Jan 22 (CT) Environmentalists have voiced concern over the sudden removal of Director General (DG) of the National Zoological Gardens, Dehiwala, Dammika Malsinghe and the appointment of Telshan Media Network Directress, Ishini Wickremesinghe as DG. Based on a Cabinet paper, Malsinghe was removed and Wickremesinghe appointed. Zoo officials said, "Wickremesinghe has no experience in wild animals more..

Jan 22 (FT) A Supplementary Allocation of a total of Rs. 21,708 million was presented to Parliament yesterday, seeking House approval for the expenses incurred in the month of November to provision 73 different programs and purposes. Using the Supplementary Allocation, the Govt has also sought House approval for the additional allocation of Rs. 330 million additional allocation provided to meet the increased cost of fuel, more..

Jan 22 (CT) Withholding tax (WHT) on interest payers will be relieved of WHT, but will be subject to assessable income tax payable from 1 April, the Finance Ministry said. Among some of the other tax changes to be effected by bringing in amendments to the Inland Revenue Act are that effective from 1 Jan to 31 March, all WHT on interest payers, whose interest income of less than Rs 250,000 per mensem will not be subject to WHT, more..

Jan 22 (EN) Disasters are annually costing Sri Lanka 50 billion rupees, or around 0.4% of GDP in damages, which requires preventive measures to reduce climate risks, the World Bank said in a report. “On average, SL experiences LKR 50 billion (US$313 million) in annual disaster losses related to housing, infrastructure, agriculture, and relief,” report titled Contingent Liabilities from Natural Disasters: Sri Lanka said. more..

Jan 22 (AD) The Gazette Extraordinary has been issued calling upon the armed forces to maintain public order across the country with effect from today (22). President Gotabaya Rajapaksa issued the gazette notification on Monday by virtue of the powers vested in him by Section 12 of the Public Security Ordinance (Chapter 40). Accordingly, the Army, Navy and the Air Force have been called out for more..

Jan 22 (ST) Sri Lanka’s six Ramsar wetland sites – Wilpattu, Bundala, Kumana, Anawilundawa, Vankalei and Madu Ganga — are greatly affected by spreading invasive plants and this has hit migratory birds which cannot find enough fish in the choking waters, the National Audit Office (NAO) has said. Ramsar wetland sites are designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention, an intergovernmental more..

Jan 22 (AD) In light of the recent developments regarding the Coronavirus epidemic in China and other countries, Chief Epidemiologist at the Epidemiology Unit has insisted that there is no need for the public to panic as maximum precautions have been taken to contain the rise of the virus within SL. He has also requested tourists to get themselves checked by qualified medical practitioners if they exhibit the symptoms more..

Jan 22 (EN) With the country allegedly on the verge of an economic crisis, what with massive loan repayments due this year in a climate of uncertainty, Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa and PM Mahinda Rajapaksa have embarked on different administrative paths, the UNP said. UNP MP Hesha Withanage that, with the govt clearly split into two opposing camps resulting in severe economic mismanagement, more..

Jan 22 (FT) A few weeks after being elected as Prez, Gotabaya Rajapaksa publicised the 76 page document under National Policy Framework, Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour, a working document based on his election manifesto. At the inauguration speech of the new Parliament, the Prez informed that his National Policy Framework would be a part of his policy speech. The document under New Approach in National Spatial System under the sub-sector Power and Energy gives more..

Jan 22 (Island) Leader of TELO, MP Selvam Adaikalanathan invited former chief minister of Northern Province, C.V. Wigneswaran to work with the TNA at the upcoming general election. Addressing the media yesterday at Vavuniya, after a central committee meeting of his party, Adaikalanathan said that such an alliance would only strengthen the Tamil cause. "Wigneswaran has created an alliance and we would like him to join us. If we work together it will benefit the Tamils. more..

