Sep 20 (ST) Champion power-lifter Ransilu Jayathilake launched a scathing attack on the national body for sports and the Ministry of Sports over the lack of support and recognition they receive despite winning medals on the int'l stage. Speaking on the eve of team’s departure to Canada to take part at Commonwealth Powerlifting C'ships, he is hopeful of doing well despite the step-motherly treatment, the sports has received. more..

Sep 20 (ST) Much has been written about the pyrotechnics of Lasith Malinga who captured 4 wickets in 4 successive deliveries, for the 2nd time in his career, whilst defending a total of a mere 125/8. He ended with stunning figures of 5/6, that resulted in a consolation victory against the touring Black Caps, who, nevertheless, won the series 2-1. Admittedly, both teams had injury issues, still, the packed crowd at the Pallekele stadium went into raptures, as SL snatched a 37-run win. more..

Sep 20 (DM) National Elections Commission (NEC) on Wednesday announced the dates for the much-talked-about Presidential election and the nomination period for it. Nominations will be entertained on Oct 7 and the election will be held on Nov 16, according to the announcement by the NEC. This is not a snap election or a mid-term election as the last Prez election in 2015. This is an election to be held according to the Constitution at the end of the tenure of incumbent Prez. more..

Sep 20 (SO) State Minister Ranjan Ramanayake made another explosive revelation last week, urging authorities to investigate the recent purchase of a brand-new luxury house and property worth US $1 million in Los Angeles, California, alleging that the home was owned by a presidential hopeful and his family. The deed of trust on the property had been signed by a Daminda Rajapaksa & Sewwandi Rajapaksa, more..

Sep 20 (DN) Good old traditions will continue for the betterment of the game as the 41st Observer-Mobitel Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year gala awards ceremony takes place at the Grand Ballroom of the Colombo Hilton starting at 5.30 pm today. The Mega Show which has rendered yeoman service to thousands of up and coming schoolboy cricketers across the country for over four decades is organized by English newspaper Sunday Observer and sponsored by Sri Lanka Telecom Mobitel. more..

Sep 20 (CT) The world has seen many examples of how progressive countries and Nations have become weak Nations, as a result of politically motivated witch-hunts by successive govts. The continent of Africa is a good example of how successive govts have been solely focused on eliminating political opponents, instead of focusing on the country and its citizens, which has led to disastrous consequences. One of the prominent 100-day election promises made by more..

Sep 20 (CT) SL will be holding its 8th Prez Poll on 16 Nov with nominations to be called on 7 Oct. Only two political parties have thus far named their candidates, the fledgling SLPP and JVP. SLPP candidate is former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa, younger brother of Mahinda Rajapaksa, who wears several political hats, including being the current SLPP leader, immediately preceding Prez of the country, whilst also being an SLFP/UPFA MP in present Parliament. more..

Sep 20 (CT) Presidential Election details are coming and the Election Commission Chairman has summoned party leaders for a discussion. JVP, NSSP, have declared their candidates and several other registered parties have done the same. There is a heavy struggle among SLFP, SLPP, and organisations loyal to the President to reconsider the name of Gotabaya Rajapaksa. However, Gota is already embedded among the fascistic crowd and there is only a minute chance of a change. more..

Sep 20 (TM) Illegal drug trade has virtually taken over social media and the authorities are finding it hard to curb the menace. Several raids have been carried out in recent times where parties organised using Facebook were found to have been hubs for drug dealing and consumption. However, the authorities say many of these activities are going undetected as they do not have required resources to detect & crackdown on such activities. more..

Sep 20 (TM) As climatic conditions worsen in small pockets of Sri Lanka due to the prevailing drought, it is crucial that long-term solutions be implemented to recover the livelihoods of many families suffering the effects of the longer period of drought in SL. As of 12 Sept, the total number of persons affected by the drought across 18 districts stood at 781,952 and over the weeks, the number keeps increasing. Agriculture still plays a vital role in the social and economic framework of the country. more..

Sep 20 (CT) Speaker of Parliament and UNP MP Karu Jayasuriya seemed to officially throw his hat into the ring for the upcoming presidential election, saying he would only contest if all political forces united around the primary issue of abolishing the executive presidency. Those political forces would also have to be committed to strengthening the democratic reforms enacted in the 17th amendment to the constitution and later reinforced through the 19th Amendment to the constitution, more..

Sep 20 (Roar) Prez elections have been announced in SL, and with November 16 fast approaching, the competition for the top office in the country is heating up. Although Sri Lanka has a multi-party system, politics has been dominated by the UNP that was founded prior to independence, in 1946, and SLFP, founded in 1951. Minor parties have typically formed coalitions or entered into alliances to safeguard their interests, but more..

