Apr 15 (ENS) On 22 March 2022, 16 SL nationals�men, women and children�arrived in India seeking asylum. They were dropped in islets, very near the shore, in the Gulf of Mannar and were asked to wade through the water during low tide. Indian Coast Guard spotted them and brought them to the Mandapam Camp. The boatmen charged `10,000 per person. For the boatmen, this is a lucrative business, law of supply and more..

Apr 15 (DM) Claiming that the country was on the brinks of collapsing, Mayor of Colombo Rosy Senanayake said the need of the hour is a coalescence of all forces irrespective of political, racial, religious or language differences to rescue the nation. She said in a statement that Democratic solutions to the problems can only be found via Parliament. "The onus is on the Opposition, led by the Leader of the Opposition to initiate this change. However, at times it feels like most more..

Apr 15 (TM) Not at all forgetful of gallantry, bravery and supreme sacrifices they made in the battlefield and how they battled against the enemy at the risk of their own lives, legs and limbs with the sole objective of safeguarding democracy and the freedom we enjoy today, General Shavendra Silva, Chief of Defence Staff and Commander of the Army, hours before the dawn of the Sinhala and Tamil New Year on April 13 visited the Abhimansala (wellness resort) where a group of severely wounded more..

Apr 15 (AD) The IMF on Wednesday said that it supported SL�s plans to engage in collaborative dialogue with creditors, a day after the country unilaterally suspended external debt payments amid a severe economic crisis. �We assessed Sri Lanka�s debt to be unsustainable and that the country�s fiscal efforts and macroeconomic policy adjustments alone could not restore debt sustainability,� Masahiro Nozaki, IMF�s mission chief for SL, said. more..

Apr 16 (CT) In record time SL�s most beloved Presidential candidate had become SL�s most hated President. This transformation took place despite being one of the few world leaders who had successfully managed the Covid-19 pandemic. Those who congregate in the streets today with placards of Go Gota Go forget that they are able to assemble without a second thought because of Prez Rajapaksa�s timely response to the pandemic. When the pandemic hit the island in March 2020, more..

Apr 16 (GV) The 1978 constitution�s executive presidency that was meant to bring about economic development has dragged the country down to the worst economic crisis we have faced since independence. The weakening of the constitutional restraints allowed by the constitution has made it so difficult for the people to hold the President and the govt to account. Today we have come to a point where the gap between the people and the representatives is so glaring that the people more..

Apr 16 (CT) When Ceylon Today entered Pettah market, one of the busiest locations in Colombo, we could sense in the air the battle to secure even an extra rupee. Pettah looked like a battlefield, with vendors trying to hawk their wares for few extra rupees and their customers trying to buy as much as possible and save those extra rupees amid Colombo�s infamous humid weather. Amarasiri, a banana seller from Athurugiriya, more..

Apr 16 (CT) In announcing the pre-emptive negotiated $51 billion debt default, which in other words meant an official declaration of bankruptcy after notifying the creditors, CBSL Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe (NW) said, �We have lost the ability to repay foreign debt. It has come to a point that making debt payments are challenging and impossible. We need to focus on essential imports and not having to worry about servicing external debt�. more..

Apr 16 (Island) I am grateful to my parents for encouraging me to appreciate nature. Both of them are great enthusiasts of wildlife and, as a result, our journeys to the wilds began at a very tender age. One of my childhood memories is of an incident in 1973 where my family consisting of my parents, two brothers, sister and myself traveled to Yala in a car. At the time the roads were not like what they are in the park today. They were quite narrow and the surface was uneven. more..

Apr 16 (CT) As the laws of economics have dictated, shortages always create black-markets. This is exactly what is happening in Sri Lanka which faces shortages from dollars to fuel to cooking gas to medicines to milk-foods, to mention but a few. It is beyond the long arm of the legal authorities because transactions take place by mutual consent and there is no reason for either party to report on it. more..

Apr 16 (CT) Reeling under its worst economic crisis SL's power cuts continue for up to 13 hours a day. Public Utilities Commission of SL (PUCSL) indicated that power disruptions will be according to a zone system. Yet, invariably the power cuts and restoration times vary. It confuses the public as no one can organise anything properly. Hungry and sweaty children have to use candlelight to attend to their schoolwork in the dark. Housewives cannot keep frozen food in refrigerators more..

Apr 16 (ST) Between this writing and its publication anything could happen. Like a govt without a cabinet, or a four-member cabinet of sorts with or without a finance minister but still has a highways minister. That, it appears, is enough to run the country or whatever is left to run, now that some others have taken off on the limping national carrier or a Pandora flight to parts known and unknown. Now if a cabinet of such a number would have been adhered to from the very beginning more..

