Mar 24 (LG) 1. Non of the Sri Lankan University teachers are recruited and promoted in a proper way. Their qualifications and the grades are not fair. Because Universities are passing and giving classes and high grades very unfair manner to friends, relatives, sons and daughters and personnel henchmen. The current setup of Sri Lankan Universities never allow any outside qualified person to enter the system. 2. More than 75% of Sri Lankan University Professors do not have PhDs and more..

Mar 24 (Cimic) In keeping with the government-declared National Mosquito Control Week, the island-wide campaign launched to alleviate mosquito threat, Security Forces Headquarters – Jaffna (SF-J) organized a special programme in Jaffna town on Tuesday with participation soldiers, health sector officials, school children and adults. Nearly 400 students including 75 scouts and girl guides from schools in Jaffna, Kolombuthurai, Nallur, Kalviyankadu and Kokuvil areas joined more..

Mar 24 (LG) As per Christian Bible God said ‘Thou Shall Not Kill’. Lord Krishna – the Hindu God said ‘When it is your duty to fight, fight without being distracted by death.’ The question has been asked through Sri Lankan Guardian article ‘Right to kill Gaddafi : Yes or Not’? The simple answer that comes to my mind is - if we kill in the course of Duty or in self defence – then it is the right type of killing. That would confirm the dignity of the person doing her/his duty and/or honor the more..

Mar 24 (DM) Asela had been able to lease out his house in Sri Lanka and travel abroad. He visited the States and Europe where he had cousins and returned to Sri Lanka at the end of the year when the lease was due to expire. To his horror, he found that the person he had leased the house to was refusing to leave. He had no choice but to go to courts and now he has to face the prospect of protracted litigation spanning several years! “There should be a law for the Recovery of Immovable Property,” more..

Mar 24 (SL) Trade unions affiliated to the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) are asking how the Power and Energy Minister can boast of a Rs. 5.3 billion profit at the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) when the 2009 Central Bank report has clearly stated that the CEB has incurred losses to the tune of Rs.173 billion. “In addition to all these losses the CEB owes the CPC Rs. 52 billion. If Minister Champika Ranawaka claims that the CEB has gained a Rs. 5.3 billion profit in 2010, more..

Mar 24 (DM) Sri Lanka has always been a favoured playground of the West. They tested their many theories here, enjoyed immense political clout with successive leaderships in Colombo and a serious degree of impunity. Denying them these pleasures was a crime Colombo seems poised to pay for. From refusing their ‘inputs’ on how the war should be fought to following their varied nuances on rights, Colombo enjoys pariah status like never before. The ‘crime’ of denying the West the opportunity of more..

Mar 24 (DM) A child who was abused,has since 2004 been in a protective home sans family. Her case proceeded no further. Those who led the prosecution in the Magistrates Court have long gone. The child of yesterday would be an adult now. The fact she is without family explains her social and economic circumstances. Eliminating such grotesque delays is what underpins a recommendation now before His Lordship the Chief Justice that children’s cases be concluded within three months. more..

Mar 24 (GV) Of late there have been several critical comments levied against the manner in which Sri Lanka has conducted her diplomatic relations. Traditional alliances with the Western world have become somewhat stilted, new alliances have been forged, while fortunately the tempo of our relations with the SAARC countries, our regional neighbours, have remained stable. The shifts in the balance of power relations have created a certain amount of suspicion and more..

Mar 24 (Island) There seems to be no end in sight to the UNP's crisis. All ad hoc remedies have proved inefficacious and its leadership tussle has taken a turn for the worse. If the UNP fails to reach a consensus on who should lead it and opts for a vote to sort out the dispute, it is bound to suffer yet another debilitating rift, because elections usually lead to polarisation and disunity. In 1994, the UNP, one may recall, faced a double whammy. In the aftermath of a defeat at that year's more..

Mar 24 (DM) The recent global political manoeuverings on Sri Lanka indicate a strong movement directing its forces towards de-stability here. Whether these come in the form of calls for war crimes probes, interventions by UN bodies against allegations of human rights abuses or promotion of good governance, the agenda seems clear. Attacking the country’s image and thereby its economy. Such attacks sadly have the potential to impede upon the investor confidence that has slowly but more..

