Aug 5 (Island) Declaring that the online visa scam perpetrated by the incumbent govt was even bigger than the Treasury bond rackets carried out under the UNP-led Yahapalana govt in 2015 and 2016, Opposition lawmaker Prof. G.L. Peiris alleged that in both cases the primary objective had been funding elections—the 2015 parliamentary polls and the 2024 prez election, respectively. He said the suspension by the Supreme Court, more..

Aug 5 (FT) Aseni and Sarath Mahatthaya are continuing their interactive conversation on debt and debt restructuring. They have concluded that a country should borrow from foreign sources – savings made by people in other countries by curtailing their consumption – to finance the high investments which cannot be met through inadequate domestic savings. In the case of SL, the savings made by the private sector have been reduced by dissaving made by the Govt more..

Aug 5 (FT) Sri Lanka’s recent economic turmoil and recovery efforts present a complex narrative marked by internal challenges and external macroeconomic shocks. The economic crisis disrupted the financial landscape, leading to significant international involvement, mainly through the IMF and strategic partnerships with neighbouring countries like India. India’s participation in Sri Lanka’s recovery process underscores its economic and strategic interests in the island nation. more..

Aug 5 (DM) Supreme Court in its majority decision today decided to dismiss the contempt of court application filed against former State Minister Diana Gamage. Former Chairman of the Weligama UC, Rehan Jayawickrema filed this application before the SC alleging that Diana Gamage committed the offense of contempt of court through her statements at a media conference held on May 9 this year. Court held that there are no reasonable grounds to entertain this application at this stage. more..

Aug 5 (AD) Election Commission emphasizes that false information is circulating alleging that the voters registered in the voter’s list will be facilitated to cast their vote at any polling station in the island. The election regulatory body refuted these reports and said that the voters must vote at the polling station assigned to their registered constituency only, as per election regulations. Additionally, postal voters retain the option to cast their vote in the presence of their Certifying Officer, more..

Aug 5 (EN) At least 90 out of the total 225 SL legislators are yet to provide their assets and liability details to the CIABOC in line with the latest Anti-Corruption Act. A recent amendment to the Anti-Corruption Act has mandated the Prez, PM, MPs, Provincial Governors, PC Members, and officers of Provincial Public Service, elected representatives, and officers of Local Govt bodies, as well as judges and govt officials appointed by the President, more..

Aug 5 (ICC) The International Cricket Council (ICC) today named the shortlists for the ICC Player of the Month awards for July, celebrating the standout performers from an action-packed month of international cricket. The ICC Men’s Player of the Month shortlist features three outstanding bowlers who grabbed the headlines across all three formats of international cricket last month. Three openers are on the shortlist for ICC Women’s Player of the Month for July 2024. more..

Aug 5 (DM) The Kandy Esala perahara festival will commence today, with the auspicious ‘Kap’ planting ceremony at the four main Devalayas. The kap palnting ceremony will be held in the four main Devalayas, the Natha, Vishnu, Kataragama and Pattini, at 4.10 a.m today. Sri Dalada Maligawa Diyawadana Nilame said that after completing the five internal peraharas of the Devalaya’s, the first Kumbal Perahara is scheduled to parade the streets on August 10. more..

Aug 5 (EN) Central Bank has mopped up 546 billion rupees of domestic money, out of a total of 578.5 billion rupees created by the purchase of foreign exchange in the six months to June 2024. Central bank had generated 538.1 billion rupees from forex purchases from the market. Central bank had also generated 40.4 billion rupees net from buying official foreign loan proceeds after settling any loans. more..

Aug 5 (DM) The Supreme Court of Seychelles has fined a Sri Lankan national SCR400,000 ($27,000) for fishing in the island nation's territorial waters without a foreign fishing vessel licence. Mawalla Kattadilage Padmasiri, 58, skipper of the vessel Sampath 16 and his crew, were caught on June 9. The vessel was approximately 94 nautical miles southeast of Mahe, the main island in the Seychelles' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The fishing vessel is not licensed nor authorised more..

Aug 5 (Island) The annual festival at the historical Roman Catholic Church, Shrine of Our Lady of Madhu, is scheduled to begin with flag hoisting tomorrow and end on Aug 15. This decision was made during a discussion held at the Mannar District Office, led by Mannar District Secretary K. Kanakeswaran and Bishop of Mannar Dr. Emmanuel Fernando. This year’s festival is expected to attract more than 500,000 devotees. To accommodate the large number of attendees, more..

Aug 5 (AD) The ten suspects who were arrested in connection with the shooting and killing of two persons including Surendra Wasantha Perera alias Club Wasantha in Athurigiriya, have been produced before the Kaduwela Magistrate’s Court today (05). Meanwhile, the son of the murdered businessman, the OIC of the Western Province South Crimes Division, representatives from the AG’s Dept and the individual who took charge of Wasantha’s body are scheduled to appear before the court more..

