Dec 27 (FT) The Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC) as the regulator of the capital market has recently conducted a seminar for the officials of the CID to enhance their knowledge on the capital market and its developments. It covered operations of the capital market, securities law and market irregularities with emphasis on money laundering seminar was conducted by Dhammika Perera, OIC of more..

Dec 27 (ENS) Expressing serious concern over the continuing arrests and detention of Tamil Nadu fishermen in Sri Lanka, the Communist party of India (Marxist) (CPM) on Wednesday demanded the Centre to initiate urgent steps to secure the release of 210 Indian fishermen lodged in the island nation prisons. The Politburo of CPM, in a statement, urged the Centre to initiate talks with Colombo on the problems being faced by fishermen of both the countries and ensure release of more..

Dec 27 (Island) The ICT Agency of Sri Lanka (ICTA) was recently vested with the National Certification Authority (NCA) powers by a special gazette notification. The gazette establishes ICTA as the Certification Authority for the purpose of the Electronic Transaction Act. Disclosing further steps ensuing from the gazette notification and the importance of the NCA, ICTA Chairman, Senior Presidential Advisor and Peradeniya University Chancellor Prof. P.W. Epasinghe said: more..

Dec 27 (IRIN) Sri Lankan health officials have called for a greater focus on youth in the battle against HIV as they become more sexually active and the percentage of young people contracting the virus rises. �Youth and the risk of infection are two particular areas that we are paying greater attention to now,� Sisira Liyanage, director of Sri Lanka�s National Sexually Transmitted Disease (STD) and AIDS Control Programme, more..

Dec 27 (Island) The Human Resources Subcommittee of the Insurance Association of Sri Lanka (IASL) organized a workshop at the Sabaragamuwa University on 9th Oct, 2013, designed to provide undergraduates with the necessary tools to develop their careers. The aim of the workshop was to help the undergrads to enhance their soft skills, in order to provide them with an insight into the rapidly expanding insurance sector in Sri Lanka. more..

Dec 27 (FT) In the nick of the time, Menik Valley Plantations Ltd., has recently obtained an Enjoining Order from the Commercial High Court of Western Province restraining Hatton National Bank from auctioning/selling the Menik Valley Estate and Golden Valley Estate. The plaint filed by Menik Valley Plantations Ltd. and its Directors Henry Abeywickrema, Subash Abeywickrema, Jayantha Abeywickrema and Dilkushan Abeywickrema was supported on 24 December in more..

Dec 27 (FT) The luxury cruise liner MV Voyager called at Magam Ruhunupura Mahinda Rajapaksa Port (MRMRP) in Hambantota on 21 Dec, creating history as the first cruise vessel to call at the port. The vessel arrived with 365 passengers and 224 crew and was under the Command of Capt. Neil Broomhall. At Hambantota, passengers visited the port and Hambantota city during her 11-hour stay at the port and more..

Dec 27 (DM) A man was arrested with gold biscuits worth over Rs.10 million hidden in his rectum early this morning while arriving from Dubai, by the custom officials. The biscuits said to be 24 Karat gold and made in Switzerland, weighed close to 1800 grammes. This is reportedly the largest haul that a suspect has tried to smuggle into the country in his rectum. During questioning, the 48-year-old resident of Trincomalee had said he was paid Rs. 100,000 for smuggling in the gold. more..

Dec 27 (Island) UPFA controlled Lankapura Pradeshiya Sabha in the Polonnaruwa District became the latest government local body to lose its budget when it was defeated by just one vote. Pradeshiya Sabha�s Deputy Chairman and two other UPFA members voted against the Budget with three UNP members, while it received five votes in favour. After Lankapura Pradeshiya Sabha Chairman Manju Sri Alutwatte presented the budget, his Deputy Chairman Bandula Samansiri and more..

