Apr 3 (GDI) New observation cars have been added giving a facelift to the Podi Menike train that runs between Colombo Fort and Badulla. The new observation cars were added to the No. 5 Podi Menike train under the patronage of Minister Dallas Alahapperuma. The observation cars were manufactured at the Ratmalana workshop of the CGR. The Railway Department contributes 60 million rupees for the national economy more..

Apr 3 (GDI) The President said that it is the farmer who should provide food for the masses. The cost of fertilizer required for one acre of land has been calculated. The farmer has to pay only 1435 rupees while the government is paying 17,500 rupees out of the total cost. He said that the water of the Moragahakande reservoir is first reaching Anuradhapura and then Medawachchiya, Padaviya and Horowpathana although some say the water is diverted to Polonnaruwa. more..

Apr 3 (wsws) “President Mahinda Rajapakse and his government say they have produced a golden era for the plantations. Yes, it’s a golden era for bosses of the plantation companies. But not for the workers,” a Norwood Estate tea plantation worker told the WSWS. A WSWS reporting team visited the Norwood Estate, near Hatton in Sri Lanka’s central plantation district of Nuwara Eliya, as part of more..

Apr 3 (Island) Bilateral ties between China and Sri Lanka have grown over the years but a formal trade agreement between the two countries may be crucial to deepen economic ties and minimise trade disputes, discussions between businessmen and Chinese Embassy officials highlighted. Over the past 50 years, bilateral economic co-operation and trade have developed gradually between more..

Apr 3 (GDI) Construction of the National Performing Art Theatre is progressing on target with the help of People's Republic of China. This ultra-modern facility is coming up at the former Nomads Grounds at Ananda Kumaraswami Mawatha in Colombo 07. The approximate cost of this project is 3080 Million rupees and the bulk of the funds are coming from China. The duration of the project is from May 2008 to August 2010. more..

Apr 3 (GDI) The Sri Lanka Wildlife Conservation Society's Outdoor Environmental Education (OEE) Program offers schools a full-service experiential learning program. The OEE Program is located at Wasgamuwa in the Matale District in the Central Province of Sri Lanka. The main field-study areas for the terrestrial studies will include the Himbiliyakade Forest Reserve, Wasgmauwa National Park and the Knuckles Mountain Range. more..

Apr 3 (GV) Abhilash Jeyaraj who is usually very shy to meet visitors waits with his mother Junita Jeyaraj at their gate. He wears a pair of jeans and long sleeve tshirt with stripe and neatly combed hair. His big smile invites me immediately, while he holds my hands and directs me through the main entrance of the house. He calls his cousin Thulanika Uthayaramesh and they begin to play cricket in the courtyard at dusk. more..

Apr 3 (LP) The 43rd new rice festival (Aluth Sahal Mangalyaya) was held opposite the Sacred Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura yesterday (02). The ceremony was held amidst traditional religious observances and rituals conducted by the Maha Sangha headed by Atamasthanadhipathi Ven. Dr. Pallegama Sirinivasa Nayaka Thera and Ruwanweli Chethiyaramaya Chief Incumbent Ven. Pallegama Hemaratana Nayaka Thera. more..

Apr 3 (LP) The Korean Republic has granted assistance to upgrade Niyagama Vocational Training Centre. The upgraded centre will be renamed Korea-Sri Lanka Advanced Vocational Training Centre. It is expected to become a leading vocational training centre of excellence. The project was constructed in a record time of 15 months. It involved construction of the main building and workshop building and the remodeling of previously existing buildings. more..

Apr 3 (LP) The 16th Annual Award Ceremony of the Bandaranaike International Diplomatic Training Institute (BIDTI) took place on Wednesday 31 March 2010 at the Lakshman Kadirgarmar Institute of International Relations and Strategic Studies. Rohitha Bogollagama, Minister of Foreign Affairs was the Chief Guest and Mme Yang Xiuping Ambassador of China was the Guest of Honour at this ceremony. more..

Apr 3 (LG) This generalisation is relevant to us as the people of Sri Lanka are once again called to make a choice next Thursday at the election to the next parliament. There are an abundance of foxes and some hedgehogs among the few thousands who are seeking to fill the 225 positions as Members of Parliament. Which choice will the people make – the fox or the hedgehog? more..

Apr 3 (LNP) Nearly one year has elapsed since the end of war on terror but we still have the last battle being fought in some quarters. On the political front, both the government and the Opposition are using the war victory to score points over each other. The UPFA is marketing President Mahinda Rajapaksa`s leadership for the war effort in his capacity as the Head of State and Commander-in-Chief, while more..

