Feb 6 (CT) A collection of organisations, under the banner of North and East Civil Society Organisations conducted a three-day walk from 3 to 6 February, from Pottuvil in the Ampara District to Polihandi in the Jaffna District, completely disregarding the fast-spreading COVID-19 pandemic in the country and in violation of a number of health guidelines put in place to control the virus spread and to safeguard the people. Every single day, the frontline workers including healthcare professionals more..

Feb 6 (Island) Nothing seems to get done in this country without a presidential intervention. A collective of environmental groups has called upon Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa to have the ongoing rape of the Dahaiyagala sanctuary stopped immediately. A large number of ruling party politicians and their henchmen are clearing swaths of forest inside the sanctuary purportedly for agricultural purposes, as we have reported. They have already caused irreparable damage to the forest, more..

Feb 6 (TM) A recent advertisement to sell the controversial private university building of the SAITM in Malabe has raised many eyebrows, as questions remain unanswered regarding the management of the property. Many believe the property has been handed over to the Govt and is being managed as a semi-govt institution, and the private hospital attached to the university that was mired in controversy is also a fully govt-owned more..

Feb 6 (Roar) Natural gas deposits found off SL's north-western coast remained untouched for almost 10 years while alarm grew over increasing signs of global warming, from hotter weather to more frequent and intense cyclones. With the world now moving fast to wean itself off fossil fuels, to reduce emissions and slow down global warming, the question is whether it would be better to leave the gas in the ground � especially at a time when SL, too, has set specific targets concerning more..

Feb 6 (Island) As Cassandra sat at her computer on Monday February 1 morning contemplating what she would write this week, she heard jets screaming overhead, flying in formation. All preparing for the 4th of February parade. She was stymied in her morning walk by policemen barricading a roundabout near her home and standing in numbers directing traffic. Thus her thoughts turned to Independence Day which is now termed National Day. We celebrated independence from more..

Feb 6 (Island) Channa Wijemanne and Supun Weerasinghe are two busy CEOs of reputed private sector companies . The former responds to emailed queries within a day while the latter does it within a few hours. How long do you think the CEO of Sri Lanka Cricket takes to respond to emails? Six days! Ashley de Silva is one of the nicest blokes that you will ever come across, but being a top CEO requires more than being a nice guy. more..

Feb 6 (Island) Minul Doluweera took a seemingly unassailable lead when he won his tenth round game of the SL Chess Grand Prix 2021 at the CFSL Headquarters, Gangodawila, Nugegoda on Friday. Heading to the 11th round which was scheduled for the evening yesterday, the Royal College, Colombo player had the highest aggregate as he beat Elath Mathanga de Silva. Doluweera who was the number two at the last National Championship came to yesterday�s competition with an aggregate of more..

Feb 6 (Island) Dominating any sport for a long time is not an easy task. It takes commitment and a deep devotion to the sport to perform continuously at the top level specially when rewards for achievements are hard to come by. Samantha Pushpakumara, lovingly called Blackiya by fellow athletes, is one of the rare performers who demonstrated such commitment and determination to dominate one of track and field�s more demanding disciplines, the 3,000 metres steeplechase for almost 10 yrs. more..

Feb 6 (FT) Bold and visionary businesses that have their fundamentals secure will stand to benefit the most in 2021 from opportunities created by the existing low-interest environment, supportive govt policies and pandemic response, experts said this week. Speaking at the launch of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC) annual Outlook Report for 2021, on Wednesday business leader Amal Cabraal � more..

Feb 6 (CT) The Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC has been recognised for its commitment to empower women at the Top 50 Professional and Career Women Awards held recently in Colombo. The Bank was presented the award for the �Best CSR project on women empowerment by an organisation� at the 10th edition of the �Top 50 Professional and Career Women Awards, SL and Maldives� � an event organised by Women in Management (WIM), a leading organisation in Sri Lanka dedicated to more..

