Feb 13 (CT) Minister Susil Premajayantha said Cabinet approval to digitise education which is the foundation of educational transformation will be obtained in two weeks. He said discussions were underway to update the curriculum of all grades from Grade 6 to 13 and begin teaching Artificial Intelligence in Grade 8. According to the minister, artificial intelligence will be included as an optional subject or in the curriculum, and students will be able to study it alongside information tech. more..

Feb 13 (FT) Honorary Consul for C�te d�Ivoire Sheran Fernando said there is a huge opportunity for SL entrepreneurs to take advantage of the investor-friendly regime in the West African nation. He noted that there are similarities in the first 20 years since independence between SL and of C�te d�Ivoire where both countries placed much focus on agriculture and tourism. �If you look at C�te d�Ivoire today, there is also a lot we can learn from them. Their growth trajectory has been much more..

Feb 13 (TM) Responding to the arrest of TNPF members including MP Selvaraja Kajendran, party Leader and MP Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam noted that the arrest of his party members is a complete mockery of the freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and stated that it is essentially an illegitimate Govt trying to hold on to power by any means is committing such acts. Ponnambalam said there was no breach of more..

Feb 13 (TM) Opposition MP Prof. G.L. Peiris has claimed that the Govt�s approval rating is as low as 15% and that it would be compelled to dissolve Parliament and hold a general election by the middle of this year following the result of the LG election scheduled for 9 March. He said: �This is not just a LG election. This election, which is of national importance, goes far beyond. This is a unique opportunity for the people of our country to express their verdict over what the Govt led by more..

Feb 13 (FT) The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce yesterday welcomed and appreciated the financial assurances provided by creditors thus far, towards achieving Board approval from the International Monetary Fund and called on China to do the same. �The timely announcements by India, Paris Club members including members such as Japan, US and UK, and non-members such as Hungary, are highly encouraging and appreciated by the business community at this time,� the Chamber said more..

Feb 13 (EN) Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa has criticised the cash-strapped govt�s tax policy, cost-reflective utility tariffs and the Central Bank�s decision to maintain interest rates at their current level, proposing that stolen money be recovered to increase state revenue. Speaking at an election rally in Thambuttegama, Premadasa intimated that an unholy alliance between the UNP headed by Prez Wickremesinghe, more..

Feb 13 (AD) The Department of Immigration and Emigration says that the issuing of passports at its offices has been temporarily halted, due to a defect in the computer system of the Immigration and Emigration Department�s offices islandwide. The department therefore requests those who are with appointments for passports scheduled for tomorrow (Feb. 14) to be called over on February 15, and for all applicants to call over on the next day of their appointment until Friday (Feb. 17). more..

Feb 13 (AD) Court of Appeal has announced that the decision on whether the petition filed seeking the annulment of the decision taken by the Cabinet of Ministers to revise the electricity tariff, will be taken up for hearing will be declared on Feb 17. The relevant petition filed by the Electricity Consumers� Association and the Centre for Environmental Justice was taken up before the two-member Appellate Court bench consisting of Justices Dhammika Ganepola & Sobhitha Rajakaruna more..

Feb 13 (DM) Nepali billionaire Binod Chaudhury paid an official visit to Sri Lanka and held discussions on potential investment opportunities with a key focus on distribution, retail, leisure, financial services and manufacturing. He held a discussion with BOI officials on potential investment opportunities. During the discussions with BOI Chairman Dinesh Weerakkody, Mr. Chaudhary focused his business interests on distribution, retail, leisure, financial services and manufacturing. more..

Feb 13 (Island) Booker Prize-winner Shehan Karunatilaka is unlikely to make the protests of 2022, in SL, the theme of a book anytime soon. �I�m not a journalist. I wait 20 years, look back, make sure anyone who could take offence is dead and then I write. It�s a self preservation thing. If you�re talking about south Asia, you know what it�s like. If you talk contemporary stuff, it can be quite dangerous,� says Karunatilaka, winner of Booker Prize 2022 for Seven Moons of Maali, more..

Feb 13 (DM) SL Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) and the Tourism Ministry, today denied providing approval for the staging of the Deep Jungle festival on the outskirts of Habarana from Feb.17 to Feb.20 which was advertised as a major tourism festival by its organizers. K.P.P. Siriwardana, Managing Director of SLTPB in a letter to the Conservator General of Forest of the Dept of Forest said Sri Lanka Tourism and the Ministry of more..

Feb 13 (TM) SLPP Kandy District MP Wasantha Yapabandara lodged a complaint yesterday against election law violations allegedly carried out by Cabinet Ministers and MPs representing the Govt during campaigns for the upcoming LG elections within the Kandy District. Speaking to the media after handing over his complaint to the Kandy District Secretariat Office, Yapabandara claimed that the State-owned Malabar House in Kandy, which had been temporarily handed to Minister more..

