Jun 26 (TM) The ruling SLPP stated that they have no knowledge of any impending Cabinet reshuffle, despite reports that one would take place once Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe returns to the island today (26). It was recently reported that the Prez, who was on an official visit to UK and France, is expected to reshuffle the Cabinet in the coming days due to disappointing reports from certain ministries, as well as the failure of some ministers to perform to the expected level. more..

Jun 26 (ST) Paddy Marketing Board (PMB) now has no buffer stocks of rice�which it typically releases to the market to control prices when they skyrocket�after the Treasury rejected an Agriculture Ministry request for Rs. 2bn for the fifth time. Ministry asked for Rs. 2bn immediately for the PMB to buy a buffer stock but needed a total of at least Rs. 6bn to maintain healthy quantities, Agriculture Ministry Secretary said. According to him, Treasury only approved a mere Rs 250 million. more..

Jun 26 (Island) Police and Minister Jeevan Thondaman have traded accusations over the latter�s intervention with the Bogawanthalawa Police, following the arrest of a 28-year-old person involved in a dispute with the manager of a state bank in the area. The police arrested the suspect in Bogawantalawa town on 22 June, hours after the bank manager lodged a complaint. Police said Minister Thondaman and a group of more..

Jun 26 (Island) Former Customs Officer and Attorney-at-Law Nagananda Kodituwakku said that the govt owed an explanation with regard to the intervention made by UNP National List MP Vajira Abeywardena to secure the release of a consignment of gold forfeited by Customs recently. Kodituwakku said that he would move court against those responsible. The public litigation activist said that political intervention in this case (BIA/Case/011/2023) should be examined more..

Jun 26 (AD) In view of Friday (30) being declared as a Special Bank Holiday, the 30th of June 2023 has also been declared as a Market Holiday by Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE). Govt had declared a special bank holiday on June 30, 2023. This was announced in a special gazette notification issued by PM Dinesh Gunawardena in his capacity as Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs, PC & LG. The special bank holiday was declared under Section 10(1) of the Holidays Act, No. 29 of 1971. more..

Jun 26 (AD) Governor of CB, Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe states that an extended bank holiday was declared from June 29 to July 3, including June 30, in order to obtain necessary time required for the domestic debt optimization strategy of SL. Making a special statement, CB chief also assured that no deposit in any bank in the country will be affected in the process of restructuring domestic debt and that interests will not be affected. more..

Jun 26 (FT) In the previous two parts, we discussed the essential features which a good governance system should contain to serve its purpose as identified by the World Bank in its Worldwide Governance Indicators or WGI. They are the voice and accountability, political stability and absence of violence and terrorism, govt effectiveness, regulatory quality, rule of law, and control of corruption. These are what is lacking in SL today and the Govt should concentrate on establishing the same. more..

Jun 26 (FT) SL�s domestic debt optimisation is yet to be finalised, let alone officially announced by GOSL. Premature speculation would undermine market confidence, State Finance Minister Shehan Semasinghe said recently addressing a forum. When the markets are rattled, there may well be a rush to the exits by GSec. holders and this could trigger a similar rush to the exits by FD holders towards Financial Institutions holding lower GSecs. This movement in liquidity will cause stress more..

Jun 26 (DM) National Sports Council (NSC) has urged the Sports Ministry to take drastic action against athletes who go missing while representing the country during international competitions. Several SL athletes went missing at the Commonwealth Games last year, while others have decamped on various sports tours in South Korea, Japan and European countries. �Sports Ministry should sign a bond of not less than rupees one million or property belonging to them or more..

Jun 26 (AD) The service extension granted to the current IGP, C.D. Wickremeratne is scheduled to end from today. However, a new IGP is needed to be appointed once the current IGP�s service extension ends today. The current IGP C.D. Wickramaratne�s service period was scheduled to end on March 26, 2023, and accordingly, he had earlier handed over the documents required for his retirement. Meanwhile, Prez Wickremesinghe took measures to grant him a service extension of 3 months. more..

Jun 26 (AD) Court of Appeal has quashed the summons issued by the Colombo Fort Magistrate�s Court on Senior DIG in charge of the Western Province Deshabandu Thennakoon to appear before courts as a suspect over the Rs. 17.8 million in cash found at the Prez�s House when protestors stormed the building on June 9. The order has been issued by the Appeals Court judge bench consisting of Justices Nissanka Bandula more..

Jun 26 (EN) Shares closed at a two-month high on Monday, with the banking and financial sectors driving the market up amid high crossings in the banking sector as fears on domestic debt optimization ease. �The market is moving in the green because fears of debt restructuring and optimization have been eased to a certain extent,� said an analyst. ASPI was up 0.34% or 31.56 points at 9,339.43, this the highest the index has been since March 22, more..

