Mar 13 (AD) All universities will be closed for two weeks as a precautionary measure against coronavirus (COVID-19), the UGC has announced. The Chairman of the UGC stated that this measure will be in effect starting from tomorrow (14). In the meantime, the first term holidays of all schools, including all private and international Catholic schools under the purview of the Archbishop, commenced starting from today (13) due to coronavirus threat in the country. more..

Mar 13 (Island) Minister Dullas Alahapperuma said that the Z Score ranking introduced 20 years back to select students for university admission would be reviewed and Cabinet approval sought to replace the 55% quota of selection made on district ranking to be made on a school ranking system which would give a student from an underdeveloped school in any district a fair opportunity to gain uni admission. more..

Mar 13 (EN) Sri Lanka is contemplating a move to allow private hospitals to carry out COVID-19 tests amid fears that it could become a business, Director General of Health Services Dr Anil Jasinghe said. With the govt confirming its second COVID-19 patient last evening, efforts are underway to contain the spread of the disease in the country, with 64 suspected cases currently under observation. The private sector is not permitted to carry out tests for the novel coronavirus as more..

Mar 13 (FT) Govt assured the public there will be no further power cuts, despite dry weather and droughts, but asked the public to take caution with its electricity consumption. Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said hydro power generation was low at the moment due to dry weather and low water levels in tanks. According to the CEB update from Wednesday, hydro power generation currently accounts for 20% of total generation, while thermal oil accounts for 45% and thermal coal 35%. more..

Mar 13 (AD) Director General of Health Services Dr. Anil Jasinghe confirms that three more patients who had contracted the Coronavirus (COVID-19) have been identified in Sri Lanka. One of these patients is a 41-year-old Sri Lankan male who had arrived from Germany. He has been admitted to the IDH Hospital. The other two patients are from the group of people who had been quarantined at the facility in Kandakadu. more..

Mar 14 (CT) Politicians often refer to themselves as not having a racist bone in their bodies. And yet in many instances, past and present, it is fact that racism has been a rational choice for them, particularly at election times. Already, the mainstreaming of prejudice and racist particularly anti-Muslim politics has commenced as an election strategy. The dog whistle politics by vested interests with the involvement of the regular hate monks, being played at grass-root levels is worrying. more..

Mar 14 (CT) A friend of mine asked; Are you not being stupid in attacking the very foundation of the Sinhala belief system by saying; 1. Sinhala language came into use only in the 6th or 7th century after Christ; 2. There were no Sinhalese before that; 3.That the Tamils have been the original inhabitants of this Island from pre Buddhistic times; 4. That the Sinhalese have never occupied the North and East in large numbers ever; 5. You have also said that it were the Tamils who received Buddhism into more..

Mar 14 (CT) The world will soon come to an end as resources are being depleted at an alarming rate. Economising air in the hope for survival will not be an option anymore as fresh air has already become scarce. Nov 2019 became a significant hornbill predicting the adverse climate changes and humidity levels that SL is currently facing. The incident marked deteriorated air quality levels from urbanised metropolitan cities more..

Mar 14 (CT) In 1976 with the Vaddukoddai declaration calling for a separate Tamil State being brought, two major Tamil political parties All Ceylon Tamil Congress and Illankai Tamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK) joined hands and formed the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) to strengthen the Tamil political scene. All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC) is the oldest Tamil political party to be formed in 1944 by legal luminary the late G.G. Ponnambalam and several Tamil politicians remained as more..

Mar 14 (CT) Known by many names, in many countries, down the years, ragging has now become a menace plaguing the halls of our nations' universities. Ragging is typically called hazing or initiation rituals in many parts of the world and consists of rituals, challenges, and activities involving harassment, abuse or shaming used as a way of initiating a person into a group or clique. Around the world ragging has been documented in many social groups, such as criminal gangs, more..

Mar 14 (TM) The ongoing warm weather affecting 16 districts has been fluctuating between caution and extreme caution levels over the past few days, with temperatures recorded at between 27-32 and 32-41 degrees Celsius for each level, respectively. The public too faces various health implications given the warm weather. Water consumption too has increased across the island, and due to the ongoing drought in 5 districts, more..

Mar 14 (SO) It was another laid back Easter Sunday holiday in Sri Lanka last year when the country was rocked by a series of explosions targeting churches and hotels around the country. The devastating suicide attacks by a group of homegrown terrorists left over 250 people dead and over 500 people with life-changing injuries. The proceedings of the PCoI on the Easter Sunday attacks, last week, revealed that casualties would have been higher had a second bomb set up in a van outside more..

Mar 14 (Island) A national education policy has been conspicuous by its absence, in this country. Govts change policies in the education sector according to their whims & fancies. Incumbent dispensation is trying to effect some changes to the system of selecting students to universities. It wants to scrap district ranking, on the basis of which 55% of uni entrants are selected at present, and introduce school-based ranking. Let Minister Alahapperuma and govt be urged to tread cautiously. more..