Mar 24 (Island) Former LTTE combatants received loans amounting to Rs. 1 billion through a special scheme initiated by the Central Bank. Around 45 former LTTE cadres in Batticaloa received loans ranging from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 50,000 through state-owned banking giant Bank of Ceylon (BOC) to commence their livelihood. Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal addressing a gathering at a ceremony to mark the disbursement of Rs. 1 million in loans told former combatants to more..

Mar 24 (SL) She had finished 200 abdomen exercises in the last lap of the one hour aerobic class and was gasping for breath at the lobby when the General Manager called her a b***h. So surprised was she that she had in fact looked sideways to see whether there actually was some dog around. The date was March 9, 2011 and the time was 9.30 a.m. when this peculiar incident occurred at the Fingara Town and Country Club situated at 50/21, Old Kesbewa Road, Rathanapitiya, Boralesgamuwa. more..

Mar 24 (BBC) The Venerable Bogoda Seelawimala thera, Viharadhipathi of the London Buddhist Vihara in Chiswick will represent Buddhists at the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton. The Ven.Seelawimala thera who is also the Vice Chairman of the Interfaithnetwork in the UK, is the first Buddhist monk to be invited to a royal wedding in Britain. The Thera told Sandeshaya that many believe this invitation has been extended to him based on the social structure of this country. more..

Mar 24 (Island) Even as Japan battles to restore its economy after a devastating earthquake and tsunami destroyed lives and rattled its economy, Sri Lanka yesterday (23) received Rs. 40 billion from the Japanese government on concessionary terms. The government of Japan has provided Japanese Yen 33 billion (approximately Rs. 44 billion) to Sri Lanka under its annual Yen Loan Package to assist the development efforts of the country. more..

Mar 24 (DN) The Education Ministry with the coordination of relevant stakeholders has issued model questions and answers books to provide a reliable guidance to the students who sit for the GCE Advanced Level (A/L) Examination in August this year. The questions and answers books are available for the three main streams Arts, Commerce and Science in all three languages, said Education Minister Bandula Gunawardena addressing a press briefing held at the Education Ministry premises yesterday. more..

Mar 24 (TN) Three fishermen from Valveddiththu'rai were 'abducted' Tuesday in the seas off Jaffna by Indian Fishermen and were handed over to Indian Police in Koadikkarai (Point Calimere), fishermen society sources in Jaffna said. The incident was reported as talks were taking place in Colombo between the delegations of fishermen from the North and the fishermen from India. Political observers said that the establishments in New Delhi, Chennai and Colombo, in strategic more..

Mar 24 (LB) Last week a speeding vehicle, in which the wife of a deputy minister was traveling, ran over a pedestrian killing him and injuring three others in Avissawella. Three weeks back, a Defender backup vehicle of the security entourage of the wife of the IGP, Mahinda Balasuriya knocked down a motorcyclist, killing him on the spot and injuring five others, including three civilians. The IGP’s wife was returning after offering a pooja at Kataragama. more..

Mar 24 (Island) A severe shortage of maize, coupled with hoarding and price hikes, has hit the poultry farming industry. Due to this, poultry feed requirement have dropped by 50 per cent. The shortage of maize was attributed to the recent heavy rains followed by floods and hoarding by unscrupulous traders, who have jacked up the price to Rs. 47 a Kg. Although the cost of production is Rs. 25 per Kg, the government set a guaranteed price of Rs. 28 to safeguard the local farmers. more..

Mar 24 (Island) Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development Minister Rajitha Senaratne says that Ambalangoda police have been turning a blind eye to large scale illegal fishing operations carried out by four major businessmen. In spite of repeated complaints, the police had failed to take action, the Kalutara District MP says. An irate Minister alleged that the police had been bribed by the businessmen. Addressing the media at the newly built fish market complex at Peliyagoda on Monday (21), more..

