Jan 26 (CT) Yesterday, this newspaper published an article titled Get all three Covid jabs which stated, “Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella announced that only those who have taken both Coronavirus vaccine doses and the booster dose would be considered as fully vaccinated”. He said that the “Gazette making the vaccination card mandatory would be issued in the near future.” However, a news item published in an Israeli newspaper, questions the efficacy of 3 vaccine doses more..

Jan 26 (GV) SL can be justly proud of its educated population and high literacy rate due to decades of free education up to university level. Universal access to primary education has been achieved and the enrollment rate for secondary education is 79%, on par with most developed nations. Free education includes free textbooks and school uniforms as well as a network of public schools in towns and villages. Covid-19 has disrupted education for 4.2 million students and 235,000 teachers throughout more..

Jan 26 (Roar) Here is a house that once hosted galas attended by Colombo's elite; where artists mingled with politicians when SL was Ceylon and under colonial occupation. Lakmahal, at number 8A, Alfred House Road, Col 3, has undergone many changes since. The black paint on the doors is replaced with a modern brown varnish. The once polished, red floor is now cool cut cement. Anisha Dias Bandaranaike (27), is founder of more..

Jan 26 (TM) It was reported recently that the CEA was planning to carry out an electronic waste (e-waste) collection programme at around 40 locations in the Western Province this week. Minister Mahinda Amaraweera had told the media that this decision was taken after taking into consideration the damage e-waste causes to the environment and also to the public’s health. While this is a commendable move, this is not the first time the authorities announced such measures. more..

Jan 26 (CT) When ongoing conflicts have severely harmed the social fabric of a society, reconciliation becomes a journey. Creating conditions needed for healing the past wounds entails the restoration of understanding, trust and cohesion among communities, utilising all available local, national and international capacities. Even a simple mis-step could derail that whole journey, compelling everybody to go back to the drawing board. Conflicts are always complicated and can become more..

Jan 26 (Island) The govt would have the public believe it is keen to ensure that there will be one law for everyone, but one wonders whether there is any law in this country at present, for the ruling party politicians, their cronies and bureaucratic lackeys are enjoying unbridled freedom to do as they please. They are now on a witch-hunt against a whistleblower. Former Director of the Consumer Affairs Authority Thushan Gunawardena, who exposed the Sathosa garlic racket, and more..

Jan 26 (Island) Sri Lanka three wheeler or tuk tuk and the Indian auto rickshaw are equally loved and despised, but used very much in both countries. Over here they have spread to every city, hamlet and even village. Needless to fear there will be no transport to hire when one descends from bus or train. There will always be the little bug waiting for a fare. And once in a while such a vehicle is the only negotiable one on rutty, inclined roads. Love and hate? more..

Jan 26 (CT) The international community is keeping a close watch on Sri Lanka as it deals with a dollar crisis and a collapsing economy. However, it has now come to light that the crisis is more manufactured than real, where a mass-scale illegal and unethical operation involving a segment of exporters and importers as well as several private and State banks, which prevents the circulation of dollars through the Central Bank. more..

Jan 26 (FT) SL’s COVID-19 detections rose to 603,654 with 891 persons testing positive for the virus yesterday. The patients detected yesterday include 888 persons from the New Year cluster and three overseas returnees. The previous day, 869 persons from the New Year cluster and eight SL overseas returnees tested positive for COVID-19. 8,383 PCR tests and 5,703 rapid antigen tests were conducted on Monday. COVID-19 detections have remained above 800 for 7 consecutive days. more..

Jan 26 (FT) COVID-19 vaccines were administered to 70,003 persons on Monday and 76.39% of the population has received at least one vaccine dose to date. Second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine has been administered to 64.58% of the population. This is 94.9% of the population over 20 years and 33.9% of the population over 20 years has received the booster dose as well. In total, the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine has been administered to 16,463,502 persons and second dose more..

Jan 26 (Island) The British High Commission yesterday (25) announced funding for projects worth £3.7m in 2022/23 here to thwart instability and conflicts that threaten British interests. The announcement came after the conclusion of the visit of British Foreign Minister, Lord Tariq Ahmad, who is also Minister of State for South Asia, the UN, and the Commonwealth and the PM’s Special Representative on more..

Jan 26 (FT) The Association of International Marketing Graduates in SL (AIMGSL) is scheduled to host the AIMG CEOs’ Breakfast Forum on 2 February at Earls Court, Cinnamon Lakeside Colombo, with the overarching theme and focus of the event to be Setting Sights on EU Markets. The event which is expected to welcome all participants across the board will host the European Union to Sri Lanka and the Maldives Ambassador Denis Chaibi as the keynote speaker, more..

