Apr 6 (TOI) The M S University (MSU) has been approached by the National Museum at New Delhi requesting it to loan the Buddha’s Relics in possession of the department of archaeology of the university. The museum has stated that the relics will be taken to Sri Lanka for Buddha Poornima. The letter sent to the university by the National Museum director general states that the Govt of Sri Lanka had sought that the relics should be sent to Sri Lanka and be kept there for a few days. more..

Apr 6 (CT) The JO Parliamentary Group, following the defeat of the No-Confidence Motion moved by them against PM, yesterday told the media that they would formally request Speaker Karu Jayasuriya to hand over the Opposition Leader post to the JO in the near future. JO Group Leader Dinesh Gunawardena said that the current Parliamentary composition does not portray true public representation. “It is only the JO that speaks against the Govt in Parliament. more..

Apr 6 (FT) A Supplementary Allocation seeking House approval for Rs.7 billion was tabled yesterday less than 24 hours after PM Ranil Wickremesinghe won the no-confidence motion. Some of the items in the Supplementary Allocation, including a sum of Rs.100 million, have been provided as an additional allocation to settle the outstanding bills of flood and drought relief in 2017, Rs. 1,450 million to provide further relief to more..

Apr 6 (CT) A six-member European Union (EU) Parliamentary group met Opposition Leader R. Sampanthan at his office in Parliament yesterday. He, briefing the delegation on the present political situation in the country and pointed out that compared to the previous regime, the present regime was conducive to minorities. However, Sampanthan, urging the support of the Int'l Community from the delegation, mentioned that the present regime has to go a long way to fulfil more..

Apr 6 (AD) A woman has been arrested by the Police Fraud Investigation Bureau for aiding and abetting in the defrauding of over Rs 100 million from several individuals in an investment scam by using forged documents baring the name and insignia of a leading insurance company in the country. Iranganie Fernando, 60, had helped dupe unsuspecting victims by promising to deliver extraordinarily high returns on investment. Cases have been filed against her with the special more..

Apr 6 (FT) The new Board of Directors of SriLankan Airlines yesterday declared that making the national carrier profitable was a difficult and challenging task but not achievable. The national airline is estimated to have suffered a $ 105 million loss (over Rs. 16 billion) in the just-concluded financial year ending 31 March 2018 and is saddled with $ 750 million in liabilities. The forecast loss for FY2019 is around $ 130-$ 160 million. more..

Apr 6 (EN) Cabinet of ministers had given approval for legal changes to make the country's central bank independent ahead of the country moving into a modified inflation targeting regime, govt said. Central bank was built under US advice in 1951 to move the country in to a now-collapsed Bretton Woods dollar soft-peg system, and helped bring high inflation, draconian exchange controls, economic collapse and political instability which comes with high inflation and currency collapse. more..

Apr 6 (Island) Leader of the UNP and PM Ranil Wickremesinghe, having defeated the No Confidence Motion (NCM) brought against him by the SLPP, yesterday urged party members to prepare for national elections. Hosting a breakfast reception at Sirikotha, Wickremesinghe thanked the UNP Ministers and parliamentarians who had rallied around him to defeat the NCM, which he described as an attempt not just to oust him, but the first step in trying to topple the National Unity Govt more..

Apr 6 (Island) The SLFP yesterday claimed that it had unanimously decided to abstain at the voting on the No Confidence Motion (NCM) against PM Ranil Wickremesinghe on Wednesday following its failure to persuade him to quit. The SLFP alleged that a section of its parliamentary group in the UNP-led govt, in contravention of a collective decision taken at a meeting chaired by President Sirisena, more..

Apr 6 (FT) The Ministry of National Integration and Reconciliation, under the direction of His Excellency the President as the Minister of National Integration and Reconciliation, has initiated livelihood development programs to support the conflict-affected community, which covers internally displaced persons, refugee returnees, women headed families, rehabilitated ex-combatants, families of missing persons, and low income families. Under this initiative, Tholakatti Nelli more..

Apr 6 (CT) There were 40,000 Sri Lankan graduates, reading either for a Doctor of Philosophy or Master’s degree in the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries in 2015, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in a report released last month said. The ADB further said that of SL’s total remittances inflows of US$ 7.3 billion in 2016, Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries accounted for 50.6% of those inflows, followed by OECD (38.5%) & others (8.5%), more..

Apr 6 (CT) The SLFP MPs, holding ministerial positions in the Govt, who voted in favour of the No-Confidence Motion against PM on Wednesday, have told Prez Sirisena, they are willing to give up their portfolios. When the Motion against the PM was taken up in Parliament, some SLFP members, who are now part of the Unity Govt, voted for it while a sizeable number of their colleagues were absent from the House. more..

Apr 6 (DM) The union of the two major parties or rather coalitions led by the two major parties that have ruled the country since Independence was a first when it happened in Jan 2015. It was strange and few would have expected a smooth relationship. Many welcomed it and even hoped it would put an end to the endless, meaningless and counter-productive bickering between two parties, which were ideologically not really at odds with one another. It was a new experiment and more..

