Apr 16 (LT) Several flights to Europe from Katunayake International AirPort have been cancelled due to huge clouds of ash from the volcano erupted in Iceland which turned the skies over northern Europe into a no-fly zone. Two flights to Germany and Paris from Colombo scheduled for tomorrow morning have been delayed says Airport sources. A volcanic eruption in southern Iceland spewed black smoke and white steam into the air and more..

Apr 16 (TC) The comments on my previous article �Create the conditions that will banish the idea of separatism� show the misconceptions and mistrusts that exist in the minds of some Sri Lankans. It is not only the different versions of the island�s history but also the supremacy given to the ethnic majority, contrary to democratic and Buddhist principles by some parochial persons that have prejudiced the minds of the people. more..

Apr 16 (IC) It is not a new argument. Anything involving the deviousness of political machinations never is, especially in the aftermath such as this one. What we now have in Sri Lanka is a type of Mexican stand-off with Sri Lankans instead of Mexicans; most are glaring at each other, as usual pointing fingers which are better than Berettas and verbal abuse being hurled and not small-arms fire that can do a more serious injury. more..

Apr 16 (LG) Dr Dayan Jayatilleka, Sri Lanka�s former ambassador and permanent representative to the UN, and earlier an underground revolutionary and academic, witnessed his island nation bleed and groan for long years because of the ethnic conflict between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil minority. Unmistakably, excessive and indiscriminate violence was used by all sides. The result has been horrific human rights violations of thousands of innocent people caught in the crossfire, so to say. more..

Apr 16 (GV) I can�t begin to count the number of times I�ve had that question asked from me over the years. Ironically enough, in these days of �peace� I�ve had it asked of me more and more frequently. Firstly in Colombo and now in Jaffna too. Jaffna � a town where 99% of the resident community is Tamil, the question is still asked. But why? What can one possibly gauge/assess by the response to that response? more..

Apr 16 (IL) President Mahinda Rajapaksa made a surprise visit to the Galle Face Green to inspect the Galle Face Green Development Project this evening on 15th April. A large crowd was at the Green with the dawn of the New Year and the President visited the location and met many of the visitors. Galle Face Green is a very busy and popular place for people for relaxing and spending leisure time in evenings and week ends. more..

Apr 16 (TN) The first parliamentary group meeting of the Tamil National Alliance is to be held on Sunday in Trincomalee. Thirteen parliamentarians elected from the five districts in North and East on the Ilangkai Thamizh Arasuk Kadchi (ITAK) ticket and the only national list parliamentarian will attend the first group meeting, Mr. R.Sampanthan, a senior leader of the TNA. ITAK is a constituent of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA). more..

Apr 16 (TN) Criticism has emerged from various quarters in Jaffna, including the senior activists of ITAK, against the way the TNA conducted its campaign promoting industrialist Eswarapatham Saravanapavan, a senior UNP member and the general manger of two leading newspapers, Jaffna based Uthayan and Colombo based Chudaro'li. Meanwhile, the chief editor of the newspaper has complained to his management that he is considering to renounce his vocation as more..

Apr 16 (MoD) The Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Thisara Samarasinghe, who made an official visit to the Northern Naval area, met with the fishing community at the Karainagar Island and discussed various matters pertaining to the industry in the area. He also looked into their professional welfare and sought their views on how best the Navy could further assist their fishing activities. more..

Apr 16 (DN) The UPFA victory is a big blow to local and foreign conspirators and money cravers in the country, Ven. Athuraliye Rathana Thera, who was fourth in the UPFA list in the Gampaha District said. He said this victory is unique like the last Presidential election. People who voted for the UPFA had shown the nation�s gratitude. �With this great victory the country will be able to proudly stand on its feet before the international community, the Thera said. more..

Apr 16 (LP) The 4th International MANGA Awards competition was launched on 5th April 2010 and entries are being entertained by the 4th International MANGA Award Executive Committee from overseas competitors. The International MANGA Award was established to share Japanese pop culture and to help promote understanding of Japan. It was created to honour MANGA artists who have contributed to the promotion of MANGA overseas. more..

Apr 16 (UNP) The Sinhala and Tamil New Year brings joy and promise to the Sri Lankans inspired by the bumper paddy harvests and lush greenery in this Bak maha season. This is a festival which is celebrated among the relatives and friends who come from far places to enjoy the celebration along with their relatives and friends. The Sinhala and Tamil new year brings among the people peace, harmony and freedom. more..

Apr 16 (SLNN) Sri Lanka�s first parliamentary election since the end of the war was one where no prizes could be offered for predicting a winner. Even the margin of victory (the difference between the number of seats of the winning party and the sum of what the others secure) could be predicted with an error margin of plus or minus five. This was an issue-less election and one robbed of energy and excitement by the exhausting battle for the presidency that took place in January more..