Dec 27 (ENS) SL Terrorist Investigation Department is questioning Junior Vikatan journalist, Tamil Prabhakaran, on charges of violating visa regulations and taking pictures of army camps in Kilinochchi. The police took the scribe, TNA MP Sritharan, and a Northern Provincial Councillor, Pasupathi Pillai, to a police station and questioned them. The local leaders were subsequently let off, but Prabhakaran was asked to stay. more..

Dec 27 (DN) Two armed men stormed a private bank in Malabe at around 11.30 a.m. yesterday and robbed Rs. 14.8 million from the cashiers at gunpoint. According to SSP Ajith Rohana, the two men who arrived at the bank premises in a motorcycle wearing full face helmets had first told the security guards at the entrance to kneel down. "One man then entered the bank and collected the money from the cashiers while the other was at the entrance. They fled with the money," he said. more..

Dec 27 (CG) Sri Lanka�s first even gamma irradiation plant is set to be operational from early January next year, the Ministry of Technology and Research said today. The Sri Lanka Gamma Center (SLGC) at Biyagama will use gamma radiation for medical sterilization, microbial disinfestations of food products and spices and radiation preservation of food and for development of new industrial materials. Gamma Irradiation Plants are widely used in a number of countries for sterilization of more..

Dec 27 (DN) Ulterior motives are behind the continuous refusal by the TNA to participate in the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) on the national issue, Minister Dinesh Gunawardena said. TNA's attempts to devalue the PSC appointed by the Speaker on the agreement of both the govt and the opposition to evolve a solution for the national issue has an underlining connotation with sessions of UNHRC getting closer, more..

Dec 27 (Island) CDDRA Director Dr. Hemantha Beneragama warned that due to widespread misuse of antibiotics in Sri Lanka, it would cause far-reaching repercussions, like building resistance to them in people. He pointed out that for the last 20 years no research to manufacture new antibiotics had been launched by the medical experts world-wide. There would be a great danger in the next 25 years with the existing antibiotics losing their effectiveness. more..

Dec 27 (CG) PM D.M. Jayaratne today assured that the Govt will do its utmost to crackdown on the heroin trade in Sri Lanka. The Prime Minister, who has himself been embroiled in a heroin controversy, said that the authorities are on alert to arrest those smuggling heroin, ethanol and other items into the country. However he noted that the Govt alone cannot eradicate the heroin menace and that action must also be taken to address the issue on a religious level, school level and at home. more..

Dec 27 (FT) Swayanjatha is an indigenous variety of red rice paddy endemic to SL which has resurfaced and is being grown in the Sooriyawewa, Sevanagala and Thanamalwila areas. The name Swayanjatha in Sinhala means �born on its own�. This is a sturdy plant which is more than 10 feet tall. Swayanjatha is grown on dry land as a chena cultivation and takes about six months to bear. more..

Dec 27 (CT) A cannon, older than 350 years, was found in the sea near the Colombo Harbour, a high-ranking official said. The cannon is currently with the Department of Archaeology and is believed to belong to the pre-British era. However, the Department has not yet indentified whether this cannon belongs to the Portuguese or the Dutch. The archaeologists suspect the cannon belongs to a sunken ship. It is also identified as an early generation cannon as it was made of copper. more..

Dec 27 (NS) Renowned educationist Bogoda Premaratne passed away today (26). He was a former principal of royal College from 1967 to 1971. He was the first Buddhist to be the principal of the College. In 1972 he was appointed the Commissioner of Examinations. Retiring from government service in 1976, he served at the United States-Sri Lanka Foundation for Fulbright Scholarship selection from 1976 to 1988. He was appointed as the Chairman of the more..

Dec 27 (CT) Director of the CDDRA, Dr. Hemantha Beneragama, said that contraceptive vaccine 'Depotone' has been banned following the death of a young woman in Kalpitiya. 24-year-old died following a severe allergic reaction after being administered 'Depotone' contraceptive vaccine, six weeks after giving birth to her first child. Doctor attached to the Kalpitiya Hospital has administered the vaccine at his private clinic. more..

