Aug 30 (SO) The govt has taken steps to accelerate economic recovery with new instruments to attract money into the Treasury Bond and Treasury Bill markets that will boost confidence among local entrepreneurs, State Minister of Finance, Capital Markets and State Enterprise Reforms, Ajith Nivard Cabral said. �We will create the environment to bring in the much needed foreign exchange to the country that will help boost economic activities in the country,� he said, more..

Aug 30 (ST) UDA has planned to take over management of Colombo city sports clubs which have failed to pay their lease rent or provide adequate facilities to those patronising the clubs. UDA Director General Prasad Ranaweera said three of the major clubs had defaulted in the payments of their lease agreements for several years, thereby depriving the Govt of revenue. He said others were charging large sums, but were operating more..

Aug 30 (Island) The govt will provide relief to the common masses by reducing prices of essential food commodities within the next month, PM Mahinda Rajapaksa announced. �It is our duty to ease the cost of living burden of the people who gave us a landslide mandate at the last parliamentary election�, PM said. He said that it�s no secret how the former Yahapalanaya suffocated the masses with tax burdens so much so that it was a struggle to eke out an existence with more..

Aug 30 (ST) Sri Lanka�s ailing economy amidst COVID-19 could further worsen as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has put on hold the final disbursement of the US$1.5 billion Extended Fund Facility. �The country could not avail of the last disbursement under the EFF, amounting to SDR118.550 million (around Rs.200 million) due to incompletion of the final review of EFF arrangement which has expired in June 2020�, Masahiro Nozaki, IMF Mission Chief for Sri Lanka said. more..

Aug 30 (ST) AG�s Dept has written to the Justice Ministry citing Constitutional provisions dealing with disqualifications to be an elector and an MP, after the Ministry sought its opinion on the status of SLPP MP-elect Premalal Jayasekara, a murder convict. Mr Jayasekara, who has been sentenced to death for a 2015 murder, requested the Commissioner General of Prisons to allow him to go to Parliament to take oaths as an MP. more..

Aug 30 (SO) Govt will introduce a new tax on all imported plastic products shortly to protect wildlife and the environment, Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said. The decision was taken after plastic was found in the carcass of elephants and deer and the effect of plastic on the environment. Tax will include imported polythene products. �We are planning to impose a heavy tax on these products to discourage imports,� he said. Govt will also halt manufacturing plastic and polythene in the country, more..

Aug 30 (TM) The Govt has made constitutional changes their top legislative priority, meaning that other legislation such as the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act (MMDA) would only be looked at later. �The constitutional reforms are a mighty task and we are prioritising that at the moment. We will look at other laws such as the MMDA thereafter,� Ministry of Justice Secretary M.M.P.K. Mayadunne said. Reforms to the MMDA have been pending since the previous Yahapalana Govt. more..

Aug 30 (TM) RDA is to finalise the awarding of construction contract for the long-delayed Sections III and IV of Central Expressway Project (CEP). Accordingly, the construction contracts for Section III of the CEP are to be awarded to a Chinese company, while the construction of Section IV of the CEP would be awarded to a UK-based contractor. The finalised documents would be submitted to Cabinet for approval to proceed. more..

Aug 30 (TM) The prison system has incarcerated a whopping 5,000 new drug addict prisoners within the last two months. Commissioner General of Prisons Thushara Upuldeniya said there were a total 8,000 drug addicts within the prison system. �There are about 8,000 drug addicts in prisons across the island, 5,000 of whom were incarcerated within the last two months.� The prisons were facing an issue of drug addicts going into withdrawal and having health issues due to the lack of drug supply. more..

Aug 30 (SO) Former Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama has slammed the recent controversial tweets by the then Norwegian peace negotiator Erik Solheim during the last stages of SL�s battle against terrorism. �Their partial conduct at the time is evident from the recent statements,� he said. In a controversial tweet recently Solheim referred to LTTE terror leader Pulidevan as his dear friend and labelled the deaths of terrorists Pulidevan and Nadesan during the last stages of SL�s battle more..