Jan 22 (DM) The Lanka Self-Employed Professionals' National Three-Wheeler Federation yesterday urged the govt to take immediate action to implement a mechanism to regulate Trishaw fares. Three-Wheeler Federation's President Sunil Jayawardana said their Federation requests all three-wheeler operators' to reduce the fare for the first kilometre by Rs.10 and Rs.5 for the second kilometre from January 1. He said the decision was taken due to recent govt tax reduction. more..

Jan 22 (Island) The TNA would not be able to obtain the amount of seats they expected in the coming general election, former Northern Provincial Councillor, M. K. Sivajilingam said. Addressing journalists in Jaffna, Sivajilingam said that a number of new Tamil political parties were now in a position to challenge the TNA. Those political parties were also now forming alliances with each other. "These political alliances have been established because of the weakness of the TNA," he said. more..

Jan 22 (EN) Co-Govt Spokesman Mahindananda Aluthgamage says that there is no need to appoint a presidential commission as requested by Ranjan Ramanayake to look into all his audio recordings as he can present them to the court when his case is being heard. The state minister although MP Ramanayake said that he is going to table all his recordings in Parliament, he had not done so yesterday. more..

Jan 22 (CT) Losing UNP Leader and Party dictator Ranil Wickremesinghe (70), from Sedawatte dodging Monday's meeting with UNP MP and Speaker of the House Karu Jayasuriya to solve the Party's leadership crisis is an indication that he doesn't want to abdicate the leadership of the Party to its better choice, Opposition Leader and UNP MP Sajith Premadasa (52). This sense of insecurity probably stems from Wickremesinghe's background. It's however, unlikely that this sense of more..

Jan 22 (AD) Veteran tea exporter Rohan Fernando has been appointed as the new chairman of Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT). Fernando has over 40 years of experience in the tea industry and has been involved in developing, promoting and marketing the traditional beverage of tea in many innovative variants over the last several years. Prior to founding his own Company, Heladiv, he has served on the Colombo Tea Traders Association as a member. He functioned as the President of more..

Jan 22 (DM) A female medical student of the Jaffna Uni had been stabbed to death allegedly over a love affair near the Pannai lagoon area in Jaffna this afternoon, the Police said. They said the medical student had died upon her admission to the Jaffna Hospital for treatment. One suspect has been arrested for further questioning. The deceased was identified as 28-year-old Roshini Kanchana who was a 3rd-yr medical student, more..

Jan 22 (DN) Former State Timber Corporation (STC) Chairman Piyadasa Dissanayaka who were sentenced to 12-years’ rigorous imprisonment for soliciting and accepting a bribe have filed for bail pending appeal before the Permanent High Court Trial-at-Bar. This application is to be taken up for inquiry on Feb 17 by the Trial-at-Bar bench. Former STC Chairman Piyadasa Dissanayaka who was found guilty for soliciting a bribe from an Indian investor who wished to acquire a section of more..

Jan 22 (Island) The government had decided to seek Supreme Court approval to increase the size of a class from 35 to 40 students, Minister of Education Dullas Alahapperuma said yesterday. The relevant proposal had been approved by the Cabinet of Ministers, he added. The Supreme Court had earlier ruled that the maximum number of students in a class should be 35. The Minister said the number of students to a class had been restricted to 35 in view of the teacher’s workload. more..

Jan 22 (DM) UNP National List MP Dr. Jayampathi Wickremaratne has resigned from his post as MP with effect from January 20, 2020, Deputy Speaker Ananda Kumarasiri announced today. Secretary-General of Parliament Dhammika Dassanayake submitted the letter sent by Dr. Wickremaratne to notify his resignation. Mr. Wickremaratne, who was a leading constitutional lawyer and was a member of more..

Jan 22 (EN) Ratings agency Fitch has revised the international (IRD) and national outlooks of Bank of Ceylon, National Savings Bank and DFCC Bank Plc to negative from stable following a sovereign outlook cut. Bank of Ceylon’s (BOC) outlook (national) was cut to AA+ (lka) negative while IRD was cut to B negative. National Savings Bank’s (NSB) national rating outlook was cut to AA+ (lka) negative and IRD lowered to B negative, while DFCC’s was lowered to AA- (lka) negative & B negative respectively. more..