Mar 24 (LB) The Ministry of Health has decided to amend the private hospitals act forthwith, due to a spate of complaints received that there were irregularities taking place in most such hospitals. The government it is learnt has for sometime been recieving complaints from organizations and individuals about certain private hospitals that are said to be charging patients very high fees for services that cost very little to perform. When contacted for a comment on the more..

Mar 24 (DM) Justice Minister Rauff Hakeem told Parliament yesterday that making the Hambantota Port fully operational would be a time consuming process. Speaking during the debate on the Special Commodity Levy in the House yesterday, Mr. Hakeem explained that it would be based on the green field concept. Accordingly he said there would be facilities for gas and cement plants to be set up together with a host of other industries in the vicinity of the port. He made this point in response more..

Mar 24 (DM) The Court of Appeal yesterday (23) reserved its judgement for May 5 in respect of the 19 Writ applications of the ruling UPFA challenging the rejections of its nomination papers submitted for the elections of the local government bodies in the Jaffna and Kilinochchi districts. The Bench comprised Justices Sathya Hettige (President) and Upali Abeyrathne. The written submissions of all parties are to be filed on or before March 31. more..

Mar 24 (DM) Around 6000 bags of cement meant for road development work had been distributed among some UPFA supporters in the Panduwasnuwara area in the Kurunegala district in the build-up to the election in an attempt to buy votes, the UNP charged in Parliament yesterday. UNP Kurunegala District MP Dayasiri Jayasekara, who brought up the issue in the House during sessions, said that the said stock of cement had been released for the “Maga Neguma” project to be used to concrete the access roads. more..

Mar 24 (DM) Two newly elected United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) members who had put up black flags in the Dambulla town to express dissatisfaction at the preferential votes polled by them later apologized to Minister Janaka Bandara Tennakoon. The two members of the Dambulla Municipal Council met the minister and asked for pardon for allowing them to be misled by another candidate and expressed their regrets for any embarrassment caused by their actions. more..

Mar 24 (AT) Sri Lankan Parliament yesterday appealed to all the people and governments in the world to cry an immediate halt to the attacks carried on by Western Alliance on Libya and also to recognize the honour, dignity, and the free will of the people of the Libyan Jamahiriya to decide their future course of action by themselves. Minister Prof G.L. Peiris told parliament yesterday that the air attacks on Libya by US led forces is unacceptable and more..

Mar 24 (Island) He was little known when he took over as the Head Coach of Sri Lanka in 2007 and after four years in the job still remains low profile, but Trevor Bayliss’ record as country’s cricket coach is as good as anyone barring Dav Whatmore. He has a chance to match Whatmore, country’s World Cup winning coach in his last assignment with the team. Bayliss is in the final few days of the job as he will be vacating the Sri Lankan position to take over as the coach of Australian state more..

Mar 24 (Island) Gonapinuwela Divisional Secretariat area in the Ambalangoda electorate, has 19 Grama Niladari divisions but eight of them are without Grama Niladaries. Thilakagama, Beratuduwa, Eriyagohamulla, Hikkaduwa East, Aluthwela, Banwalgodalla, Kaluwahagaha Colony and Karuwalabedda divisions have no GNs. These vacancies have been created by transfers and retirements but no action has been taken to fill the vacant posts causing difficulties to the general public, more..

Mar 24 (Island) Many animals at the National Zoological Gardens in Dehiwela have been isolated for a number of years and most of them are now under severe stress, according to researchers. "If this trend continues we could lose most of these precious animals," a zoo worker said, "we have informed higher officials of the danger but nothing has been done so far." The Dehiwela Zoo celebrates the 75th anniversary on July 4. more..

Mar 24 (DM) Investigations are being conducted into the alleged abduction of three Lankan fishermen by Indian fishermen off Velladithurai some ten nautical miles from the Indo-Sri Lanka Maritime Boundary, the Fisheries Ministry said yesterday. A spokesman said several Northern fisheries societies had informed the ministry of what had happened to the three fishermen -- Nadarajasundaram Senthuran (24), Paramaraja Suntharan Kesavaruban (21) and Pathmanathan Pathmaraj (22) more..

