Jul 10 (GDI) 126 woman inmates serving long-term or life sentences at the Welikada Prison had been transferred to the new high-tech prison complex constructed in Angunakolapelessa, Commissioner General of Prisons said. Considering the heavy traffic inside Welikada, prison authorities had taken the measure. However, the relatives of the inmates, who were unhappy about the transfer, said that they would face inconveniences such as travel issues when visiting the inmates. more..

Jul 10 (CT) Asian Development Bank officials have informed Minister Navin Dissanayaka that a thorough study had been carried out with officials of the Ministry of Plantation Industries and areas have been identified where ADB funding will be available to develop the tea sector. As far as Regional Plantation Companies were concerned , they will undertake replanting of 2% of the acreage annually. The ADB also intends to fill vacancies in productive tea fields to enhance production. more..

Jul 10 (DM) TNA leader R. Sampanthan asked in Parliament as to how the new political party SLPP could dispense with SLFP founded by the late S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike. Making his remarks during the debate on an adjournment motion, Mr Sampanthan, who is also the Opposition Leader, said the SLFP was sought to be dispensed with. “There is coming into existence a new political party called the Pohottuwa, or the SLPP, more..

Jul 10 (FT) A one-time trial attorney from The Hague’s International Criminal Tribunal (ICC) has been appointed to the helm of SL consumer affairs. “I thank Minister Rishad Bathiudeen for appointing me. I pledge to discharge my duties to the best of my ability, to safeguard and enhance the rights of SL consumers, manufacturers and traders,” said President’s Counsel Anura Meddegoda. He was speaking after his appointment (by Minister Bathiudeen) as the seventh Chairman of CAA more..

Jul 10 (NR) Minister Duminda Dissanayake charges that former President Mahinda Rajapaksa defended the corrupt. Speaking at an event in Anuradhapura the Minister claimed the former President's intent was made clear in a statement he made regarding Former Sri Lanka Ambassador to Russia Udayanga Weerathunga. Minister Dissanayake noted a search operation is underway for Udayanga Weerathunga in connection to the MiG deal adding his accomplice died in Russia and his body was sealed. more..

Jul 10 (Island) Former External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris alleged the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe govt had caused irreparable damage to Sri Lanka’s relations with China and Russia. Prof. Peiris, who is also the Chairman of SLPP said that now Russia had been accused of helping MP Namal Rajapaksa run a special propaganda operation targeting the govt. Prof. Peiris said so at a media briefing more..

Jul 10 (DM) The much-delayed annual reports of the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) and Employees’ Trust Fund (ETF), which have been finalised now, would be released shortly Central Bank Governor Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy said. During a press conference held last week, responding to a media query, whether the release of these annual reports was delayed due to the bond scam, the governor said, “The 2016 annual reports are finalised and they will come out shortly.” more..

Jul 10 (Island) A Colombo Municipal Councillor was shot dead yesterday morning at Sea Street, Colombo by a gunman who had arrived on a motorcycle. Colombo Municipal Councillor Krishna alias Krishnapillai Kirubanandan (40) representing an independent group was at a fruit stall owned by him near the Adiwal Street junction at Sea Street in Pettah when the gunman shot him in the head around 9 am. The killer arrived on a motorcycle and was wearing a white helmet. more..

Jul 10 (EN) While high profile criminal acts and gang violence have grabbed headlines, nation-wide police data show a sharp decline in reported grave crimes in recent years, a trend seemed to have begun since a civil war that claimed thousands of lives ended in 2009. In 2015, 40,188 grave crimes were reported, down from 50,962 in 2014, of which 58% were solved by the year end, with 42% unsolved (being investigated) more..

Jul 10 (DM) During the past few decades, transnational drug companies often operating as an international mafia are known to have indulged in a multitude of operations ranging from the manufacture of non-essential drugs to medical tests. This has led to a worldwide crisis where the private medical practice – once regarded as a vocation – later became a profession and has now become one of the biggest profit-making businesses with private investors throwing their billions into more..

Jul 10 (DM) State Minister Vijayakala Maheswaran has called for the resurrection of the LTTE to give dignity and order to Tamils. “All of you know how our people lived before 2009-05-19. When comparing with today’s situation, it seems the LTTE should be revived. If our children and women are to come home safely, an LTTE administration is again necessary. What this govt has done for the last three years is only returning the lands which were acquired. more..

Jul 10 (ST) Lively and interactive was the session, with the role usually played by politicians being reversed on Wednesday. Usually, while the representatives of the people take to the podium and everyone else listens, that day parliamentarians gave ear intently as a group of eminent professionals, through persuasive arguments supported by solid facts and figures, showed them in which direction Sri Lanka more..

Jul 10 (CT) The Joint Opposition, which now has 71 MPs, with the 16 SLFP members who in May 2018 left Prez Sirisena-PM Wickremesinghe led unity govt joining them, has renewed their call to be identified as a separate independent group in Parliament. The JO, which comprises majority MPs of the UPFA who have pledged their allegiance to former Prez Mahinda Rajapaksa, was fighting for recognition as more..