Jan 22 (AD) National Transport Medical Institute (NMTI) has introduced a new app that facilitates online booking when it comes to obtaining medical certificates. The launch of this new application will be held tomorrow (21) at the Ministry of Transport Services under the patronage of Minister Mahinda Amaraweera. The latest application is being held at the testing level until Friday this week and the public can use the app from next Monday to getting online bookings for transport medical certificates. more..

Jan 22 (DM) Referring to the prevailing UNP leadership crisis, MP Lakshman Kiriella said they, as politicians, should not chase after positions, but positions should come in search of them, if they had worked properly. He said all leaders of the party including Ranil Wickremesinghe, Sajith Premadasa and Karu Jayasuriya should stand in unity for the sake of the people without giving so much priority to the leadership crisis. more..

Jan 22 (CT) Govt assured consumers that they will receive the complete benefit of the Value Added Tax (VAT) reduction by February with companies agreeing to reduce the tax from 500 other goods. State Minister of Int'l Trade and Consumer Welfare Anura Priyadarshana Yapa said that the companies have only reduced VAT from 2,621 categories out of a total 3,175. "They verbally agreed to reduce VAT from the remaining 500 goods in compliance with Govt regulations," he said. more..

Jan 22 (AD) Officials of Dept of Immigration and Emigration have arrested five foreign nationals over remaining in the country violating immigration emigration laws. Five females from Uzbekistan have been arrested at two tourist hotels in Wellawatte and Bambalapitiya in this manner. Reportedly, the arrestees, aged between 25 to 35 years, had been remaining in the country under tourist visa. The suspects were detained at the Mirihana Detention Center, stated Immigration/Emigration Dept. more..

Jan 22 (EN) The Sectoral Oversight Committee on Women and Gender met Tuesday (21) in parliament to discuss the Hathe Ape Potha, a sex education textbook given to the grade seven students which has aroused much controversy. The discussion involved many experts including health sector professionals, Education and Health Ministry representatives and the Buddhist clergy and opinions in favour of the book and more..

Jan 22 (NR) Civil society activist Saman Rathnapriya has been nominated to the UNP National List post that fell vacant following the resignation of Dr. Jayampathy Wickramaratne. General Secretary of the UNP Parliamentarian Akila Viraj Kariyawasam said the proposed name will be sent to the National Election Commission tomorrow. UNP MP Jayampathy Wickramaratne today announced that his letter of resignation as a MP has been sent to the Speaker. more..

Jan 22 (LBO) Sri Lanka’s democracy as measured by the Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index has been slightly improved to 6.27 (overall score on a 0-10 scale) in 2019 against 6.19 reported in the previous year. According to their latest report, SL’s global rank is 69 with a regional rank of 13 that takes into account the countries in Asia and Australasia. However, the country’s democracy index reported an overall score of 6.48 in 2016 and 2017. In 2019, the country scored 7.00 from more..

Jan 22 (AD) It has been revealed that former Western Province Governor Azath Salley had made contradictory statements on the Easter Sunday terror attacks to the PSC and PCoI investigation of the attacks. Salley yesterday arrived at the PCoI investigating the Easter Sunday terror attacks to testify on the attacks. Commission inquired former Governor of the statement he made before the PSC on the matter. more..

Jan 22 (Island) Neither the Central Environment Authority (CEA) nor Department of Customs is aware of plastic waste sent to Malaysia. CEA Director General Hematha Jayasinghe said that they were conducting investigations. On Monday, Malaysia announced that it had sent back 150 containers of plastic waste to several countries, including Sri Lanka, since the third quarter of last year. An AFP dispatch from Butterworth, Penanag said: Malaysia had sent back 150 shipping more..

