Mar 19 (ST) During the second term of the Rajapaksa Presidency when the nation witnessed racial violence erupt on the streets and the call arose from many quarters demanding the then govt to ban Facebook forthwith, President Mahinda Rajapaksa nonchalantly shrugged it off and bluntly refused to do so. He had a good reason. In a move that won him applause and covered him with a thousand lotus petals from thankful Facebook fans who had dreaded the prospect of their daily more..

Mar 19 (Island) The PM is facing two motions of no-confidence, not just the one. One is formal the other informal but no less real. Each one deals with one of the two aspects that go to constitute the PM’s public life. The two motions of no-confidence, the first de jure and the second de facto, are the motion that will manifest itself in Parliament, and the other, the mounting and increasingly public dissent within the UNP, which is rising up from below. The no-confidence motion pertains to Mr. Wickremesinghe’s conduct in Govt. more..

Mar 19 (CI) When Dinesh Karthik came to the crease, India required 34 off 12 balls. Mustafizur Rahman had just delivered perhaps the over of the tournament. A profoundly deflated Vijay Shankar was batting at the other end. What unravelled was a scarcely believable finish that saw Bangladesh fritter away their chance at the title, and Karthik - phenomenally cool at the crease - seized ruthlessly on their string of mistakes. more..

Mar 19 (Island) Medical specialties evolve for the benefit of patients. It resolves the demand and enhances clinical effectiveness. We are duty bound to support this evolutionand create specialist services to serve the need. Quality healthcare is based on this concept and it is patient-centred, not provider centric. Accordingly, doctor training pathways need modification with relevant competencies to produce specialists with matching new skills. Such doctors are traditionally more..

Mar 19 (EN) Colombo Port expect to handle 7.0 million containers in 2018, up 12.9% from the 6.2 million twenty foot equivalent units handled in 2017 with joint marketing by three terminals, ports minister Mahinda Samarasinghe has said. Jaya Container Terminal of the state-run Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA), South Asia Gateway Terminal of the publicly traded John Keells Holdings and Colombo Int'l Container Terminal of China's CM Port group has inked a deal to jointly promote the port. more..

Mar 19 (AD) Principal of Tamil girls’ school who was allegedly made to kneel down by Former Uva Province Chief Minister said that she has received death threats. Uva Province CM Chamara Sampath Dassanayake was accused of making the female Principal kneel before him over the non-admission of a student recommended by him. In response several trade unions and educators came forward to state that all principals more..

Mar 19 (DN) Sri Lanka reigned supreme to entered final qualifying round as regional leaders when they beat Singapore 2-0 in the ITF Junior Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Pre-qualifying final tie concluded at the Sri Lnaka Tennis Association courts on Saturday. Lankan Junior Fed Cup team maintained an immaculate record in the tournament and won all their Pre-qualifiying ties. The final qualifying round will be worked off in Thailand. Anjalika Kurera won the first singles rubber beating her more..

Mar 19 (CT) Sprinter Rumeshika Rathnayake dazzled the track clocking her personal best in the 100m and seasonal best in the 200m as she finished with two podium places at the Sydney Grand Prix yesterday. Rumeshika who trains in Sydney ahead of the Commonwealth Games clocked 11.51 seconds finishing third behind British Olympic bronze and World Championship silver medallist Dina Asher-Smith (11.24 seconds) and Australian teen sprinting sensation Riley Day (11.50 s). more..

Mar 19 (Island) Front Line Socialist Party’s women’s wing Free Women found fault with the govt for not taking care of the welfare and security of Sri Lankan migrant female workers toiling in West Asian countries. National Organiser of the Free Women Hemamali Abeyratne said: "Our women go to West Asian countries because they cannot find employment here. They send home their hard-earned money. more..

