Feb 12 (SO) Only two things in life are assured: death and taxes. Indeed, everyone pays taxes literally from the cradle to the grave. Taxes enable Govts to fund services that are essential to run a country. They fall into two broad categories � direct and indirect. Direct taxes include income tax, wealth tax and PAYE taxes, while indirect taxes include VAT and GST. The former category directly targets individuals who can afford to pay a portion of more..

Feb 12 (GV) The 13th Amendment, created 35 years ago, has once again become a flashpoint after Prez Wickremesinghe declared its implementation. Anti-devolution forces have begun gnashing their teeth; those who went into hiding because of mass protests and violence over the economic crisis are using it to resurrect and project themselves as the phoenix rising from the ashes to save the Sinhalese again. Same propaganda game is being played with the old spin that SL is about to be divided. more..

Feb 12 (CT) Two members of the Cabinet Sub-committee on Coal Procurement, Ministers Wijeydasa Rajapakshe and Ali Sabri, have resigned because officials involved in coal procurement have not only distorted the facts in the latest coal procurement deal of 720,000 10%� MT of Coal for the Lakvijaya Power Plant in Puttalam, from Jan 2023 to the end of April 2023, but have also failed to omit the condition that they agreed more..

Feb 12 (Island) Eric Walsh presented his credentials to Prez Wickremesinghe, on Feb 2, at the Prez�s House in Kandy. Wickremesinghe was flanked by Foreign Minister Ali Sabry, and Presidential Secretary Saman Ekanayake. Canada, with the concurrence of SL, appointed Walsh as High Commissioner of Canada to Colombo. Walsh, who had served as the Canadian Ambassador in Seoul (2015-2018), succeeded David Makinnon, amidst the ongoing controversy over Canada�s more..

Feb 12 (SO) Former SL World Cup winning cricket captain Arjuna Ranatunga, Olympic Silver medallist and sprinter Susanthika Jayasinghe, SL Football elected president S. Ranga and Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe dropped bombshells on corruption, voting at sports and the questionable Awards Syndrome that has engulfed the country in hysterical proportions. The foursome made their rousing remarks at sports functions held in Badulla and Trincomalee. more..

Feb 12 (CI) They did not play a match between March 2020 and January 2022. They had only won three of the 13 T20Is they had played against South Africa before Friday. Their World Cup record is poor and the FICA Women's Employment Report said they had no professional structures in place. Despite all of that, SL silenced the biggest home crowd South Africa's women's team has ever played in front of - 8402 - at Newlands with a stunning, though error-ridden, three-run win. more..

Feb 12 (ST) The news on the eve of the Prez�s Throne Speech opening a new session of Parliament that SL�s overseas creditors were willing to support and restore the country�s economic stability did not seem to deter trade unionists from going ahead with their scheduled protest in Colombo against new taxes nor the monks from protesting the full implementation of the 13A. The group of major creditors known as the Paris Club, to whom SL must repay the loans taken over the years, more..

Feb 12 (ST) The Treasury has decided to scrap paying the entertainment allowance given to district secretaries, additional district secretaries and divisional secretaries following numerous complaints regarding the misuse of the allowance. A district secretary is paid Rs. 15,000 monthly as an entertainment allowance while additional district secretaries and divisional secretaries are paid Rs. 10,000. more..

Feb 12 (FT) So, in the aftermath of 4 Feb, first and foremost. SL, like so many of your weeping sons and daughters, those leaving you, personally bereft, grudgingly but desperately, and those hanging on, clinging to the wreckage, working, hoping, pining for a turnaround, for revitalisation, I first send my love and admiration for your character, your spirit, your civilisation, your poetry, your mythos, your ethos, your musicality, your heart, your warmth and hospitality, your indomitable, more..

Feb 12 (Island) In the just concluded two match unofficial Tests between SL �A� and England Lions, the selectors of both sides seemed to be content in allowing players who had represented the country in recent months to find their feet and get back into form. England of course have a busy Test summer while god only knows what�s in store for poor blokes like Dimuth Karunaratne and Angelo Mathews. after NZ. One off Tests seems to be the way forward for SL for nonprofit making tours like Ireland more..

Feb 12 (SO) Colombo Gymkhana Club is renowned for producing all-round sports stars such as Lorenz Pereira, Chandrishan Perera, Haroon Musafer, Rohan Paulus to name a few who excelled in both cricket and rugby for CCC and CH and FC. However, it is a rarity nowadays to see top schoolboys engaging in these two major sports at club level. One of the reasons may be the change in the start of the club rugby season from April to November that happened 8 years ago more..

Feb 12 (SO) The Netball Federation of SL (NFSL) has picked a pool of 20 players to prepare them for the World Cup 2023 to be held in July in Cape Town, South Africa. This will be the new coach Thilaka Jinadasa�s first assignment with the national pool and the World Cup will be a tough one as most of the leading netball teams will be in action. After having won the Asian Championship last year Sri Lanka should not be too complacent and work very hard in the World Stage. more..