Jul 10 (DM) Cabinet of Ministers has approved the National Export Strategy (NES)—a five-year strategy aimed at increasing exports and generating enhanced revenue for Sri Lanka’s small and medium enterprises and exporters, a communiqué by the Export Development Board (EDB) said. The EDB, Sri Lanka’s apex body for export promotion, said the implementation of the NES would increase more..

Jul 10 (CT) Speaker Karu Jayasuriya on 6 July informed Parliament that he was yet to receive the report of the Attorney General (AG) over the controversial statement made by MP Vijayakala Maheswaran, that the LTTE should return in order to ensure the freedom of the people of the Northern and Eastern Provinces. Once he received the said report, it would be directed to the Party Leaders’ Meeting and further steps into the incident more..

Jul 10 (FT) The first thing you notice in Kareema Marikar’s personality is her bubbly nature, infectious smile and down-to-earth simplicity. Despite creating history as the first female Muslim mayor in England, she is not yet ready to rest on her laurels, judging by an interview she gave to the BBC recently. “I am a Marakkala woman from Sri Lanka,” Marikar told Saroj Pathirana of the BBC in the interview conducted in a quaint, leafy more..

Jul 10 (PTI) Sri Lanka-born Canadian literary icon Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient has won the special one-off Golden Man Booker Prize to mark the 50th anniversary of the prestigious literary award here. The English Patient is a tale of love and conflict during World War II. The 74-year-old author beat the Man Booker Prize's previous 51 winners including Indian-origin VS Naipaul for his 1971 winner In a Free State; more..

Jul 10 (CT) Govt Officers representing 18 Executive Grades threatened to embark on a continuous strike if a positive response was not shown to their token strike scheduled for tomorrow. The Joint Committee of Executive Officers, which represents Governmental Executive Officers of 18 Services, including agriculture, architecture, ayurveda medicine, education administration, engineering, more..

Jul 10 (AD) Spot fines imposed on 33 traffic offences will be increased from July 15 under the Motor Traffic Act. The Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation has amended the spot fines for the relevant motor traffic offences, said the police. Accordingly, spot fines for 33 motor traffic offences will be increased by 30-50%. The relevant amendment of fines was announced on January 15, by an Extraordinary Gazette notification. more..

Jul 10 (MFA) At the invitation of President Maithripala Sirisena, the PM of Thailand General Prayut Chan-o-cha will undertake an official visit to Sri Lanka on 12 and 13 July 2018. This visit takes place against the backdrop of discussions during President Sirisena’s visit to Thailand in Nov 2015. PM Chan-o-cha will arrive in Sri Lanka in the afternoon of 12 July. On the evening of 12 July, he will be received by President Sirisena at more..

Jul 10 (AD) Deputy Minister J. C Alawathuwala and State Minister Lucky Jayawardena have sworn in as state ministers before the President today. Deputy Minister J. C. Alawathuwala has been appointed as the State Minister of home Affairs while Lucky Jayawardena was appointed as the State Minister of Urban Development and Water Supply. Minister Alwathuwala has been acting as the Deputy Minister of Home Affairs before appointed as more..

Jul 10 (CT) It would seem that we are in the midst of a crime wave as daylight assassinations in crowded places are being reported daily. Yesterday, a Local Govt Council Member was shot dead on busy Sea Street in Colombo. On Sunday two gunmen directed a hail of bullets at a shop on Jampettah Street also in Colombo killing two and seriously injuring two others. These killings come just weeks after the father of cricketer Dhananjaya de Silva, Ranjan de Silva also a newly elected Local Councillor more..

Jul 10 (NR) The seven SL fishermen reported missing over several days while at sea have been found. The group of fishermen were found safe in seas off the Maldives by the Maldivian Navy. The Department of Fisheries said the vessel the seven fishermen are on is returning to SL. The fishermen who set out to sea on the 14th of June did not maintain any contact since the 29th of June. The group of fishermen are between the ages of 26 and 51 and residents of Hikkaduwa, Telwatta more..

Jul 10 (EN) SL’s govt is committed to further opening up the economy and industry must be ready to face competition, not demand protection, State Minister Eran Wickramaratne said. “Your industry too has to face up to the issue of protection versus competition, that prices cannot always be controlled and it has to be competitive” he told the 48th AGM of the SL Shippers’ Council. Foreign participation is a necessity in an integrated and globalised world, Wickramaratne said. more..

Jul 10 (Island) Former General Secretary of UNP Tissa Attanayake said in Kandy over the weekend that the former State Minister Vijayakala Maheswaran’s call for reviving the LTTE was a disgrace and that the authorities should have taken a decision regarding her statement by now. A decision should be taken instead of delaying appropriate action, former UNP General Secretary told the media after calling on the prelate of Asgiriya Most Veneralble Warakagoda Sri more..

Jul 10 (CT) Medical officers of the National Blood Transfusion Services launched trade union action on Monday protesting alleged corruption, administrative irregularities, defamation of professionals and harassment of medical officers by its quasi director, Dr Rukshan Bellana. It was the first time since the Blood Bank was set up in 1950 that this vital and life-saving service has come to a halt, in this instance the case against more..

