Nov 22 (ST) There is a certain sense of sanctimonious humbuggery on our part when we raise our hands to the heavens to scorn the sight of mass crowds on Colombo�s streets agitating against policies of the Govt which have dire impact on SL�s poor. That too, when remaining (largely) silent as official and religious events occur with nary a thought as to covid-19 health protocols. So when health officials lecture the public on these matters, it is best that the finger of responsibility is more..

Nov 22 (ST) This Sunday morn the minister in charge of the police, Sarath Weerasekera, will no doubt be patting himself on the back for a job well done to have deployed his police force and effectively kept the multitudes from thronging the city gates to protest over rising prices and shortages in the country: a country which his cabinet colleague Minister Johnston Fernando hails constantly as a land overflowing with milk and honey. But though the mass voice had been stilled with more..

Nov 22 (MFA) Please be informed that due to a breakdown of the Electronic Document Attestation System (e-DAS) in the Consular Affairs Division of the Foreign Ministry, attestation services during the past week were disrupted resulting in long delays in providing services. In addition, the Branch Attestation System at the Regional Consular Offices and Sri Lanka Missions overseas are also affected. The Foreign Ministry regrets the inconvenience caused to the public in this regard. more..

Nov 22 (CI) Dimuth Karunaratne hunkered down in the difficult first session, scored more confidently in the afternoon, and then pressed home SL's advantage in the evening, to go to stumps at 132 off 265 balls in his first Test since May. Pathum Nissanka and Dhananjaya de Silva also made contrasting fifties, to help their captain bookend the day with big stands. On a surface that is expected to dry out & take turn by day 3, more..

Nov 22 (EN) Sri Lanka�s central bank said K G P Sirikumara, D Kumaratunge, U L Muthugala, and C P S Bandara has been promoted to the post of Assistant Governor with effect from Nov 17, 2021. Sirikumara has served the CB for more than 21 years in different capacities in the Departments of Legal and Compliance and Secretariat. Kumaratunge has over 30 years of experience in the Central Bank and has worked in the Depts of Economic Research, more..

Nov 22 (Island) The govt decision to transfer Rs. 8.5 billion, which Perpetual Treasuries Ltd, illegally raised through the Treasury bond scams, to the state coffers has sparked an interesting political debate. The govt has done something right�for once�but its move smacks of politics. What has been stolen from the public must be traced and confiscated. If the colossal amounts of funds the present-day political leaders representing both the govt and the Opposition have stashed more..

Nov 22 (FT) LOLC Holdings on Friday completed the transfer of the shares of three finance companies to LOLC Ceylon Holdings (LOCH) in a bid to attract large foreign investors to the latter whilst the move triggered bizarre performance of the stocks, fuelling concerns and criticism. The 3 companies are LOLC Finance (LOFC), Commercial Leasing and Finance PLC (CLC) and LOLC Development Finance PLC (NIFL). more..

Nov 22 (FT) COVID-19 vaccines were administered to 52,979 persons on Saturday, and 93.7% of the country�s population over 20 years has received both vaccine doses. The first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine has been administered to 73.97% of the country�s total population and the second dose has been administered to 63.71% of the population. 15,910,650 persons have received the first dose of a vaccine and 13,705,311 persons have received the second dose. more..

Nov 22 (Island) The hard work that the national basketball team put up in the lead up to their major international challenge this year came in handy as they finished runners-up in the SABA Championship in Dhaka earlier this week. Sri Lanka lost just one game to regional powerhouse India in this campaign as performances of several young players stood out. Dasun Nilantha, Nimesh Fernando and Rukshan Atapattu played brilliantly throughout the campaign. However, the standout performer was captain more..

Nov 22 (Island) ICC & SLC yesterday felicitated Ranjan Madugalle, who was officiating in his 200th Test match. Madugalle, a former Test captain, was employed at Ceylon Tobacco Company when ICC called him in 1993. Since then, he has become the governing body�s most trusted employee having served them for nearly 3 decades. It is said that Madugalle has only friends and no enemies in cricket. Even when he suspends someone, he says that with a smile on his face. more..

Nov 22 (SLN) SL Navy took hold of about 229kg and 350g of Kerala cannabis concealed in a dinghy, during a special operation conducted in seas off Ariyalai, Jaffna this morning (21). SL Navy has been conducting regular operations in coastal regions of the island to ward off a wide range of nefarious activities stemming via sea routes. Accordingly, SLNS Welusumana in the Northern Naval Command mounted this special operation covering the sea and beach areas of Ariyalai in the early hours more..

Nov 22 (TM) The Presidential Task Force for implementing regulations towards the One Country, One Law concept commenced consulting the public for its opinions from the Vavuniya District in the Northern Province on Saturday, with another consultation taking place yesterday at the Valampuri Hall in Jaffna. Lawyers, professionals, religious leaders, students, and civilians presented their views before the Task Force on various aspects more..