Mar 14 (SO) The correct mix should finally run a stable grid and deliver electricity at an affordable cost which in turn would result in affordable prices. A stable grid is an engineering requirement; to the layman, instability is displayed by frequent power outages, brownouts and blackouts. To the engineer, instability has many different aspects to be analysed, involving a lot of calculations, scenario analyses, more calculations and informed judgements. For the layman, the grid is a group of generators, more..

Mar 14 (Island) A tiny virus is wreaking havoc around the world, threatening even the largest of economies and SL is baking in an unprecedent heatwave but there is no lack of humour, thanks to our politicians! Leaving aside Maithripala Yapa Sirisena, who had been a continuous source of amusement since his totally unexpected elevation to be exalted position of the Prez in 2015, we have plenty more. That he had stepped up a gear since retirement is yet another story. more..

Mar 14 (Island) Nomination papers are being signed by leading politicians with the echoes of pirith chanting and the folded worshipful hands of all persons around them. General Election is fast approaching, while the divisions within the UNP gets starker and the SLFP ties to the SLPP gets even more confusing. We have come to the era in politics when the old fashioned telephone will replace the elephant as the symbol of green politics, more..

Mar 14 (Island) With the elimination of the direct placement system, and manipulating the first bond auction after the policy change, Arjuna Mahendran had successfully put in place conditions for another, bigger robbery. The bond robbery repeated on March 29th and 31st, 2016 when PTL bought Rs. 42 billion worth of bonds with funding from the Central Bank itself. This was made possible entirely by Mahendran, who used his powers as the Central Bank Governor to manipulate the process. more..

Mar 14 (DN) Test discard Lahiru Thirimanne did not have luck on his side as he approached what would have been a deserving century against the England tourists when he scored an undefeated 88 off 115 balls for Sri Lanka Cricket President�s XI on the second day of the 4-day warm-up match at the P Sara Oval when it was called off soon after the tea break as England took the decision to return home on the mounting threat of the corona virus. The match was called off 11 overs after tea, more..

Mar 14 (TM) Prez dissolved Parliament last Monday (2), just as he promised he would soon after assuming office. Apart from bringing to an end the first phase of the new Prez�s reign and triggering a general election, an interesting result of this decision was to make a large number of junior MPs ineligible for a pension. Thus, a total of 66 junior MPs who had entered Parliament for the first time have lost the opportunity to receive pensions for serving more..

Mar 14 (FT) On 9 Feb, the Women�s Association of SL Malays (WASLAM) organised an interactive discussion on, Building Bridges and Breaking Barriers. The main focus of the event was to initiate conversation among different women�s groups on how best as Sri Lankans living in a multi-ethnic population, women could contribute towards building bridges, breaking down barriers and mending fences to maintain peace and harmony in the country. Women�s Association of SL Malays more..

Mar 14 (EN) A group of young politicians from all parties is requesting political parties to refrain from holding large rallies and gatherings for the next two weeks in light of the COVID19 virus threat. The co-conveners of #NextGenSL, Rasika Jayakody and Milinda Rajapaksha said: �as responsible political parties, we must place the safety and well-being of the public above the interests of our respective political campaigns.� �SL is currently experiencing an unprecedented healthcare emergency more..

Mar 14 (Island) SL, informed airlines to immediately stop bringing in passengers from Italy, South Korea and Iran until further notice. The CAA made the request on behalf of the govt as it struggled to cope with several hundred Sri Lankans quarantined at the Batticaloa Campus and Kandakadu rehabilitation centre in the East. In addition, the govt suspended the issuance of visas to Europeans for a period of 2 weeks, more..

Mar 14 (DN) Annual MCC Champion County match, scheduled to be played against Essex this year from March 24 to 27 in Galle, has been called off because of the COVID-19 threat. Subsequently it is the same case with the MCC World Cricket Committee meeting that was scheduled to meet in Colombo on March 28 and 29. �The health and safety of players, officials and supporters is our priority, and with the danger of infection beginning to increase in the UK, as well as risk of quarantine for UK arrivals more..

Mar 14 (Island) Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Friday decided to suspend the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) till April 15 as a precautionary measure against the COVID-19 pandemic. Originally, the 60-match T20 cricket extravaganza involving eight teams was scheduled to begin on March 29. It will now begin on April 15 and conclude on May 24. "BCCI is concerned and sensitive about all its stakeholders, and public health in general, and it is taking all necessary steps more..

Mar 14 (CT) Doctors yesterday, lamented that the resources available in Govt hospitals assigned to carry out surveillance and treat patients with COVID-19 were inadequate in the face of a sudden influx of patients. Secretary of the GMOA, Dr. Haritha Aluthge cautioned, although SL currently had only two COVID-19 patients being treated at the National Institute of Infectious Diseases (NIID) the probability was that they as well as more..

Mar 14 (Island) Former Speaker Karu Jayasuriya says the entire nation must come together setting aside differences for the sake of humanity to face the COVID-19 coronavirus challenge. Issuing a media statement, the Former Speaker said that with the reporting of two Sri Lankans infected with the COVID-19 Coronavirus, it is important for the responsible agencies and the public to pay close attention to the epidemic. However, according to the expert opinion, due to prevailing hot weather more..

