Mar 26 (CI) Nkrumah Bonner blunted the Sri Lanka seamers all day, defused the spin of Lasith Embuldeniya, and batted out 274 balls, as he provided the spine to West Indies' tenacious resistance on day five. He was unbeaten at the close on 113, with only three West Indies wickets having fallen, thanks to excellent supporting innings from Kyle Mayers, Kraigg Brathwaite and Jason Holder. more..

Mar 26 (Island) Rarely do we congratulate our police, finding the flimsiest excuse to ridicule them though in recent times they have demonstrated their efficiency. At times, we find in the UK mirror-images of what happens in SL. Soon after an Inspector of the SL Police got rid of his lover in the most gruesome manner, a police constable, attached to the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command unit of the London Metropolitan Police was charged with the kidnap and killing of more..

Mar 26 (Island) Fond memories of Sri Lanka�s cricket World Cup victory (1996) have not faded even after a quarter century. Who can forget the day when the entire country came to a standstill with everyone being glued to the television, cheering for the boys led by Arjuna, taking on the mighty Kangaroos, thousands of kilometres away? Former cricketing greats who brought home the much-coveted cup have been in the news again during the last few weeks. more..

Mar 26 (Island) The temporary ban on tile imports has plunged the tile and sanitary ware industry into a severe crisis. Considering the magnitude of this situation, we look forward to Cabinet approval for a resumption of tile imports, the Board of Management of the Tile & Sanitary Ware Importers Association (TISA) says in a press release. The release: �The industry has been facing severe crises in the past due to the temporary ban on tile imports. Not only the importers but also the traders, more..

Mar 26 (FT) Night Market is a street food and music fiesta with a cause which will be held on 27 March at MJF Centre, Katubadde (near K-Zone). Organised by Dilmah�s MJF Foundation and Dilmah Conservation � the Night Market aims to provide a platform for vendors whose businesses may have been affected by the pandemic and give a positive exposure to new vendors and home businesses. The event also includes music and entertainment, healthy food options and showcases more..

Mar 26 (Island) There have been very few positives to write about our cricket team in recent times, but watching the first Test in Antigua was fully worth burning the midnight oil as young Pathum Nissanka became the fourth SL to score a hundred on debut. This is a guy who has averaged 67 in First Class cricket over the last three years. Okay, we know records in our First Class cricket aren�t much to boast about, but such stats more..

Mar 26 (TM) The 22-year-old Galle-born right-handed batsman Pathum Nissanka Silva, who passed out from Isipathana College � Colombo, became only the fourth SL batsman to score a Test century on debut on Wednesday on the fourth day of the first cricket Test against West Indies at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua. Nissanka is the 110th to join the elite club of debut Test centurions in world cricket. There were 109 batsmen who had done the feat before Nissanka. more..

Mar 26 (ST) Up until the onset of COVID-19, SL�s online retail market was relatively small in comparison to the region. Lockdown advanced the adoption of online retail channels and saw the proliferation of a variety of online vendors, ranging from WhatsApp and Facebook groups to websites and platforms. However, there were and still exist many challenges that restrict a seamless customer experience. Recognising this gap, the PROVIDORE founders compared the present online retail more..

Mar 26 (DN) Director of Cricket Tom Moody yesterday vowed to take Sri Lanka to the top end of the ICC Team Rankings in all formats of the game. The former Australian Test player made these observations during his maiden media conference since being hired last month by Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). �With good people involved in the process we can take Sri Lanka cricket to the top end of the ICC Rankings in all formats of the game,� more..

Mar 26 (FT) Govt of the Philippines strongly support SL at the UNHRC on Tuesday when the resolution brought by a core group of member states led by the UK was taken up for voting at the 46th Session. Representative from the Permanent Mission of the Philippines in Geneva Evan Garcia told the Council that the resolution on SL pursues a political agenda that was blind to reasons and methods of reasoning. Manila�s representative said the Philippines had actively engaged on negotiations more..

Mar 26 (FT) UNP blamed the Govt for a colossal failure during the recent UNHRC sessions in Geneva. UNP Chairman Vajira Abeywardena stated that it was the Govt�s decision to withdraw from the previous resolution, which was co-sponsored by SL that resulted in the fresh resolution. Under the UNP Govt in 2015, the country co-sponsored a resolution that had the unanimous support of the council. Current Govt reversed that decision and left us with only the support of 11 countries. more..

Mar 26 (FT) Prez Rajapaksa emphasised that Governors and District Secretaries should take the lead in the regional development programs. �It is the intention of the Govt to expedite the provision of benefits of development to the rural population and this program could not be delayed at all,� the President said, stressing that the responsibility of supervising and overseeing all development activities would be vested in more..

Mar 26 (CT) Sri Lanka should take measures to address issues mentioned in the UNHRC resolution and avoid adverse long-term impacts on economy, noted geo-political analyst and author of Conundrum of an island Asanga Abeyagoonasekera. The US, EU, and many other countries which co-sponsored the UNHRC resolution are major export markets or trade partners for SL and thus maintaining good relations with international community and safeguarding Human Rights (HR) is vital for more..