Aug 5 (AD) Three more candidates have placed their deposits today (Aug 05) in order to contest the 2024 Prez Election, the Election Commission said. Accordingly, 17 candidates in total have placed their deposits with the EC thus far. This includes seven independent candidates whose names have been nominated by a voter, nine candidates from recognized political parties and one candidate from other political parties. The independent candidates who have placed bonds today more..

Aug 5 (Island) SJB leader Sajith Premadasa said that if he became the Prez those who had violated Supreme Court rulings would have to face the consequences. They would be held responsible for past violations, regardless of parliamentary privileges, he assured a cheering crowd of ex-military and police personnel at Minuwangoda. He declared that the law of the land would prevail over parliamentary privileges. more..

Aug 5 (AD) A forty-two-day-old infant has tragically passed away after allegedly being inhumanely beaten by the child’s mother in the Alaveddy area in Jaffna. The infant had sustained fatal injuries, including bruises to the head and other parts of the body. The mother had initially admitted the baby to the Alaveddy Divisional Hospital, claiming the infant had lost consciousness after breastfeeding. The child has been subsequently transferred to Tellippalai Base Hospital. more..

Aug 5 (TM) MP Eran Wickramaratne has questioned the denial of access to Puttalam Ilmenite Limited (PIL) by SL Cement Corporation (SLCC), which has jeopardized its mineral sands project. In a written submission to Parliament, MP Wickramaratne expressed concerns about why PIL has been denied entry to SLCC land, thereby hindering the realization of a project that has invested over $20 million over the last 10 years. According to the MP, the envisaged investment is $100 million, more..

Aug 5 (AJ) Bangladesh’s PM Sheikh Hasina has resigned and fled the country following weeks of deadly demonstrations. The removal of Hasina on Monday followed weeks of deadly protests and appears to have averted the threat of further bloodshed. The focus now moves to who will control the South Asian country. In an address to the nation, army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman announced that an interim govt will now more..

Aug 5 (Island) EU Ambassador Carmen Moreno on Wednesday (31) hosted a pre-departure ceremony in Colombo, celebrating 19 Lankan students who have been awarded scholarships to pursue graduate studies in Europe under the Erasmus+ programme. The recipients will study at multiple universities across Belgium, Spain, Germany, Finland, France, Sweden, and UK. Ambassador Moreno urged the scholars to leverage this opportunity not only to advance their academic & professional goals more..

Aug 5 (CI) Chamari Athapaththu will not be available for Sri Lanka's T20I series in Ireland due to her commitments with Oval Invincibles in the Women's Hundred, where she is set to compete in all the group-stage games. Invincibles' last group match is on August 14 while the T20Is will be played on August 11 and 13. She will link up with her national team-mates for the ODIs, which are part of the 2022-2025 ICC Women's Championship cycle, starting August 16. more..

Aug 5 (DM) England have named a 14-member squad for the three-match Test series against SL. Regular opener Zak Crawley will miss the series due to a fractured right little finger sustained in the third Test of the recently concluded series against the West Indies, which the hosts won 3-0. Also ruled out is seamer Dillion Pennington, who was a part of the Test squad for the West Indies series. He will miss the series after sustaining a hamstring injury while playing in The Hundred competition. more..

Aug 5 (DM) Nearly 60 complaints related to violations of election laws have been reported during the run-up to the Prez election, PAFFREL's Executive Director, Rohana Hettiarachchi said. He told the media that the majority of the complaints are related to the misuse of state power and assets. Although these incidents of vialations are reported as individual cases, they impact society as a whole. In addition to complaints on distribution of goods, appointments and transfers, more..

Aug 5 (TC) Sanjiva Weerawarana is a Sri Lankan success story. He founded enterprise software firm WSO2 in 2005, got it close to $100 million in ARR as its CEO, then sold it to private equity firm EQT for $600 million in May. He sometimes drives for Uber, too. SL isn’t renowned for its startup ecosystem, but one company has been something of an outlier in the South Asian island nation these past two decades. more..

Aug 5 (TM) While trade union action over salary and allowance issues will continue in the form of work-to-rule action, Grama Niladhari officers will not boycott election related duties, according to trade unions representing Grama Niladhari officers. All-Island Freedom Grama Niladhari Union’s Secretary and Grama Niladhari Trade Union Alliance’s Co-Convenor, Jagath Chandralal, emphasised that this does not mean that their protests have come to an end, and that they will continue to fight for more..