Aug 30 (ST) SLPNS govt has gone into high gear with its top priorities to re-boot the country�s economy and effect constitutional changes. Like manna from heaven, the two-thirds landslide victory at the Aug 5 parliamentary election, the alliance is now reaping other political windfalls. It is raining on them as dividends from the internecine frictions within opposition parties in Parliament. Paradoxical enough, the main cause is more..

Aug 31 (CT) If Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa�s inaugural address to the ninth Parliament is any indication, towns and villages across the country will be talking more about development than politics in the next five years. Within the framework of development, his leadership seems wanting to focus not on big infra projects per se but on focussed projects that can help improve the health of the Nation�s forgotten rural economy and also social infra aspects like health and education. more..

Aug 31 (FT) In a recent TV interview, a MP reminded me of Marie Antoinette. Not because he was a type of cheerful queen inviting the hoi polloi to sample some sweeter stuff if savouries proved to be in short supply. But because, like the soon-to-be guillotined monarch in the probably apocryphal story, he seemed to have misplaced the people�s well-being in the thrust and parry of party politics. And for the want of bread, between being the opposition and trying to get back into govt, a larger franchise more..

Aug 31 (CT) �Study hard, pass your exams with high grades and get the golden ticket to enter one of the best Universities, then you will get a good job and everybody will love you,� is a very common statement made by our parents. But the reality is unsavoury. From time to time we see unemployed graduates, holding placards and shouting slogans on protest marches that get out of hand. �Study hard, get the golden ticket, get your dream job more..

Aug 31 (TM) One of the main pledges of Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa upon his election was to rid the country of the drug menace. With a reputation of keeping his word, the President has wasted little time in getting down to action. The results of the President�s resolve continue to surface on a daily basis and are a shocking pointer to the extent of the cancer and the institutionalisation of the drug trade over a long period of time, where even law enforcement officials are part of the problem. more..

Aug 31 (TM) Last week saw the Govt headed by Prez Rajapaksa and PM Rajapaksa securing the funds required to carry out the governing of the country for the remaining four months of the year. While work on the 2021 budget proposals has already commenced, the Rs. 1.7 trillion Vote on Account (VoA) was passed in Parliament last Friday. Govt�s sights are now fully set on the proposed amendments to the Constitution. Ball is definitely now rolling on proposed 20th Amendment. more..

Aug 31 (CT) A proposal has been mooted for the 20th time to amend the Constitution of SL. By merely carrying out amendments or putting temporary plaster to the Constitution will not see the desired results being achieved. Drafting Constitutions are no easy task, however, making an amendment to the Constitution is not so difficult. The previous regime which vowed to ensure good governance also mooted proposals to draft more..

Aug 31 (SO) It�s the end of history for Tamil politics, they say � or the Tamil politics as we knew existed. Mapping out the details may be the role of the subject experts who know their ITAK from their TNA to a fault. I take a bow to DBS. Jeyaraj, Kumar David and others on that score. But, does the Aug 2020 election signify the fact, as regards the Tamil political cohort that the more you try to control something, the more it controls you? Tamil politicians had a streak of control-freakishness in them more..

Aug 31 (Island) It is wrong to say that the govt MPs and their Opposition counterparts are perennially at daggers drawn and go for one another�s jugular at the drop of a hat. There are moments of unity, when they get on like a house on fire. We have recently witnessed such a moment. SJB & SLPP MPs sank their differences and took exception to a newspaper report that a meal costing as much as Rs. 3,000 was sold at Rs. 100 in the parliament canteen. They let out a howl of protest, in unison, more..