Nov 22 (DM) TNA MPs M.A Sumanthiran and Shanakiyan Rasamanickam, who are presently in Canada, were driven away from a meeting held with a group of Tamil diaspora, who branded them as traitors alleging the diaspora wanted a separate Tamil state in SL. Both Sumanthiran and Rasamanickam came under heavy criticism while the meeting was on, with the group alleging that the MPs had severely failed in their duties towards the Tamil community, especially in north-east more..

Nov 22 (ICC) Three SL players at the ICC Women�s Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2021 have tested positive for COVID-19 and are isolating. The players tested positive following a screening of all team members after one player showed mild symptoms, as per the bio-secure protocols in place to ensure the safety of all participants in the nine-team event, which got underway in Harare today. Two of the players are experiencing mild symptoms, whilst the third is asymptomatic. more..

Nov 22 (ST) The Finance Ministry this week cracked the whip on state-owned enterprises (SOEs), requiring boards of directors to be held accountable for their decisions and actions, laying down strict guidelines for recruitment and payments, and demanding performance targets to be met across all institutions. The instructions targeting 400-odd institutions became effective on Wednesday. They were accompanied by a circular more..

Nov 22 (Island) World Bank Chief Economist for South Asia Hans Timmer says it is imperative for SL to maximize debt service, with least resources possible. Timmer said so at a webinar organised by the CB recently under the theme, Impact of the pandemic on South Asian economies and how digitisation & services led growth can help SL to rebound. �SL at the moment is in a difficult situation due to accumulation of problems. SL�s economy has been hard hit during the pandemic, more..

Nov 22 (PHC) Gandhara is a documentary jointly produced by the High Commission of Pakistan in SL and Siddhivinayak Cine Arts (Private) Limited with the support of and in coordination with the Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs. It takes the viewers on a visual journey along the Gandhara Buddhist heritage sites of Pakistan. The documentary will be launched today (16) at Temple Trees by PM Rajapaksa, in the presence of Venerable Buddhist monks, Cabinet and more..

Nov 22 (ST) Govt is to extend the local councils� term by one year without elections, the Sunday Times learns. Accordingly, the terms of 340 local bodies � 24 municipal councils, 41 urban councils and 275 Pradeshiya Sabhas � will be extended after their mandated 4-year term expires in April next year. Term of another local council � Elpitiya PS � ends later on. Official source said govt would cite the current pandemic situation and the financial crisis it faced for the extension. more..

Nov 22 (FT) Russia�s flag carrier Aeroflot Airlines has recommenced its flight operations to Colombo from Moscow, initially with two services per week. The first flight (SU284) with 240 passengers arrived yesterday morning at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA). Aeroflot � Russian Airlines will initially operate flights every Friday and Sunday, and it will increase the frequency up to five times a week in the near future, Airport and Aviation Services (SL) Ltd. (AASL) said. more..

Nov 22 (Island) An investigation by the Colombo Crimes Division (CCD) into a complaint of fraud, which caused a loss of over USD 18 million to the govt coffers, has been stalled by a minister. CCD commenced the investigation, several weeks ago, following a complaint against a Singaporean, of SL origin, and a Sri Lankan, for using forged documents to cheat a SL company out of Rs 35 million. Investigators uncovered a customs fraud, more..

Nov 22 (ST) SL farmers are lacking in weedicides this Maha season due to state policy decisions but the market remains fertile for illegally imported stocks selling at skyrocketing prices. Lack of weedicide alone is set to drop yields by about 40% while the budget offers Rs.5,000 per H to implement policy. Peradeniya Uni Weed Science Senior Prof. Buddhi Marambe said on Tuesday that if weeds are not controlled then yields will be lower and excess weed alone can reduce paddy yield by 40%. more..

Nov 22 (FT) SL�s COVID-19 detections over the weekend exceeded 1,400 with 697 persons testing positive for COVID-19 yesterday. A total of 1,422 COVID-19 patients were detected over the weekend and all patients were from the New Year cluster. On Saturday, 725 persons tested positive for COVID-19. 6,339 PCR tests and 3,268 rapid antigen tests were conducted on Saturday. In total, 556,626 persons have tested positive for COVID-19 in SL to date. This includes 451,823 persons from more..

Nov 22 (TM) Ministry of Agriculture Secretary Prof. Udith K. Jayasinghe-Mudalige stated yesterday (21) that steps will be taken to re-import standardised, second-generation chemical fertilisers, agrochemicals, and essential plant nutrients required for paddy, maize, vegetables, and other plantation crops, which, if implemented, would appear to signal an abandonment of the Govt�s signature and more..

Nov 22 (Island) A meeting attended by TNA MPs M.A. Sumanthiran and Shanakyan Rasamanickam in Canada was disrupted by a group of LTTE supporters on Saturday. The LTTE supporters protested outside the venue in Toronto carrying LTTE flags, demanding a separate state for the Tamils, and rejecting the TNA�s push for a political settlement to SL�s ethnic question. The group initially gathered outside the venue where a public meeting, organized by TNA Canada, was taking place. more..