Sep 20 (TM) Moves by the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) to introduce a new flying squad to increase efficiency and combat corruption at construction sites are facing stiff resistance. Municipal Commissioner Palitha Nanayakkara, whom the squad will be functioning under, said that the appointments will be finalised next month and the interviews for positions in the squad were still in progress. “The motion was presented to the council members and we are awaiting approval,” more..

Sep 20 (CT) A common snide remark in the days gone by used to say derisively that if there is a traffic jam somewhere there is a cop in the middle of it. It means that an incompetent cop without any sense of direction had caused an unwanted and avoidable problem to the public. In contemporary times it can be said, without fear of being contradicted, that if there is a political jam you can be sure that Ranil Wickremesinghe is in the middle of it. You can also be sure that Ranil has been the cause of more..

Sep 19 (RN) Member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, Chen Min-Er and Prez Sirisena held a detailed discussion on a wide range of subjects on bilateral relations, economic cooperation and regional stability. Mr Chen Min-Er and a CPC delegation called on Prez at the President’s Office yesterday. President thanked China for the support extended to Sri Lanka for more than 60 years more..

Sep 19 (AD) The Parliament today passed the People’s Bank (Amendment) Bill with amendments. Adjourned Committee-Stage Debate on the bill took place at the House this morning. The bill was presented by the Minister of Finance on 24 May and Published as Bill No. 282 in the Gazette. The purpose of this amendment was to replace Sections 4 and 5 of the Act dealing with the Objectives and the Powers of the bank. Parliament was initially scheduled to debate the bill on Sept 4. more..

Sep 19 (DM) Speaker Karu Jayasuriya today told Parliament that he would seek advice from the elections commission whether it was in violation of election laws to provide jobs in the govt sector after an election is announced. He said this in response to a matter brought up by the opposition that Minister Rauff Hakeem had called for over 1000 applicants for interviews in violation of election laws. Opposition MP Dinesh Gunawardane said Trade Unions of the Water Board had given a letter more..

Sep 19 (DM) Ceylon Teachers and Principals’ Services Union today said that they would hold a two-day token strike next Thursday over several demands including salary anomalies. Speaking to the media the General Secretary of the TU Mahinda Jayasinghe said they would refrain from all educational activities in schools while applying for medical leave. During the strike, we would refrain from scrutinizing of GCE A/L answer scripts more..

Sep 19 (CT) Sri Lanka dips in the global peacefulness scale. SL is ranked 72 in comparison to last year's 67th place. This is stated in the latest report of the 2019 Global Peace Index (GPI), issued by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP). Although in this year's GPI, SL received a score of 1.986, SL has descended by five places compared with last year's GPI, in which it was ranked 67. GPI - recognised as the world's leading measure of global peacefulness covering 99.7% of the world's more..

Sep 19 (RN) Media Spokesman of UPFA Weerakumara Dissanayake says that time is running out for the SLFP and the SLPP to form an alliance and select a common candidate. He said that although the parties have come to a certain agreement on the mandate of the alliance they are yet to come together under a common sign for the election. Further, he said that the SLFP has been making many sacrifices to ensure victory in the election and had not objected to anything more..

Sep 19 (DM) The Locomotive Engine Operators' Union (LEOU) has decided to launch a work-to-rule campaign from tonight over allegations that they are not adhering to speed limits set out by the railway department. Union Secretary Indika Dodangoda said that the sudden decision was taken following a meeting held with the Railway General Manager (GMR). He said GMR discussed the matter with locomotive operators, more..

Sep 19 (AD) Hearing of the case filed by the Attorney General against former Chief Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) of Colombo Ananda Samarasekara for allegedly concealing evidence in the Wasim Thajudeen murder case was postponed until Oct 3. The case was taken up before Judge Manjula Thilakaratne, at the Colombo High Court, today. However, when the case was taken up the Defense attorney Shavindra Fernando, who supposed to present preliminary objections more..

Sep 19 (Island) PCoI investigating told Somasiri Gunasekera, Head of the procurement appeals board that Sri Lanka might lose Rs. 50 billion in 20 years if the tender for the construction of a 300 MW LNG power plant at Kerawalapitiya was not awarded to the lowest bidder. Commissioner retired DIG Wijaya Amarasinghe said that the quoted price of a unit of power by Lanka Transformers Ltd. (LTL) was Rs. 14.98. The second best price by WindForce was Rs. 15.97. more..

Sep 19 (CI) SL spinner Akila Dananjaya has been banned from bowling in international cricket for 12 months due to an illegal bowling action. Dananjaya's suspension is a result of the ICC's automatic penalty for bowlers who have twice failed an assessment inside a two-year period. Dananjaya was assessed after he was reported for a suspect action for the second time in 10 months, following Galle Test against NZ last month. more..