Feb 13 (AD) Cabinet have granted approval today to a proposal made by Prez Wickremesinghe, to release funds for the purchase of essential medicines, purchase of paddy, to address malnutrition and for payment of gratuity arrears for over 18,000 retired govt employees from 2022. The Cabinet approved the proposal presented by the Prez to provide immediate relief to the people by minimizing the difficulties faced by the masses in the face of the prevailing economic crisis. more..

Feb 13 (EN) SL�s wedding destination planners are exploring opportunities from India and some European countries to attract foreigners to have their weddings in the island nation to earn in foreign currency as the country�s tourism industry is on the path of gradual recovery. The global destination wedding market is expected to have a growth of 32.8% this year to 28.31 billion this year, according to Destination Wedding more..

Feb 13 (DM) Approximately 3.9 million families in the country live expecting help from the govt, and therefore, the govt has decided to provide them with 10kg of rice each free of charge in the months of March and April, State Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya said. He said govt's paddy procurement program for 2023 for the Maha season has been designed to maximize benefits to farmers and minimize errors. Minister pointed out that it is the govt's expectation to carry out more..

Feb 13 (AD) SL Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) says that information has been uncovered regarding a group of individuals who have defrauded money by using a ministry letterhead forged with the signature of the Secretary to the Ministry of Labor and Foreign Employment. The bureau mentions that the group has defrauded large sums of money from several individuals by promising employment opportunities in the Netherlands allegedly via the Ministry of Labor and Foreign Employment. more..

Feb 14 (DM) Timing of the fire broke out in Kotikawatte garbage dump on Saturday, might be an embarrassing episode for the SLPP leaders of the Kotikawatte- Mulleriyawa PS, as it is one of the 339 local govt bodies for which elections have been scheduled for Mar 9. This incident should remind Sri Lankans the tragedy that took place on the Sinhala & Hindu New Year Day (Apr 14) in 2014, when the monstrous garbage dump in Meetotamulla collapsed killing over 30 people instantaneously and more..

Feb 14 (DM) As part of measures to make devolution under the 13A meaningful, SL Tamils have suggested that the powers now vested with the Provincial Governor be pruned, and more powers granted to Provincial Board of Ministers. In a list of proposals submitted to Prez Wickremesinghe, ITAK MP from Jaffna district, M.A. Sumanthiran, had proposed a number of steps, chief among them was the pruning of the powers of the Provincial Governor by requiring him to act on the advice of more..

Feb 14 (PMD) Prez Wickremesinghe expressing his views at the vesting ceremony of Jaffna Cultural Centre (JCC) in the people of SL called on everyone to join hands in brotherhood to rebuild this fallen nation. JCC was completed with funds of Rs 13,500 million provided by the Indian Govt and the event was attended by the Union Minister of State for Information Dr. L. Murugan. In his speech, Prez emphasized the govt�s policy of reconciliation, more..

Feb 14 (CT) A group of countries governed by religious principles can be seen on the world map even in this 21st century. Ignoring human rights is common in such states dominated by religious leaders. Taliban regime in Afghanistan is an example of suppression of human rights by religious fundamentalism. Not just under the Afghan mullahs or Iran�s Ayatollahs, there is information released every day in our world about the suppression of civil liberties in all states controlled by religious more..

Feb 14 (ST) If anyone had any cause to celebrate independence from the gutter this year, it may have only been the 588 prisoners, freed on a special presidential amnesty last Saturday, who may have found good enough reason to raise a toast to fete their sudden freedom on February 4th. And, as for the grand independence celebrations at the Galle Face Green, didn�t it smack more of the formal inauguration of the Parliamentary elected Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe than anything else? more..

Feb 14 (TM) MP C.V. Wigneswaran has written an open letter in response to the letter sent by Most Venerable Thibbatuwawe Sri Siddhartha Sumangala Mahanayaka Thera of the Malwatte Chapter, Most Venerable Dr. Warakagoda Dhammasiddi Sri Gnanarathabidhana Mahanayaka Thera of Asgiriya Chapter, Most Venerable Dodambahala Sri Chandrasiri Mahanayaka Thera of the Amarapura Chapter, and more..

Feb 14 (CT) There are protests against the decision of the govt to increase income tax. Although all including the private sector are affected, the main resistance comes from the govt employees and the employees of the govt affiliated institutions. There are many aspects of this issue and the intention of this article is to view the problem in different angles. The protests are coming mainly from the employees who are subject to pay Advance Personal Income Tax (APIT). more..