Feb 6 (CT) The first phase of the sports complex of Gateway College Kandy was declared open in Mapanawathura Road in close proximity to the school. The new complex provides for Athletics with a 100-metre track, Cricket with 3 wickets, Netball, Futsal and Tennis. Also included within the complex is a dormitory that can accommodate 36 athletes at any given time, enabling the school to hold residential sports camps for its students as well as for visiting teams. more..

Feb 6 (DN) Sri Lanka for the first time in its history has been able to save over US$ 300 million (almost Rs. 50 billion) from not importing milk powder from overseas in 2020. This is a major plus point achieved due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Last year Sri Lanka only imported milk in limited volume according to the latest Customs data. Chairman Pelwatte Dairies, Ariyaseela Wickramanayake said that even though Covid-19 has many more..

Feb 6 (Island) AIA Insurance has been recognised as a Great Place to Work� in Sri Lanka for the eighth consecutive year. The company was also adjudged the Best Workplace for Women in Sri Lanka for the third straight year. For 2020, AIA passed the rigorous measurements through analysis of results of the Great Place to Work� Trust Index� survey and Culture Audit� questionnaire and scored among the best in the country, thus receiving this global recognition. more..

Feb 6 (FT) Colombo stock market yesterday gained but couldn�t prevent finishing the week on a negative note for first time 14 weeks. The All Share Price Index gained by 31 points, or 0.37%, whilst the S&PSL20 gained by 11 points or 0.3%. Turnover was Rs. 5.16 billion, the lowest in a month. NDB Securities said during the week, the ASPI and the S&P SL20 lost 4.53% and 5.97%, respectively, whilst recording an average daily turnover of Rs. 10.52 billion. more..

Feb 6 (FT) A total of 735 persons tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday, bringing the country�s total COVID-19 patient count to 67,850. The 729 patients are associates of the Peliyagoda COVID-19 cluster and a total of 63,849 persons linked to the Divulapitiya, Peliyagoda and Prisons clusters have tested positive for COVID-19 to date. In addition to this, 1,931 SL returnees from abroad, 950 Navy personnel & their contacts, more..

Feb 6 (CT) Sri Lanka Rugby (SLR) has decided to permit Kandy Sports Club players to represent other �A� division clubs who take part in the Inter club rugby sevens tournament scheduled to be held at the end of March. Defending champions Kandy SC had decided to pull out of the tournament due to financial issues. President Rezly Illyas said SLR were aware that Kandy will pull out, but this will not disrupt the tournament as SLR will grant permission to all Kandy players to represent other clubs. more..

Feb 6 (CT) Play for a Cause, the annual sustainability project of the Battle of the Blues, the annual cricket encounter between Royal College, Colombo, and S. Thomas� College, Mt. Lavinia, would gift cricket equipment to four deserving schools that are deficient in cricket equipment. NCP/POL/HI/Girithalegama Maha Vidyalaya, Giritale, T/TN/Sri Rathanajothi Vidyayathana Pirivena, Trincomalee, Mapa/Denu/Menikdiwela Central College, Menikdiwela, and more..

Feb 6 (CT) Sports Minister Namal Rajapaksa has appointed a new Cricket Development and Technical Advisory Committee headed by former cricketing legend Aravinda de Silva, which also includes other former legends, Kumar Sangakkara, Roshan Mahanama & Muttiah Muralitharan. SLC too followed suit and appointed the same Committee as their Cricket Committee following advice from Sports Minister. more..

Feb 6 (CT) A 9-member Para Athletics team will travel to Qatar for the first leg of the World Para Athletics Grand Prix to be held in Dubai from 10 to 13 Feb. This is the fourth consecutive occasion the Fazza Int'l Championship will open the Grand Prix series. Team includes Paralympics medalist Javelin Thrower Dinesh Priyantha, Sprinter Saman Subasinghe and two female sprinters who will also compete in the long jump Amara Indumathi and Kumudu Priyanka. more..

Feb 6 (FT) Health authorities yesterday confirmed four COVID-19 deaths, bringing the country�s COVID-19 death toll to 343. Three of the deaths occurred on Thursday, including that of a 63-year-old individual from Mattakkuliya, who was transferred from the National Hospital to the Homagama Base Hospital, where she died of COVID pneumonia with trauma of blood poisoning and multi-organ dysfunction. An 89-year-old individual from Nawala also passed away on Thursday. more..