Mar 19 (DN) Nalanda College, Colombo won the 44th annual ‘Battle of Maroons’ lmited overs cricket encounter beting their arch rivals Ananda College, Colombo for the second consecutive year by five wickets at the SSC grounds yesterday. Nalanda won the toss and decided to field and restricted their opponents to 244 runs in 49.1 overs. Skipper Asel Sigera scored 87 runs and deputy skipper Lahiru Hiranya scored 38. Dushan Hettige and Kavindu Gimhana scored 33 & 31 respectively. more..

Mar 19 (SO) President of the Sri Lanka Schools Cricket Association (SLSCA), Oshara Panditharathna, who is also the Principal of Dharmapala Vidyalaya, Pannipitiya, said the Observer-Mobitel Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year contest has rendered a yeoman service from the days when there had not been an official inter-school Under-19 cricket tournament. “We have commenced our own tournaments subsequently and an awards ceremony sponsored by Singer. more..

Mar 19 (CT) The Cabinet Paper to lift the Glyphosate ban on tea and the entire agricultural industry will be submitted by Tuesday this week, according to Minister Navin Dissanayake. National Economic Council, chaired by President Maithripala Sirisena has removed the Glyphosate ban on tea. It is also understood that Duminda Dissanayake, Minister of Agriculture, will submit a Cabinet Paper to lift the ban in its entirety. more..

Mar 19 (Island) Inter governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)’s report on Climate Change 2014: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability says; "Climate change without adaptation could potentially affect the farm livelihood and all aspects of food security including food access, utilization, and price stability." This is arguably the best way to summarize the impacts of recent climatic situation in Sri Lanka. Climate change threatens agricultural production, makes those who are dependent more..

Mar 19 (EN) Asian Development Bank (ADB) has advised the SL govt to improve the way it allocates and disburses funds for projects supported by the lender. The govt’s increased reliance on external borrowing could lead to insufficiency of budget allocations for project expenditure, affecting the disbursement ratio and delaying project implementation, the ADB said. It suggested the project teams discuss with govt a more efficient way of allocating and disbursing funds. more..

Mar 19 (Island) The JVP would not to sign the no-confidence motion to be moved by the Joint Opposition (JO) against PM Ranil Wickremesinghe, JVP sources said yesterday. JVP sources, however, said they would support the motion if it cited as one of the reasons for trying to oust the PM the delay on his part to take action against those behind large scale irregularities during the Mahinda Rajapaksa administration. more..

Mar 19 (DN) The Sri Lanka Print 2018, a biennial event held over a period of three days organized by the SL Association of Printers concluded at the Sri Lanka Exhibition and Convention Centre (SLECC) Colombo last week. The event saw important suppliers, buyers and enthusiastic of the printing industry meeting to explore new frontiers of the profession. The event also brought local printing fraternity to common platform to showcase themselves to their clientele and the world. more..

Mar 19 (FT) The latest nationwide poll conducted by research firm Kantar TNS for business magazine LMD reveals that a majority of respondents (52%) feel the generation gap does not impact business – they believe that anyone can do business. However, slightly over a third of those consulted hold an opposing view, citing reasons such as success can be achieved as individuals gain experience over the years and not everyone of different ages can do business. more..

Mar 19 (DM) The political parties have, by and large, agreed to revert to the old Proportional Representation system for conducting the elections to the provincial councils, Minister Rauff Hakeem said. The govt has already enacted legislation to conduct the elections to the provincial councils under a mix of the First Past the Post and Proportional Representation systems. Minister said that the complications arose from the same more..

Mar 19 (DN) SL industrial sector’s burning issues are not being addressed by the government and this has resulted in several industries shutting down and the owners taking to trading said, Chairman Achieve Awards, Steering Committee, Kevin Edwards. Speaking at the launch of the 17th CNCI achiever awards, he said high taxes, escalating labour costs and other issues are pushing the production costs of businesses. “In addition several Indian companies are exploiting a lapse in the clause 16 more..

