Jun 25 (NR) The former Secretary of the Ministry of Disaster Management Siththi Mohammed says former subject Minister AHM Fowzie requested her for a vehicle received by the Ministry, worth 20 million rupees. She made this statement during evidence hearing in the case against State Minister AHM Fowzie on charges of incurring a loss of 1 million rupees to the govt. The former Secretary of the Disaster Management Ministry said the Ministry received the vehicle on more..

Jun 25 (DM) The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) said today people would question the practical need for provincial councils if the government delayed elections to them any further. Party Chairman G.L. Peiris said it was nine months since the term of office of the Sabaragamuwa, Eastern and North-Central Provincials Councils had expired while the Northern, Central and North-Western Provincial Councils would end their tenure by September this year. more..

Jun 25 (Island) The Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA), a company owned by the govt has taken steps to strengthen the state website to protect it from hackers. Its Chairman Rohan Samarajeewa said that as an initial step the websites of 331 Divisional Secretariats would be strengthened. According to ratings given by the United Nations, Sri Lanka was ahead of other countries in South Asia, but the country needed a lot of improvement, he said. more..

Jun 25 (DM) Paddy Marketing Board (PMB) will enter the domestic rice market shortly for the first time and sell high-quality rice varieties at an affordable price while maintaining a steady price for paddy, Agriculture Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said. He said the govt expected a bigger paddy harvest at the next Maha and Yala seasons because of the favourable weather conditions for paddy cultivation and private traders would no doubt attempt to purchase paddy cheap from farmers. more..

Jun 25 (EN) The Australian govt has helped train mid-career professionals in Sri Lanka’s state and corporate tourism sector on sustainable tourism development. The training for 25 representatives from govt departments and tourism companies involved workshops in Colombo in February and June and a ten-day study tour to Queensland in March. An Australian High Commission statement said the training was for senior officials from the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, more..

Jun 25 (Island) Kalai Kathir, published in Jaffna, in its Saturday (23) issue, reported that former President Rajapaksa had brought to the attention of Jaffna District TNA MP M. A. Sumanthiran the recovery of explosives at Oddusuddan. According to the report, Sumanthiran had received information about the weapons recovery from Rajapaksa and thanked him for alerting and advising him. But the report added that Sumanthiran warned Rajapaksa that if all did not get together to deliver more..

Jun 25 (CT) A former Secretary to the Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources has reportedly left the country, joining a foreign delegation, using forged documents impersonating the current Ministerial Secretary. Ceylon Today learns, from informed sources, that Jagath P. Wijeweera, has joined a foreign delegation leaving the country, masquerading as the current secretary to the ministry, in order to travel abroad. more..

Jun 25 (DN) Since UK and Canada has lifted the ban imposed for Cannabis, Sri Lanka will also be allowed to grow cannabis for medical purposes, export the production, paving the way to earn millions of dollars, Minister Rajitha Senaratne said. He added that growing Cannabis in cold countries is not effective. He said that a cabinet paper had been presented to cultivate cannabis with the assistance of armed forces. Initially, around 100 acres of cannabis will be cultivated, more..

Jun 25 (AD) An Army Corporal has been shot at and injured by unidentified gunmen at Chakkindarama Road in Ratmalana, stated the Police Spokesperson. According to the Police Spokesperson, The incident had occurred at around 7.20 am this morning (25) and the gunmen have arrived in a three-wheeler and a motorcycle. The Corporal had been shot while he was at the house of a Lieutenant Colonel and was admitted to the Kalubowila Teaching Hospital for treatment. more..

Jun 25 (EN) SL govt will begin experimenting on processes to preserve rambutan and durian as a part of a national fruit production drive to popularise fruit consumption among the island’s youth, an official said. Govt studies will look for ways to have the fruits available for year-around consumption, Ministry of Agriculture Secretary B. Wijayaratne told a roundtable event of the South Asia Food & Nutrition Security Initiative held by the World Bank in Colombo. more..

Jun 25 (AD) Had I taken just one hundred rupees from Aloysius, I too am a suspect according to Yahapalanaya, stated MP Namal Rajapaksa. He made this comment at a press conference held in Vitharandeniya area, this morning (25). The ones who pointed fingers at them are now selling Aloysius’ arrack, says the MP. Only a part of who took money from Aloysius has been revealed, and along with emptying banks, there are more thefts of this govt, according to the MP. more..

Jun 25 (AG) Eight citizens of Sri Lanka have been arrested by the border police and state security service for attempting to illegally cross the border in the Adjara region. Investigators say that the detainees were trying to cross the Georgia-Turkey border aiming to enter Turkey and avoiding border control. The offence committed by foreign citizens is punishable from four to five years of imprisonment. According to official data there have been 38 cases of attempted illegal border crossings more..

