Jun 1 (CT) Cabinet Spokesman Bandula Gunawardena in a startling revelation said on Tuesday (30), that if parents cannot contribute to the Sisu Seriya school bus service, there is a risk that the service would grind to a halt. Gunawardena said the Govt is unable to cover the entire cost of the Sisu Seriya school bus service and parents would have to pay a nominal amount. This comes in the wake of the current economic situation in the country, Minister said. more..

Jun 1 (GV) On Menstrual Hygiene Day, we are reminded of the ongoing efforts to normalize menstruation worldwide by the year 2030. In Sri Lanka we are still engaged in the struggle to eliminate the burdensome tariffs imposed on menstrual hygiene products. It is disheartening that women are being taxed for a natural biological process; they should not have to fight for this basic right. The need to raise awareness and advocate for the removal of these tariffs persists. more..

Jun 1 (CT) A new generation entered the workforce in 2017 at the age of 21-22. That is Generation �Z� born in and around 1995-2002. Until recently, organisations have neither thought of them as employees nor planned to recruit, manage, motivate or retain them. Millennials are the highly expected and most talked about generation. By now they have grown, matured, and launched their career and are the parents to the �Z� generation. more..

Jun 1 (CT) With less than a year and half to the presidential elections, Prez Wickremesinghe has a tight deadline to meet if he is to attain his aspirations for the country. His visit last week to Japan where he sought to renew ties which had made it SL�s largest aid donor for decades, was reported to be highly successful. During his visit, the president had apologized to the Japanese govt leaders regarding the cancellation of the LRT project which was subsequently delivered by Japan to B'desh. more..

Jun 1 (TM) It was reported this week that the SL Govt has made it mandatory to test imported dried fish, sprats, and fruits for heavy metals such as lead and arsenic with effect from today. As per The Daily Morning, this is in a context where a survey conducted by the Food Control Administration Unit of the Health Ministry between 2021 and 2022, has found that certain consignments of imported dried fish, sprats, and fruits contain heavy metals, especially lead & arsenic, in large quantities. more..

Jun 1 (TM) Within a matter of a few weeks, some SL Buddhists seem to have come forth to fight a so-called well-orchestrated and foreign funded plot allegedly aiming to create religious divisions in the country, especially among Buddhism and other religions. While these concerns are not new and are not limited to Buddhism, certain statements made by several public figures and the interpretations of those statements have been more..

Jun 1 (ST) Never a dull moment in this land called paradise. Move over sugar scam, garlic scam, bond scam, petroleum scam; we have a new scam star � the X-Press Pearl fiasco on the horizon. Whether this scam would also end up like the others where no action has been taken remains to be seen. Last month, Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe named Chamera Gunasekera as an individual who has allegedly received a bribe of US$250 million to cover up the probe on X-Press Pearl disaster more..

Jun 1 (DM) SL is still suffering from the devastating consequences of the X-Press Pearl disaster. It started on May 20, 2021 after it caught fire off the coast of Colombo. The vessel was engulfed in flames by May 27 and declared a total loss. It was still afloat, and the fire was thought to be under control by SL firefighters by the late hours of May 27. After burning for 12 days, the vessel sank on June 2 as it was being towed to deeper waters. The incident was deemed the worst marine ecological more..

Jun 1 (FT) Agalawatte Plantations PLC (APL) has reported impressive revenue and profit growth in the first quarter of 2023, consolidating on the remarkable turnaround achieved subsequent to the acquisition of a majority stake in the company by the Damro Group. Revenue grew by 49.7% to Rs. 1.489 billion for the three months ending 31 March, with revenue from tea doubling to Rs. 796.2 million over the first quarter of 2022, and revenue from oil palm up 57.5% to Rs. 305.1 million. more..

Jun 1 (Island) It is essential to note the most fundamental divide in the country is between rural and urban populations. Sri Lanka's economy has always been essentially agricultural and even today some 77% of the population lives in rural districts. The ratio of Sinhalese to Tamils living in rural districts nationally approximates their ratio in the population at large. Rural areas include Tamil-majority parts of Vanni (Mannar, Mullaitivu & Vavuniya Districts) and the Kilinochchi District more..

Jun 1 (FT) Given the recent concerning events, SJB said it will fight to protect the democratic rights of the country�s people. SJB MP Harsha de Silva said the party will strongly oppose any actions of the Govt that will threaten democratic values and assured that SJB will fight to protect the freedoms of the people. MP noted that the Govt has failed to enact the PTA due to it being broad in nature while many groups have also strongly opposed it. more..

