE officers
Treasury takes decision after COPE query; some institutions undervalue vehicles The Treasury has given orders to state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to discontinue the system of handing over ownership of official vehicles to top officials when they retire. Treasury Secretary Mahinda Siriwardana has issued a circular to this effect to ministry secretaries and chairpersons of state banks, [...]
Mishandling leads to loss of millions in organic fertiliser deal with China
By Namini Wijedasa Sri Lanka’s two state-owned fertiliser companies paid China’s Qingdao Seawin Biotech Group more than US$ 6.87mn or Rs 2.4bn for organic fertiliser in a court-mediated dispute settlement nearly one year ago but the shipment is yet to come. Not only has this disbursement gone to waste, but Sri Lankan officials also failed [...]
Pfizer vaccines: Six million doses expire, loss of Rs. 1.4bn
By Nadia Fazlulhaq The government has no plans to bring down the US-made Pfizer BioNTech vaccine against COVID-19 after about six million doses (about one million vials) expired this week, causing a whopping loss of Rs. 1.4 billion to the Government. At the beginning of the vaccination drive against COVID-19, many people were not given [...]
Sri Lanka clinches USD 300m annual loan from IDA
By Bandula Sirimanna Sri Lanka secured a USD 300 million annual commitment from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) following a meeting of its deputies in Washington on Thursday, the Sunday Times reliably learns. As a member of the World Bank, the IDA is the financial institution that offers concessional loans to developing countries. [...]
Lanka faces air quality crisis; respiratory ailments may intensify
Polluted air from north Indian regions, emissions from faulty overused vehicles, and poor quality of fuel will have a major impact on the country’s air quality in the coming months, experts warn. “From November to March, polluted air flows into the country (transboundary air pollution) mainly from northern regions of India and possibly from Bangladesh [...]
Elevated highway project: Top RDA officials testify before Bribery Commission
The two most senior officers of the project management unit (PMU) overseeing the Road Development Authority’s (RDA) proposed elevated highway from New Kelani Bridge to Athurugiriya gave statements to the Bribery Commission this week. PMU head K. Selvananthan was reportedly asked to bring additional documents to the Commission’s next inquiry date. He was also required [...]
New Bill for speedy recovery of leased premises
By Ranjith Padmasiri A new Bill is to be introduced in Parliament to facilitate the speedy recovery of premises given under a lease agreement and regulate collection of arrears of lease rentals. The Bill has been gazetted following cabinet approval. It also provides for the speedy conclusion of court cases related to lease of premises. [...]
Yala damage from four-wheeler antics under the microscope
By Kasun Warakapaitiya A team of six experts from the Ruhunu University on Friday visited the scene at the Yala National Park, where young drivers of dozens of modified off-road vehicles were seen spinning and carving patterns on October 22. The visit came after the Tissmaharama Magistrate court called for reports from the experts. The [...]
Appointments to CC: Party leaders to meet on Tuesday
Party leaders will meet on Tuesday for talks on appointing members to the Constitutional Council (CC) established under the newly passed 21st Amendment to the Constitution. The matter is to be taken up for discussion during the Committee on Parliamentary Business meeting with Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena presiding. The CC members will be tasked with [...]
New Bill to set limits on campaign spending at elections
By Damith Wickramasekara A draft Campaign Finance Bill that will allow the Election Commission (EC) to set spending limits for candidates contesting elections is to be submitted for Cabinet approval next week. According to the bill, due to be submitted by Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, any candidate who spends over the limit specified by the [...]
Causes of university rights abuses deep-rooted
By Yoshitha Perera University marshals have not received any training to manage ragging, or to counsel students, Higher Education State Minister Dr. Suren Raghavan said. There are student care officials, university marshals, counsellors, proctors, senior marshals, and academic bodies looking into ragging issues. “I met all the state university marshals and asked them whether they [...]
Teachers wielding cane face student backlash
By Chrishanthi Christopher While social activists demand a ban on corporal punishment in schools and at home, some students have begun to use social media to hold teachers to account. In a recent incident in a northern school, a teacher who used a cane to punish a student for not doing his homework has been [...]
Torrington’s community centre breeding drug addicts and mosquitoes
CMC, CEA and police passing the buck to each other; court orders regarding noise pollution openly flouted The Colombo Municipal Council’s Torrington community centre is doing more harm than good to the community. The centre along with a community hall opened by then Colombo Mayor Karu Jayasuriya under the purview of the CMC, has not [...]