Apr 16 (TM) The estimated prevalence of Bovine Tuberculosis (bTB) � a disease that carries the risk of transmission from cattle and buffaloes to humans and other susceptible animal species � among cattle in the Central Province is 22.6%. This finding was made in a research article on the �Prevalence of bTB among cattle and buffaloes in the Central Province� which was authored by Y.H.P.S.N. Kumara, A. Amarasinghe, P.G.A. Pushpakumara, W.M.T.D. Rathnakumara and B. Alexander more..

Apr 16 (ST) On the eve of the Sinhala and Tamil New Year, thoughts uppermost in the minds of people is whether the country�s economic situation will enable them to celebrate the festive occasion. Will the shortages of essentials that have plagued the country this year continue? Will we be able to greet each other Suba Aluth Avuruddak with any conviction? What are the economic prospects in the year ahead? Will there be an unexpected change in the country? more..

Apr 16 (EN) State-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) on Friday rationed fuel sales to most customers, saying it will speed up distribution and make more available fuel to more customers as the country grappled with the worst central bank crisis in the country�s history. �This is to increase our efficiency in distributing fuel. This will be temporary,� the CPC chairman Sumith Wijesinghe said. more..

Apr 16 (FP) Gotabaya Rajapaksa�s presidency probably reached the point of no return, after 41 members of the ruling SLPP coalition partners withdrew their support to the govt on 5 April. Two days earlier, the President had disbanded his cabinet, in a bid to form an all-party govt to tide over the financial crisis. His call had no takers because the Opposition parties see Gotabaya as a loser and want him out of office. The main opposition, SJB, the 10-party alliance as well as the JVP-led NPP more..

Apr 16 (AD) The UNP has urged the SriLankan Airlines to cancel the requests for proposal (RFPs) to lease new aircraft. In a statement issued today (15), the UNP said it is astounded to learn that the national carrier has released an Expression of Interest for the lease of aircraft for the airline. �SriLankan Airlines has been classified as a loss-making enterprise by both CoPE and IMF,� it read further. The UNP said any plans for expansion must be halted immediately and Board of Directors more..

Apr 16 (AD) Ranjith Siyambalapitiya says he would step down as the Deputy Speaker of Parliament at the parliamentary sitting scheduled for April 19. SLFP�s parliamentary group decided last week that its 14 lawmakers including former Prez Maithripala Sirisena would represent the Parliament independently. Consequently, Siyambalapitiya informed the President of his intention to resign as the Deputy Speaker. more..

Apr 16 (DM) Veteran cinema artiste Jackson Anthony in his message extending support to the �non-partisan youth struggle�, expressed hope that it will not be another defeated insurrection but a triumphant revolution. In a Facebook post, Anthony said that he has been in a deep political silence since 2016 due to the frustration over local politics. �I have been a non-partisan artist since, then,� he stated. "I have been in complete political silence since 2016 and not voicing since then. more..

Apr 16 (PTI) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Friday urged the Centre to allow the State to ship essential commodities from the Thoothukudi port to Sri Lanka as humanitarian aid to the people, especially Tamils, severely affected by the food crisis. Recalling his discussion with PM Narendra Modi on the issue on March 31, Chief Minister reiterated TN govt's commitment to ship foodgrains, vegetables and medicines from the port for the Tamils in northern and eastern parts of Lanka more..

Apr 16 (EN) Sri Lanka has been importing oil for many months without letters of credit helped by long term relationships, Chairman of state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation Sumith Wijesinghe has said, after banks failed honor trade documents due to money printed to keep interest rates low. Any supplier who sends a shipment without an LC risks non-payment or rejection of a consignment. While most small shipments take place on open papers shippers usually do not load high value cargo more..

Apr 16 (TOI) SL is in the midst of an unprecedented economic crisis which is slowly but surely snowballing into a political crisis that threatens to dislodge the Rajapaksa brothers. The island nation needs between $3 billion to $4 billion this year to pull itself out of the economic mess. The extent of the crisis can be gauged from the fact that Colombo has stopped external debt payments to ensure it has enough cash reserves for emergency supplies like fuel, food, gas, medicine and other essential more..

Apr 16 (EN) The chairman of State-run Litro Gas, Theshara Jayasinghe, has resigned blaming ex-ministers and the administration for the country�s economic crisis, in resignation letter addressed to Prez Rajapaksa. Jayasinghe alleged that ministers and govt officials under whom Litro operates did not support the decisions to combat wrongdoing. �Majority of the ministers and members of the parliament representing the ruling party more..

Apr 16 (NR) SLFP says the country�s future will be brighter if the people�s struggle at Galle Face remains neutral. Speaking to media in Anuradhapura SLFP MP Duminda Dissanayake said certain political parties are now attempting to make the struggle their own. MP said protesters at Galle Face are calling for something positive for the sake of the country, and are not divided by politics. He said there have been many instances of politicians deceiving and lying to the public. more..