Jun 25 (CT) Following the expose on the loot machinery of the Ministry of Health which includes the brother of Rajitha Senarante, Minister of Health and Dr. Rukshan Bellana, quasi Acting Deputy Director of National Blood Transfusion services (NBTS), the harassment and intimidation of medical officers continues at NBTS, Colombo Telegraph learns. Colombo Telegraph exposed the attempt by Bellana to procure a NGS machine which is not a current priority to more..

Jun 25 (NR) Colombo Fort Magistrate Lanka Jayarathne today issued a warrant for the immediate arrest of former MP Sarana Gunawardena. The warrant has been issued in relation to the case against the former Parliamentarian on charges of the misappropriation of state vehicles. Sarana Gunawardena is charged of using a vehicle owned by the Development Lotteries Board, worth 8 million rupees, for his personal use, even after he resigned from his post as the Chairman of the Board. more..

Jun 25 (EN) SL’s High Commissioner in New Delhi Chitranganee Wagiswara has highlighted investment and tourism opportunities in the island during a visit to Mumbai. Sri Lanka wants to leverage its strategic location to position the country as the Hub of the Indian Ocean, Wagiswara told a business gathering attended by over 125 executives in the World Trade Center in Mumbai. Addressing the members of the All India Association of Industries (AIAI) Wagiswara, who was on an official visit more..

Jun 25 (FT) Sri Lanka’s official statistics bureau, Department of Census and Statistics or DCS, has released the country’s 2018 first quarter provisional economic growth data in its website. These numbers may change later when DCS refines its data set. For instance, in the current release, DCS has firmed up its estimation of total output in the first quarter of 2017 by reducing its value from the previously released numbers. Had that previous high number been used, the growth rate more..

Jun 25 (CT) Sri Lanka’s Foreign Service is in dire straits and it is evident when hundreds of academics, media personnel and policymakers, along with 14 civil society organizations, expressed their concerns over the appointing of ambassadors representing the island nation in foreign countries. It is said, “Diplomacy is defined as the skill for dealing with people effectively, in a positive way, including the foreign relations with other countries. When you negotiate or broker a deal between more..

Jun 25 (AD) Former Secretary of Defence Gotabaya Rajapaksa says if the need arises he is capable of withdrawing his American citizenship within a period of two months. He claimed there was no necessity for such a move yet. Gotabaya Rajapaksa appeared before the FCID around 9 this morning to record a statement pertaining to the alleged misappropriation of public funds amounting to 90 million rupees during the construction more..

Jun 25 (DN) It is the public who are ultimately inconvenienced due to the unending spate of strikes faced by the country. Solutions cannot be found to issues and problems unless there is flexibility on the part of both the govt and the strikers, Malwatte Mahanayake Thera Most Ven. Tibbotuwawe Sri Siddhartha Sumangala Thera said. The Mahanayake Thera expressed these sentiments during an Anusasana he delivered when more..

Jun 25 (CT) Legal action has been taken by the Attorney General’s Department to recover a sum of Rs 8.5 billion in losses incurred by five State institutions, due to the fraudulent Treasury Bonds transactions of the CB, Department sources said. The cases have been filed in the District Court of Colombo. According to the sources, the most serious loss was to the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF). It is said to be Rs 4.5 billion. more..

Jun 25 (DM) Perpetual Treasuries Chief Arjun Aloysius has given liquor sales dealerships from Mendis Ltd to several MPs at a discount, Deputy Minister Ranjan Ramanayake alleged. He said that Aloysius had given dealership at a discounted rate of Rs 3 million per annum to the MPs whereas the usual price of the dealership had been Rs 6 million. “Some who had received liquor sales dealerships are govt MPs,” he said. more..

Jun 25 (EN) IMF has recommended Sri Lanka include contingency budgeting for natural disasters in its 2019 budget and an automatic pricing mechanism for electricity to contain fiscal risks from droughts. “Starting in 2019, the budget should include contingency budgeting for emergency cash support and infrastructure rehabilitation,” IMF said in the latest assessment by its executive board of its program with Sri Lanka. more..

Jun 25 (Island) The Joint Opposition (JO) said the Group of 16 wouldn’t be accepted as long as some of its members held positions in the SLFP. JO heavyweight MP Dallas Alahapperuma categorically ruled out the possibility of the Group of 16 being accommodated unless they severed links with the SLFP parliamentary group in the UNP-led govt. The SLFP parliamentary group comprises 25, including 23 SLFPers and 2 CWC members. more..