Apr 6 (DM) The messy situation arisen in many Local Govt bodies after the Feb 10 elections for them had so far been eclipsed by the No-Confidence Motion (NCM) presented by the JO against PM. The way the Local Council members acted during the election of chairmen and deputy chairmen of their respective councils has created more problems than solving existing ones. This proves that the new electoral system under which the Feb 10 elections were held is a historic blunder. more..

Apr 6 (DM) Dr. Chandima Wijegunawardena is a visiting lecturer at the Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh. She was a student of Anula Vidyalaya, Colombo and did her higher studies as a medical student in Manipal, Malaysia. She then moved to Saudi Arabia where she began her career as a lecturer in the Abdulrahman University where she also completed her PhD on General Medicine. more..

Apr 6 (DM) Global Sri Lanka Forum (GSLF) President Sunil Chandrakumara spoke about the UNHRC process. GSLF is a front organized by Sri Lankans to counter the pro-LTTE propaganda. Q: How do you counter the pro-LTTE propaganda during the process of the UNHRC in Geneva normally? A: Usually LTTE supporters arrive in groups and conduct awareness meetings called side events within the HRC premises. more..

Apr 6 (ST) Nearly two months after the local council polls, confusion reigns over the formation of councils with less than half of 340 being constituted. Here again contrary to democratic principles, losers have also found seats in councils amidst allegations of bribery, corruption intimidation and violence. In several of the councils including Kandy MC members who were defeated at the elections have been named through the list. more..

Apr 6 (DM) Movement for Land and Agriculture Reform (MONLAR) claimed that 21 000 acres of land belonging to the Knuckles Mountain or Dumbara Range had been given to several close associates of some govt ministers in order to carry out various projects and added that immediate steps should be taken to stop these proceedings. These lands which were managed by State Plantations Corporation and Elkaduwa Plantation Ltd more..

Apr 6 (Island) Attack on Sirasa head office soon after the vote on no-confidence motion against PM indicated that the Wickremesinghe govt too was following Rajapaksa style operations against the media. Party leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake said that his party condemned the mob attack on the News 1st Head Office. Soon after the vote on the no-confidence motion, the MTV/MBC Head Office in Braybrook Street in Col 2 more..

Apr 6 (EN) The long-delayed arrest of the head of the military intelligence directorate has led to a breakthrough in solving the Keith Noyahr abduction case which is directly linked to several other attacks, police said. Retired major general Amal Karunasekera was arrested by the CID as he was undergoing treatment at the army hospital, SP Ruwan Gunasekera said. He said Karunasekera, who was the director of military intelligence more..

Apr 6 (PSL) President Maithripala Sirisena advised the Secretary of Health Ministry to submit an urgent report on price and quality of bottles of drinking water. Certain businessmen have been selling bottled water without required quality at a higher price in this dry season and the attention of the President was drown regarding this matter. A special meeting on providing support for the affected people by the dry climate held at more..

Apr 6 (EN) Sri Lanka has assured visiting European Union parliamentarians it would complete reforms to improve human rights and labour standards and prosecute perpetrators of attacks on Moslems to retain duty free access to EU markets under GSP Plus. “The GSP+ is of key importance for Sri Lanka's economy,” delegation of six Members of European Parliament Committee on International Trade (INTA) said. more..

Apr 6 (Island) PM Ranil Wickremesinghe has offered to accommodate PHU leader Udaya Gammanpila, in his new cabinet. Parliamentary sources said that PM had told former President Rajapaksa of his desire to grant a cabinet portfolio to Gammanpila. The premier made the offer when he met former President Rajapaksa at the lobby of parliamentary complex on Wednesday before the vote of no-confidence motion was taken. more..

Apr 6 (AD) President Maithripala Sirisena says that the LG Elections Act should be amended. The President made this statement during a meeting with media institution heads today. President, referring to the alleged corrupt practices at the election of chairpersons of local govt institutions, said that the legislation pertaining to local govt bodies must be amended. He pointed out that the election of over 8,000 members to more..

Apr 6 (CT) PM Ranil Wickremesinghe faced yet another testing time in the form of a No-Confidence Motion (NCM) against him, but managed to establish his power within the Parliament. But the woes are far from over. The UNP, in which he has been the leader since 1994, has been having its own problems with many of its members calling for reforms in the party. In fact, Wickremesinghe has been pressurized to step down from party leadership for a considerable amount of time. more..

Apr 6 (Island) The debate on Judicature (Amendment) Bill scheduled for yesterday was postponed pending amendments in accordance with the inconsistencies pointed out by the Supreme Court. Minister Lakshman Kiriella informed the House that the debate on the Judicature (Amendment) Bill could not be held until necessary amendments were made. Speaker Karu Jayasuriya last Tuesday informed Parliament that the Supreme Court had determined that three Sections of more..