Aug 31 (ST) Scarcely having sufficient time to properly settle into his Chair as SL�s Parliament opened for business this week, the Speaker faced down two attempts to trespass on the legislative power of the People, throwing up intriguing questions in regard to the country�s parliamentary process, or what is left of this. The first, disconcertingly enough, came from the infant parliamentary opposition SJB. Its members were enraged over maiden speech by new entrant more..

Aug 31 (ST) Five years ago, the 19th Amendment, brought by the SLFP-UNP Govt to repeal the Rajapaksa regime�s controversial 18th Amendment, had been the nation�s choicest meat. It had even been hailed as the democracy restorer. In Parliament 212 had slobbered all over it as the Dish of the Day, with only one finding it disagreeable. Today, with the change in Govt the same stake has been transformed overnight to be the nation�s worst poison. more..

AAug 31 (FT) Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardena on Saturday emphasised exports will be the only rescue to revive the debt ridden economy amidst gloomy global conditions caused by COVID-19 pandemic. �A three-pronged strategy based on market diversification, product diversification and shifting towards high-technology sectors is needed to achieve a significant increase in exports,� Gunawardena told more..

Aug 31 (FT) Export Development Board (EDB) welcomed the Govt�s decision reactivate the Export Development Council (EDC), noting that it will be a game-changer in the post-COVID-19 economic transformation of SL. �Reactivating the EDC is an incredible news to the export community. For several years we have never had this type of a functioning body or a cohesive methodology to resolve our problems related to exports. New EDC will work in tandem with the national export strategy and more..

Aug 31 (DN) The combination of Sankha Athukorale and Neyara Weerawansa bounced back into recognition as they clinched the Mixed Doubles title in the Clay Court Tennis Nationals, which continued at the SLTA Courts in Green Path, Colombo yesterday. Sankha and Neyara, who were eliminated from the Men�s and Women�s Singles final earlier, made amends by overcoming the more fancied pair of Dineshkanthan Thangaraja and Anika Seneviratne in an exciting final 6-7, 6-1, 10-5. more..

Aug 31 (TM) Following the recent proposal by CEA to ban the use of single-use plastic from 2021, major plastic users in the corporate sector are set to phase out single-use plastics and regulate other types of plastics. Industry leaders in the fast-moving consumer goods sector stated that they are supportive of the proposal and will be working towards this same goal, despite the obvious impact on their current business practices. more..

Aug 31 (CT) Luxman Wijesuriya was unanimously elected President of Chess Federation of SL (CFSL) at the AGM on Saturday. Independent Election Committee which was set up at the Special General Meeting in Dec 2019 comprising Upali Gunasekara (Chairman), Aruna de Silva and Nadeeka Perera conducted the election. Except for Wijesuriya�s team, which had nominated individuals for all 19 posts, no other nominations were received, and therefore his team is fully in control of more..

Aug 31 (CT) Yasita de Silva and defending champion Anika Seneviratne clinched the Clay Court Nationals 2020 tennis championship played at the SLTA courts on Saturday. Yasita beat Savith Weerasinghe 6/2, 7/5 in the men�s open final. Weerasinghe was outclassed in the first set, but bounced back in the second set to put up a fight before going down. De Silva dominated the game from the beginning. Ladies College student Anika Seneviratne swept to her third successive more..

Aug 31 (CT) SL�s largest source of foreign exchange, worker remittances, which has come under serious threat due to the COVID-19 pandemic affecting the global economy, has shown a growth for the second consecutive month in July this year. Worker remittances increased 12.2% during July this year to US$ 702.1 million compared to US$ 625.7 million last year. However, cumulative earnings from worker remittances during more..

Aug 31 (FT) Standard Chartered Sri Lanka has made donations totalling $ 500,000 (approximately Rs. 92.5 million) to support the fight against COVID-19 in the local community. The donation, which will flow through SL Red Cross Society (SLRCS), is in keeping with its brand promise to be Here for good and is part of the bank�s wider response to the COVID-19 global pandemic. The funding is made up of two parts: $ 300,000 from Standard Chartered PLC will support emergency relief activities more..