Mar 19 (ST) Heeding to the directive issued last week by President Maithripala Sirisena, his Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) Chairman-brother P.G. Kumarasinghe Sirisena has assured the employees that he will take necessary action against officials involved in corrupt practices. He has informed that this action against corrupt officials will be taken after receiving the report of the special three member committee headed by retired Appeal Court Judge, N. Sunil Rajapaksha. more..

Mar 19 (DN) Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) has sought assistance from the Police and the Military to nab those who dump garbage haphazardly at public places. “Legal action will be taken against those who engage in illegal garbage dumping while violating waste management regulations imposed by the CMC, Colombo Municipal Council Acting Municipal Commissioner Lalith Wickremeratne said. more..

Mar 19 (Hindu) The Congress accused PM Narendra Modi of exercising a personalised foreign policy which eroded India’s int'l credibility. Party president Rahul Gandhi, in his speech at the Congress plenary session, underlined the growing Chinese presence in India’s neighbourhood and made a specific mention of the Doklam plateau near Bhutan where China has built military infrastructure. “China is present everywhere. China is in Doklam, in Nepal, SL, Maldives and Myanmar,” more..

Mar 19 (Hindu) Thirty years ago, as part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF), they found themselves in the thick of action over the conflict between SL govt and LTTE. In February, a team of nine retired officers from the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force, some with their wives, returned to the island nation. The officers, all from 37th course of the National Defence Academy in Khadakwasla, had been posted in SL over 1987-89, when IPKF was tasked with maintaining peace there. more..

Mar 19 (FT) Minister Kabir Hashim said the BMW car, which ended up in a canal at Thalawathugoda early Saturday morning after crashing into two other cars, was driven by one of his relatives. Minister said he noted the media reports on the crash published on some websites and one of the vehicles which was involved in the crash was driven by his relative. However, Minister stressed that his relative was not a member of his staff nor more..

Mar 19 (Island) Minister Champika Ranwaka, said that no room should be left for communal violence and even force had to be used, if the need arose, to remove the scourge. He met the press after calling on the Most Venerable Mahanayake of Mawlatte Tibbatuwawe Sri Siddhartha Sumangala Thera. Communal violence was curse which had caused loss of life and property and also tarnished the image of the country internationally, Minister Ranawake said. more..

Mar 19 (CT) Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa says that the Joint Opposition will hand over a Motion of No -Confidence against PM Ranil Wickremesinghe to Speaker Karu Jayasuriya this week. Rajapaksa said last evening that there was much enthusiasm among MPs to sign the Motion. He said efforts to have more MPs sign the document are underway since the collection of signatures began last Friday. Although the JO is leading the efforts to bring the Motion of No-Confidence, more..

Mar 19 (FT) Public Enterprise Development Ministry is on the lookout for an investment partner to manage SriLankan Airlines as its restructuring consultant is set to present a crucial report on 21 March. Denying reports that the Govt had abandoned plans for a public-private partnership (PPP), Minister Lakshman Kiriella said that the search for an investor was still on. Govt has been trying unsuccessfully to offload debt-ridden more..

Mar 19 (DM) We all wish to be happy but sadly many of us are not aware of how we could be happy. Most of the people most of the time are saddened by the delusion they could be happy by indulging in luxuries or extravagance or by seeking personal gain, satisfaction or glory. But the liberation spirituality of all major religions tells us that what will make us happy is the gradual, inner liberation from selfishness, self-centredness, greed and related vices. more..

Mar 19 (DM) The near hysterical response to the local election results, by parliamentarians and the media alike, demonstrated an unfortunate lack of understanding of the Constitution of our country. This was evident especially regarding the powers of the President. The office of President today is not that which was established by President Jayewardene in 1978. Nor are the powers of that office the same or even similar. 19th Amendment [19A] stripped the Presidency of nearly all more..

Mar 19 (ST) The power to impose a surcharge to recover losses caused due to fraud, negligence, misappropriation, or corruption from officials has been vested with the Chief Accounting Officer (CAO) — Ministry Secretaries or other officials of the relevant govt institution — in the final version of the National Audit Bill. CAO of a Govt institution varies depending on the nature of each institute. While in a Govt Ministry it can be more..

