Sept 20 (SO) The last phase of the Local Govt election campaign of 2011 is gradually but steadily gathering speed and all major political parties and some independent groups are aggressively involved in their propaganda activities to capture the power of the remaining 23 Local Bodies. Out of those 23 Local Bodies, the Nuwara Eliya Municipal Council is one of the most significant local bodies in the country, commanding the respect and admiration of the Central Govt. more..

Sept 20 (DM) As a society develops we assign more value to time. Usually the rich value their time more than the poor. But the not-so-rich who are paid on a daily basis know the value of their time well, especially what it would cost them to skip work in order to obtain some govt service (what economists call opportunity cost). Sri Lanka is now a middle-income country. It�s high time we improve the delivery of govt services. Its principal city, Colombo, is the ideal place for govt to start more..

Sept 20 (DM) Successive Govts declare that paddy cultivation is an integral part in the country�s development plan, since independence when the first Prime Minister D.S. Senanayake declared to regain the country�s lost glory to a time when Sri Lanka was known as the epicentre of grain production. Self-sufficiency in grain is known to be the underlying objective in the country�s development master plan as it had been decades ago. But still paddy farming remains the poorest profession and more..

Sept 20 (ST) His disciples asked him, �Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?� �Neither this man nor his parents sinned,� said Jesus, �but this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.� John 2: 2-3 (NIV). These words from the Bible constantly inspired Margaret, mother of Don Patrick Mervin Weerakkody to be positive about her youngest son�s blindness. Though he could perceive light and make out obstacles at birth, more..

Sept 20 (Island) Poor as this country may be, it will surely rank among the richest in the world if the assets of politicians are made the criterion for gauging prosperity. Time was when men and women of integrity born with the proverbial silver spoon in the mouth, entered politics to serve the masses and died paupers, having exhausted all their wealth for the benefit of the public. But, no longer do politicians die poor in this land. (They may make the poor die for them so that they could live rich!) more..

Sept 20 (DM) During the past few decades, we have seen a serious deterioration in the standards of English in Sri Lanka and it is now more a case of English without a smile or English with tears. One of the main reasons was the shortsighted, party politically oriented Sinhala-only policy, which was obliviously meant to win the 1956 elections on a narrow racial basis. Fortunately the govt is now trying to undo this damage because without a command of the English language, millions of Lankans are more..

Sept 20 (FT) Sri Lanka has been re-elected unanimously as Chairman of the Commonwealth Telecommunications Organisation (CTO) at the 51st Council Meeting held at Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. President�s Secretary Lalith Weeratunga as Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) Chairman was supposed to chair meetings of the council on behalf of Sri Lanka upon its election as Chairman at the 50th Council Meeting held in Colombo in 2010. more..

Sept 20 (FT) Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) has put forward a proposal to revise the industry sector classification of listed companies in line with their revenue generating activities. However, the proposed sector definitions remain the same and are Banks, Finance and Insurance, Beverages Food and Tobacco, Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals, Construction and Engineering, Diversified Holdings, Footwear and Textile, Healthcare, Leisure, Investment Trust, Information Technology, more..

Sept 20 (GV) Who is �Pulidaran?� What everyone knows � �On July 15, 2008, Pulidaran reportedly shot Kanapathipillai alias Satchi Master, while in Batticaloa prison. What everyone does not, or chooses to ignore � �Pulidaran was a mere boy of 14 when he was arrested under suspicion of terrorism. Pulidaran was held for far longer than 18 months. He is now 29. He was detained for 14 long years before any charges were brought against him. In the news, Pulidaran was described as a LTTE cadre. more..

Sept 20 (Island) Nearly 900 abortions are performed in the country daily, the Family Health Bureau of Sri Lanka says. "Approximately 250,000 abortions are done annually in the country compared to the 380,000 annual births," Consultant Community Physician Dr. Kapila Jayaratne said. The lowest number of abortions has been recorded in 2005 with 660 cases per day. Dr. Jayaratne said that annually about 17 lives were lost due to illegal abortions. more..

Sept 20 (DN) Minister Douglas Devananda instructed the Jaffna mayor and municipal commissioner to fill the 23 vacancies in the Jaffna Municipal Council with casual employees attached to it, on permanent basis. He said so at a meeting with Northern Province Workers Union representatives in Jaffna recently. He also instructed to issue uniforms to all labourers of the council. The minister agreed to provide labourers with 50 bicycles twice a year, from funds from the Maheshwary Foundation. more..

