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President Ranil Wickremesinghe, Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces was given a guard of honour by a new batch of Army cadet officers at the Diyatalawa camp yesterday. He is seen taking time to have a word with a lady cadet officer. Pic by Pradeep Pathirana
Debt crisis: IMF says China ready for roundtable talks
Funding agency optimistic after discussions with Chinese authorities China has agreed to form a global sovereign debt “roundtable” that would include a wide variety of stakeholders and private sector creditors, International Monetary Fund Chief Kristalina Georgieva has been quoted as saying. Ms. Georgieva told an event hosted by the IMF on December 15 that she [...]
Move to raise electricity tariffs: PUCSL bypassed, Cabinet paper next month
By Damith Wickremasekara The Government is to submit the new electricity tariff rates to the Cabinet by January, bypassing the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL). The Sunday Times learns that the Cabinet paper is being prepared, setting the average selling price at Rs 42 a unit with the aim of relieving the burden [...]
Jaffna fishermen surround vessel with about 100 foreigners; Navy moves in
By N. Lohathayalan Jaffna fishermen yesterday intercepted a vessel carrying more than 100 foreigners about 18 nautical miles off Point Pedro. The fishermen immediately alerted the Northern Naval Command about the vessel and the Navy dispatched three vessels to the location. The Navy vessels were due to reach the location last evening to establish the [...]
X-Press Pearl disaster: Lanka faces risk of losing US$ 3b in compensation
MEPA censured for not meeting deadlines and dealing with Australian consultant By Ranjith Padmasiri and Damith Wickramasekara The Attorney General’s (AG) Department and the Justice Ministry have directed the Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) to submit within three weeks the final report compiled by an expert team detailing the environmental damage caused by the X-Press [...]
Lanka denounces US$ 3.4mn allocated by UN body to implement UNHRC resolution
Sri Lanka has opposed the allocation of a “staggering” US$ 3.4mn (Rs 1.2bn) by the United Nations to enforce the latest Human Rights Council (UNHRC) resolution on promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka, the entirety of which the Government has categorically rejected. The sum is part of the UN’s suggested programme budget [...]
Four stars for Navy Commander with rank promotion
President Ranil Wickremesinghe, in his capacity as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, promoted Navy Commander Vice Admiral Nishantha Ulugetenne to the rank of Admiral effective from yesterday (December 17). He was appointed as the 24th Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy on July 15, 2020 and was promoted to the three star rank of [...]
Question mark over question time as questioners and answerers play truant
By Sandun Jayawardana When the Parliamentary Business Committee set aside December 13 for a special session to field questions for oral answers, it did so with the intention of giving an opportunity to MPs to obtain answers they had been waiting for months after posing the questions. The move, while good on paper, ended in [...]
A noble gift for Podi Hamuduruwo’s birthday
The proclamation for the development of the historic Hunupitiya Gangaramaya Temple as a place of worship was presented on Wednesday to its Chief Incumbent Ven Galaboda Gnanissara Nayaka Thera also known as Podi Hamuduruwo. President Ranil Wickremesinghe presented the proclamation to Ven. Gnanissara Nayaka Thera on the occasion of his birthday. Former Presidents Gotabaya Rajapaksa [...]
Three police teams probe Schaffter’s mystery killing
Releasing a statement family urges privacy and asks the media and the people to “wait for the facts to be established” By Chris Kamalendran Investigations into the killing of well-known businessman and Janashakthi Group Director Dinesh Schaffter were widened yesterday with three police teams probing the death and statements of 23 people recorded so far. [...]
6.3 million people food insecure; urgent assistance needed
Sudden transition to organic agriculture put farming in a mud hole; food security nosedive needs to be controlled By Tharushi Weerasinghe Sri Lankans are reeling from the effects of a severe economic crisis, with rising costs causing a food shortage that is being compounded by the fall in food production largely due to the previous [...]
60 percent of families eating cheaper and less nutritious food
Environment Ministry Secretary Anil Jasinghe told the Sunday Times food and water security were among the government’s biggest concerns as the immediate risks posed by climate change. Other experts told the Sunday Times that extreme weather events such as droughts and floods which destroy crops, the dry zones of Sri Lanka becoming drier, and the [...]
Tumbling rupee makes seasonal goods pricier
By Kasun Warakapitiya Restrictions on imports and the depreciation of rupee against the US dollar are weighing on Christmas sales, traders say. The rupee is one of the world’s worst performing currencies. The president of Pettah Textile and Merchants Association, Mohomad Yaseen Haja Najimudeen told the Sunday Times that prices of imported textile products have [...]
Freed from regulation, price of an egg leaps to Rs 65
Producers are now selling eggs at prices ranging from Rs 55 to Rs 65 after a court suspended the maximum retail price fixed by the consumer regulator. The Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) had fixed a price below that of the previously gazetted maximum retail price and poultry producers rejected it. Poultry producers had earlier gone [...]