Jan 26 (FT) The Institute of Chartered Accountants in SL (CA) on Monday inducted Sanjaya Bandara as its 26th President. Bandara was formally inducted by outgoing President Manil Jayesinghe in the presence of a distinguished gathering including Indian High Commissioner Gopal Baglay, Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Chairman Vish Govindasamy as well as business and industry leaders, regulatory heads and high-profile accounting personalities. more..

Jan 26 (FT) LOLC Group has got an Urban Development Authority (UDA) contract to Build, Operate and Transfer (BOT) a mixed development project in Rajagiriya via a competitive bidding process. Cabinet of Ministers at its meeting on Monday approved the move to a proposal submitted by the Prime Minister in his capacity as the Minister of Urban Development and Housing. The project company is LOLC Investment Holdings Two Ltd., a subsidiary of LOLC. more..

Jan 26 (Island) Sajith Jayalal, the coach of leading long-distancerunners and marathoners said that lack of support to obtain nutritional needs will continue to hold the progress of marathoners in Sri Lanka. He said this in an interview with The Island after the hosts failed to challenge the Indian supremacy at the Sri Lanka Athletics’ centenary half marathon held on Saturday. Sri Lanka Athletics conducted a half marathon on Saturday to commence its centenary year celebrations. more..

Jan 26 (Island) High-Profile Cricket Advisory Committee has recommended to SLC’s Executive Committee to name former fast bowling great Lasith Malinga as a Consultant Coach of the national cricket team. Malinga’s appointment will be one off with him overseeing the upcoming tour of Australia where the national cricket team will play five T-20 Internationals. Malinga is the most successful bowler in T-20 format more..

Jan 26 (AD) Resuming operations at the Sapugaskanda Oil Refinery will be further delayed, says the Ministry of Energy. The secretary to the ministry, K.D.R. Volga said they however expect to recommence operations at the facility before January 30. Earlier, it was decided that Sapugaskanda Oil Refinery would be operative once again from tomorrow, following its temporary closure since January 03 due to the shortage in US dollars for the purchase of crude oil. more..

Jan 26 (FT) The electronic and electrical sector has recorded a 30% increase in its export earnings compared to $ 328 million recorded last year, despite COVID-pandemic challenges. With the support extended by the Sri Lanka Export Development Board, the industry has shown its knowledge, expertise, competitiveness, and resilience in 2021 to achieve the highest export revenue recorded in history despite COVID-pandemic challenges. more..

Jan 26 (TM) Export sector earnings recorded the highest monthly export value in history in Nov 2021, exceeding the previous high recorded in Oct 2021, while marking the sixth consecutive month of above $ 1 billion of export earnings as per data released by the CB. Earnings from merchandise exports in Nov 2021 reached an all-time high of $ 1.2 billion up 54.6% year-on-year (YoY). This surge in merchandise exports more..

Jan 26 (DN) The ICC Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League stage will commence today (26) while Group A winners England will take on South Africa who placed second in Group B in the 1st Quarter-final in Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium, Antigua. Six of the eight Super League teams having previously won the tournament, India, Australia, Pakistan, South Africa, England, and defending champions Bangladesh all through to the quarter-finals. SL, who finished as runner-up in 2000, more..

Jan 26 (Island) Taekwondo in SL has made a tough and challenging journey after it was introduced to the islanders by Deshamanya Master Dr. Cyril Antony to the island back on Dec 12th, 1976. Those were the days when Bruce Lee’s films were sown in Asia and there was a great following for martial arts. The same environment prevailed here in SL as well. After Dr. Antony picked up the rudiments of Taekwondo in Canada-where its founder General Choi Hong Hi was residing-he decided to more..

Jan 26 (AD) A special meeting was held on the 11th of January 2022 between the Palm Oil Association of Sri Lanka (POIASL) and Her Excellency, Dewi Gustina Tobing, Indonesia’s recently-appointed Ambassador to Sri Lanka. The present role of, and challenges faced by, the oil palm industry in Sri Lanka were discussed at the meeting, with the intention of obtaining support, expertise and assistance from Indonesia, the world’s biggest producer of palm oil. more..

Jan 26 (DN) Successive governments have played down the potential of renewable energy and have concentrated on other expensive alternative energy sources resulting in today’s electricity crisis, a group of member’s from Alternative Energy Producers said yesterday. Despite President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s plan to use 70% of renewable energy by 2030 the approval process is yet to be simplified which is aggravating the current power crisis and pushing back the President’s targets. more..

Jan 26 (EN) SL has decided not to go ahead with a US$ 3.6 billion fuel credit line agreement with Oman due to conditions on the deal, a cabinet spokesman said. In October, cabinet of ministers approved the deal as SL was facing a forex shortage after the central bank had printed excess money. “When we were discussing the conditions related to the Oman deal at length, there were some concerns related to the conditions. more..