Apr 6 (KT) Sharjah Police have arrested a 47-year-old Sri Lankan maid after suspecting that she had attempted suicide. The woman has been working as a domestic help for an Emirati family for more than 10 years. Police said that the maid tried to get off the moving car in the neighborhood of her sponsor's house after she argued with a Pakistani driver who refused to drop her off in the area. She was rushed to the hospital by the same driver, but the hospital immediately notified the Sharjah Police. more..

Apr 6 (FT) The PM won the vote of no-confidence comfortably brought against him by the JO last night. A total of 78 MPs supported the motion while 122 voted against it. Twenty-six MPs were not present at the time the vote was taken. PM pointed out that the No-Confidence Motion was fought not to protect an individual but to protect the Govt and to protect the victory of the people. Although both the JO and the UNP had claimed that victory was assured for the respective parties, more..

Apr 6 (CT) Necrosis is defined in the clinical terms of the Greeks, as a stage of cellular death, occurring within living tissue, and caused by an act of killing. The abstract notion of truth too is far too often afflicted by this pathology. As far as the 2012 Welikada Magazine Prison massacre/riot is concerned there have been two separate Committees of Inquiry that were established with regard to investigating controversial events more..

Apr 6 (GDI) President Maithripala Sirisena today declared May 7 as the May Day and announced May 7 as a public and mercantile holiday, President's Media Division said. They said the President made this announcement during a meeting held with the Heads of Media institutions at the President's house this morning. The President advised not to have political rallies and processions on May 1 because of Vesak celebrations, they said. more..

Apr 6 (NR) Sri Lankan weightlifter Indika Dissanayake has won the first Silver medal for Sri Lanka in the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, Australia. Indika Dissanayake claimed Silver in the Men’s 69kg weightlifting event after lifting 137 kilograms in the Snatch category and 160 kilograms in the Clean and Jerk category. Accordingly, the Sri Lankan weightlifter lifted a total of 297 kilograms. Gareth Evans of Wales clinched the Gold medal with a total lift of 299 kilograms. more..

Apr 6 (Guardian) Sri Lankan women who take up domestic work in the Middle East to support families devastated by conflict are being targeted by recruitment agents who order them to take contraceptives before leaving. Six recruiters licensed by the Sri Lankan govt said they could provide an employer with a three-month guarantee that a maid would not become pregnant. An agent from Gulf Jobs in Colombo, said: more..

Apr 6 (AD) The Colombo Magistrate Court today re-issued summons on former Secretary to the President P.B. Abeykoon to appear in Court as a witness regarding five corruption cases filed against former Minister Johnston Fernando. Abeykoon was summoned to appear before courts on a previous occasion, however the officials from bribery and corruption informed the court that that they failed to handover summon to former Secretary to the President as he had gone abroad. more..

Apr 6 (PO) COLOMBO is among the most pleasant cities for a tourist to visit, and there are few hotels which can match the majestic Galle Face Hotel on Galle Road. Next door to the hotel is the High Commission of India, and next to that the US Embassy. These days, the closeness of the two compounds to each other mirror the growing partnership between Washington and Delhi, two capitals that have been far apart for much of the past. But the attractions of the hotel is more..

Apr 6 (Roar) Avurudu for most means a fresh start. And fresh clothes. Textiles and fashion have played an important part in defining Sri Lankan culture and national identity, from the elegance and grace of a beautifully embroidered saree, to the functional and fashionable sarong. But what of the fashion trends of 2018? There are four here that cover a broad spectrum of people, ages and lifestyles. Something for everyone, more..

Apr 6 (NR) The former Chairman of Lanka Sathosa Nalin Ruwanjeewa Fernando arrested by the FCID for misappropriating a sum of 39 million rupees in public funds has been remanded until the 09th of April. He was previously arrested at the BIA when he attempted to leave the country. The order was issued by the Fort Magistrate’s Court. The Magistrate also imposed a travel ban on former Minister Mahindanada Aluthgamage in connection to the incident. more..

Apr 6 (DM) President Maithripala Sirisena has reportedly asked the SLFP Ministers and Deputy Ministers who voted for the no-confidence motion not to quit the govt. Minister S.B. Dissanayake said that the President asked all of them to remain in the govt. Those govt members who voted for the motion met the President yesterday morning. Minister John Seneviratne said he, along with others, met the President and expressed their desire to relinquish their ministerial portfolios. more..

Apr 6 (NR) A No-Confidence Motion against the SLFP Ministers, who voted against the PM during Wednesday’s No-Confidence Motion vote, has been handed over to Speaker Karu Jayasuriya. MP Mujibur Rahman said a group of UNP backbenchers handed over the No-Confidence Motion to the Speaker this evening. Earlier today, MP Mujibur Rahman said, the No-Confidence Motion will be presented against all 13 more..

Apr 6 (SL) Sri Lanka on Friday completely ruled out any possibility of having foreign judges in its investigations on war time human rights abuses. President Sirisena told media heads in Colombo that Sri Lanka’s position was clearly communicated to the UNHRC in Geneva last month. Sri Lanka was represented at the Geneva session by Foreign Minister Tilak Marapana and Ministers Dr Sarath Amunugama and Faizer Mustapha. At the UNHRC last month some countries, including Canada more..