Mar 14 (ST) A hugely underrated eco-warrior is only now gaining national protection with the first steps being taken to safeguard existing mangrove forests and reclaim lost growth. Forest Officer Devanee Jayathilaka�s courageous stance in protecting a mangrove patch in the Negombo lagoon has brought welcome media attention to the issue, speakers at this week�s National Workshop on Community-Based Coastal and Marine Ecosystem Restoration said, revealing crucial first steps to protect more..

Mar 14 (Island) Former Deputy Minister Dr. Harsha De Silva, yesterday, (13), said that he would contest the forthcoming parliamentary polls under the leadership of UNP Deputy Leader Sajith Premadasa. Economist De Silva said that he would contest from Colombo at the April 25 poll though initially he decided to quit active politics. The UNPer declared his support to the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB). more..

Mar 14 (CT) Ministry of Passenger Transport Management, issuing a Media release said that subject Minister Mahinda Amaraweera instructed Ministry officials to submit a report on a bus plying on the Southern Expressway (E01) catching fire last morning, as well as into a similar incident that had taken place recently. Amaraweera ordered the Ministry Secretary to submit a report on the private bus plying on the E01 under the quota allocated to Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) bus fleet. more..

Mar 14 (Island) Royal�s front line batsmen, including their two Sri Lanka Under-19 players failed to convert their impressive starts to big knocks as arch rivals S. Thomas� took the edge on day two of the 141st Battle of the Blues at the SSC on Friday. In reply to Thomians� 369, Royal were 127 for four wickets at stumps as spinner Kishan Munasinghe and pacies Caniston Gunaratnam and Thevin Eriyagama delivered decisive blows at crucial junctures. more..

Mar 14 (Island) Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of SL (TRCSL) advised the public to refrain from misuse of all forms of telecommunication services to circulate or share false or fabricated information on COVID-19 to create unnecessary panic among the general public. It is a punishable offence in terms of the law, the TRCSL says issuing a notice. It has been observed that some parties are capitalizing on more..

Mar 14 (DM) Catholic Archdiocese of Colombo said there was no need to stop Sunday Mass and Lenten rituals just yet because the coronavirus had not reached dangerous levels in SL. �We don�t want to create more panic by asking the churches to stop Sunday services and Lenten pilgrimages which are a traditionally carried out during this time of the year,� a spokesman for the archdiocese said. �Govt has already informed of its decision to close all schools to prevent the virus from spreading more..

Mar 14 (FT) Essential Food Commodities Association yesterday assured that there were ample stocks and a steady supply of all essential food items, while requesting the general public not to panic unnecessarily. �There is no shortage in availability of essential food items in Sri Lanka,� a spokesperson from the Essential Food Commodities Association said. The announcement of two COVID-19 positive cases in Sri Lanka on Wednesday and Thursday resulted in panic buying at more..

Mar 14 (CT) The CID yesterday (13), informed Mount Lavinia Chief Magistrate, Udesh Ranatunga that a sum of Rs 1 billion had been deposited into a bank account owned by Bathiudeen Mohammad Riyaj, the sibling of former Minister Rishad Bathiudeen. The CID made this submission when the case related to finding documents from the residence of Rishad Bathiudeen's spouse, pertaining to more..

Mar 14 (DM) Ensuring the safety of all Sri Lankans is more important that holding elections, former UNP MP Arjuna Ranatunga told a news conference and said the govt should think of preventing the spread of the coronavirus rather than thinking of politics and elections. �This is not the time to hold election rallies, which are usually attended by large crowds and it is also not advisable to carry out house to house campaigning. The country will suffer a bigger disaster than from the war if more..

Mar 14 (FT) United National Party (UNP) Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday called on the Government to prepare a mechanism to work in collaboration with private hospitals and healthcare facilities to effectively counter COVID-19. Issuing a statement, Wickremesinghe pointed out that many developed countries had already declared that their health care systems were not sufficient to handle the volume and scale of assistance needed if the number of patients increases rapidly. more..

Mar 14 (EN) The Writ Petition filed by Perpetual Treasuries head Arjun Aloysius, former Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake and two other co-accused in the alleged Bonds Scam challenging an arrest order against them will resume hearings on Tuesday. On Friday they appeared in the Fort Magistrate�s Court on Friday to mark their attendance and then went back to their homes. This is because Court of Appeal (CoA) issued more..

Mar 14 (Island) Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) Chairman Prof. G.L. Peiris on Thursday (12) said that a magnificent victory achieved by wartime Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the 2019 presidential election remained incomplete until the parliamentary power was secured by the SLPP. Prof. Peiris said so addressing a book launch organized by Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) leader and former lawmaker Udaya Gammanpila at the Sri Sambuddha Jayanthi Mandiyara, Thunmulla. more..

Mar 14 (MoD) Defence Secretary Maj. Gen. (Retd) Kamal Gunaratne said the govt was fully geared to ensure the protection of country�s 21.4 million population from coronavirus or COVID -19, today. He said there was no need for people to get panic as the Defence Ministry was working closely with the Health Ministry and other relevant authorities to provide assistance to confronting the spread of the coronavirus. �Defence Ministry together with the Health Ministry has taken all precautionary more..