Fall armyworm infestation endangers corn fields, once again
By Nadia Fazlulhaq In the rural Horiwila area in Palugaswewa in the Anuradhapura District, corn farmers are once again facing a fall armyworm infestation. They lament that more than 1,500 acres of corn cultivation have been attacked by the fall armyworm (locally called sena dalambuwa). Government officials are yet to visit the sites and provide [...]
Checks to help contain drugs in schools
By Chris Kamalendran An estimated 40,000 students—most from the Western Province—have been found to be users of narcotic drugs and searches of school premises will continue to contain the menace. A senior police officer of the Narcotics Bureau said the revelation prompted joint surprise checks with education authorities. “Children are being introduced to drugs in [...]
Anti-ragging laws coming; new education system to promote personality building
By Yoshitha Perera The amendments for the Anti-Ragging Act of 1978 will be made by end of March, next year, Higher Education State Minister Suren Raghavan said. He said the amendments would not only be aimed at ragging, but there would also be regulations to change the structure of the state university system. “Ragging is [...]
Peradeniya University in turmoil after attack on former VC and family
Suspects to be punished by suspension of academic activities; nearly 16 arrested Nearly 16 university students have been arrested so far in connection with the alleged assault on Peradeniya University’s former Vice Chancellor Prof. Athula Senaratne and his son, Police Media Spokesperson Nihal Thalduwa said. On December 10, Prof. Senaratne and his son were assaulted by [...]
AG: Mudalige and Sridhamma Thera had links with FSP and those who wanted to topple Govt.
By Ranjith Padmasiri Inter-University Students’ Federation (IUSF) Convenor Wasantha Mudalige and fellow activist Ven. Galwewa Siridhamma Thera had maintained direct links with the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP), the Attorney General’s (AG) Department informed the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court this week, citing police investigations. Senior Deputy Solicitor General (SDSG) Dileepa Peiris said phone records of the [...]
State owes Rs 209b: Builders
By Sadisha Saparamadu The Sri Lankan Government owes nearly Rs 209 billion to private and public contractors, an industry group says. Dr Rohan Karunaratne, president of the Ceylon Institute of Builders, said he recently asked the Government to settle the dues through Treasury Bills. The industry employs nearly 1.2 mn workers at all levels of [...]
German-funded bridge over Kala Oya into Wilpattu opened
By Hiran Priyankara Jayasinghe The German GIZ-funded access bridge across the Kala Oya in Wilpattu was opened this week in the presence of German High Commissioner Holger Seubert, GZI representative, and Wildlife Department officials. The bridge was built to increase access to the Wilpattu National Park through its entrance in Puttalam from the Eluwankulama Crossway. [...]
Rice price may hold steady, but some varieties already cost more
By Senuka Jayakody The price of rice is expected to remain stable following an import ban, which rice producers say was three months too late. Wholesalers say the price of some rice varieties has already risen. The Paddy Marketing Board is also expected to release some stocks into the market and this is expected to [...]
The cool December days may not bring good cheer
By Nadia Fazlulhaq The usually pleasant nip in the air feel of December days may not bode well with many, especially those with respiratory ailments due to a mishmash of weather phenomena, experts have cautioned. “The effects of a triple dip La Nina condition will bring cold weather and low temperatures during the night and [...]
Suicide of humiliated students shed light on broken system
By Chrishanthi Christopher The Human Rights Commission last week summoned Education Department officials for an inquiry into the death of a 19-year-old schoolboy who had committed suicide on the school premises. At the inquiry, it was revealed that the Advanced Level science stream student had been pulled up for poor performance in school exams by [...]
Uphill task to conserve mountain-based biodiversity hotspots
Experts highlight important service rendered by mountains; call for urgent steps to save eco-giants and species endemic to Lanka By Wasantha Ramanayake Taking urgent steps to conserve mountains for their rich biodiversity could not be delayed until new species are discovered, experts warned as they marked International Mountain Day on Monday. “A team of Sri [...]
Fa la la la la, and good cheer
After two silent Christmases due to the pandemic, this year the carollers are out in full swing. The Customs choir was seen singing a merry tune (top and right). Also carroling was the Salvation Army Choir at the Radh Hotel in Kandy. The occasion was the lighting of the street lamps by the Kandy Mayor [...]
Brick by brick, it all comes down
Story and pix by Hiran Priyankara Jayasinghe Brick makers are facing great distress being unable to sell their bricks due to the collapse of the building industry, brought on by high cement prices. These brick-makers from several villages including Pallama, Nagavila state that they are unable to sell over 2 million bricks, which are now [...]
Kajeemawatta had squatter families, but blaze site not UDA owned
By Yoshitha Perera An application to the Urban Development Authority (UDA) under the Right to Information Act, has revealed that the Kajeemawatta land in Grandpass, where a blaze displaced more than 300 people, is not owned by the authority. Most residents who had settled on the land received houses from the authority, and the current [...]