Sept 20 (DN) Previous governments closed some government departments or converted them into corporations, semi government institutions and private companies. But the Mahinda Rajapaksa government is converting government corporations into departments, safeguarding the right of the employees and securing their pension rights. Thus the government will soon establish the Divineguma Combined rural Development Department, Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa said. more..

Sept 20 (LBO) A Sri Lankan student seeking to study in the United Kingdom was arrested for fraud because she submitted a false education certificate with her visa application, the British high commission said. "The UK Border Agency referred the case to the Sri Lankan police," it said in a statement. "The applicant claims that she paid an agent to provide her with the false document." In addition to the police investigation, the applicant also faces a ban of more..

Sept 20 (Island) Fisheries Minister Rajitha Senaratne promised northern fishermen that action will soon be taken, on the directives of President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, to halt large scale poaching by Indian fishermen in Lanka waters. He said the Coast Conservation Task Force would be actively deployed to prevent fishing by Indian fishermen. The Sri Lankan government would not tolerate poaching by Indian fishermen, more..

Sept 20 (Island) The National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) system, introduced by The Tertiary and Vocational Education Commission (TVEC), for the Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) sector of Sri Lanka, has already progressed to an acceptable level and it has made a positive impact in improving relevance and quality of the TVET sector of the country, a spokesman for TVEC said. He said the NVQ system, introduced in association with the skills Development project, funded by more..

Sept 20 (Island) The ruling UPFA yesterday challenged the UNP to win the Colombo Municipal Council at the forthcoming local govt elections. Predicting that the UPFA would bag all 23 local govt bodies at the election, its General Secretary Minister Susil Premajayantha said they would score a landslide victory in Colombo. Addressing the weekly media briefing, he said that UNPers were disappointed with the party�s internal crisis and had gathered around the UPFA. more..

Sept 20 (ST) Voting applications for handicapped people will be issued from tomorrow, Monday (19) by the respective grama niladaris. According to Elections Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya, there is no due date for the submission of these applications, and they could even be submitted on election day. A medical certificate from a registered medical practitioner, certifying the disability of the handicapped voter, is necessary to collect the applications from the grama niladaris. more..

Sept 20 (DM) The Moneragala Cashew Plantations� Corporation stated that out of the 200 acres leased out to the Tag: Land GrabCorporation in the Suduwathura Ara area of Moneragala about 150 acres had been forcibly acquired by an organised gang on September 16. These lands had been earmarked for the growing of Cashew and to popularize its growth and these lands were vested with the Moneragala Cashew Plantation Corporation by the Moneragala Divisional Secretary about 5 years ago. more..

Sept 20 (DN) The government which was elected by the common masses is committed to make Colombo an attractive city, while ensuring better living standards for all low income groups including shanty dwellers, Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara said yesterday. The minister said that a majority of pavement vendors in Colombo city have been relocated in spacious stalls. He said that those who were involved in self-employment ventures have also been given pride of place at these special market complexes. more..

Sept 20 (Island) The Health Ministry, in collaboration with the Ministry of Public Administration and Local Govt, would carry out a survey to assess the number of long-term patients and differently abled persons being taken care of at home, during a day in the National Health Week (NHW). The spokesman for the Health Ministry said that they had set apart the sixth day of the NHW to assess the number of long-term patients being taken care of at home. He said that assessments would help more..

Sept 20 (DM) Minister Mervyn Silva has said it was he who prevented animal sacrifice after King Bimbisara during the Buddha�s day. �It was Mervyn Silva who after King Bimbisara during Buddha�s days,� Minister Silva said addressing a gathering at the Kelaniya Rajamaha Viharaya on Sunday evening, where a religious ceremony was held to invoke blessing on the minister. Last week, Minister Silva prevented a mass animal sacrifice that was scheduled to be held at the more..

Sept 20 (DM) The UNP Colombo mayoral candidate yesterday assured his party would not allow anyone to suppress the rights of city dwellers to reside in a place of their choice and would do everything possible to stop forcible evictions. Mayoral candidate A.J.M. Muzammil will launch his manifesto on Thursday and it is expected to comprise a plan to develop the Beira Lake area, the appointment of an ombudsman to receive complains of city dwellers, to appoint an advisory committee for the development of more..