Mar 19 (Roar) On 6 March 2018, Sri Lanka imposed a state of emergency to help quell racial riots that had broken out in the hill capital of Kandy. The state of emergency allows the President to use extraordinary powers under the Public Security Ordinance, in the interest of public security and the preservation of public order. This is not the first time SL promulgated emergency laws to quell racial riots since it was granted dominion status more..

Mar 19 (CT) Muslims of Sri Lanka, since ancient times, have been in peaceful coexistence with the other communities on the Island and have proved to be an integral and inseparable component of Sri Lankan society. According to ancient chronicles, traders from countries like Rome, Greece, Persia (Iran), China, India and so on visited Sri Lanka on trade missions. Arab merchants have maintained friendly relationship with natives, more..

Mar 19 (DN) Muslims in Sri Lanka will not leave room for operation of extremist organisations as our Muslims have always been living in unity and harmony with the Sinhalese and other communities although such organisations infiltrate various countries to spawn terrorism by distorting the minds of Muslim inhabitants, Minister Faiszer Musthapha said. He called on the Most. Ven. Tibbotuwawe Sri Siddhartha Sumangala more..

Mar 19 (SL) The United States has terminated the anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations on imports of rubber products from Sri Lanka, Ministry of Industry and Commerce said. Ministry said that the decision to terminate anti-dumping and countervailing duty investigations on imports of rubber products from Sri Lanka was taken at a vote held at the International Trade Commission (ITC) in the US. more..

Mar 19 (FT) President Maithripala Sirisena said the people’s representatives should set an example through their conduct to create a political culture of a high standard. President said this during a meeting yesterday at the President’s House in Colombo with the SLFP and UPFA members who were victorious at last month’s Local Govt Elections. President told the new councillors that they should contribute to more..

Mar 19 (DN) An open warrant for the arrest of former CB Governor Arjun Mahendran had been issued because the Courts of Justice are fully independent today, Minister Navin Dissanyake said. He was speaking to the media after presiding over a workshop on quality upgrading attended by high officials of palntation companies. He said they firmly subscribed to view that a person found guilty by a PCoI should be brought before courts. more..

Mar 19 (CT) The Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE) and the Centre for Human Rights (CHR) have alleged that the Govt was trying to control Civil Society Organizations in a dictatorial manner. “Govt is attempting to suppress civil society organizations on the pretext of amending the Voluntary Social Service Organizations Act,” Executive Director of both CaFFE and CHR, Rajith Keerthi Tennakoon said. more..

Mar 19 (CT) The reshuffle of SLFP Ministers in the Cabinet will depend on the outcome of the No-Confidence Motion (NCM) against PM Ranil Wickremesinghe, UPFA General Secretary and Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said yesterday. He said that if the No-Confidence Motion against PM Ranil Wickremesinghe is passed in Parliament by a simple majority, then the issue of the reshuffling the SLFP Ministers would not arise as the entire more..

Mar 19 (AD) The Colombo Magistrate’s Court today ordered the arrest MPs Wimal Weerawansa and Jayantha Samaraweera and to produce the before the court immediately. Colombo Chief Magistrate Lal Ranasinghe Bandara issued the order due to their failure to appear before the court for a case. Cinnamon Garden Police filed a case against 7 individuals including the two MPs for obstructing traffic and causing inconvenience more..

Mar 19 (CT) The Bangladeshi cricketers celebrated their entry to the final show down with India in the Nidahas Trophy cricket tournament by performing a snake dance at the R. Premadasa Stadium last Friday. The semifinal encounter between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh to face India in the finals was a thriller where a large number of Sri Lankan and Bangladeshi fans enjoyed every second of the match cheering for their teams. As Bangladesh remains a safe haven for Bengali Tigers more..