Jun 26 (AD) At least 20 individuals have been injured after two private passenger buses collided in the Eheliyagoda area this morning. The accident had taken place at around 10 a.m. today on the Ratnapura � Colombo main road near the Pussella Training Centre. One of the private passenger buses has veered off the road and collided with another luxury passenger bus, which was stopped on the side of the road. As a result of this, the luxury bus had been pushed forward more..

Jun 26 (DM) A decision has been taken to relocate beggars from the Galle Face Green in Colombo to the Social Services Rehabilitation Center in Ridiyagama in the Hambantota District, Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva said. He said reports have indicated that the increasing number of beggars at Galle Face Green has become a significant issue to those visiting the area, including local residents, tourists, the youths and families. more..

Jun 26 (DM) Former Minister of Health Dr. P.N.B. Cyril died last night after a temporary elevator installed outside his home to attend to repairs to the third floor of the building at Siribopura in Hambantota, collapsed with the minister and his driver inside. Police said the former minister who received serious injuries was admitted to the General Hospital, Hambantota and later transferred in critical condition to the Karapitiya Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries. more..

Jun 26 (Island) Two persons have been arrested for allegedly duping Sri Lankans on the pretext of sending them to Canada via India illegally.The accused have been identified as Mahenthiraraja (63), a resident of SL, and Selvakulendran (56), a resident of Tamil Nadu, they said. A case was registered at the Indira Gandhi Int'l Airport police station on the complaint of an Inspector who stated that while he was patrolling the area near Mahipalpur picket, he came across 10 people more..

Jun 26 (CT) Claims have been made across various regions of the country that the names of Samurdhi beneficiaries have been removed from the eligibility lists for the Govt�s proposed welfare benefits programme, Aswasuma. It is alleged that the names of Samurdhi beneficiaries have been unfairly excluded from the Aswasuma lists, while names of new individuals, who were not Samurdhi recipients, have been included instead. In the Kirindiwela Grama Niladhari Division, in Balangoda, more..

Jun 26 (Island) In a cheating case involving gems valued at Rs 400 million, it has been asked why the FCCID during five months of investigations did not question or seize the cheated consignment of gems from a Ratnapura-based gem businessman who had allegedly bought, through the complainant�s gem broker, consignment of gems. It has transpired that three cheques issued by the Ratnapura-based businessman all of which had got dishonoured, whereas the broker�s father and broker�s wife more..

Jun 26 (DM) Attorney General informed the Court of Appeal that the decision to export 100,000 of Toque Macaque monkeys to China will be stopped. Deputy Solicitor General Manohara Jayasinghe appearing for the Wildlife Dept made this revelation when a writ petition filed challenging the proposed capture and exportation of Toque Macaque monkeys to China came before the Court of Appeal. more..

Jun 26 (FT) Institute of Chartered Accountants of SL (CA SL) recently introduced a new code of conduct and ethics for mid-level professional accountants in yet another ground-breaking initiative to promote the highest standards of integrity and ethics within the accounting profession. Code which is applicable to both Certified Business Accountants (CBA) and Certified Corporate Accountants (CCA), intends to improve the standing and credibility of mid-level accountants produced by CA SL. more..

Jun 26 (Island) Minister Jeevan Thondaman issued the following statement: I categorically deny the allegations regarding an alleged confrontation between me with the Bogawantalawa Police. Contrary to the allegations, my intention was to address the issue of police brutality and ensure justice for the 28-year-old father of two who was reportedly subjected to violence and arrested on what appears to be a civil matter. It is disheartening to witness instances where individuals from more..

Jun 26 (TM) Electricity tariff revisions proposed by the CEB for the period July to Dec 2023 indicates that there is room for a reduction in the tariff and that these reductions would be for entities of economically important businesses. However, to the dismay of the Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF), CEB has failed to extend these industrial tariff reductions to the apparel industry - the country�s largest foreign exchange earner more..

Jun 26 (DM) Wanindu Hasaranga is on the verge of becoming the first bowler in the history of ODI cricket to take four consecutive five-wicket hauls as Sri Lanka look to secure the top spot of Group B against Scotland in the ICC World Cup Qualifiers in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe on Tuesday. Lankan spin wizard has been in the form of his life capturing 16 wickets in Sri Lanka's first three matches of the qualifiers including three five wickets hauls (UAE 6/24, Oman 5/14 & Ireland 5/79) more..