Feb 6 (FT) Establishment of National Coordinating Sub Committees to materialise the goals of development programs Conversation with the Village and Back to the Village with Work and the 2021 budget proposals was held under the patronage of PM Mahinda Rajapaksa this week at Temple Trees. These National Coordinating Sub-Committees, which are implemented on a concept of Presidential Task Force on more..

Feb 6 (DM) On Tuesday, the SL Govt said it was withdrawing from an agreement with Japan and India to develop a deep-sea container terminal at the Colombo Port. Why is this agreement or the terminal important? And how is India reacting to this development? The SL Govt this week announced that it would withdraw from the much-hyped agreement with Japan and India to develop the East Container Terminal (ECT) at the Colombo Port. Tripartite agreement proposed to develop more..

Feb 6 (Island) The Central bank yesterday said that it had settled its Swap facility with Reserve Bank of India and there was no special request from India for a premature settlement. �Such claims are erroneously reported by certain media outlets. There will be more discussions in the future and collaboration will continue,� CBSL said in a press release. Meanwhile, SJB MP Harsha de Silva said that the country�s foreign reserves were falling dramatically and the rupee was under severe more..

Feb 6 (AD) Prez Rajapaksa today (5) inaugurated the construction work of the 28km-long Irrigation Tunnel which will be the longest irrigation tunnel in South Asia upon completion. The event took place at Palugaswewa in Anuradhapura. The tunnel will be built under the first phase of the North Central Province Maha Ela Project, in parallel to the Waari Saubhagya (Irrigation Prosperity) programme to rehabilitate 5,000 tanks. more..

Feb 6 (DM) In response to internet media reports about India asking for the settlement of US $ 400 million currency swap as an act of retaliation for the cancellation of the port project, the Indian High Commission said a rollover facility for the settlement of had been granted for the Central Bank of Sri Lanka till Feb 1, and further extension was impossible without Sri Lanka having successfully negotiated staff level agreement for an IMF programme. more..

Feb 6 (DM) Whilst highlighting Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardene is expected to give a ruling on MP Ranjan Ramanayake who was convicted for Contempt of Court next week, SJB MP Lakshman Kiriella said his party expect him to rule fairly on the matter. Mr. Kiriella said the SJB expects the Speaker to use the precedent he created allowing SLPP MP Premalal Gunasekera who was convicted of murder to attend Parliament after the Court ruling was appealed against. more..

Feb 6 (CT) Chairman of the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA), General Daya Ratnayake, revealed Prez Rajapaksa is revisiting the Hambantota Port deal and that after many discussions recently with the Chinese officials, has relocated a SL Naval Base from the Chinese-controlled area. Navy Base, according to the agreement, was on the Chinese leased land. President spoke to the Chinese and took the base to SL side, Ratnayake said. more..

Feb 6 (FT) On this occasion when Sri Lanka celebrates its 73rd anniversary of independence, the country is in an unprecedented state of unpleasant misery and confusion. By the time we gained independence from the British colonial rule in 1948, Sri Lanka was in a shining position among the Asian countries. Seven decades later, despairingly Sri Lanka finds itself at the bottom of a deep abyss. Sri Lanka possessed a great civilisation during the reign of Anuradhapura & Polonnaruwa kingdoms. more..

Feb 6 (FT) Within a period of just over one year the Rajapaksa regime, headed by two septuagenarian siblings with different professional traits � one, a military man, and the other, a politician, but both beholden to a Sinhala Buddhist supremacist ideology� has driven the country into a cauldron of crises, from public health and economy to ecology and human rights and to cultural confrontations and social tensions. Of the two, it was the elder and patriarch of the clan, Mahinda Rajapaksa more..