Jun 25 (NR) Four suspects arrested for their involvement in the brutal killing of a leopard in Ambalakulam, Kilinochchi, have been remanded till the 29th of June. The order was issued by the Kilinochchi Magistrate's Court this afternoon. Suspects are between the ages of 22 and 26 and residents of Kilinochchi and Dharmapuram. Two suspects were arrested yesterday over the incident and were also remanded till the 29th more..

Jun 25 (ST) The long drawn controversy over the South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM) medical degree was apparently settled with Parliament passing the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University Act which lays down the national policy relating to the admission of students registered with SAITM to KDU. Most stakeholders said they were satisfied with the KDU solution. more..

Jun 25 (CI) West Indies didn't bat as well as they would have liked, but entertained the possibility of a first-innings lead at the end of a truncated second day in Bridgetown. Only 59 overs were possible in all, 23 of which saw West Indies move from their overnight 132 for 5 to 204 all out. Jason Holder made a bulk of those runs with 74, the highest of the innings. Then Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel and Holder struck more..

Jun 25 (DM) The verbal wrangling between the power regulator Public Utilities Commission of SL (PUCSL) and the powerful Engineers Union of the power monopoly CEB, has come to a boiling point with CEB engineers launching trade union action leaving the smooth power generation, transmission and distribution at risk. Daily Mirror spoke to the President of CEBEU, Saumya Kumarawadu on the issue. more..

Jun 25 (DM) The US quit the UNHRC on Tuesday (19) with rhetoric intended to assert the moral high-ground, slamming the council and selectively naming and shaming council members outside its charmed circle of friends. While the statements of US Ambassador to UN Nikki Haley and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Washington reeked of imperial arrogance, the irony of this grandstanding by one of the worst human rights offenders on the planet would not have been lost on many more..

Jun 25 (DM) With Sri Lanka also facing a crisis where even tens of thousands of school children are being deceived into drug addiction by heartless mafias, the intentional community tomorrow marks the United Nations day against drug abuse and illicit trafficking. In a statement, the UN says that by a Resolution approved by the General Assembly in 1987, decided to declare June 26 as the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking as an expression of its more..

Jun 25 (Island) Attorney General Jayantha Jayasuriya has informed Austin Fernando, Secretary to President Maithripala Sirisena, that certain annexures of the report submitted by the Presidential Commission of Inquiry on the Treasury bond scams cannot be made available to the public as they might affect the ongoing investigations, according to sources. The Attorney General has not mentioned what these annexures are. more..

Jun 25 (DM) The deployment of another contingent of military personnel for UN peace keeping mission has been held up due to the delay in giving clearance for them by Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission, it is learnt. Previously, such clearance for troops bound for UN missions were done by the UN Human Rights authorities in Geneva. However, the UN Department of Peace Keeping Operations (DPKO) said that such clearance should be taken from the HRCSL from this year onward. more..

Jun 25 (Xinhua) Sri Lankan Police were probing the death of a Pakistani national onboard a Sri Lankan Airlines flight which arrived at the Bandaranaike International Airport from Singapore, local media reported Sunday. The 86-year-old Pakistani woman was aboard the UL 306 flight from Changi Airport in Singapore to Sri Lanka on Saturday. The remains of the deceased was taken to the Negombo Hospital for a post-mortem examination, the police said. more..

Jun 25 (CT) United Hajj Agencies (UHA) has accused SL Hajj Committee of violating SC guidelines on selecting Hajj pilgrims for 2018. UHA pointed out that there was a system in place where Hajj pilgrims were selected, adding that there was a list through which they were chosen. Accordingly, when a group is selected for the pilgrimage, remaining would be added to the waiting list pending selection in the next batch. more..

Jun 25 (CT) Leg spinner Jeffrey Vandersay has been sent back to Sri Lanka from the West Indies owing to his misconduct that was in breach of his player contract. A press release from SLC said that the team management had reported an incident, following which this decision was arrived at. SL have had a difficult time in the Caribbean. They lost the first Test by a huge margin; became the subject of a ball-tampering controversy in the second, and the penalties handed out more..

Jun 25 (CT) The Ceylon Motorcyclists Association (CMA) Friday expressed disapproval over the failure of the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) to implement the law on the standards of helmets and thereby endangering the lives of motorcyclists. In a letter to CAA Chairman, Hasitha Tillekeratne, CMA Chairman Chirantha Amarasinghe, alleged that helmets should adhere to Sri Lanka Standards (SLS) 517 according to the Gazette notice 1923/65 issued on 15 July 2015. more..