Jan 22 (Xinhua) Sri Lanka earned a record 5.3 billion U.S. dollars from its apparel exports in 2019, showing a 5.1 percent year on year increase, according to the Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF). However, a slight decline in export earnings was recorded in December 2019 due to a slowdown in the key EU and U.S. markets while retail sales in Sri Lanka's largest apparel export market, the UK, remained sluggish because of Brexit, the report seen on Wednesday said. more..

Jan 22 (DM) The incumbent govt is trying to cover up the concerning issues in the country at present and there is no need of making former MP Ranjan Ramanayake a hero, and what he did was not suitable to consider him as such, UNP MP Hesha Withanage said at a media briefing today at the Opposition Leader's office. He said Ranjan's telephone records have shown the people of how the Parliament, Judiciary & Govt officials more..

Jan 23 (CT) Dear Hon. Speaker, You recognized me as the Leader of the Opposition of the SL Parliament in Sept 2015. At that time, for over twenty years, as a MP, I had been occupying the Summit Flats 2D, where I climbed and descended 60-70 steps every time I entered the flat or left the flat. Given my age, I’m well past eighty, this was very inconvenient and difficult but I put up with it. I was given the bungalow for the Leader of the Opposition only in Sept 2017, 2 years after I became Leader of the Opp, more..

Jan 23 (DM) “This is no time to talk of hedges and fields, or the beauties of any country. Sadness and fear and hate, how they well up in the heart and mind!!!” Delving into Alan Paton’s Cry the Beloved Country we certainly do have to cry for our beloved country, the ignominy, the blatant disregard for truth and justice, the dauntless power struggle, the huge sums of money donated for the survivors and next of kin of the victims of 21/4, the truth about 21/4 still a question that more..

(Roar) Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) spreads in three ways: through unprotected sexual intercourse, through blood, and from Mother-To-Child (MTCT). And while advanced HIV, or Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) is not curable, HIV can be controlled, and SL recently scored a big victory by eliminating mother-to-child transmission of the disease. But let’s understand just how important this win is. more..

Jan 23 (CT) Film star turned one shot politician Ranjan Ramanayake has rocked the political, legal and law enforcement establishments with the release of dozens of audio recordings following his arrest, followed by many exposures during his breath-taking address in the Parliament. His outright revelations have posed a major headache not only to the govt in power but a big embarrassment to the UNP leadership, fighting presently for their own political lives. more..

Jan 23 (CT) To comprehend the context of this column, it is necessary to understand what is meant to be conveyed by the word, sheepish. Several dictionaries provide the standard explanations and definitions. For example, sheepish means: Resembling a sheep, affected by or showing embarrassment caused by consciousness of a fault, embarrassed, stupid, meek. Collins dictionary had the precise meaning that was meant to be communicated. It said: more..

Jan 23 (CT) Minister Douglas Devananda, says the EPDP demanded the people to vote for Gotabaya Rajapaksa, and to be partners of the Govt, to seek solutions for their problems. "But people did not listen to us. If they listened to us, we would have found solutions immediately," he said. Q: While many lose Cabinet portfolios, you have received one. What is the reason? A: I have been given a Cabinet portfolio to take the programme of more..

Jan 23 (GV) Killing elephants with shotguns is very inefficient. The clusters of tiny, iron pellets rarely kill such large animals instantly. Instead, pellets lodge in tissue and cartilage, causing wounds that ooze and fester for months before infection, then limited mobility and eventual starvation, kills the great aristocrats of Sri Lanka’s jungles. This long and painful penalty plays out, with the fallen elephant calling a final, heart-wrenching, childlike gulping, cry of distress. more..

Jan 23 (Island) The Senate trial currently underway following the impeachment of US President Donald Trump has taken an interesting turn with the members of the two main political parties clashing. The Democrats, who used their majority in the House of Representatives to impeach Trump, were wary of referring the articles of impeachment to the Senate, where they lack a majority, but finally had to grasp the nettle. It requires a two-thirds majority in the Upper House to convict Trump. more..