Jun 1 (Island) The BIA always makes the headlines for the wrong reasons. Reams have been written about various deficiencies in its service standards, and various rackets such as baggage pilferage, all these years, but no remedial action seems to have been taken. Stinking to high heaven, it has become SL�s Augean Stables. A local television channel has exposed a foreign currency racket at the BIA. According to hidden camera footage telecast on Hiru TV, racketeers approach passengers more..

Jun 1 (FT) Informatics International Ltd, (IIL), a leader in IT software, infrastructure solutions, and services, yesterday announced the appointment of Shiraz Lye as its CEO. This strategic move will bolster IIL's leadership team, augmenting its capabilities to expedite growth and foster innovation, with an emphasis on Enterprise 5.0. Shiraz Lye is an accomplished business leader with a proven track record in General Management, Change and Transformation, Enterprise Sales, more..

Jun 1 (FT) NCINGA expanded its headquarters in Singapore, opening a new office located in the city-state�s business and financial centre Shenton Way. High Commissioner of SL to Singapore Sashikala Premawardhane, and NCINGA�s key partners graced the opening of the new headquarters. High Commissioner of SL to Singapore Sashikala Premawardhane said: �I am pleased to see SL technology companies thriving in Singapore. Developments such as these provide more..

Jun 1 (CB) It has been more than two years since he last played ODI cricket but Dimuth Karunaratne feels he still has something to offer to the team in the 50-over format. Recalled to the side for the ODI series against Afghanistan, the 35-year-old has been preparing for it by playing in the Dhaka Premier League, representing the Shinepukur Cricket Club. Karunaratne, who led SL in the 2019 ODI World Cup, played three more series after that before being left out of the side. more..

Jun 1 (TM) The National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol (NATA) proposed that there should be no tobacco sales within 100 metres of a school or places of religious worship. NATA Chairman, Dr. Alan Ludowyke said that tobacco and alcohol kills thousands of Sri Lankans and causes serious illnesses, the result of which is a massive social and economic cost which manifests as a loss of breadwinners, and the increase of more..

Jun 1 (Island) Suriyawewa is the hometown of some notorious gangsters in the country. The area was also notorious for many nefarious activities; cannabis and hooch were freely available until the STF intervened and cleaned up the area, a decade or so ago. When former Prez Mahinda Rajapaksa wanted an int'l cricket ground in his electorate, SLC did a case study and chose Suriyawewa. While the stadium was under construction around 2010, it took you nearly 8 hours to reach it from Colombo. more..

Jun 1 (Island) M Thaha defeated Susantha Wickram by 05 frames to 01 to win the 68th National Billiard Championship at the AAC tables recently. This years championship was conducted by the Billiard and Snooker Association of SL (B&SASL) and sponsored by the Automobile Association of Ceylon (AAC). President of Automobile Association Dhammika Attygalle was the chief guest at the championship while, Ananda Dangalla (Vice President-AAC), Keerthi Gunawardane (Vice President-AAC), more..

Jun 1 (EN) Sri Lanka cuts policy rates 250 basis points lowering the rate at which liquidity is injected to markets to 14% to from 16.5%, saying inflation was falling faster than expected. �The Board arrived at this decision with a view to easing monetary conditions in line with the faster than expected slowing of inflation, gradual dissipation of inflationary pressures and further anchoring of inflation expectations,� more..

Jun 1 (FT) Dr. Shafi Shihabdeen who resumed duties this week as a Senior House Officer in Gynecology and Obstetrics Unit at the Kurunegala Teaching Hospital extended his gratitude to his well-wishers for their continued support during the past four years. Issuing a message via video, the doctor who was falsely accused of carrying out forced sterilisations on women and faced legal as well as professional trials, as a result, said the past four years have been traumatic through more..

Jun 1 (EN) Sri Lanka�s exports fell 12.6% from a year ago to US$ 849 million in April 2023, amid weaker external demand, while imports were down 15.8% to US$ 1,431 million. Exports also fell US$ 1,037 million in March 2023, amid seasonal effects. Trade deficit expanded to US$ 583 million in April from US$ 412 million in March 2023. Imports were at US$ 1431 million in April from US$ 1,450 million in March. Imports can pick as tourism, worker remittances and net inflows to govt go up. more..

Jun 1 (Island) SL�s High Commissioner to India, Milinda Moragoda recently visited the Headquarters of the Akshaya Patra Foundation in Bengaluru, Karnataka to study their renowned mid-day meal programme for school children. Established in 2000 as a non-profit trust of International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), Akshaya Patra is one of the world�s largest not-for-profit run school feeding programmes, serving wholesome food every school day to over 2.3 million children more..