Sep 19 (SLN) SL Navy apprehended 5 Indian fishermen along with a fishing trawler belonging to them for poaching in SL territorial waters today (18). The apprehension was made by the Northern Naval Command, during a patrol conducted in the sea area northwest of the Kovilam Point. The group of Indian fishermen were poaching in Sri Lankan territorial waters by the time the apprehension was made. Subsequently, the apprehended fishermen were escorted to SLNS Uththara and the seized more..

Sep 19 (AD) Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court today ordered the arrest of former Director General of SL Customs Jagath P. Wijeweera and its former Additional Director General Tharaka Seneviratne. The two officials have been accused of releasing 8 kilograms of confiscated gold from the custody of Customs Dept, for the enshrinement of treasure in the base ring of the Sandahiru Maha Seya. Fort Magistrate Ranga Dissanayake ordered FCID to arrest and produce them before the court. more..

Sep 19 (DM) One of the main tasks of SLPP presidential hopeful Gotabaya Rajapaksa would be restoring the relationship with China, spokesman for the SLPP prez candidate, Keheliya Rambukwella said today. He said the relationship with China had been tarnished on numerous occasions during this govt. “For instance, PM categorically said in 2015 that they would stop and abandon the port city project more..

Sep 19 (RN) Deputy Minister Karunarathna Paranawithana said that many students who pursue studies in the Tamil Medium especially in estates, do not have enough facilities or schools to follow the science stream in their mother tongue for A/L. He noted that although it is a major problem in the SL education system, it is barely noticed and goes unaddressed. “Although there are few schools that teach in Tamil medium in Nuwara Eliya and Hatton districts, in several other districts such as more..

Sep 19 (AD) Minister Harin Fernando taking to his Twitter account stated that 5 ministers of the UNP have confirmed the party’s parliamentary group that they will support Sajith Premadasa as the Prez Candidate. Accordingly, Ministers Champika Ranawaka, Mano Ganesan, Palany Thigambaram, Rishad Bathiudeen and Rauff Hakeem have confirmed their support to the UNP’s deputy leader, according to Minister. In another tweet, he said they have objected to any move to abolish more..

Sep 19 (DM) A last ditch attempt to abolish executive presidency by Prez and PM was thwarted in the Cabinet today. Minister Mano Ganeshan said the govt has decided at the special cabinet meeting on the abolishment of the Executive Presidency not to discuss the matter at the moment. “Special cabinet meeting on abolishing executive presidency unanimously decided after heated arguments not to discuss this matter now more..

Sep 19 (AD) Cabinet of Ministers today decided not to discuss the matter of abolishing the Executive Presidency at this moment as a Prez Election has already been called, Minister Mano Ganesan said. He said that heated arguments had taken place during the special Cabinet meeting held today to discuss the matter. However, he said that the Cabinet decided not to discuss the abolishing of the Executive Presidency right now when the Election Commission has already gazette Prez poll. more..

Sep 19 (RN) Defence Ministry is calling reports of a possible attack similar to the Easter Sunday strikes now circulating on social media are incorrect. The fake story said that an attack was imminent and was to be launched with the assistance of some Army personnel. Defence Ministry firmly stated that this news is totally fabricated and published with malice to tarnish the image of the SL Army. Further, the ministry said that it could create unnecessary fear among the pubic disturbing their daily routine. more..

Sep 19 (CI) Sri Lanka's tour of Pakistan will go ahead after SLC confirmed that the Pakistan govt had reaffirmed its desire to provide the SL team with the same level of security afforded to visiting heads of state. "The Pakistan High Commissioner to SL, on behalf of the Pakistan Govt, has reaffirmed to the SL govt Pakistan's desire to provide the SL National Team with the same level of security as that provided to a head of state," more..

Sep 19 (TN) A delegation of senior officers of Sri Lanka on tour to Pakistan paid a visit to Central Police Office. The delegation was briefed about the working of Punjab Police. Twenty senior officers of different departments of Sri Lanka along with officers from Executive Development Institute included the delegation. Additional IG operations briefed the delegation about working system of Punjab Police. In the end of the visit, honorary shields were exchanged between Punjab Police, more..

Sep 19 (FT) Where were you when the lights came on at the Lotus Tower? Wait, what? Are you being serious? Do you mean in the midst of our sea of troubles – from addressing poverty to abolishing presidencies – a singular erection has stolen their thunder? (I promise not to make any more references to the laughable matter of phallic symbols adorning our skyline under the guise of a political emblem.) But seriously! There is little – if anything – to smile about, you might feel. more..