Apr 16 (LP) All arrangements are being finalized to accommodate the newly elected members in the chamber of the House where new seating arrangements are being made. According to the Secretary General Dhammika Kitulgoda the new Parliament will have a large number of new faces and young persons. President Mahinda Rajapaksa will address the ceremonial (1st) sitting of 7th Parliament on April 22 at 0845 am. The Speaker will be elected on the same day. more..

Apr 16 (TB) Having finally had the chance to visit the North of Sri Lanka after many years, some of my birding pals planned a trip to experience and enjoy the bounty of bird life in the other half of Sri Lanka. First on the list was Mannar Island. Mannar Island and the strip of land on the mainland from around Giant�s tank is a magnet for birders in search of species who are not found regularly in the southern half of the island. more..

Apr 16 (DN) An unprecedented crowd left for their native places from Colombo during the week preceding the Sinhala and Hindu New Year indicating a rise in public confidence in the post war environment. National Transport Commission Chairman L A Wimalaratna said a fleet of over 12,000 private buses carrying around 600,000 passengers left Pettah from April 6 to 13. The daily passenger base from Pettah was around 70,000. On a normal day, this number is approximately 45,000. more..

Apr 16 (DN) An enmity that developed between supporters of two UPFA candidates over a poster incident during the General Election took a turn for the worse when a supporter of one of the candidates was stabbed to death. The incident occurred on New Year�s eve in Ihala Vavulwewa in Anamaduwa. The victim has been identified as B.A. Kasun Chamara, 19. The suspect is alleged to be a Samurdhi officer in the area. more..

Apr 16 (LP) Latest books from Sri Lanka will be on display at the London Book fair at Earl's Court from 19 April on a joint initiative of The Booksellers and Importers Association of Ceylon and the Sri Lanka Book Publishers' Association. More than 200 books recently published in Sri Lanka will be available at the prestigious fair, which will be held from 19 to 21 April. more..

Apr 16 (DN) Only one person was admitted to the Colombo National Hospital with injuries caused by fire crackers during the New Year, Dr. Hector Weerasinghe said. This shows the success of the media campaign launched to raise awareness among the public on preventing firecracker accidents. The only person admitted to the hospital was an elderly person who lit fire crackers without following safety instructions under the influence liquor, more..

Apr 16 (Island) The Central Bank warns that the weak financial position of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) would exert pressure on Sri Lanka�s economy which has already overshot a budgeted deficit target of 7 percent of GDP reaching 9.7 percent in 2009. "Continuing weak financial position of the CEB exerts pressure on macroeconomic management of the country. The Persistently high outstanding liability of the CEB to the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) has more..

Apr 16 (MoD) Commander of the Army Lieutenant General Jagath Jayasuriya, addressing a section of Officers, Non Commissioned Officers, Other Ranks and civil staff at the Army Headquarters extended his New Year wishes to all ranks of the Sri Lanka Army and their families in connection with the Sinhalese and Hindu New year. more..

Apr 16 (Island) The late President J. R. Jayewardene, after securing a five-sixths majority in 1977, changed the electoral system and introduced the Proportional Representation, because he wanted to ensure that the UNP with a solid block vote at that time would stand to gain at subsequent elections in a bigger way. It was being claimed then that the UNP had, in spite of a crushing defeat which reduced it to a mere 17 seats at the 1970 parliamentary election, polled more than the SLFP, more..

Apr 16 (Island) Recognizing the need for plantation management to be scientifically trained in an industry which is the backbone of our economy, for the first time, Wayamba University of Sri Lanka conferred Bachelors degrees on 16 graduates at their recently held convocation. This significant development in tertiary education by a national university in Sri Lanka offers Plantation Management as an external undergraduate degree course. more..

Apr 16 (DM) More than 20,000 votes cast in Kandy plantation areas at the April 8 general election had to be rejected as the voters had not marked the ballot papers in the proper manner, election authorities said yesterday. They said the voters had placed a mark against the party of their choice and placed marks against the independent groups numbered 1, 2, 3 or 4 thinking they were marking their preferential votes. more..

Apr 16 (DM) One of the bonuses of mustering a thumping majority, a near two thirds at home is its ability to change the approaches the international community adopts towards a country. When Robert Blake says that the UPFA is likely to muster two thirds majority �when all the dust has settled� it says a lot. However one wonders whether he has got his figures or even arguments right when he speaks about the drubbing that the anti-power sharing �nationalist� parties got at the April 08 polls. more..

Apr 16 (DM) Democratic National Alliance (DNA) is tipped to appoint Former JVP Parliamentary Group Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake as a national list MP using one of its two anticipated national list slots while the second slot is expected to be given to another party in the alliance. Accordingly it is speculated that Tiran Allas � the proprietor of the now defunct Standard Newspapers Company would be given the second slot. more..

