Jun 10 (CT) Director General of Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC), Madhushanka Dissanayake said Starlink is not yet established as a telephone network company in SL. He said, however, that the TRC has approved it under Sections 17 and 22 of the Telecommunications Regulatory Act, granting it a Frequency Licence. TRC Director General said the Telecommunications Regulatory Act will be amended in the future to issue a Telecom Service Provider licence. more..

Jun 10 (AD) An individual suspected of shooting and killing the underworld figure Saman Rohitha Perera alias Pas Podda, who was allegedly involved in several organized crimes in Gampaha, has been apprehended this morning at the BIA in Katunayake. The immigration officials, who apprehended the suspect, have handed him over to the Airport Police in Katunayaka. The arrested individual has been identified as a resident of the Kimbulapitiya area in Negambo. more..

Jun 10 (Island) Fisheries Minister Douglas Devananda has announced that the national convention of the Eelam People�s Democratic Party (EPDP) will be held in Jaffna. Minister Devananda said that district level meetings would held ahead of the national convention. Party sources said that they have already decided to back Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe�s candidature at the forthcoming presidential poll. Their decision would be officially announced at the national convention, more..

Jun 10 (DM) Police are seeking public assistance in apprehending a suspect wanted for defrauding individuals of Rs. 17.5 million with promises of employment abroad, particularly in countries like England and Poland. Police said the fraud was operated under the guise of IMH Logistics (Pvt) Ltd, based in Janajaya City Hall, Sri J'pura, Kotte. Mirihana Special Criminal Investigation Division has launched an inquiry into the fraud and has already arrested a female suspect, more..

Jun 10 (EN) A govt led by SJB will implement the 13th amendment to the constitution, opposition leader Sajith Premadasa said, also claiming that people in the north have become addicted to false promises made by politicians. He said an SJB govt would ensure all civil and economic rights of the people. �People in Jaffna district and the northern province have become addicted to the candy politics (losinjara deshapalanaya) of various leaders. more..

Jun 10 (Island) The inauguration of the Advanced Residency Programme on Leadership in Parliament for Clerks and Officials organised by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and the Parliament of SL is scheduled to be held today at 2 pm at the Parliamentary complex under the patronage of Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, parliament sources said. A group of Secretaries General and Officials of parliaments representing the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association more..

Jun 10 (AD) Additional General Manager (Admin) of the Dept of Railways Mrs. Kusalani de Silva states that the ongoing strike by railway locomotive engineers is intended solely to inconvenience the govt, the Railways Dept and the general public, despite all possible solutions having been provided to address their issues. She highlighted that the Dept of Railways had issued 57 promotion letters to the railway locomotive engineers by Thursday, which is more than 50% of the relevant employees. more..

Jun 10 (AD) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe, currently in New Delhi, held a meeting today with Indian Senior Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar. During the meeting, Mr. Jaishankar addressed the swift resumption of development projects initiated in SL with Indian investments, which had been halted midway. He expressed his intent to visit SL in the near future to oversee the progress of these activities. more..

Jun 10 (PMD) Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina has assured Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe of Bangladesh�s commitment to support SL�s agricultural modernization program. Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe and Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina are currently in New Delhi to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Indian PM Narendra Modi. The two leaders engaged in bilateral discussions this morning, where PM Hasina assured her country�s commitment to assist SL more..

Jun 10 (DM) According to the Govt Family Health Services Association, it has been reported that various allergies have occurred on the skin of babies due to the use of substandard soaps. Association treassure Priyangani Susangika said some parents use substandard soap for their babies now, and that its impacts will be felt in the future. Therefore, she requested the parents choose a baby soap approved by the SL Standards Institution (SLSI). "The baby skin is very sensitive. more..

Jun 10 (DM) In the backdrop of the govt evolving legislation to regulate nuclear power generation and the Sri Lanka Atomic Energy Board (SLAEB) getting ready to call for Expression of Interest from prospective investors, a delegation of China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) is expected in the country soon to explore investment in a nuke plant in the country, an official said yesterday. CNNC is among the organizations that submitted proposals for such a plant in the country. more..

Jun 10 (DM) Indian PM Narendra Modi is likely to visit Sri Lanka in August this year, officials from the President's office told journalists here. President Ranil Wickremesinghe who attended the swearing-in ceremony of Prime Minister Modi had invited the latter to visit Sri Lanka when the duo met on Sunday at Rasthrapati Bhavan. Wickremesinghe had discussed the visit of Prime Minister Modi with Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar in Delhi on Monday. more..