Apr 3 (LNP) Navy medical specialists will monitor the health condition of General Sarath Fonseka daily, Military Spokesperson Major General Prasad Samarasingha told Daily Mirror online in response to concerns raised by the General s wife. When questioned about the detained General s health, the Military Spokesperson said that the former Army Commander was in good health. As per the doctors, his health is very good. more..

Apr 3 (LP) The celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ three days after His crucifixion and death is the significance of Easter, the most important festival in the Christian calendar, states President Mahinda Rajapaksa in an Easter message. In the Christian faith it marks the recognition of Christ’s conquest of death, bringing the spirit of renewal and revival, and hope to the human race. more..

Apr 3 (DN) For example, Ranil Wickremesinghe recently got his idioms twisted. He likened something to ‘a rooster being put in charge of foxes’. This was followed by a geographical slip, when he mis-applied the old JVP slogan kolambata kiri apata kekiri, offering ‘basnahirata kiri, kolombata kekiri’ as though the Colombo, like the ‘Western’, was a province or at least that Colombo was not part of this province. more..

Apr 3 (DN) The Nation Building Ministry has implemented a program to develop 237 villages affected by terrorist attacks in the north and east and has completed projects in 100 villages, Ministry sources said. The development program Yali Pibidemu (Village reawakening) covering 12 districts was started in 2008. It has introduced new methods of micro paddy cultivation giving high yields and manufacturing goods with locally available raw material for the market, they said. more..

Apr 3 (LNP) In an unprecedented move, the UNP's A.J.M.Muzammil who is contesting next weeks parliamentary election, took a public oath in Colombo yesterday, which if he violated in the event of his election, could result in loss of his seat. With Attorney-at-Law Ikram Mohammed and Kolonnawa Urban Council Member Upasena JP, acting as witnesses, Muzammil signed an affidavit pledging that more..

Apr 3 (DN) Following are excerpts of an interview with Livestock Development Minister C B Ratnayake. Q: During the last Presidential election the UPFA could not secure a majority vote in the Nuwara Eliya District. Do you think the UPFA could secure that elusive victory this time? A: Although we failed to secure the Nuwara Eliya electoral district at the recently concluded Presidential Polls, the UPFA is confident that it can win the district more..

Apr 3 (DN) Investment will flow into the Jaffna Peninsula leading to new opportunities for the people of the North with the opening of a Board of Investment (BOI) branch in Jaffna. There are over two million Sri Lankans living abroad and many among them are ethnic Tamils from the Jaffna peninsula and other areas of the North, BOI Chairman Dhammika Perera said yesterday. He was speaking after the opening of the BoI office in Jaffna. more..

Apr 3 (Island) "Not only the Executive Presidential system but the preferential election system too should be changed when drafting a new constitution that could address the needs of all the ethnic groups in our country", Minister of Vocational and Technical Training and leader of the UPFA Galle district team, Piyasena Gamage said at a ceremony held to open five bridges across Gin Ganga from Neluwa to Hiniduma. more..

Apr 3 (AFP) A Sri Lankan woman taken into custody last month for writing books about her conversion to Islam for Buddhism is being investigated for possible links to Islamic extremists, police said Saturday. Last weekend, police said the woman, identified as Malini Perera, was taken into custody under tough emergency laws over allegations of "anti-state" activities but they did not elaborate. more..

Apr 3 (Island) JHU candidate Ven Athuraliye Ratana Thero told the media yesterday he lamented the lack of in-depth substance or ideological thinking in the propaganda or rhetoric of candidates at election platforms or meetings today. "The values have been lost and they play to the gallery simply to please them and also it shows the ignorance on the part of the election candidates," he said. more..

Apr 3 (Island) UNF Matara District Leader Sagala Ratnayake said the January 26 presidential election was rigged and there were numerous incidents of malpractices. "It was not a free and fair election. We in the UNF will not permit it to be repeated again at the April 8 parliamentary polls. Steps have been taken to protect the franchise of the people. Vote for UNF to form a government to pull this country out of the mess it has fallen into," more..

Apr 3 (DM) International election monitors stressed yesterday that Sri Lanka should have a proactive and strong Independent Election Commission even with powers to ban political parties and disqualify candidates unless they adhered to lawful election practices. ANFREL Executive Director Ms. Somsri Han-Anuntasuk said that an Election Commission should not be afraid of powerful political parties and candidates when implementing the law. more..

Apr 3 (DM) The JVP said it agreed with the Britain Foreign Secretary’s allegation of human rights violations owing to the treatment levelled against opposition presidential candidate General Sarath Fonseka, JVP MP and DNA general secretary Vijitha Herath said yesterday. “Foreign secretary Miliband is correct to say that we are having human rights allegations since more..