Mar 26 (Island) Fifteen pages of 17-and-a-half-page UNHRC resolution against Sri Lanka, adopted on Tuesday, contained attacks on democracy and human rights violations under the presidency of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Chief Opposition Whip and Kandy District MP Lakshman Kiriella told Parliament yesterday. Speaking after Leader of the House Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena tabled the UNHRC resolution, Chief Govt Whip asked the Minister to read the resolution in full. more..

Mar 26 (FT) A total of 163 associates of the Peliyagoda COVID-19 cluster tested positive for the virus yesterday, pushing the country�s total COVID-19 patient count to 91,181. With the detection of yesterday�s patients, the Divulapitiya, Peliyagoda and Prisons clusters have expanded to 86,571 patients. In addition to the triple cluster, 2,544 SL returnees from abroad, 950 Navy personnel and their contacts, 651 persons more..

Mar 26 (DM) Foreign Ministry is currently in the process of studying what it should do at the 76th session of the UN General Assembly regarding the UNHRC seeking an additional programme budget of US $ 2.8 billion to implement the resolution on SL, an official said. The official said the Ministry would study the technicalities in the process and decide how it should respond to the situation. The UNHRC has sought approval for such budgetary support at the 76th General Assembly to cover more..

Mar 26 (FT) Health authorities yesterday confirmed 3 COVID-19 deaths, which brought the country�s COVID-19 death toll to 557. Three deaths occurred on Wednesday and the individuals were all above 60 years of age. A 64-year-old individual from Kandy tested positive for COVID-19 while receiving treatment at a private hospital. He was then admitted to the Teldeniya Base Hospital, where he died of acute COVID pneumonia with severe respiratory distress. more..

Mar 26 (TM) As a double mutant variant of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) or Covid-19 created panic in neighbouring India, it is learnt that genome sequencing would be carried out by the University of Sri J'pura (USJP) to determine whether this variant is in Sri Lanka. The genome sequencing would be conducted on 96 samples covering the whole island by next week. more..

Mar 26 (DM) Ruling party MP Gevidu Cumaratunga queried in Parliament yesterday whether it is possible to convert the present Provincial Councils into Development Coordinating Institutions sans a law-making authority. Making his remarks during the debate on the report of the Presidential Commission which probed the Easter Sunday attacks, he said it was important to look at whether it was possible to convert the Provincial Councils into Development Coordination Institutions. more..

Mar 26 (AD) Steps will be taken to confirm all employees of the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) with more than 5 years of experience, who are currently working on contract basis, State Minister of Transport Dilum Amunugama said. He revealed this while speaking at the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Transport held in Parliament. Meanwhile, State Minister stated that the relevant examination will be held in May to fill the long standing vacancies for driving instructors. more..

Mar 26 (CT) Leader of the House Dinesh Gunawardena and Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa locked horns in Parliament, over a statement made by Gunawardena that the majority of UNHRC members did not support the Resolution on SL adopted by a vote on Tuesday. Gunawardena said, �Out of the 47 Members of the Council, 22 countries voted in favour, 11 voted against and 14 abstained. It is implicit from the voting result that more..

Mar 26 (AD) The US has called on SL to take credible and meaningful steps to address its past, promote reconciliation, and guarantee equal access to justice for all its people. During a press briefing on Tuesday, Principal Deputy Spokesperson of the U.S. Department of State Ms. Jalina Porter urged the SL govt to safeguard the rights of ethnic and religious minorities, human rights defenders, and civil society actors. Her remarks came after UNHRC adopted the draft resolution against Sri Lanka more..

Mar 26 (TM) Govt is planning to protect military officials from international prosecution through the introduction of laws that would purportedly grant military officials international immunity. �Laws would be introduced to ensure military officials cannot be prosecuted by entities outside the country,� Media Secretary to the Minister of Education Buddhika Wickramadara said, referring to sentiments expressed by Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris at a press conference held at the SLPP hq recently. more..

Mar 26 (FT) Minister Dinesh Gunawardena told Parliament that SL will pursue domestic mechanisms aimed at bringing about reconciliation and lasting peace despite the resolution adopted by the UNHRC, and reiterated the Govt�s commitment to protect those who made sacrifices to neutralise terrorism, protect the territorial integrity of the country and to regain for all people in SL the most cherished of all rights � the right to life. more..

Mar 26 (FT) Equality, justice, hope � The UN Charter begins by affirming �faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small�. SL lost the vote on the UNHRC Resolution Item 2: L.1/Rev. 1 Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights with 22 states in favour, 11 against and 14 abstaining on 23 March. This is not a victory as foolishly and comically declared by Minister of Foreign more..

Mar 26 (FT) The successful adoption of the UNHRC resolution titled Promotion of Reconciliation Accountability and Human Rights in SL is a wake-up call for the Govt�s foreign policy experts. SL�s foreign office faced its first major test this week with the vote at the UNHRC. Presented with a resolution that called for the promotion of accountability and human rights, which the Govt had chosen to reject, there was little expectation of any other outcome but one of successful adoption. more..