Jun 10 (TM) Foreign Minister and Chairperson of Cabinet Sub-Committee appointed to examine the issues faced by Sri Lanka Cricket, Ali Sabry, has said that the country�s recent disappointments in the ICC Men�s World Cup 2023 and the ongoing ICC Men�s T20 World Cup are not isolated incidents and that time for reform is now. �They are stark indicators of the deep-rooted problems within our cricketing infrastructure. more..

Jun 10 (CT) Fisheries Minister Douglas Devananda has instructed the National Aquatic Resource Research and Development Authority (NARA) officials to immediately produce the report of their research on the development of lagoons and the surrounding areas in the country. A progress review meeting headed by the Minister took place at the Fisheries Ministry with the participation of officials of the Fisheries Ministry and NARA to discuss the progress of projects implemented by NARA. more..

Jun 10 (EN) NPP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake will dissolve parliament the same night his victory is announced at upcoming prez election, Dissanayake said. He said the NPP will win the parliamentary elections that will be held immediately after the presidential election. The next parliament will have 120 to 130 MPs from the NPP, he added. �We may be laughing and clapping, but what we�re doing is SL�s biggest political transformation that will see power exchanged between common people. more..

Jun 10 (EN) No future SL govt will have room to maneuver with the IMF deal at least until 2028 as it will be the key for the island nation to come out of the ongoing unprecedented economic crisis and seek commercial borrowing from international capital markets, Cabinet Spokesman Bandula Gunawardena said. His comments come as some of the opposition political leaders have publicly expressed their willingness to amend IMF more..

Jun 10 (AD) Gampaha Magistrate�s Court has ordered for the notorious drug trafficker and organized criminal infamously known as Ganemulla Sanjeewa, who is currently under detention orders, to be moved to the Boossa Prison. Accordingly, he was ordered to be detained in the Boossa Prison until June 24. This order was issued when the suspect was produced before Gampaha Magistrate this morning. The underworld figure was detained at Weeragula Police Station under detention more..

Jun 10 (TM) Ministry of Public Security has stated that the Police are unable to take any action until they receive directions from the Attorney General (AG) regarding Royal Park murder convict Jude Anthony Jayamaha, who is reportedly to be in Singapore. Late last week, Supreme Court (SC) quashed the Prez pardon granted to Jayamaha by former President Maithripala Sirisena, declaring it unconstitutional. The SC also instructed the AG to initiate the necessary legal steps for more..

Jun 11 (CT) Every year on 8 June, the world comes together to celebrate World Oceans Day, an int'l event dedicated to honouring and protecting our oceans. This initiative was first proposed in 1992 by the Int'l Centre for Ocean Development of Canada and the Ocean Institute of Canada during the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. UN officially recognised World Oceans Day in 2008, a move that bolstered global efforts to promote ocean conservation and sustainable management more..

Jun 11 (ST) It is not customary for this column to devote its space to SL�s diplomats presenting their credentials to the head of the host country. It is a commonplace event, as every head of mission from whichever country he or she comes from and to whichever country he or she is posted goes through this diplomatic ritual that dates way back. Sri Lanka has some 60 or more diplomatic missions scattered across the world. Most of them are embassies or high commissions, and only ambassadors more..

Jun 11 (TM) In a recent decision, Supreme Court (SC) declared that the Presidential pardon granted by former Prez Maithripala Sirisena to Royal Park murder convict Jude Anthony Jayamaha was in violation of the Constitution. This ruling, which echoes a previous SC verdict invalidating former Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa's pardon of former MP Duminda Silva, who was convicted of the murder of former MP Bharatha Lakshman more..

Jun 11 (CT) Surveying the political landscape today, listening to the voice cuts and speeches of various politicians and their supporters, the picture that comes to my mind is that of Siduhath Bodhisatva calmly and most peacefully facing the attacks of Maraya in various guises. The attacks of Maraya are more personal than socio-political. Siddhartha has not yet started to destabilize the status quo. Around five hundred years later there was a similar scenario with Jesus of Nazareth. more..

Jun 11 (DM) Supreme Court�s June 6 reversal of the order of Prez Maithripala Sirisena to grant a pardon to Jude Shramantha Jayamaha, who was sentenced to death over the Royal Park murder incident on July 1, 2005, was the second such action by the apex court within the last six months. Court on Jan 17 quashed the clemency given by former Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa to former MP Duminda Silva who had been on death row over the murder of former Prez Advisor Bharatha Lakshman more..

