Nov 17 (DM) Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), under the direction of SLC President Shammi Silva, and the Executive Committee recognized the Asian Games 2023 medal winners for making the country proud on the international stage. Accordingly, 11 athletes and two coaches were recognized at the SLC Headquarters this evening, in the presence of Shammi Silva, President, SLC - Ravin Wickramaratne, Vice President - Sujeeva Godaliyadda, Treasurer - Chryshantha more..

Nov 18 (CT) Prez/Finance Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe’s 2024 budget, which could be his final one before going for a prez election, reflects the impossibility of satisfying the conditions stipulated by IMF more than a year ago and expectations of a citizenry that is caught in a wave of unrelenting economic distress. While the release of the second tranche of $300 million from the $2.9 billion IMF loan hinges on how lenient the lender would be after witnessing RW’s failure to undertake more..

Nov 18 (ST) Pedris Appo – short for Appuhamy, a retired agriculture expert who does farming – was an amused man this Thursday morning. I asked him why he was so cheerful. “State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe is reported to have said at a meeting that the Govt has taken a decision not to open any more state-owned enterprises (SOEs),” he said. “So what’s so funny about it,” I asked. “Well the ministers should be talking about reducing the number of SOEs and cutting losses which more..

Nov 18 (CT) The US has made a successful entry into Sri Lanka’s maritime sector by providing funding to its strategic partner, India, a fellow Quad member. A significant investment of USD 553 million was facilitated through the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) and directed to India’s influential private entity, Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone Limited owned by billionaire Gautam Adani. more..

Nov 18 (DM) The 2023 World Cup tournament, better known as the ODI Championship continues. But for the SL team this year, it is done. We are out of it. The team is back in the country -completely disgraced and apologising to all and sundry over weak-kneed performances. What is worse, charges of corruption within the cricket establishment abound. From Parliamentarians to the ordinary man on the street, people are furious over rapid turn-around of fortunes in national cricket team. more..

Nov 18 (SO) The profile of road traffic victims from across Sri Lanka shows that more than half of all road traffic deaths every year are among exposed road users: pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists. The financial losses to both the victims and the State are a national issue currently due to the uncontrollable nature of frequent road accidents. Road safety has been an extremely critical issue for SL for the past several decades. In 2022, 19,000 road accidents were reported, more..

Nov 18 (TM) Allegations are swirling around the recently-installed water meters by the NWSDB, with residents in many parts of the country claiming an unprecedented surge in their water bills. Controversy centres on the purported quality issues of the new meters which have replaced the older versions. Dayani Perera, a resident of Thalawathugoda deeply affected by this controversy, narrated her experience as more..

Nov 18 (CT) It is no longer a secret that with rapidly advancing technology, in this digital era, there are more reasons to strangle the legacy of media, especially the printed newspapers, than giving life to it. In such scenario, surviving for 12 years –most of the time excelling in the industry against all odds- is not something small. In fact, being hopeful and determined to hold firmly to the same industry as we, the Ceylon Today, step into its 13th year with the same enthusiasm after an entire industry more..

Nov 18 (DM) Much hackneyed as they may be, these enduring words of the Bard of Avon aptly describe veteran journalist Gamini Weerakoon who breathed his last on Nov 11, 2023. His funeral was held at Borella Kanatte on Sunday (12). Gamini Weerakoon, known to his friends and colleagues as Gamma, was an integral part of SL’s English journalistic realm for more than five decades. He entered journalism as a news reporter and gradually rose from the ranks to retire as Editor. more..

Nov 18 (Island) The momentous event of the week-ended-today was the presentation of Budget 2024 by the Prez in his capacity as the Minister of Finance. Usually, SL Presidents keep away from Parliament; not Ranil Wickremesinghe, and a jolly good move it is. The Island of Nov 14 headlined the VI Event as: Prez presents Budget to build foundation of SL’s recovery. Cass prays to every god in whichever heaven and all the devathavas hovering around the island to make more..

Nov 18 (Island) Govt politicians never miss an opportunity to identify themselves with the ordinary public, but they betray their cavalier attitude and callous disregard for the people’s suffering whenever they give free rein to their restless tongues. Many of the people who used to lead comfortable lives have been reduced to penury for no fault of theirs. They are struggling to dull the pangs of hunger owing to the current economic crisis. But the ruling party MPs apparently have no idea more..

Nov 18 (CT) On Monday (13) morning Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe convened a Cabinet meeting to seek approval for Budget 2024. At the meeting, the Cabinet touched not only on the salient points of the Budget proposals but also on the Aswesuma welfare benefit scheme. It was the Prez’s Chief of Staff Sagala Ratnayake who apprised the Cabinet regarding the Aswesuma relief project. Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe, who had more..