Feb 6 (FT) Aitken Spence Travels, the leading DMC in Sri Lanka working in partnership with TUI Kazakhstan, will welcome the country�s first charter from Kazakhstan on Saturday, 6 February after the airports reopened for tourist arrivals. There will be two charters operating from Kazakhstan and it will be a first since the Sri Lankan borders re-opened for tourists. Air Astana flight will be a weekly flight operating every Saturday and is expected to continue till April. more..

Feb 6 (DM) A robber gang under disguise as police officers attached to the Colombo Unsolved Crimes Unit, robbed nearly Rs.500,000 from a businessman's residence at Hulugammana in Katugastota. DIG Ajith Rohana said the Katugastota police received a complaint yesterday stating that four men had robbed money amounting to around Rs. 500,000 from a house on Feb 3. Spokesman urged the public to be vigilant over such incidents and requested to verify their identity before more..

Feb 6 (Island) Ahead of the 46th sessions of the Geneva-based UNHRC scheduled to begin later this month, newly elected US President Joe Biden�s Democratic Party has raised SL accountability issues in a recently submitted Resolution, with the focus on appointment of military officials, including that of Gen. Shavendra Silva as the Commander of the Army. UNHRC consists of 47 countries divided into five groups. more..

Feb 6 (Island) The govt apparently does two things efficiently�printing money and issuing gazettes. Nobody seems to take these gazette notifications seriously, especially those pertaining to commodity prices. Maximum retail prices (MRPs) of various goods have been gazetted several times, over the last several months, but traders flout them with impunity. The Ministry of Trade has once again announced that the prices of 27 commodities will be reduced to grant relief to the public. more..

Feb 6 (TM) A group of 160 tourists from Kazakhstan arrived at the Mattala Rajapaksa Hambantota Airport (MRIA) on an Air Astana flight today. The MRIA said Air Astana, which is the flag carrier of Kazakhstan based in Almaty, operates scheduled, domestic and int'l services on 64 routes from its main hub, Almaty Int'l Airport, and from its secondary hub, Nursultan Nazarbayev Int'l Airport. Air Astana flight will be a weekly flight operating every Saturday and is expected to continue till April. more..

Feb 6 (EN) Sri Lanka must consider granting amnesty to ex-LTTE cadres that are still detained while former LTTE bigwigs continue to roam free, main opposition SJB MP Champika Ranawaka said. He said that the country needs to move on from the separatist war that ended nearly 12 years ago. Former LTTE leaders like chief arms procurer Kumaran Pathmanathan (alias KP) and V. Muralitharan (alias Karuna Amman) are more..

Feb 6 (EN) Sri Lanka is to lease 2,750 acres of state land (1,123 hectares) to investors to grow maize in a commercial scale after banning its imports in yet another drive to save foreign exchange instead of reforming the country�s money printing central bank. �The govt has taken measures to limit imports of food crops that have been recognized for cultivation within the country with the objective of controlling unnecessary influx (sic) of foreign exchange abroad,� a govt statement said. more..

Feb 6 (Island) The Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) will apppoint MP Patali Champika Ranawaka to a suitable post within the coming two weeks, National Organiser of the party, Tissa Attanayake told The Island yesterday. Attanayake said that 105 new party electoral organisers and five District Organisers would be appointed on 08 February 2021. SJB Leader MP Sajith Premadasa would hand over the appointment letters and they would be given specific instructions during a workshop, he said. more..

Feb 6 (EN) SL�s govt is turning to exorcism in a desperate bid to tackle the spread of Covid-19 after sorcery, spiritual syrups and pot-luck failed to stem the surge in infections. An official ceremony to exorcise evil spirits and end the pandemic will be held overnight at the Divulapitiya DS in the Gampaha district from sunset on Saturday till dawn Sunday. It said all political leaders and state officials in the Gampaha district will attend more..

Feb 6 (AD) World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called on more pharmaceutical companies on Friday to share manufacturing facilities to help ramp up the production of COVID-19 vaccines. The WHO also said its technical advisers would meet next week to assess versions of the AstraZeneca vaccine from the Serum Institute of India (SII), the largest vaccine maker, and from South Korea�s SK Bioscience ahead of a possible WHO emergency listing. more..