Jan 26 (DM) PM Rajapaksa underwent a minor spinal surgery at the Nawaloka Hospital on Monday and is recovering well from the procedure, health sources said. The spinal procedure called Laminectomy which lasted for over an hour was performed by a leading orthopaedic surgeon who practices in the UK but is of SL origin, Prof Hilali Noordeen. PM and some other senior politicians have been consulting the orthopaedic surgeon and during his current visit to Sri Lanka, more..

Jan 26 (CT) Senior Engineer Dr. Rohantha Abeysekara was appointed General Manager of the CEB with immediate effect yesterday, sounding victory for the trade union action called by the CEB Engineers’ Union over the past few weeks. Dr. Abeysekara replaced Acting General Manager Susantha Perera, who came under fire of the trade union, which alleged he was not qualified to hold the position. CEB Engineers engaged in sick leave trade union action and a work-to-rule campaign more..

Jan 26 (DM) One of PM Mahinda Rajapaksa's Secretaries, who was appointed last year to office, has been sacked from his position for allegedly committing financial fraud amounting to millions of rupees from the PM's bank account, the Daily Mirror learns. The official was also functioning as a secretary for several years when the PM was the opposition leader and had been given an ATM card which had access to one of the PM's more..

Jan 26 (MFA) The human remains of the late Consul General of Sri Lanka in Milan Visharada Neela Wickramasinghe, who passed away on 17 January, 2022 due to a sudden illness will be repatriated to Sri Lanka on 27 January, 2022. The family members of late Consul General Wickramasinghe will receive the remains at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA). The Foreign Ministry is coordinating the repatriation process in consultation with the Consulate General of Sri Lanka in Milan. more..

Jan 26 (CT) The Nuwara Eliya Magistrate has fined three Russians Rs 8.655 million when they pleaded guilty for carrying out a large-scale, illegal trade across Sri Lanka involving rare endemic species. According to the Dept of Wildlife & Conservation, the fine was the highest in the Dept’s history. The warden of the Horton Plains National Park, P.M.P.K. Pradeep Kumara said the case had been heard for around two years and that the Russians were on bail but remained in the country. more..

Jan 26 (TM) The manner in which the investigation into the incident of a hand grenade being found in the All Saints’ Church in Borella is flawed, charged President’s Counsel (PC) Rienzie Arsekularatne, appearing on behalf of three suspects – including Francis Munindran, the sacristan of the said church – in the Colombo Magistrate’s Court yesterday. He had further told the court that this flawed investigation had led to more..

Jan 26 (FT) Let’s face it, the current Govt on a weekly basis tend to demonstrate its incompetence with poor decision-making. Some go on to say that the weakest administration that SL has experienced in recent history is from the current Govt. This consensus by the public is not because of the foreign exchange crisis or the crazy governance issues but the simple logic that one does not learn from the mistakes made. The saga of wrong decision-making has happened very regularly more..

Jan 26 (FT) On 2 Sept 1945, hours after the Japanese signed their unconditional surrender in World War II, communist leader Ho Chi Minh announced the self-governing Democratic Republic of Vietnam. He intended to prevent the French from reclaiming their former colonial possession. However, in 1946 he unwillingly accepted a French proposal that allowed Vietnam to exist as a self-governing state within the French Union. Subsequently, French tried to re-establish more..

Jan 26 (AD) Dilruwan Perera, who represented the Sri Lanka National Team, has announced his retirement from all forms of international cricket with immediate effect. In his retirement letter written to Sri Lanka Cricket, Perera however said, he will continue to play domestic cricket. The off-spinner represented the country across all international formats. He has played 43 Tests, 13 ODIs and 3 T20I for Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka Cricket wishes him the very best for his future endeavors, the statement said. more..

Jan 26 (TM) Police Media Director and Spokesperson Senior Superintendent of Police Nihal Thalduwa refuted recently-circulating claims that he was replaced in his position, and confirmed that he remains Director of Media at the Sri Lanka Police, as well as its official Spokesperson. Thalduwa said that there have been posts shared on several social media platforms which claim that his position had been revoked, to which he clarified that these were unverified rumours and nothing more. more..

Jan 26 (AD) The Shilpa Abhimani 2021 Presidential Handicraft Awards Ceremony was held under the patronage of Prez Rajapaksa at the BMICH on Tuesday. The awards ceremony is held annually with the aim of preserving, developing and encouraging outstanding creations of traditional, cultural and artistic value. The event, organized by the National Crafts Council under the guidance of the State Ministry of Rattan, Brass, Pottery, more..

Jan 26 (Island) SJB MP Mujibur Rahuman said that the govt should follow its own health guidelines without causing an explosive spread of Covid-19. Referring to repeated warnings given by medical experts to restrict movements in the face of the formidable challenge posed by the Omicron varian, MP demanded to know why permission had been given for a concert at the Colombo Port City. Appreciating the Health Ministry’s efforts to persuade the public to receive more..