Mar 24 (NS) If 9/11 twin tower bomb attack made an indelible mark in the history of United States of America, to Japan it was the 11/3, nuclear plant blast, that made an ineffaceable dent in her history, next only to the 1945 Hiroshima and Nagasaki atom bomb incidents. The 11/3 nuke blast following a massive 9.0 earthquake and subsequent tsunami has forced Japan, one of the leading countries in the world to eat humble pie, after it was revealed that the nuclear power stations were designed only more..

Mar 24 (Island) Sri Lanka Cricket has shortlisted five names out of the nine applicants to fill the position of national coach after current coach Trevor Bayliss’ tenure ends with the ICC Cricket World Cup. At a meeting held at Sri Lanka Cricket headquarters on Monday involving members of the cricket interim committee and national selection committee the names of Australians John Buchanan, Tom Moody and Stuart Law alongside Englishmen Trevor Penny and more..

Mar 24 (DM) UNP MP Dayasiri Jayasekara yesterday told parliament that Environment Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa had issued sand permits to his supporters. Mr. Jayasekara said when issuing these permits the minister had purposely ignored those who did not support him at the last election. He made these remarks when Mr. Yapa kept interrupting Mr. Jayasekera in parliament. “I know you have given sand mining permits to your supporters and ignored those who did not support you,” more..

Mar 24 (DM) The UNP told parliament yesterday that the government was planning to privatize two tile factories on the pretext of restructuring them. UNP front-liner Dayasiri Jayasekara alleged that the groundwork had been done to sell the two factories despite government rhetoric that state ventures would not be privatized. “The government is using different words. It is calling the move ‘restructuring state ventures’. Whatever the words are, it is nothing but privatization,” he said. more..

Mar 24 (AP) Rights legislation and pressure from U.S. lawmakers for a war crimes probe complicate efforts to bring more American investment to Sri Lanka after its civil war, the country's ambassador said Wednesday. The United States is already the top foreign investor and destination for Sri Lankan exports, but Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya said that Chinese companies with state-backed financing are now leading in major infrastructure more..

Mar 24 (Island) Former England Test captain Sir Ian Botham will join Sri Lankan cricket greats Muttiah Muralitharan, Chaminda Vaas and Kumar Sangakkara in launching a community initiative in the heart of Northern Sri Lanka. The project, created by the Sri Lankan based Foundation of Goodness charity and supported by the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, aims to build a new sports complex near Mankulum which will allow sport to be used to help regenerate the communities more..

Mar 24 (NN) A legal framework is to be prepared to ensure the quality and accreditation of institutions providing higher education and also to register and regulate Non- State Higher Educational Institutions, the government information department said. According to the government information department Cabinet approval has been granted to prepare the legal framework following a proposal submitted by the Minister of Higher Education S.B. Dissanayake. more..

Mar 24 (NN) Norwegian Minister of International Development and former special peace envoy Erik Solheim has met representatives of the Tamil diaspora in Oslo, Norway News reported today. The meeting was held last Friday and was organized at the request of some Tamil groups in order to be briefed about Norway’s policy on Sri Lanka and also to present their views on the current situation in the country. more..

Mar 24 (Island) The forthcoming elephant census will help establish the actual number of wild elephants in country, experts say. Some researches claim there are 4,500 wild elephants, while others say there are nearly 7,000. Wildlife Department officials and representatives of the armed forces will come together on March 24 at a workshop in Girithale to decide on the methodology to be used in the first official census of wild elephants in August. more..

Mar 24 (Island) The Sri Lanka Navy says the presence of a large group of Indian Catholics at the annual feast of St. Anthony’s Church in Kachchativu had debunked allegations of systematic targeting of the Tamil Nadu fishing community by the SLN. SLN spokesman Commander Kosala Warnakulasuriya said that in spite of a relentless propaganda campaign against the SLN, 2,460 Indian nationals arrived at Kachchativu over the weekend. more..