Feb 14 (TM) According to education authorities, plans are afoot to update the school curricula for a significant share of schoolchildren, i.e. those studying in Grades 6 to 13, and these amended curricula are expected to prepare schoolchildren for modern-day developments. According to Education Minister Attorney Dr. Susil Premajayantha, as part of these reforms, the Education Ministry is planning to include artificial intelligence (AI) in the school curricula as a new subject. more..

Feb 14 (Island) The SLPP-UNP regime seems to think it will be able to retain its hold on power by postponing elections and using anti-terror laws against its political rivals on the warpath. Odds are that its ill-conceived strategy will not yield the intended results, given its unpopularity and the sheer intensity of public anger, but it will not give up easily. It is determined to have Inter-University Student Federation (IUSF) Convener Wasantha Mudalige arrested again. more..

Feb 14 (CT) The collapse of the agriculture sector, in Sri Lanka, has been going on for more than three years as a result of decisions taken by several govts that have held power under various leaders. These decisions taken and later reversed, were impromptu, or were only plaster solutions. The farmers are helpless as a result of the clear decline in Sri Lanka�s agricultural economy. The lifestyles of the farmers are complete haphazard, and this puts the farming industry in jeopardy. more..

Feb 14 (TM) SL Air Traffic Controllers� Association (SLATCA) is to hand over a report containing their staff retention proposals to Airport and Aviation Services (SL) Ltd. (AASL) Chairman G.A. Chandrasiri today, which would then be forwarded to Ministry of Ports, Shipping & Aviation, following which, a meeting would be scheduled with the Treasury. SLATCA President Thisara Amarananda said that the proposal will more..

Feb 14 (FT) SJB MP Harshana Rajakaruna says the NPP party led by JVP are part of the 6.9 million voters who voted for former Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa. �It is part of the group that is now promoting the compass,� he said referring to the party�s symbol. Rajakaruna said the NPP coming into power would therefore simply be part two of the Gota fiasco that befell the country. He said the NPP is the JVP itself and a few others have been included as frills. more..

Feb 14 (FT) Colombo stock market began a fresh week on a sharply negative note amidst lacklustre investor interest. The active S&P SL20 index declined by 2.22% and the benchmark ASPI by 1.65%. Turnover was Rs. 1.26 billion involving 51.3 million shares. Following 10 consecutive sessions of net foreign inflows, foreigners ended on the selling side with a net outflow of Rs. 59 million driven by MELS (Rs. 127 mil). Asia Securities said the indices closed sharply lower on Monday on the back more..

Feb 14 (USE) Youth Forum Leadership Summit 2023, organized by the U.S. Embassy in SL in celebration of the 75th anniversary of bilateral relations between SL and US, commenced this morning in Colombo with the participation of the Prez of SL, Ranil Wickremesinghe, U.S. Ambassador Julie Chung, and 60 Youth Forum members from across SL. Conducted by the American Spaces in Colombo, Kandy, Jaffna and Matara, the aim of Youth Forum Leadership more..

Feb 14 (FT) New Zealand High Commissioner Michael Appleton met with the State Finance Minister on Sunday and expressed his Govt�s support for the ongoing recovery efforts in the country. During the discussions, Minister Semasinghe extended his appreciation for the support provided by the New Zealand Govt and updated on the measures taken to obtain the support of the IMF and the steps taken to try to reform the economy. more..

Feb 14 (TM) Attorneys representing IUSF Convenor Wasantha Mudalige are expecting to make the relevant explanations before the Colombo High Court (HC) as soon as they receive the documents regarding the revised application filed by Attorney General (AG), Sanjay Rajaratnam to the Colombo HC, challenging the decision of Colombo Magistrate�s Court to release Mudalige, who was detained under PTA, more..

Feb 14 (EN) Standard and Poor�s has confirmed SL�s �SD� (selective default) foreign currency sovereign rating of SL and a �CCC� long term local currency rating. The local currency rating has a negative outlook. �We do not assign outlooks to �SD� ratings because they express a condition and not a forward-looking opinion of default probability,� S & P said. �The negative outlook on the long-term local currency rating reflects a high risk to commercial debt repayments over the next 12 months more..

Feb 14 (Island) It is doubtful whether the local govt elections can be held as scheduled because Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe is interfering in the electoral process, Executive Director of the Institute for Democratic Reforms and Electoral Studies (IRES) Manjula Gajanayake says. He said it was doubtful if the elections could be held unless the Prez changed his attitude. �This is a direct attack on people�s sovereignty. The govt is trying to undermine the basis of all our democratic rights,� he said. more..

Feb 14 (FT) Irked environmentalists and tourism stakeholders yesterday raised concerns about the four-day Deep Jungle Musical and Cultural Festival 2023 scheduled to kick-off this Friday (17), with many highlighting the event could have disastrous effects on the wildlife and delicate ecosystem within the Habarana forest. Environmentalists are baffled by the Govt for allowing a concert being planned close to more..