Mar 26 (DN) TNA Leader R. Sampanthan said India had influenced UNHRC delegates to pressure the Sri Lankan Govt to hold Provincial Council elections at the earliest. He said that it should not be forgotten that although India followed a moderate course of action with regards to the resolution on Sri Lanka during the recent UNHRC session, it still worked hard to propagate and support the rights of the Tamil people in this country during the recently concluded forum. He was responding to questions by more..

Mar 26 (DN) A writ petition has filed in Court of Appeal seeking a writ of quo warranto declaring Digamadulla district MP Dr. Thilak Rajapkshe as not entitled to hold office as a MP. It is alleged that Dr. Rajapkshe was a staff grade public officer at the time of signing his nomination papers to contest for the Parliamentary Election held last year. When this petition came up before CA two-judge-bench comprising Justice Arjuna Obeysekera (President) and Justice Mayadunne Corea, more..

Mar 26 (Island) A number of senior health officers had been compelled to leave the campaign against Covid-19 and their replacements were junior officers President of the College of Medical Laboratory Science, Ravi Kumudesh said. He said the exodus of the capable and experienced professionals jeopardized the campaign against Covid-19. �The President has to be consulted on any decision. more..

Mar 26 (DM) The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) established in Sri Lanka joined hands with HelpAge Sri Lanka (HASL) to strengthen the needs of senior citizens and other vulnerable population in the island. The partnership agreement between UNFPA and HelpAge will strengthen the disaster preparedness capacity of senior citizens and also the building capacities of Senior Citizen Committees (SCC) in vulnerable areas prone to natural disasters. HelpAge SL which was established in 1986 more..

Mar 26 (TM) ESR Cayman Ltd. Co-Founder and Co-CEO Stuart Gibson, visited Sri Lanka recently. ESR Cayman Ltd. is one of APAC�s largest logistics property platforms. Gibson and his senior management team held talks with the top level of the SL Govt, including Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa, PM Mahinda Rajapaksa, State Ministers Nivard Cabraal, Tharaka Balasooriya, D.V. Chanaka, BOI Chairman Sanjaya Mohottala, and Airport and Aviation Chairman Maj. Gen. (Retd.) G.A. Chandrasiri, more..

Mar 26 (Island) Former Chief Justice Sarath Nanda Silva (1999-2009), alleged that the British govt had suppressed diplomatic cables sent by its wartime Defence Attach� Lt. Colonel Anthony Gash from the British High Commission, Colombo, because they ran counter to the claims made by the western bloc as regards Sri Lanka at the Geneva-based UNHRC. the 41st CJ explained the British, in spite of being a member of more..

Mar 26 (AD) A consignment of China�s Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine � also known as BBIBP-CorV � is expected to arrive in Sri Lanka on the 31st of March, says State Minister of Production, Supply and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals. Sri Lanka will be receiving this consignment of 600,000 Sinopharm coronavirus vaccine jabs as a donation from China. National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) of Sri Lanka recently approved the emergency use of Sinopharm vaccine in the country. more..

Mar 26 (DM) Former president Maithripala Sirisena said today the then govt should take collective responsibility for the Easter Sunday attack. He told Parliament that it was the responsibility of the whole govt to take steps to prevent terrorism and extremism adding that the Prez, PM, Ministers or officials were not individually responsible in that regard. Mr Sirisena said he had not been informed of the intelligence information received from a foreign source pertaining to Easter Sunday more..

Mar 26 (EN) SL�s daily confirmed COVID-19 cases are on the decline, says the health ministry. So is the number of daily PCR tests. Is there a connection? Not really, says the ministry. Here is a look at the data so far, from the beginning of the second wave in Oct 2020. In the latter part of Feb 2021, a sharp decline was observed in both cases and tests. With the obligatory correlation does not imply causation caveat out of the way, more..

Mar 26 (AD) Colombo Magistrate�s Court today released Minister Johnston Fernando from two court cases filed by the Bribery Commission during the administration of the previous govt. Minister Fernando was accused of allegedly using 153 employees of Lanka Sathosa in political activities while serving as a minister from 2010-2014 and incurring a loss to the tune of Rs 40 million to the govt. Verdict was delivered by Colombo Chief Magistrate Buddhika Sri Ragala when more..

Mar 26 (ANI) Various political parties in Tamil Nadu are seen campaigning with the images and cut-outs of late Velupillai Prabhakaran, the founder and leader of the LTTE ahead of the assembly elections, proving that years after his death, Prabhakaran still continues to hold political clout in the state. Shiv Raman from Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK), contesting from Thirumayam Constituency of Pudukkottai district, on Thursday used images and cut-outs of Prabhakaran. more..

Mar 26 (CI) Sri Lanka Cricket has said that the matters that led to Chaminda Vaas' resignation as the fast bowling consultant last month have been amicably resolved after a meeting between the two parties. An SLC release said Vaas withdrew his resignation and agreed to continue as the fast bowling consultant, which he had been appointed for just over a month ago, ahead of Sri Lanka's tour of the West Indies. more..