Aug 5 (AD) Bonds have been placed on behalf of Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka today (05), to contest in the 2024 Presidential Election as an independent candidate. Dhammika Ratnayake has paced the cash deposit on behalf of Fonseka. On July 25, Fonseka officially announced his presidential candidacy stating that, “A lot of people have asked me to contest for the presidential election and I am looking forward to accepting the call of the people of Sri Lanka.” more..

Aug 5 (TM) The presidential candidate of the USP, Siritunga Jayasuriya, urged the entire country to reject the IMF EFF and WB programmes arguing that these initiatives are entrapping the country's future under the guise of the economic crisis. Jayasuriya highlighted the negative consequences faced by countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan, which have relied heavily on int'l org instead of seeking domestic solutions. more..

Aug 5 (TM) The JVP-led NPP coalition last weekend (3) launched their national policy for persons with disabilities at a function organised at the Foundation Institute in Colombo. Addressing the gathering, NPP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake said: “People with disabilities in different fields presented us with the situations that affected them in different ways. Today, they have performed here and shown us their commitment. When we see all these things, we naturally remember that more..

Aug 5 (TM) Department of Wildlife Conservation yesterday opined that the bear encroachment threats reported by residents of the Sigiriya area are unlikely to be a frequent occurrence. It was reported that residents of the Ilukwala area in Sigiriya are living in fear of a bear that frequently wanders into their village. According to reports, two villagers had sustained serious injuries in encounters with the bear and were receiving treatment at the Dambulla and Polonnaruwa Hospitals. more..

Aug 6 (DM) We have heard the mission statements and ambitious goals of the Economic Transformation Bill. The Bill aims to transform Sri Lanka into a competitive, export-oriented, digital economy with stable macroeconomic balances, sustainable debt, modernised agriculture, and inclusive growth. The Bill’s objectives are to ensure a high standard of living for all citizens, prevent economic crises, and promote rapid development through public and private economic activities. more..

Aug 6 (DM) Bangladesh is in the grips of unprecedented protests against the govt of PM Sheikh Hasina. Peaceful protests led by students against a job quota system which reserved 30% of govt jobs to descendants of freedom fighters who took part in the Bangladesh War of Liberation in 1971. Uni teachers, parents, popular artists, lawyers, have joined the protests and the PM has fled. Rallies that began last month against civil service job quotas have escalated into some of the worst unrest more..

Aug 6 (CT) The longstanding dispute between Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka over TN fishermen encroaching into Sri Lankan territorial waters remains unresolved, resulting in fatalities and damage to fishing vessels on both sides. On 1 Aug, an Indian fishing vessel that had crossed into SL waters collided with a SL Navy vessel, leading to one death, one missing and two others falling into the sea, though they were rescued. more..

Aug 6 (ST) Once upon a time not so long ago, Mahinda Rajapaksa was the soul and shepherd of the SLPP flock that would blindly trot over the brink at his command. But now, the mesmeric magic that breathed in Mahinda seems to have taken flight and fled to unknown climes. With stinging wasps leaving his hornet’s nest in droves and making a beeline to greener thriving honeycombs, will he be left to rule the roost alone in bleak adversity? Are we seeing the beginning of the inevitable end of more..

Aug 6 (CT) As the prez elections draw near, the political landscape is becoming increasingly convoluted. Recent crossovers among politicians are baffling to many observers, highlighting a phenomenon that can be termed political slavery. This term encapsulates the loyalty of politicians and some voters to traditional power structures, despite a history of governance failures. The right to vote is a fundamental aspect of democracy, and Sri Lankans are free to choose their leaders. more..

Aug 6 (TM) A paddy farmer from Udawalayagama in the Dambulla Divisional Secretariat (DS), Kumara Ratnayake experienced a harrowing encounter on the morning of 2 August. At around 5:50 a.m., while descending from a makeshift platform he had constructed atop a tree in his paddy field to enjoy his morning betel chew, he was attacked by a bear — a creature not reportedly seen in the area for over 50 years. more..

Aug 6 (TM) With many parallels drawn to the storming of the presidential residence in Colombo by protestors of the aragalaya movement, the images from Bangladesh yesterday, cast a long shadow on the future of the South Asian nation. The storm had been gathering for former PM Sheikh Hasina who was at the helm of the country for nearly one and half decades, and the incidents and suppression exercised by her govt over the last few months did little to mitigate the growing crisis, more..

Aug 6 (CT) Starting in 2025, new regulations will take effect in SL, prohibiting the use of infants, toddlers, children under 12 and pregnant or breastfeeding women in food advertisements. This move, announced by Dr. Ananda Jayalal, Deputy Director General of the Food Control Unit, aims to protect these vulnerable groups from misleading and potentially harmful marketing practices. From 1 Jan 2025, these regulations will be strictly enforced, and legal action will be taken against violators. more..