Jun 11 (CT) The city of Colombo sees more than a million people on a daily basis. With a majority of govt institutions, Ministries and Depts, commercial city of the island throbs with swarms of people going about their business. Added to this burden are the large numbers of children that attend schools in the city of Colombo. Therefore, the provision of hygienic, quality food, for those attending schools visiting govt offices and more..

Jun 11 (TM) SL as an island nation has long dealt with various border control and trafficking issues. However, the country needs to revisit its approaches to combat human trafficking in light of changing trends and tactics used by those who engage in the despicable practice. According to UN Office of Drugs and Crimes (UNODC), human trafficking is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring, or receipt of people through force, fraud, or deception, with the aim of exploiting them for profit. more..

Jun 11 (TM) According to the statistics published in the brief record of the CIABOC on the complaints and its investigations from 2015 to last year (2023), we find the following: in 2014, the number of complaints received was 2,345; in 2021, it was 2,335; in 2022, it was 2,512; and in 2023, it was 3,004. Thus, around 2,500 to 3,500 complaints are received each year. The process by which the complaints are referred for investigations � or whether they are referred at all � is not clear. more..

Jun 11 (Island) Nothing is more disconcerting to an unpopular regime than the prospect of losing power. Hence the SLPP-UNP govt�s desperate efforts to cling on to power by fair means or foul. The Opposition has let out howls of protests against a government move to extend the term of Attorney General (AG) Sanjay Rajaratnam, who is reaching the mandatory retirement age soon. No AG has ever been granted a service extension since Independence, we are told. more..

Jun 11 (DM) Having taken a firm decision to include nuclear energy in its mix of energy sources, Sri Lanka is now well on the way to harnessing it. Literature on the subject shows that the benefits of going for nuclear energy outweigh the drawbacks, and external finance will not be a problem. SL Atomic Energy Board (SLAEB) Chairman Prof. Rexy Denzil Rosa has said that SL has identified nuclear energy as a clean and green energy source to fulfil future electricity demand. more..

Jun 11 (ST) An estimated 200,000 first-time voters will be casting their votes in the upcoming prez election, according to the Election Commission. The new electoral register that will be used for the next prez election will be available by next month, a spokesman of the Election Commission said. A cross section of youth who are first time voters interviewed by the Sunday Times expressed mixed reactions, more..

Jun 11 (Island) SL Police Service is the premier law enforcement agency on the Island and one of its oldest govt establishments counting over one and half centuries of existence. During this long history, 36 IGPs � 11 of them from the Colonial Administration, and the rest thereafter � were in charge. Their periods of office were characterized by riots, coups, insurrections, terrorism, political violence, trade union action, mass protests, and worst of all, the politicization of the institution. more..

Jun 11 (ST) SL's tea plantation sector is facing an alarming issue of illegal encroachments of estates managed by the Regional Plantation Companies (RPCs) by unknown gangs with the backing of politicians in respective areas, several planters and residents complained. The extent of plantation land is shrinking since RPCs took over its management in 1995 due to either land encroachments, subleasing or selling land lots illegally. 94.521 hectares leased out to 20 RPCs in 1995, more..

Jun 11 (FT) State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe yesterday said that Parliament�s approval has been sought for an additional allocation of Rs. 8.75 billion to restart essential development projects that were halted due to the ongoing economic crisis and the pending debt restructuring program. He clarified that this request does not constitute a supplementary Budget, which is typically presented to Parliament when allocated funds prove insufficient. more..

Jun 11 (FT) A vehicle parade of locally manufactured and assembled vehicles organised by Industrial Development Board (IDB) along with the Ministry of Industries (MOI), SL Automobile Component Manufacturers Association (SLACMA) and Automobile Assemblers Association will be held on 18 June. The third parade of its kind will tour through Galle Face, Lotus Roundabout, Fort, Technical Junction, Punchikawatta, Maradana, Borella, Borella cemetery junction & to BMICH from 4 pm more..

Jun 11 (FT) Sri Lanka has got a boost in the latest Global Startup Ecosystem Report (GSER) compiled by Startup Genome, world-leading innovation ecosystem development organisation and Global Entrepreneurship Network (GEN). Though not figuring in either of the global top list or emerging rankings prominently, SL�s nascent startup ecosystem has got positive reviews. SL was ranked within world�s top 10 for affordable talent more..

Jun 11 (FT) In an effort to boost agricultural exports, the Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Economic and Physical Plans has instructed relevant officials to eliminate obstacles in the local production and export of toddy, kithul, palm and coconut-related products. This directive came during a recent meeting chaired by Committee Chairman and MP Mahindananda Aluthgamage. Key Govt institutions, including the Excise Department and the Customs Dept, more..