Clarke honoured
Arthur C. Clarke was honoured for his numerous
literary and scientific achievements by the University of Illinois with
the University Presidential Award and Medallion last Friday by Earl Kellogg,
associate provost for International Affairs at the University.
The medal which was awarded for the 11th time in the history of the
university which spans 137 years was awarded for his contribution to classic
science fiction, especially with his "2001- Space Odyssey". Mr.
Clarke said that he was flattered, honoured and delighted by the gesture
of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, which is also the birth
place of HAL 9000, the onboard computer of the novel and film based on
his famous fiction on year 2000.
Pay TV starting soon
Sri Lanka's first pay TV Channel 9 will be starting
its telecast shortly bringing to viewers a variety of programmes.
The Sunday Times learns the agreement between the local partners and
their foreign collaborators is due to be signed soon.
Once Channel 9 gets off the ground Sri Lanka will be on global television
network. Viewers have to pay for their channel on a monthly basis as it
is a pay TV network.
Programmes to be telecast on Channel 9 include sports, music, entertainment,
education, children's programmes and news. These programmes will be from
BBC, Warner Bros., Disney and others.
Meanwhile, when The Sunday Times contacted the Rupavahini Corporation
Chairman D. E. W. Gunasekera he said: "I am myself in the dark about
this. I am also looking for some news about this Channel. If I get to know
something I shall inform your paper."
However, Media Ministry, Secretary K. C. Logeswaram confirmed that the
licence to operate was issued by Dharmasiri Senanayake when he was Media
Minister.
Channel 9 will have Australian collaboration and its Chairman will be
Siva Gurupalan, a Sri Lankan based in Australia and its General Manager
is Gamini Rajanayake. A one time close confidante of a VVIP is also on
the board of directors, The Sunday Times learns.
See and hear Sirasa TV
By Sanath Weerasuriya
The new television channel, Sirasa TV will be on
the air from June 10, replacing the current MTV channel on the some wavelength.
The current, MTV channel will shift onto the "Newsvision"
channel from next Wednesday, which will cover the greater Colombo and Kandy
regions only.
The new 'Sirasa TV' is a Sinhala oriented islandwide channel and operates
18 hours non-stop from 6 am to 12 midnight.
Sirasa TV, though is a Sinhala oriented channel, will be featured 11/2
hours prime time Tamil belt, 1/2 hour English news exclusively from BBC,
MTV English news etc.
There will be one hour children's entertainment, cartoons muppet shows,
children's sitcom and one hour political programming too.
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