Jun 1 (FT) In ground-breaking industry news, Noyon Lanka, a subsidiary of MAS Holdings, and Desseilles Calais, a subsidiary of the Calais Dentelles holding company, announced the sale of Noyon Calais� IP rights and other intangible assets to Noyon Lanka. Noyon Calais is a French lace manufacturer known for over 100 years of heritage in the industry. This Intellectual Property (IP) acquisition now positions Noyon Lanka as an industry leader in lace manufacturing, combining more..

Jun 1 (CT) The Committee on Public Accounts (COPA) said Samurdhi Banks should be audited as they fall under the purview of the Samurdhi Dept. Therefore, the COPA called on the Dept of Samurdhi Development to review the progress of the implementation of the recommendations given earlier. COPA, which met under the chairmanship of Lasantha Alagiyawanna, summoned the members of the Dept of more..

Jun 1 (DM) The general public who come to seek medical treatment from Govt hospitals is facing great inconvenience as they are being asked to purchase certain drugs and get certain tests done from private pharmacies, which is like jumping out of the frying pan into the fire. Speaking with several patients who had arrived at the National Hospital Colombo to purchase medicines, Daily Mirror noticed that the poor are feeling the brunt of the significant drug shortage prevailing in govt hospitals more..

Jun 1 (Island) Mass Media Secretary Anusha Palpita has told the COPA that the current television rating system practised here is biased and implemented in an irregular mannar. Attending a COPA meeting chaired by State Minister Lasantha Alagiyawanna recently in Parliament, Palpita, who is also the Chairman of Lake House, underscored the urgent need to take remedial measures. Janakantha Silva, Director Legislative Services and Acting Director Communication, has said in a statement more..

Jun 1 (Island) International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights � the international human rights treaty ensuring wide range of human rights, including those relating to freedom from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and fair trial rights, is abused by Lankan authorities as a tool of repression to target minorities, says Amnesty International. The AI in a tweet on the arrest of comedienne Natasha Edirisooriya says that the right to freedom more..

Jun 1 (AD) The Ceypetco announced that its retail fuel prices will be revised with effect from midnight today (31). Accordingly, the price of Octane 92 petrol will be reduced by Rs. 15 per litre, bringing down its new price to Rs. 318. However, the price of Octane 95 petrol has been increased by Rs. 20, and Lanka Super Diesel by Rs. 10 per litre. Meanwhile, the price of kerosene will be reduced by Rs. 50. The new price of a litre of kerosene will accordingly be Rs. 245, the CPC said. more..

Jun 1 (TM) President Ranil Wickremesinghe, according to the ruling SLPP, has hinted on holding elections soon, although there is no clarity as to what election it would be. A group of representatives of the SLPP met the President at the Presidential Secretariat on Monday (29) for a special discussion. The Daily Morning queried SLPP General Secretary Sagara Kariyawasam as to whether there was any discussion about more..

Jun 1 (CT) The Supreme Court on Tuesday said the discretion granted to Police to arrest based on reasonable suspicion to arrest, should not extend to the extent where it would amount to an arbitrary violation of liberty and should be strictly carried out where reasonable grounds for such arrest exist. Court held that a certain degree of discretion must necessarily be awarded to the Police for the due performance of their duties and maintenance of public order, noting however that, more..

Jun 1 (AD) A gazette notification has been issued bringing several state-owned institutions including the Colombo Lotus Tower Management Company, SL Cement Corporation, State Engineering Corporation, Sri Lanka Telecom and its subsidiaries and allied institutions under the purview of the Ministry of Finance, Economic Stabilisation and National Policies. The gazette has been issued by Prez and Finance Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe with the powers vested in him under more..

Jun 1 (TM) Claiming that the recent incidents of certain individuals making statements that allegedly insult Buddhism and other religions seem to be part of a politically motivated conspiracy, Catholic Church urged the people to be aware of certain politicians and political groups who hope to gain benefits from such statements and improper responses made with regard to them. Reverend Cyril Gamini Fernando said more..

Jun 1 (AD) Minister Kanchana Wijesekera today requested the public not to panic over any fuel shortages as Ceypetco and Lanka IOC have adequate stocks of fuel. In a tweet, he noted that any prevailing shortages are due to the non-placement of orders by respective fuel station owners anticipating a fuel price reduction. The minister emphasized that dealers have been required to maintain a minimum stock of 50% and that he has instructed the CPC to review more..

Jun 1 (TM) A community of advocates have emerged from the Malaiyaham 200 deliberations that was held over three days in Nuwara Eliya. Female and male workers in the plantations, trade unions and civil society representatives, academics and artistes in the Malaiyaha Tamil community have committed to working towards realising their full potential as SL citizens. Malaiyaha Tamil community has been the backbone of the country�s economy for over 150 years and has played a crucial role more..