Feb 12 (ST) Prolific run-scorer Nishan Madushka has batted his way into SL�s Test squad along with right-arm seamer Milan Ratnayake as national selectors finalised a list of 19 players for next month�s two-match Test series against New Zealand. A notable exclusion, however, is Pathum Nissanka, the Test opener sidelined with an injury. Uncapped at the top level, both players come into the side following impressive performances more..

Feb 12 (AD) A minor earth tremor of magnitude 2.3 is reported in Wellawaya area at around 3.48 a.m. today (11). However, NBRO urged the members of the public not to have any undue fears, assuring that this minor tremor poses no danger. On Friday, two minor tremors of magnitude 3.0 and 3.5 were felt in the areas of Buttala, Wellawaya, Kumbukkana, Okkampitiya and several areas in Monaragala district. NBRO, allaying the fears about the threat of danger, mentioned that tremors are frequent more..

Feb 12 (TM) When the Prez delivered his policy statement in Parliament on Wednesday to inaugurate the Fourth Session of the Ninth Parliament � his second in six months � the thrust of it was that most of the issues that caused the economic crisis had either been resolved or were in the process of being resolved � the caveat for the latter being what has been achieved should not be reversed due to disruption for whatever reason. Be that as it may, just two days later, more..

Feb 12 (PMD) President Ranil Wickremesinghe said that the economy could not be built through the reconciliation alone and the economic development rate of the country depends on the attitude and commitment of the people. Prez said that the Northern Province had made extensive contributions to the national economy prior to the War and assured that the development programs required to restore the strong more..

Feb 12 (EN) Worker remittances sent by SL expatriates jumped 68.8% in January, more wokrers channelled their foreign earnings through formal banking channels, central bank data showed. The remittances, the top foreign exchange earner, recorded $437.5 million in the first month of 2023 compared to $259.2 million in January last year, the central bank data showed. The remittances fell sharply from Oct 2021 as most workers sought to send money via unofficial hawala and more..

Feb 12 (EN) SL�s egg producers are grumbling over forced price reduction in the market through state-run Consumer Affairs Authority�s (CAA) control. The CAA fixed the price of white egg at 44 rupees and brown egg at 46 rupees on January 20 after the prices skyrocketed to as high as 70 rupees in local retail markets. �Egg producers say their cost is high and they can�t give the eggs for 44-46 rupees,� Ajith Gunasekara, Chairman of All Island Poultry Farmers� Association told EconomyNext. more..

Feb 12 (ST) A valuable unbroken 93-run stand for the seventh wicket between skipper Dhananjaya de Silva (82n.o.) and Lahiru Madusanka (28n.o.), helped Jaffna to their maiden win in the National Super League 4-day game against Team Kandy at the SSC grounds yesterday. Despite conceding a first innings lead to Kandy, Jaffna fought their way back to record a four-wicket win. Kandy, resuming their second innings from their overnight score of 172 for 6, made 222 runs. more..

Feb 12 (AD) Archbishop of Colombo, His Eminence Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith says the root cause of the satiation SL is facing at present is its moral collapse. Cardinal stated that SL is suffering from moral collapse as well, not just economic collapse. �Morally we are not able to do what is right and people have lost all sense of justice. They have forgotten what is right.� Raising concerns about the Independence Day celebration on Feb 4, Cardinal said the ceremony with 21 gun salutes, more..

Feb 12 (ST) Minister Douglas Devananda donated fishing boats seized from TN fishermen who were illegally fishing in SL waters to SL fishermen moments after welcoming an Indian Union State Minister who arrived in Jaffna on Thursday for the opening of the Rs. 1.3 billion Cultural Centre, a gift by the Govt of India. Five massive high-horse-powered boats used for illegal bottom trawling by the TN fishermen are to be used for patrolling more..

Feb 12 (TM) Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) has revealed plans to gazette its newly-prepared regulations to regulate online and social media businesses by next week. CAA Chairman Shantha Niriella revealed that the CAA had completed the drafting of the regulations and had forwarded them to the AG�s Dept in order to ensure their legality. He further stated that he had been informed that the AG�s Dept would grant approval within the next few days and that thereafter the CAA would more..

Feb 12 (TM) The medical community and patients will get a slight reprieve from the ongoing shortage of anaesthetics medication, with the Treasury releasing Rs. 1.3 billion to clear a stock of medication sent by donors, which had been held up for days at the Colombo Port. SL�s stocks of anaesthetics have dwindled to a state where the remaining stocks will run out in two to three weeks. A stock of anaesthetics sent to SL by various donors, along with 37 other vital medicines more..

Feb 12 (AFP) Eleven pilot whales were saved on Saturday after they became stranded near the shore on SL�s west coast in the early hours. A navy team aided the rescue effort alongside local fishermen who raised the alarm when they spotted the pod after midnight near the resort village of Kudawa. �There were 14 of them and three were dead on coming ashore,� wildlife officer Eranda Gamage said. �They had to be taken into the deeper seas to drop them there so that they would not more..