Jul 10 (FT) Tabs for A/L students and 13 years of education for all are two promises from the 2015 election manifesto of the UNP. Both are game-changer promises, but a promise in a manifesto is only a starting point. Bureaucrats have to expand the ideas as policies and implement. A policy document on 13 years of education was shared widely early this year at an event held at the National Institute of Education. As for the tabs concept we are yet to see a policy document more..

Jul 10 (DN) The country needs extensive programmes to develop the spiritual values of people similarly to conducting development programmes to uplift physical resources, Prez Sirisena said. Prez said to build a society with goodwill, kindness and humanity, all of us should fulfill our duties to make people, who were away from the religious environment, close to the religious places. He made these remarks participating in the ceremony to unveil the cetiya pinnacle of more..

Jul 10 (EN) Cricket commentator Roshan Abeysinghe faced an avalanche of protests online after he called for Hitler-style authoritarian rule to control crime, tweeting that no one appeared to be in charge of law and order. "Looking at the killings in SL, I sometimes wonder who is in charge," he said on Twitter. "SL truly needs a Hitler to put these elements in their places and not the compassionate govt that once we wanted." more..

Jul 10 (AD) President’s former Chief of Staff H.I.K. Mahanama and former Chairman of the State Timber Corporation (STC), P. Dissanayake who were arrested while accepting a bribe of Rs 20 million has been further remanded until 13th July. When the case was taken up today, the attorney representing the defendants mentioned that they will be applying for a new bail plea. Colombo Chief Magistrate Ranga Dissanayake responded that since he had already rejected bail, more..

Jul 10 (DM) Supreme Court yesterday granted Leave to Proceed with the Fundamental Rights petition challenging the Excise Notification imposing a restriction on female employees in liquor industry as discriminating against them. The bench comprised Chief Justice Priyasath Dep, Justices Buwaneka Aluvihara and Vijith Malalgoda. The matter is fixed for hearing on February 6 next year. Women’s rights groups and activists are up in arms lamenting that the impugned notification is more..

Jul 10 (NR) Minister of Wildlife and Sustainable Development Field Marshall Sarath Fonseka says the Ministry of Law & Order will be provided maximum support to quell the underworld. Minister said he is prepared to support any action which does not take the law into its own hands and acts in good faith. He said the Police must act with justifiable intent adding he was aware of incidents in his own area where Police have taken people more..

Jul 10 (Island) An attempt had been made to reach a negotiated settlement with an Indian woman who had complained that the SriLankan Resident Manager in India had harassed her, Secretary of SriLankan Airilines Dalreen Thirukumar told the PCoI probing irregularities at SriLankan Airlines, SriLankan Catering and Mihin Lanka. In answer to a question she said she had been to India to negotiate with the Indian woman in 2014. She said a case had been filed in a New Delhi court. more..

Jul 10 (HT) India will adopt a broad, three-pronged approach to deal with China’s increasing engagement in the South Asian and Indian Ocean neighbourhood — track Beijing’s activities carefully; pursue its own projects and commitments; and educate and advise neighbours on the consequences of engaging with China. External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj laid out this approach at a meeting with top diplomats posted in the neighbourhood last Tuesday more..

Jul 10 (CI) Rangana Herath may retire from international cricket in November, following the three-match Test series against England. Provided he plays every Sri Lanka Test until then, he will finish five Tests short of 100. Herath had earlier retired from the shorter formats in order to lengthen his Test career, but now, aged 40, he believed it was time to consider stepping away from all formats. "Maybe my final series will be more..

Jul 10 (EN) Sri Lanka has a billion dollars worth of approved hotels under construction and another US$ 200 million of projects which are yet to start building, the island's tourism authority said. Between Nov 2010 and March 2018, the SL Tourism Development Authority had approved US$ 2.9 billion of hotels. About 1.65 billion worth of hotels, with 8,932 rooms are already in operation. The billion dollars of projects under construction will add another 7,261 rooms. more..

Jul 10 (AD) Trial against MP Namal Rajapaksa and six others over the alleged purchase of stocks using misappropriated money has been postponed until July 31, on the orders of the Colombo High Court. The case was slated to be taken up before the HC Judge Sampath Abeykoon, today. As the prosecution informed the court of the absentia of a witness due to health reasons, the case was postponed to July 31, and the Magistrate ordered the prosecution’s witness to appear at more..

Jul 10 (EN) SL Tuesday arrested a Buddhist monk who allegedly strangled a police officer investigating a paedophilia charge against him at a temple in the Ratnapura district. 53-year-old unarmed police Sergeant was killed by the 37-year-old monk who resisted arrest at Gallanda temple, was identified as Konwellay Dhammasara. He had evaded court summons to answer allegations of child sexual abuse, more..

Jul 10 (AD) Attorney General has instructed the IGP to conduct investigations into the statement made by former State Minister VIjayakala Maheswaran regarding the LTTE. Speaking during a state event held in Jaffna on July 2, she had said that the LTTE should be resurrected for the freedom of the Tamil people. If Tamil people want to live freely, the LTTE should raise their hand again, she had reportedly said. Several parties including sections of the UNP had demanded action against Maheswaran. more..