Nov 22 (AD) State Minister Prof. Channa Jayasumana says it has been observed that the new sub-lineage of Delta variant of COVID-19 detected in SL is mostly spreading among the country�s youth and school children. He said that the prevailing situation is such that when those who have been fully vaccinated get infected with the Covid-19 virus, they show symptoms similar to that of a minor cold. He said that the symptoms mainly experienced include fever, headaches & muscle pain. more..

Nov 22 (EN) Sri Lanka is progressively relaxing a sudden ban on chemical fertilizer and allowing urea and plant nutrients for several crops, a top official has said, while the minister of agriculture has denied any relaxation for paddy or vegetables. Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture Udith K Jayasinghe said that it was not possible to meet all fertilizer needs from domestically produced fertilizer. �The nitrogen content of organic fertilizer is more..

Nov 22 (FT) Minister Basil Rajapaksa, called Basil to distinguish from other Rajapaksas in the Govt, unveiled his maiden Budget � that was for 2022 � on 12 Nov. Much has been said about this Budget by his supporters as well as critics so far. Supporters have seen only the virtues of the Budget, while critics have not seen any merit in it. As usual, chambers have praised the Budget as a development-oriented one, despite the fact that it has increased consumption and more..

Nov 22 (FT) On 15 and 16 November, two consecutive days, Rev. Fr. Cyril Gamini was asked to come to the CID and has been questioned for almost eight to nine hours each day, from 9 a.m. to 5 or 6 p.m. On the second day, in the afternoon, he has been asked to come on the next day, and it was on his request, or protest, that the statement taking was completed on the same day. Otherwise he would have been forced to come another day. As he clearly expressed to the media more..

Nov 22 (AD) Rev. Father Cyril Gamini Fernando has left the CID premises after recording a statement for the third day. He left the CID, a short while ago, after recording a statement for around five hours. Father Cyril Gamini had arrived at the CID at 9.30 a.m. today for the third time. He had previously appeared before the CID on two occasions to record a statement in connection with a complaint filed by the country�s intelligence chief. He had been questioned by CID for around 8 hours on Nov 15 & 16. more..

Nov 22 (AD) A mobile phone and a hands-free headset have been recovered from the possession of former MP Ranjan Ramanayake, who has been admitted to the Welikada Prison Hospital. The former deputy minister had been transferred from the Angunakolapelessa Prison to Welikada Prison Hospital on November 10, under medical advice, in order to be produced at the orthopedic clinic of the Colombo National Hospital to treat a knee injury. When the officers on duty at Prison Hospital more..

Nov 22 (TM) The $ 500 million credit line for fuel, which Sri Lanka requested from India some time ago, is expected to be received by the country by the end of this month, amidst an aggravated fuel crisis. Speaking to us, Treasury and Ministry of Finance Secretary S.R. Attygalle stated that discussions are currently ongoing and that they hope to sort out the credit line from India for fuel by the end of November. more..

Nov 22 (AD) A consignment of 1.5 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine has arrived in the country this morning (22). The stock of vaccines had reached the BIA today onboard an Emirates cargo flight. The vaccines in question are to be used to administer the third dose under the country�s vaccination programme. State Minister Prof. Channa Jayasumana said yesterday that another batch of 400,000 doses of the Pfizer vaccine will reach the country the day tomorrow (23). more..

Nov 22 (DM) A SLPP Panadura Pradeshiya Sabha member who had been harassing the residents of Galpatha under influence of alcohol has been tied to a lamp post by a group of residents in the area. PS member had come to the Galpatha area with a group of others to consume alcohol. PS member reportedly left the group and had behaved in an indecent manner harassing the residents of Bahurupola area in Galpatha. Then the residents had tied him to a lamp post and more..

Nov 22 (Island) Former Executive Director of the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) Thushan Gunawardena says the Murder Investigation Unit of the CID inquiring into his accusations regarding the massive garlic scam in the state-owned enterprise, Lak Sathosa, wanted to question him. Gunawardena said that the Officer-in-Charge of that unit, Chief Inspector L.D.S.B. Jayasekera had asked him to report to more..

Nov 22 (Island) Former Indian Foreign Secretary, Shivshankar Menon has said that although China has invested heavily in countries like Pakistan and SL, that does not automatically translate into political influence over a country�s foreign policy, popularity, or into soft power. He said this responding to a question on the role of China�s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) plays in advancing China�s economic and soft power interests in South Asia during an interview with E-Int'l Relations magazine. more..

Nov 22 (DM) A verbal confrontation between two SJB MPs Harin Fernando and Kumara Welgama was witnessed in Parliament today. Mr. Fernado charged that a certain MP had accused him of running to hospital when he was asked to come to the CID to record a statement. �I am willing to remove my shirt and show him the scar on my stomach as testimony to the surgery I had had. He should not talk of what he does not know,� Mr. Fernando said. more..