Feb 12 (ST) The SL Solar Energy industry has seen a 66% drop in new solar power plants last year, compared to 2021 amply reflecting the unfeasibility of establishing new plants, thereby further putting a strain on the power supply to the national grid. In 2021, we developed about 150 megawatts of solar plants. Only 50 such plants were developed last year, which is about a 2/3rd drop. Solar isn�t a feasible investment anymore as it is very costly with the new tariff,� Roshan Pereira, more..

Feb 12 (TM) SL�s troubled coal acquisition process has listed the controversial technique of spot tendering as the last option to purchase required coal for the Oct 2022/Apr 2023 unloading season. The decision to permit the costly spot tender method has been approved by the Cabinet in case its 3rd attempt to secure coal shipments under the tender floated last year fails, it is understood. However, authorities said that spot tender more..

Feb 12 (PMD) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe presided over a ceremony at the Jaffna DS to award land deeds and financial compensation to 197 families who were displaced in the North along with cheques to the value of Rs. 38,000 each. The lands were freed as part of a program to return the lands used by the security forces during the civil war to the original residents, as per the instructions of the Prez. During the ceremony held today (11), Prez symbolically awarded land deeds and more..

Feb 12 (AD) An investigation has been launched by the Airport and Aviation Services (SL) (AASL) into the recent incident where a businessman was allowed to leave the country, despite having had 50 rounds of ammunition in his possession. Accordingly, AASL reported that although the incident should have been reported to the Police and Air Force, this was not done by the officers present at the scene. Instead, the bullets had been handed over to the driver of the arrestee. more..

Feb 12 (ST) Guarded by more than 100 commandos from the Army, Police and other different services, former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa is now residing at his private residence at Mirihana in Nugegoda. If a govt bungalow at Malalasekera Mawatha was hurriedly prepared at state expense and he moved in, he wants to shift now. That is to the Stanmore Crescent bungalow where his neighbours would all be top brass in military. more..

Feb 13 (ST) In truth, Prez Wickremesinghe�s admonition that, the future cannot be built on falsehood this Wednesday (8) as he formally opened the fourth session of the ninth Parliament, must be addressed to the political leadership (himself included), not the nation as such. In fact, the temptation is acute, in the best traditions of fairy tales long fed to the SL people, to murmur, mirror, mirror on the wall� For it is the Prez, PM and their legion of fawning sycophants who stand more..

Feb 13 (DM) The way independence was celebrated this time shows how conventional the government�s thinking is during a time of unprecedented crisis. It was a show like in the good old days, except that Independence Square had more soldiers than civilians. It looked like a military coup in gloomy weather. There is a political need to prop up the national psyche, but it will take more than parades and fly pasts for that. Hunger is real, and cannot be assuaged by speeches and parades. more..

Feb 13 (TM) Delays in securing �good assurances� from bilateral creditors like China may not derail Sri Lanka�s prospective $ 2.9 billion Extended Fund Facility (EFF) from IMF, Economist Chayu Damsinghe said. According to Damsinghe, the IMF is likely to work with China on the written assurances given by now and move ahead with the assistance programme as the int'l institution can ill afford not to support SL. more..

Feb 13 (DM) Mihintale Raja Maha Viharaya Chief Incumbent, the outspoken Ven. Walaha henguna wewa Dhammarathana Thera, a few weeks ago said, young monks in universities behave like Taliban terrorists. He further said they can engage in politics, but not in a way that harms others. He who continued saying, the actions of a few monks create a bad impression in the public minds and reflect severely on the entire Sanghasasana, was seen leading a fierce Bikkhu demonstration, more..

Feb 13 (TM) Last Saturday, Minister Ali Sabry, during a visit to India, said that China is a friend of SL and that the two countries will continue to work arm in arm, but that at no point would Sri Lanka let Indian interests be undermined. He added that Sri Lanka's strong relationship is part of its civilisation and will not permit any activity that poses a threat to India�s internal security to take place on its soil. As far as a diplomatic stance is concerned, it is hard to find fault with this pledge. more..

Feb 13 (SO) Govt recently relaxed the Pay As You Earn (PAYE) taxes by excluding non-cash benefits. The new circular issued by the IRD showed that the Govt would exempt some part of the allowances for fuel, vehicle, drives, hotel and accommodation as well as residences provided by the employer (public or private sector) among many non-cash benefits which were added to a maximum of 36% tax. These also include the value of company shares more..

Feb 13 (ST) My dear Basil, I thought of writing to you when I saw you in the news, saying something you have never said before. You said you were prepared to forego your citizenship in America if it allowed you to remain in active politics in Paradise. That means contesting elections and holding public office. No wonder they say that a week is a long time in politics. Just Look at what a difference a few months has made for you. Around May last year, the aragalaya was in full swing. more..