Dec 27 (ENS) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa recently held a high-level meeting at the Secretariat to work out the modalities of possibly setting up a talks table between Sri Lankan and Indian fishermen organisations. The meeting on Monday was attended by Finance and Public Works Minister O Panneerselvam, Electricity, Prohibition and Excise Minister Natham R Viswanathan, Municipal Administration, Rural Development, Law, Courts and Prisons Minister K P Munusamy, more..

Dec 27 (CG) A new hotline has been introduced by the Govt to report disaster related issues in future, the Disaster Management Center said. The hotline �117� was introduced as the country marked nine years since the tsunami disaster which killed over 30,000 people and displaced thousands of others. Hotline will be in operation 24 hours a day. Disaster Management Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said that over the past few years there has been a drop in lives lost during natural disasters. more..

Dec 27 (DM) Ahead of the March UNHRC session, the United States will dispatch its newly appointed Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Nisha Desai Biswal to Sri Lanka next month to review the progress of implementing measures outlined in the previous resolution on Sri Lanka. Ms. Biswal, a US diplomat of Indian origin, replaced Robert O� Blake who previously served in this position. more..

Dec 27 (DM) In the afterglow of Christmas when Mother Nature also had a divine eco-balance, we need to reflect on how much most countries, including Sri Lanka, have upset or disturbed the balance of nature through air pollution, water pollution and other environmental vices which are dragging the world to the brink of an apocalyptic catastrophe. We wish to focus today mainly on air pollution caused by the excessive number of vehicles, the often uncontrolled discharge of more..

Dec 27 (DM) Much was written about Nelson Mandela, his life, death and the media circus which invaded his funeral. So much has been written that there is really nothing new to add. But, reading Simon Jenkins� article about Mandela titled �The Mandela coverage and the banality of goodness,� the following paragraph made me squirm. �South Africa in the early 90s was no postcolonial retreat. It was a bargain between one set of tribes and another. more..

Dec 27 (DM) He was floating inside a plastic basin in the murky waters midst the rubble and the dead, some said. Others said he was discovered lying underneath a pile of debris. Despite many versions that spun around how the four-month old famed as the �Tsunami baby� or �Baby 81� was found surviving the treacherous waves of the 2004 Tsunami, he became a symbol of hope for the thousands of Sri Lankans devastated by more..

Dec 27 (Island) UNP MP Palitha Thewarapperuma, on Wednesday, told media that he and his supporters staging a fast unto death protest demanding the reopening of the Badurueliya hospital, were attacked by a DIG of Police who was under the influence of liquor. He also said that one of his supporters was rushed to the Nagoda hospital in an ambulance after he was seriously injured in the attack led by a DIG. more..

Dec 27 (Island) Chairperson of the UGC Prof. Kshanika Hiriburegama observed that the Northern (NP) and Eastern (EP) Provinces did so well at the GCE A/L exam in 2013 due to restoration of peace. Prof. Hiriburegama said that it was a clear sign that schools were able to function without hindrance since the conclusion of the conflict in May 2009. NP achieved the highest success rate of 63.3% while the EP recorded 60.1%. more..

Dec 27 (DM) The Daily Mirror was able to have exclusive access to a letter written by British Prime Minister David Cameron hailing the work done in Sri Lanka through sport to highlight reconciliation issues. In his letter sent to Muttiah Muralidaran and his Foundation�s Chief Trustee Kushil Gunasekera, Mr. Cameron says that such a commitment is clearly essential to the future of the country. more..

Dec 27 (Island) UNP MP called for May 19 to be declared Commemoration Day, if the govt did not want the Tamils who died in the war, to be remembered on Nov 26, since it was the birthday of the LTTE�s late leader V Prabhakaran. R.Yogarajan MP, said that everyone has the right to honour their loved ones who had passed away and the families of the late LTTE cadres canno�t be considered as an exception more..