Apr 16 (NR) Election monitoring body the Peoples Action for a Free and Fair Election (PAFFREL) says the social struggle based on the hardships faced by the public has been undermined by those in power and charged them of neglecting responsibilities as public representatives. PAFFREL issuing a statement expressed regret over the actions of the government and the irresponsibility of a majority of MPs and party leaders during the past few days. PAFFREL also claimed that Prez, Cabinet more..

Apr 16 (ST) Food poisoning could be caused by contaminated food that Sri Lankans buy for the Sinhala-Hindu New Year. Often, infectious organisms such as bacteria, viruses and parasites, cause food poisoning. The risk is greater because shops do not have electricity to safely stock food in freezers. There is also the risk of traditional New Year sweets being made with substandard oil. Common symptoms of food poisoning include nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain. more..

Apr 16 (CT) Although nearly 1,700 madrasas are in operation all over the Island, there is no data on them and they are not supervised or monitored by any Govt institution, Auditor General revealed. This was stated in the Auditor General�s report on Regulatory Process on Non-Governmental Schools. The report said sufficient data with regard to overall madrasas are not available in the Dept of Muslim Religious Affairs. �Among the main observations, the number of madrasas registered with more..

Apr 16 (CNN) 3-year-old Miru plays with a bright red toy car, seemingly oblivious to the crisis unfolding around him. Outside the small room where he lives with his parents, an economic disaster is gripping SL, prompting protests, food scarcity and electricity cuts -- and leaving the medicine Miru needs in desperately short supply. Miru has a malignant brain tumor that causes him to have frequent epileptic seizures; fall unconscious for minutes on end. more..

Apr 16 (NR) Trade unionist Ananda Palitha alleges that the govt has taken steps to limit the fuel supply to the public as an act of vengeance. He said fuel was being distributed to people with political affiliations at the Kolonnawa Storage Terminal without any limitations. Palitha said this is a ploy by the govt to suppress the people�s struggles. He said 85% of the public are without fuel and in queues, adding that 800 to 900 fuel bowsers are not being distributed stringently. more..

Apr 16 (DM) Police officer who got vocal yesterday at the public protest at Galle Face Green, over the ongoing crisis, has been granted bail by the Fort Magistrate's Court today. He was arrested by the Police after being taken in for questioning by the Police Special Investigations Unit. The Police officer who is a sergeant attached to the Kuttigala Police Station had joined the public protest presently ongoing at the Galle Face agitation site yesterday while being assigned for special duties. more..

Apr 16 (EN) SL�s main opposition SJB has called for accountability for the monetary instability and default, as the country stopped paying foreign debt after running down foreign reserves under flexible or highly discretionary policies. SJB legislator said the default was required because the country had run out of options. SJB had been calling for re-profiling of debt for around two years as well as an IMF bailout. more..

Apr 16 (NR) MP Weerasumana Weerasinghe has called for his assets to be audited first if MPs are being audited. MP said in addition to the 225 MP, a need has arisen to conduct an audit of the assets of all former and current members of PS and PCs and senior govt officials. MP said all 225 MPs are today being labelled as thieves. He added while there are certain individuals in Parliament to whom this claim will apply, there are some who don�t fall into this category. more..

Apr 16 (EN) SL may quality for a 400% of quota Extended Fund Facility from IMF though the exact program size will have to decided once a financial gap is assessed, Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe said. �It is too early to say� he said in response to a question whether SL could quality for 535% of quota exceptional access at peak program from the IMF. �They have to assess the external financing gap. In 2009 we got 400% of quota. I do not see why we cannot get at least that amount. more..

Apr 16 (AD) PUCSL says the duration of power cuts tomorrow (16) and the day after (17) will be limited to 02 hours and 15 minutes. According to the schedule published by the PUCSL, night time interruptions to the electricity supply will not be experienced on these two days. In view of the Sinhala and Tamil New Year festivities, rolling power cuts were not imposed for three days from April 13-15, however, they will resume from tomorrow. The power cut schedule for April 16 and 17 more..

Apr 16 (DM) SL politician Namal Rajapaksa, son of PM Mahinda Rajapaksa and nephew of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, has said he understands why people are angry with the govt. However, he has cautioned that now is not only the time for anger, but for solutions too. According to Namal, the President and the govt should have been more open and vocal about their plans for the country. �One of the biggest accusations we have is that we don�t inform people � which I agree with,� he told ThePrint. more..

Apr 16 (AD) SriLankan Airlines has clarified the speculations circulated on social media regarding SriLankan aircraft uplifting printed material to Entebbe Int'l Airport in Uganda last year. SriLankan Airlines said it received an air cargo order to transport approximately 102 tons of printed material from Colombo to Entebbe Int'l Airport in Uganda in Feb 2021. In April last year, a local news outlet had raised questions with regard to the cargo more..