Aug 31 (AD) Hanwella Police arrested a student of private uni for being involved in a heroin racket. The arrest has been made during a search of a room in Hanwella rented out to a 29-year-old youth studying at private university in Malabe. Police have recovered 20 grams and 500 milligrams of heroin found with the suspect. Upon interrogation, it has revealed that the student obtains drugs from a resident of Biyagama and packets them in his room for distribution in Balangoda area. more..

Aug 31 (ST) Sri Lanka�s entire vehicle emission testing programme will be overhauled by introducing modern high tech systems while allowing more companies with technical knowhow to participate in breaking the existing oligopoly, MTD sources said. State Ministry of Vehicle Regulation will be focusing attention on changing the existing system on the directions of the President as 13% up to 26% out of the vehicles running on roads more..

Aug 31 (AD) Leader of Opposition Sajith Premadasa says that one can work to develop the country even while in opposition. He expressed these views attending an event held today (30) to hand over medical equipment to Wethara District Hospital in Polgasowita. He says that other parties try to serve after obtaining power. However, SJB has realized that a certain amount of work can be done even while in the opposition, he added. Strengthening SL should not be limited to funds from govt, more..

Aug 31 (AD) A man has been killed in a clash that occurred at a temporary food hut in the Kotikawatta area, The deceased is the 30-year-old owner of the food hut residing in the Kotikawatta area. The clash had occurred at around 2 am this morning (30) between the food hut owner and a youth who had come to buy food. Reportedly, a disagreement had escalated when the youth had brought in more individuals to the food hut and assaulted the owner. No arrest has been made so far. more..

Aug 31 (EN) An expert committee that probed a 2020 cascading failure of Sri Lanka�s power grid has made 11 recommendations in a interim report. The committee found that there was no operations manual on risk management relating to repairs and maintenance after a accidental short circuit by a power superintendent during routine maintenance of the high tension transmission system led to a blackout. more..

Aug 31 (ST) Former Petersons number 8 Rizly Illyas officially took over as President of Sri Lanka Rugby (SLR) with plenty of goodwill despite some acrimony with the outgoing President Lasitha Gunaratne leading up to the Annual General Meeting held yesterday. But it comes with a baggage of 51 million rupees carried over from previous administrations. A third of it, spent on national age group tours beginning from the presidency of Asanga Seneviratne, is likely to be waived off since more..

Aug 31 (TM) Minister of Environment last week announced the Ministry�s consideration to ban liquor bottles with the capacity of 180 ml (quarter) as it is identified as a big source of pollution. According to a survey carried out for the year 2019 by the Ministry and its institutes, a staggering 300 million quarter liquor bottles had been purchased in 2019 from liquor shops. �These bottles, either made of glass or plastic, get tossed to the roadside drain after the consumer empties it. more..

Aug 31 (FT) The US has placed several subsidiaries of China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), ultimate parent of China Harbhour Engineering which has is building an artificial city extending Colombo on an export blacklist. US companies would no longer be able to sell or export to CCCC Dredging Group Co, CCCC Tianjin Waterway Bureau, CCCC Shanghai Waterway Bureau, more..

Aug 31 (FT) In a message on the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, United Nations in SL said that it stands in solidarity with the families of victims of enforced disappearances from all communities across Sri Lanka. �The families and friends of the victims experience the slow mental anguish of not knowing the fate of their loved ones. They alternate between hope and despair, wondering and waiting, sometimes for years, for news that may never come. more..

Aug 31 (DN) Mattala airport will be developed into a tourist and export oriented airport. Minister Prasanna Ranatunga said the previous govt neglected the Mattala Airport into a total failure but this govt will restore its importance. �We have a responsibility to develop the Mattala Airport as the second largest airport in SL and not second to the Katunayake airport. The groundwork is being prepared for this. The people of the previous govt did not have any sense to repair this and take advantage of it. more..