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Indian Navy chief's visit delayed
By Shanika Udawatte
A visit by the Indian Navy Chief Admiral Madavendra Sing to Sri Lanka scheduled for tomorrow, has been postponed indefinitely. Diplomatic sources confirmed the visit of the Indian Navy Chief and arrival of an Indian Naval ship, which was to coincide with his visit to Sri Lanka.

An Indian High Commission spokesman when contacted declined to comment on the reasons for the postponement. The postponement of the Indian Navy Chief's visit came in the wake of the scheduled Sri Lankan visit of the Chairman - Joint Chief of Staff's Committee (CJCSC) of Pakistan, General Mohamed Aziz Khan, planned to commence on September 15. Meanwhile the five-day visit of the Indian defence delegation to Sri Lanka, which ended last Friday, is expected to increase training opportunities for Sri Lankan military personnel in India. However the subjects discussed seem to be of high commercial interest to India too.

The delegation, which comprised officers of the armed forces, officialss and other Indian representatives, arrived in Sri Lanka last Monday on a mission to extend defence cooperation with the Sri Lankan Armed Forces.

Second accident at hoodoo spot
Eight people were killed and at least 34 people were injured in Friday's accident when a bus travelling from Ampara to Bandarawela went down a precipice at the 14th milepost near Rawana Ella around 5.45 pm. The injured have been admitted to Badulla, Bandarawela and Haputale hospitals.

The bus belongs to the Bandarawela depot. A special team from the SLCTB in Colombo has been sent to the site to carry out an investigation. Police said the driver of the bus survived with injuries and is currently at the Haputale hospital under police protection.

Ella police OIC Dharmadasa de Silva said that on a previous occasion two people were killed at the same spot when two lorries went down the precipice, but so far neither a protective fence nor a notice has been put up near the spot.

Disincentives for foreign investments to go
By Chandani Kirinde
Legislative hurdles, mainly in the labour area have become a disincentive to attracting foreign investors into the country, Board of Investment (BOI) chief Arjunna Mahendran said on Friday.

He named the Termination of Employment Act where the final decision on lay off of staff was in the hands of the Labour Commissioner as a cause for concern among foreign investors.

He said the disincentive was because the investors did not know how long a case before the Labour Commissioner would take to conclude and what amount of compensation they would be required to pay for the staff they laid off as this decision too rested with the Labour Commissioner.

Mr. Mahendran said that from January, the government was looking at making changes to the law so that the investors could be sure a case would conclude within a definite time frame.

He said the government is also looking to amend the Exchange Control Act to vest more power in the BOI to deal with foreign investment. Mr. Mahendran made the comments after the launch of the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD)'s World Investment Report 2003 at the UN office in Colombo.

In the UNCTAD report, which focused on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policies for Development (National and International Perspectives), countries were categorised based on several factors one of which was inward FDI - performance and potential.
The Report made specific reference to the Indo-Lanka free trade agreement signed in December 1998.

New SLFP organiser for Colombo East
Mr. Ratna Gamage, the former Chairman of the Tea Small Holdings Authority has been appointed as the new Colombo East organiser for the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) with immediate effect, by President Chandrika Kumaratunga.

Mr. Gamage was in the centre of a controversy following disputes with Small Holder Development Minister, Susantha Punchinilame. He will be in charge of the Narahenpita, Kirulapone and part of Havelock Town areas.

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