Dec 27 (CT) The CEB has incurred a loss amounting to Rs 1,008 million due to the closure of the Norochcholai Lakwijaya Power Plant over a period of 14 days, a CEB official said. The power plant, which was closed down on numerous occasions since its inception due to technical defects, once again stopped its operations on 14 December 2013. According to official sources, as a result of this latest closure, the CEB has to more..

Dec 27 (GDI) Medical Research Institute has commenced to do the Cryptococcal antigen test to detect Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) free of charge. Director Dr. Anil Samaranayaka said that highly expensive cryptococcal test to detect HIV that causes AIDS could be done at the MRI free of charge. He pointed out that a majority of HIV positive patients were dying of immune deficiency because more..

Dec 27 (AFP) The provincial govt in Sri Lanka�s main Tamil region said it would compile its own death toll from the country�s ethnic war, saying an ongoing census would play down the number of casualties. Tamil officials said the census ordered by President Rajapakse last month would give a distorted picture because of its �flawed� terms of reference, arguing that a more credible alternative was needed. more..

Dec 27 (AD) The customs department seized over 16000 liters of ethanol imported into the country illegally. A spokesman said that the consignment had been imported from Malaysia and was to be smuggled into the country. Container with the ethanol consignment was checked at the Orugodawatte yard. He said if this stock of Ethanol went undetected the Govt would have incurred a loss of Rs.10 million in tax revenue. more..

Dec 27 (CG) The Sri Lankan Govt says the international community should give the country a vote of trust, because the Govt has the greatest will to do things right and is dedicating great resources to reconciliation and reconstruction. In an interview with Prensa Latina, Minister G.L. Peiris said that Sri Lanka is fully able to undertake the tasks set out by the LLRC and to guarantee the rights of its citizens. more..

Dec 27 (CT) While Sri Lanka is struggling to come out from the remnants of its brutal ethnic-conflict, its ethnic harmony after the war is slowly fading away and likely to slip into jeopardy. Once the war is over, the govt should have taken serious measures to reconcile the differences between ethnicities within her country. But in contrary to this, govt had turned mute over this matter while remaining silence over the emergence of Buddhist Extremist Group which is is posing a critical threat to the basic more..

Dec 27 (LBO) Sri Lanka's Securities and Exchange Commission has asked directors and, chief executives of listed firms to disclose share dealings within five days, tightening some loopholes in existing procedures. The directive has been issued to cover newly listed companies and also new appointments. It will be effective from April 2014. The full directive is reproduced below:- The Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC) at its 327th meeting held on 10th Dec more..

Dec 27 (CT) A great sage once said that politics is all theatre. As if to add literal meaning to that saying, the forthcoming election for the Southern Provincial Council (SPC) is gearing itself up to a scenario where not one or two but three well-known actresses are to file nominations and all are reportedly vying for the coveted Chief Minister's post. Of the three, Geetha Kumarasinghe and Anarkali Aakarsha have already got their feet wet in the pool of regional politics. more..

Dec 27 (Island) A recent study reveals that a staggering 552 reptiles and amphibians were killed within 48 days due to road accidents in the Nilgala Forest Area in the eastern part of Sri Lanka. The study titled `Impact of vehicular traffic on herpetofaunal mortality in a Savanna Forest, Eastern Sri Lanka�. The study was conducted by researchers Suranjan Karunarathna of the Young Zoologists� Association, Sujan Henkanaththegedara of the Biological Sciences, North Dakota more..

Dec 27 (CT) �Colombo is lit up this holiday season, with electric lights draped all over the city. The GSL is sponsoring the effort in a bid to increase the city�s attractiveness. For Sri Lankans, it is the first time since the conflict began almost 20 years ago that they remember the city looking so festive. Amid all the discussions focusing on the ceasefire, federalism, and other dry subjects, it is illustrative that Sri Lanka�s experience of more..