Apr 3 (DM) The Elections Commissioner had permitted two groups of Election monitors to observe the counting procedure at counting centres of the General Elections, Trincomalee Assistant Election Commissioner H.M. Nishantha Desipriya said. The two organisations that had been so permitted were the PAFEREL and CMVE. Accountingly one agent of each of the two organisations would be employed in each counting centre, more..

Apr 3 (DM) The EPDP yesterday slammed the V. Anandasangaree-led TULF for claiming there were armed groups operating in the North and asked if the TULF was blaming the government for the recent death of a student in Jaffna. EPDP spokesman M. Stalin told Daily Mirror online the party did not have any weapons and was not responsible for the death of the young Chavakachcheri school boy who was abducted for ransom last week. more..

Apr 3 (DN) President Mahinda Rajapaksa emphatically stated that the era in which Sri Lanka sought outside loans to feed its people would soon be over. The President was of the opinion that the country would soon achieve self-sufficiency in its agricultural needs with the Government giving pride of place to this sector. more..

Apr 3 (DM) Former Chief Minister of the North-East Varatharajah Perumal said yesterday that the 13th Amendment to the Constitution should be implemented meaningfully and effectively as a stepping stone for greater devolution under federalism. Mr. Perumal said that there were different power devolution models in the world, and Sri Lanka could derive insights from them to develop one of its own to resolve the national question. more..

Apr 3 (Island) Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake has instructed all Returning Officers and Assistant Elections Commissioners to suspend the counting of votes if any untoward incident occurs in the counting centres or in their premises. They have been instructed to seek the assistance of the security forces personnel to remove any members of political parties or representatives of more..

Apr 3 (LT) There is a conspiracy to assassinate Ms. Anoma Fonseka and this was accidently revealed by Mr. Dulles Alahapperuma in a speech he had made says General Secretary of the DNA Vijithe Herath. In an announcement issued regarding the statement made by Mr. Dulles Alahapperuma at a UPFA press conference held on the 1st that there was a threat to Ms. Anoma Fonseka’s life Mr. Vijithe Herath states: more..

Apr 3 (TL) A pensioner faces arrest after launching a political party linked to a banned terrorist organisation from his Purley Way headquarters. The Electoral Commission has removed the People’s Front of Liberation Tigers (PFLT) from its register while it investigates its links to the Sri Lankan terrorist group the Tamil Tigers. Group leader Nadarajah Balasubramaniam, 69, plans to field candidates from his party in more..

Apr 3 (LT) A hunger strike with the participation of ‘Maha Sangha’ to demand the release of Gen. Sarath Fonseka, who is the hero who liberated the Motherland from tiger terrorism, has been arranged by the “Front to get General released.” They point out the General was illegally arrested and has been arbitrarily detained for 55 days now. As a result of being detained in a room without proper ventilation he has more..

Apr 4 (TN) Only 4, 27,164 (59%) polling cards of the total 7,21,359 polling cards of Jaffna electorate which consists of the districts of Jaffna and Ki’linochchi have been delivered to voters through post offices, Jaffna Government Agent (GA) said in a press meet held in Jaffna Secretariat Saturday. However, arrangements have been made for them to get their polling cards until 4:00 p.m on the voting day, he added. more..

Apr 4 (LG) Schizophrenia is a brain disorder that distorts the way a person thinks, acts, expresses emotions, perceives reality and relates to others. Schizophrenia has an altered perception of reality. Research suggests that schizophrenia may be a developmental disorder resulting from alterations in the usual maturing process of the nervous system. Around 1 in 100 people will develop schizophrenia during their lifetime, and more..

Apr 4 (SL) As the parliamentary election campaigning comes to an end, The Sunday Leader headed off to the North by road. Anuradhapura was a virtual sea of blue with Duminda Dissanayake holding the fort and appearing to be heading towards a convincing majority. He has consistently done better at each election and 2010 is not expected to be any different. With the help of his Chief Minister father, Berty Premalal, more..

Apr 4 (SL) I’m on the beach near Pigeon Island, eating lobster. The guys tell me that everything is fine. It certainly feels that way. People are unloading cement, laying tiles. The road is paved, the new kovil is coming up. People have jobs, they’re sending money home. I’m sitting with two Tamil gentlemen and they both seem pretty gung-ho. The President has given what he said he’d give. We are living in trust. He has eradicated terrorism. more..

Apr 4 (SL) Apart from the sweltering heat, the heat of the battle among candidates to become stars in their respective districts at the April 8 general election has reached its peak in the South. The UPFA seems to be in the lead in the South with the UNP led UNF also enjoying a significant support base. But the hero of not so long ago, General Sarath Fonseka seems to have become mostly a topic people speak of with remorse due to his current plight, more..