Lawmaker inaction contributing to deadly road toll
By Sohan Vipulananda Worthless law makers and incompetent driving schools are among the main contributory factors to deadly road traffic accidents, according to academics who study transport. So far this year, 1,481 have perished and most are motorcycle riders. The total number of road traffic accidents this year is 13,246. Most caused non grievous injuries. [...]
No reason to panic, says Health Ministry as first case of monkeypox detected in SL
By Kumudini Hettiarachchi Do not panic, is the message that experts are stressing, as the Health Ministry announced that the first case of monkeypox has been detected in Sri Lanka. The first person detected with monkeypox is a 19-year-old who had returned from abroad on November 1. The Medical Research Institute (MRI) which had been [...]
Colombo Friend-in-Need Society: Looking back at big strides taken in prosthetic limbs
By Kumudini Hettiarachchi A far cry from a soup kitchen – by extending support with mobility to men, women and children, in numerous homes across the country, the Colombo Friend-in-Need Society (CFINS) has come a long way. As CFINS prepares for AIDEX 2022 next Sunday, its Vice President Prof. A.H. Sheriffdeen looks back at strides [...]
Amaradeva Centre construction work resumes
Construction work on the Amaradeva Aesthetic and Research Centre would conclude within eight months, the Central Construction Bureau estimated. The Bureau pointed out that as the economic situation is somewhat stable, the building construction could be concluded, as 60 percent of the building is already completed. The Amaradeva Foundation had placed the ashes of Pandit [...]
Experts push for climate-smart agriculture to minimise damage to crops from extreme weather
By Wasantha Ramanayake The anticipated paddy harvest often fails to reach the target due to climate-change-related untimely heavy rains, lament dry zone farmers who also lose a significant part of their crops due to elephant attacks, and, of late, the lack of fertiliser. In Polonnaruwa, farmers say the losses they incur due to successive failed [...]
Lanka looking to make climate change an opportunity for low-carbon economy
President to launch Sri Lanka’s Climate Prosperity Plan at COP27 in Egypt; proposes to establish International University on Climate Change By Malaka Rodrigo As a high-level UN summit on climate change starts today in Egypt, Sri Lanka and other climate-vulnerable countries will push for the need of having more funds for loss and damage caused by [...]
Environmental rights group files first climate action suit
By Wasantha Ramanayake A leading environmental rights group in Sri Lanka has filed the first public interest fundamental rights lawsuit in the Supreme Court against the failure of the then-president Gotabaya Rajapaksa to outline a policy framework to mitigate and to adapt to the impacts of climate change under the Paris agreement. The Centre for [...]
Pic of the Pix
FROM OUR READERS Shutterbugs out there, we would once again appreciate your contributions to this picture corner. Please send your captioned photograph along with yourname, and the location of the photograph, to : pictures@sundaytimes.wnl.lk We would also appreciate if you mention the camera or cellphone that was used
Dearth of wildlife officers and other factors cited for wild elephant attacks
By Senuka Jayakody There are not enough wildlife officials across Sri Lanka to respond to emergency calls from villages raided by wild elephants day in and day out. Department of Wildlife Director General Chandana Sooriyabandara, told the Sunday Times there are only about 1,000 wildlife officials. On Monday, in Kebithigollewa, a villager died from a [...]
Minister to seek cabinet nod to evict encroachers from elephant corridors
By Chris Kamalendran A cabinet paper is being prepared to evict encroachers from elephant corridors, Wildlife Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said. He said alternative locations would be needed to relocate the people who would be evicted. The minister said meetings were being held in various places to obtain the views of officials. On Friday a meeting [...]
Unmasked disaster
People are forgetting how to use masks properly. Some wear the masks on their chin, while others keep masks in their hands or do not use masks at all. People risk the spread of another surge of cases as they engage in their day-to-day activities without social distancing practices. Protest organisers too are paying scant [...]
Underwater museum attracts visitors
Story and pix by Rekha Tarangani Fonseka The underwater museum located off Sandy Bay Beach, Trincomalee is becoming famous among local and foreign tourists. Weapons used in warfare and colonial era wrecked ships are displayed in the museum along with war time statues. Vessels belonging to the Sri Lanka Navy, and damaged while in action, [...]