Jun 26 (ANI) SL skipper Dasun Shanaka spoke about his inability to score runs in the final overs of the game after their victory against Ireland in World Cup Qualifier match on Sunday at Queens Sports Club. SL maintained their unbeaten run in the group stage after registering a 133-run victory against the Irish team. Even though SL managed to set a massive chase of 326 runs for Ireland yet, their batters' inability to score runs in the final five overs was once again on display. more..

Jun 26 (BBC) Scotland and Sri Lanka meet on Tuesday to determine which nation tops Group B at the Cricket World Cup Qualifier. Both sides boast three wins from three in Zimbabwe and are assured of places in the next phase of the tournament. However, it remains an important contest since points are carried through to the Super Six. "It's a massive game and we're certainly excited for it and well prepared," said interim head coach Doug Watson. "Pressure is a privilege. more..

Jun 26 (TM) Interpol has not been informed nor has been involved in the arrest of self- styled Prophet Jerome Fernando, confirms SSP Nihal Thalduwa. Thalduwa confirmed this while speaking to The Morning today, in regards to social media posts circulating stating that Interpol has been informed of and involved in Fernando's arrest. "Interpol is not informed or involved as yet of Fernando's arrest, despite an arrest warrant being locally issued for Jerome Fernando. more..

Jun 26 (DM) There are no military agreements with China and there won't be any military agreements, Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe said during a media interview. The interviewer inquired about China's alleged presence in SL, asking if there were any reports in the American media regarding potential military involvement and whether it could be ruled out for the future. Prez responded by stating that he doesn't believe China more..

Jun 26 (GT) China will continue to help Sri Lanka to the best of its ability to promote SL's economic and social development as well as living standards, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang told his Sri Lankan counterpart Ali Sabry on Sunday in Beijing who is on a state visit to China from Saturday to Friday. Qin said China and Sri Lanka have set a model of friendly coexistence and mutually beneficial cooperation between a major country and a smaller one, more..

Jun 26 (TM) Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) plans to increase long distance bus services and remove non-profitable buses from the fleet by 2025 in a move to increase profits, Secretary to Ministry of Transport & Highways said. The plans were part of a process by the SLTB to improve profits of their depots by 2025. �We have plans to gain profits from the SLTB depot by implementing more long distance travelling buses and discontinuing any non-profitable buses by 2025. more..

Jun 26 (EN) SL Chamber of Pharmaceutical Industries (SLCPI) is calling for a price formula with identified components which will be regularly revised in place of the ad hoc price controls now imposed by a regulator, an official said. National Medicine Regulatory Authority (NMRA), SL�s medicine regulator, controls over 61 drugs that are imported into SL. With the recent strengthening of the rupee against the US dollar, more..

Jun 26 (CT) Eastern Province Governor Senthil Thondaman has taken proactive measures to safeguard deer in Trincomalee. As an initial step, the survey of deer in Trincomalee city commenced in the morning of 24 June. Under the supervision of the Eastern Province Tourism Bureau, the initiative was conducted in collaboration with the Town & Gravats DS and the Trinco Urban Council. The primary objective of the programme was to assess the deer population in Trincomalee City. more..

Jun 26 (AD) Foreign Minister Ali Sabry has held a meeting with the President of the China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) Bai Yinzhan at their head office in Beijing on Monday (26). President Bai confirmed that CHEC will invest USD 1.2 billion in the Colombo Port City, starting with the International Financial Centre, SL foreign minister said in a tweet. CHEC Port City Colombo (Pvt) Ltd through the state-run CHEC is part of China Communications Construction Company (CCCC). more..

Jun 27 (TM) Even though many had high hopes about the Govt�s determined plans to strengthen social welfare schemes in response to the ongoing economic crisis, the implementation of the newly-introduced Aswesuma welfare scheme has thus far been a damp squib. With emerging allegations of irregularities in the implementation of the scheme, especially in the selection of eligible beneficiaries, many express fears as to whether this scheme�s objectives would be defeated by favouritism more..

Jun 27 (ST) Only the dim-witted would have expected the current govt�s record on the political scorecard and its treatment of civil society and voices of dissent on the ground, would go unnoticed at last week�s sessions of the UNHRC. Those intelligent enough in govt ranks anticipate the slings and arrows of international opprobrium�in sufficiently modulated diplomatic language by the Core Group but not so by outraged international watchdog bodies�would not be far behind. more..

Jun 27 (TM) If the Govt of SL is serious about dealing with the past, it must commit to having international observers at all exhumations of mass graves, for the country has failed to achieve satisfactory results despite decades of various forms of attempts. Strengthening the domestic legal and policy frameworks, ensuring transparency, and genuine and knowledgeable interventions by political authority is necessary more..