Nov 18 (ST) Inefficiencies and corruption in governance structures which were not a problem 20 years ago, have become a considerable drag on SL’s businesses, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) flagship report, Impact of Multiple Crises on SL’s Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises said. Addressing the issue of the country’s institutional failures, Dr. Ramani Gunatilaka, Co-Author at the unveiling of this report on Tuesday during the panel discussion, more..

Nov 18 (DN) SL ended in ninth place at the World Cup out if ten teams and failed to qualify for 2025 Champion trophy cricket tournament in Pakistan. However there were a few positives. Few young players really performed well and that is a great achievement for SL team and they are real investment for future said Chairman of the Selection committee Promodya Wickramasinghe. We had a vision to pick more young players for this world cup & selected them based on their performance more..

Nov 18 (Island) A delegation led by Lord Davies of Abersoch, UK Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy to Sri Lanka and Andrew Patrick, British High Commissioner to SL visited Unilever SL’s factory in the Horana BOI Zone recently to experience the facility’s advanced capabilities in manufacturing, social and environmental governance. The esteemed delegation was given a tour of the Horana factory to witness first-hand, the local production of some of the best-known global British brands, more..

Nov 18 (FT) The state-of-the-art pellet and granular fertiliser manufacturing facility of EcoProtect Engineering Ltd. located in Oyamaduwa, A'pura was opened on 9 Nov with the participation of District Secretary A'pura Janaka Jayasundara, National Fertiliser Secretariat Director Chandana Lokuhewage, and senior officials from the Ministry of Agriculture. EcoProtect Engineering is part of the Multichemi Group of Companies which is already engaged in the manufacture more..

Nov 18 (DN) Janidu Lakvijaya, SL national record holder from Gampaha District, broke a 9-year meet record in the U-20 Boys 110m hurdles on the second day of the 34th National Youth Sports Festival held at Sugathadasa Stadium yesterday. Former St Peter’s College hurdler, Lakvijaya, set a blazing pace in the heats, clocking 14.07 seconds and establishing a new meet record. This achievement erased the previous record of more..

Nov 18 (ST) When Mrs. Nelum de Mel picked up the Sunday Times on October 22 and turned to the features (Plus) section, she found, to her surprise, an article that transported her in time. Back to the days when she, as a ten-year-old, was taken by her parents, along with her four sisters, to Bombay, India, to see Pope Paul the Sixth, who was visiting the country to attend an international Eucharistic conference. Memories of seeing the Pope are vivid, but she also had very strong memories of more..

Nov 18 (DN) A seating zone at the iconic venue will be named after Sri Lanka Women captain and Sydney Thunder batter Chamari Athapaththu. In a groundbreaking move, a seating zone at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) will be named after Sri Lanka Women captain and Sydney Thunder batter Chamari Athapaththu, the Sydney Thunder announced on Thursday (16). The specially dedicated seating zone will be unveiled for the Women’s Big Bash League (WBBL) derby clash on Nov 26. more..

Nov 18 (Island) One-rime Secretary of PRECIFAC Lacille de Silva said that leaders of political parties represented in Parliament should set up a committee to study the landmark Supreme Court ruling on the economic crisis. On the basis of a thorough examination of the ruling, action should be initiated against those who had been found guilty of economic ruin, regardless of their standing in the society, de Silva said. more..

Nov 18 (FT) The services sector continued its expansion in October but recent electricity hike and proposed higher VAT from January have clouded its outlook as per the Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) compiled by the CB. On the other hand, the manufacturing sector contraction had softened in October and immediate prospects looked better due to the festive season. CBSL said manufacturing PMI recorded an index value of 49.5 in Oct 2023, reaching towards the neutral threshold, more..

Nov 18 (FT) Colombo stock market yesterday ended the post-Budget week suffering a loss of 2% amidst poor investor sentiment-led lacklustre trading. The benchmark ASPI lost 259.17 points (2.38%) during the week while the S&P SL20 lost 84.85 points (2.75%). The dip was as opposed to gains of 0.7% and 1.7% by the indices respectively. Daily turnover this week averaged Rs. 834 million, down from Rs. 1.6 billion last week. Asia Securities said the market on Friday ended the week on a downbeat more..

Nov 18 (FT) The Inland Revenue Department (IRD) Acting Commissioner General Upul Jayawardhana highlighted the challenges faced in tax collection, citing a noticeable drop in the second half compared to the monthly forecast. “As of 30 October, the expected revenue for income tax in 2023 is Rs. 908 billion, with Rs. 740 billion, or 82%, already collected. However, we have seen a slowdown since August,” he said at the CA Sri Lanka post-Budget forum on Tuesday. more..