Apr 16 (DM) My dear Mahinda aiya, Ayubowan, vanakkam, assalamu alaikkum and congratulations on the historic betel harvest that the UPFA received politically from the people for the National New Year. The ruling UPFA is projected to win 143 seats in the 225-member parliament when the total list of MPs is gazetted by the Elections Commissioner after the re-poll in some booths of the Nawalapitiya and Trincomalee districts. more..

Apr 16 (LBO) Prime property in Sri Lanka's capital Colombo could be made available to private developers when the government goes ahead with a planned shift of state institutions, including defence, to the suburbs, officials said. "We're waiting for the green light," said an official of the Urban Development Authority. The government has decided all administrative functions must go to Sri Jayawardenepura, a new city west of Colombo, he said. more..

Apr 16 (Island) A 25-year-old Veddah from Dambana, who fell foul of the law after a booze on New Year�s day was remanded till April 20. He was charged with causing grievous hurt to a 42-year-old man by cutting him with an axe on April 14 at Mahiyangane. The indigenous tribesman, Uruwarige Kekula, had alighted from a bus, in the Mahiyangane town, but found his path blocked by a child on a tricycle. He pushed the child out of his way but more..

Apr 16 (DM) It is speculated that the main opposition UNP might accommodate two experienced professionals, who are newcomers to politics to Parliament, through its national list. Banker Eran Wickramaratne and economist Dr. Harsha de Silva are likely the new faces who will be given the green light. UNP seniors Tissa Attanayake, Joseph Michael Perera and Rukman Senanayake are also strongly tipped to be appointed to parliament. more..

Apr 16 (NF) The suspects of the Angulana double murder were further remanded until the 30th of this month. This order was issued when the murder of Dinesh Tharanga was taken up for consideration before Mount Lavinia additional magistrate Ruchira Weliwatta. The CID informed court that the summons issued for the head of the Ragama Molecular Biology Unit to appear before court were handed through the Government Analyst. more..

Apr 16 (NF) The case pertaining to the assassination of Lasantha Wickrematunga was taken up for consideration before the Mount Lavinia magistrate's court today. Presenting a report, the CID informed court that it was still continuing investigations on several suspicious telephone numbers. The CID added that they would not disclose those facts to court as their investigations would be revealed to other external parties. more..

Apr 16 (NF) Long queues could be seen at several fuel stations across the island due to a shortage of fuel. Even though there are around four filling stations in the Dambulla town, only one station is issuing fuel. Consumers charge that they were forced to wait in queues for several hours to obtain fuel. The situation had been reported from several areas including Kurunegala, Galle and Matara. more..

Apr 16 (NF) The Central Bank of Sri Lanka says that 80,310 metric tonnes of rice were imported in January. However, based on the statistics of the central bank, only 630 metric tonnes of rice had been imported to the country in January last year. The central bank noted that the reduction in taxes had led to a rapid increase in the importation of rice. more..

Apr 16 (DM) The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) has invited the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) for talks on working together in parliament in order to ensure the rights of the minorities are secured, SLMC Leader Rauff Hakeem told Daily Mirror online. The invitation for talks was extended by TNA Leader R. Sampanthan to the SLMC Leader last night. SLMC Leader Hakeem had accepted the invitation and more..

Apr 16 (LBO) Sri Lanka's Central Bank has made a record 33 billion rupee profit in 2009 as low yielding foreign reserves were lost and replaced with higher yielding domestic government paper during a balance of payments crisis. In 2009 the central bank made profits of 33 billion rupees up from a loss of 5.0 billion rupees a year earlier. The balance of payments crisis hit the bank in the last quarter of 2008. more..

Apr 16 (IANS) The Sri Lankan military and the US Navy have conducted a joint humanitarian exercise in Trincomalee in the country's east, the US embassy said Friday. The event included civilians from the Disaster Management Centre and the ministry of healthcare and nutrition. The focus of the exercise was humanitarian assistance, an embassy statement said. more..

Apr 16 (Island) With the ruling SLFP-led UPFA coalition now assured of over 140 seats in the next Parliament, it is wooing the SLMC, which contested the April 8 general election on the UNP ticket, to raise numbers to secure a two-thirds majority. Well informed sources told The Island that soon after the release of the results of 20 out of 22 electoral districts, the government had approached the SLMC to explore the possibility of more..

Apr 16 (AFP) Detained ex-army chief and opposition leader Sarath Fonseka is likely to be convicted early next week to prevent him appearing in parliament, his party said on Friday. Fonseka, who won a seat in parliament while in custody, is in custody in and faces a court martial. He is charged with entering politics while in uniform and making irregular army procurements, in a process that began on March 16 and will continue on Monday. more..