Nov 18 (ST) Public Service Commission is to introduce a mechanism to select senior administrative officials to Grade 1 top posts in govt institutions. Accordingly, a fair and transparent procedure is to be followed when senior govt officials from the SL Administrative Service, SL Planning Service, and SL Accountancy Service apply for Grade 1 slots in all island services. According to a circular issued by the Commission, the new process is being adopted as the number of Grade 1 more..

Nov 18 (ST) During busy school days, a pharmacy located near a school in the Galenbindunuwewa division of A'pura was frequently visited by school-uniformed students. A police undercover officer was able to figure out what attracted students to visit the place. Pharmacist was selling strong painkiller tablets, which are often prescribed for critically ill people. A pharmacy owner was taken into custody by police and more..

Nov 18 (DN) I am very disappointed to miss both 2019 and 2023 world cup said SL champion leg spinner Wanindu Hasaranga. I always played for my country and any cricketers dream is to play in the world cup said Hasaranga who had a hamstring injury and underwent successful surgery in England and returned home After LPL my injury was almost healed but during training once again got injured and had to be off the field for sometime .He was the B Love Kandy team skipper who guided them more..

Nov 18 (Island) The SJB yesterday requeted Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe to stop pensions and all other facilities provided at the taxpayers’ expense to former Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa and former PM Mahinda Rajapaksa, who served as the Finance Minister at the time ill-fated decisions taken by the then government ruined the economy. Former SJB Colombo District lawmaker Mijibur Rahman said that the main Opposition would continue to press UNP leader Wickremesinghe on this issue. more..

Nov 18 (FT) Viet Nam will provide its expertise on foreign investment promotion and attraction to Sri Lanka to draft the proposed new Investment Bill. This was stated by a high-level delegation headed by Viet Nam Communist Party Central Committee Member Dr. Bui Van Nghiem when they called on PM Dinesh Gunawardena at Temple Trees. PM congratulated Viet Nam for the success of rapid economic development after gaining independence after a valiant freedom struggle. more..

Nov 18 (CT) Member of the Central Bank (CBSL) Governing Board (GB) and Monetary Board (MB), President’s Counsel Sanjeeva Jayawardena has suddenly resigned from all his positions. “The motive behind his sudden resignation is unclear. However, we will issue the official statement shortly,” sources said. They also said, that he was worried about the appointment of Dr. Ravi Ratnayake, the former chairman of the failed Kanrich Finance, to the GB and the fact that the large compositions more..

Nov 18 (CT) Foreign travel bans have been clamped on another nine officials at the Ministry of Health, including Health Ministry Secretary Janaka Sri Chandraguptha, over the scam involving the import of 22,500 substandard immunoglobulin vials. These foreign travel bans were imposed by the Maligakanda Magistrate on a request made by the CID. The CID informed Court that these officials knew well about the said scam and more..

Nov 18 (DM) Constitutional Council (CC) appears to be divided, with the majority of members declining to approve the reappointment of C.D. Wickramaratne as the IGP. The got has failed to make a permanent appointment since March this year because of differences between Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe and Minister Tiran Alles on the next police officer to be picked for the post. Mr. Alles is insistent on the appointment of SDIG Deshabandu Tennakoon whereas Prez is opposed to it. more..

Nov 18 (AD) The Unit 2 generator of Lakvijaya Power Plant in Norochcholai will remain inoperative from tonight (17), CEB says. According to the state-owned utility, the high-pressure heater system of the generating unit has suffered an emergency breakdown. CEB said the power plant’s employees have already initiated the preliminary measures to restore the out-of-order generating unit. Meanwhile, the Unit 3 of the Norochcholai power plant, which remained deactivated since June 2023, more..

Nov 18 (FT) Sri Lanka Audit Service Association raised concerns about the code of conduct of the COPE Chairman MP Prof. Ranjith Bandara and called on the Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena to remove and appoint a new MP who is fit and proper for such a responsible position. They charged that the current Chairman undermined the sovereignty of the people and compromised the integrity of the COPE. more..

Nov 19 (SO) Last week, we focused on the importance of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) sector for emerging nations such as SL. In a positive sign that AI is gaining momentum here, Budget 2024 has proposed the setting up of a separate National Centre for Artificial Intelligence (NCAI), which is expected to be a hub for AI development not just in SL, but also in South Asia as a whole. The Budget also included proposals for establishing four new universities as well as permitting some more..

Nov 19 (TM) All the hype associated with Budget 2024 fizzled out in the aftermath of the landmark court ruling last week, leading to the current political configuration being in a state of flux ever since, and destined to be irrevocably altered, sooner than later. The historic Supreme Court judgment of 14 Nov held that former Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa, former PM Mahinda Rajapaksa, former Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa, former CB Governors Prof. W.D. Lakshman and Ajith Nivard Cabraal, more..