Sept 20 (AT) The newly appointed Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the Federal Republic of Germany, Sarath Kongahage, Attorney-at-Law, presented his credentials in Berlin to President of the Federal Republic of Germany, Mr. Christian Wulff. After presenting the credential, on 2nd September, Ambassador Kongahage was accorded with a ceremonial guard of honor by the Bundeswehr. The new Ambassador Kongahage born on 25th June 1952, a soft spoken Sauv� diplomat more..

Sept 20 (DN) Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said that the govt would take all possible measures to eliminate underworld activities, extortion and other crimes that affect the smooth flow of businesses and society and sought the support of the business community to achieve this objective. He said that it was the responsibility of the government to ensure security and develop a friendly environment in Colombo, which is the commercial hub, to develop the country, more..

Sept 20 (SO) The Travels and Holidays Network, a Toronto and UK based Travel Event Management team with the assistance of the Consulate General of Sri Lanka, in Toronto is organising �Wonder Sri Lanka� Travel and Trade Show on 16th and 17th of October 2011 to promote Sri Lankan Tourism and Trade in North America in Toronto, Canada. This is the first ever Sri Lankan Tourism, Trade and Cultural event organised in North America and the show will present a glimpse of the rich and diverse cultural traditions and more..

Sept 20 (DN) A Sri Lankan company has been selected by the Iraqi government for an engineering consultancy services contract to implement gas power projects in Iraq for the first time in history. BELA International Limited, a 100 percent Sri Lankan company, was selected by the Iraqi Electricity Ministry through an international competitive bidding process for the consultancy contract. This is a major victory and an achievement for Sri Lanka as BELA won this contract after more..

Sept 20 (Island) The government of Sri Lanka says those continuing to represent the LTTE abroad, in spite of the eradication of the group�s conventional fighting forces in May two years ago, should be held responsible for accountability issues. The government insists that the killing of the top LTTE leadership shouldn�t free those LTTE operatives living abroad, particularly in Europe and North America of accountability for three decades of violence. more..

Sept 20 (DM) About 100 complaints have been received by the Bribery Commission during the past two months regarding bribes allegedly taken by school principals in lieu of grade one admissions next year, Commission Investigating Bribery or Corruption Allegations Chairman and Former Supreme Court Judge Jagath Balapatabendi said. He said most of the complaints were against principals in the Western Province while 80% of the complaints could not be probed as they came from anonymous sources. more..

Sept 20 (DM) The committee that probed the controversial construction of a road through the Sinharaja rain forest has suggested that another committee comprising officials of the Forest Conservation Department, Land Reforms Commission, Central Environment Authority, the Divisional Secretariat and the Pradeshiya Sabha should look into the issue and make recommendations. The road construction was suspended last week after protests by more..

Sept 20 (DM) The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has postponed the review of the country�s economic situation till December before releasing the ninth tranche of the US$ 2.9 billion stand-by facility which was scheduled to have been released in August, officials said. But informed sources said the IMF had withheld the tranche because of the dismal performance by state institutions and the govt�s failure to properly manage the exchange rate. more..

Sept 20 (DM) There were 357 prisoners on death row at the moment with some having served over 15 years while waiting for their sentences to be carried out, Commissioner General of Prisons P. W. Kodippili said. Though successive govts have failed to carry out a hanging since 1976 several persons had received death sentences from time to time. Kodippili said that the post of hangman had fallen vacant and applications would be called from interested persons to fill this vacancy as soon as possible. more..

Sept 20 (CI) Trinidad & Tobago added to their list of happy memories in Hyderabad by taking a big stride towards qualifying for the main draw of the Champions League Twenty20 with a hard-fought win over Ruhuna. They first stifled Ruhuna by taking the pace off the ball, keeping the Sri Lankan champions to 138, but the same tactic worked for Ruhuna as well, until Sherwin Ganga clobbered 39 off 15 deliveries to seal a low-scoring game. more..

Sept 20 (DM) Railway workers charged that the import of low quality fibre power sets from India was the cause of the recent Alawwa train collision and not the inefficiencies of railway workers as claimed by transport authorities. The Organization for Protection of the Properties and the Rights of Railway Employees said railway authorities should discontinue the use of the low quality power sets. They said the Railway Department had turned a deaf ear to warnings by more..

Sept 20 (DM) The Lanka Indian Oil Company (LIOC) yesterday reduced the price of diesel by Rs. 3 a litre, the company announced yesterday. The price of diesel at LIOC sheds will be Rs. 82 a litre while the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) sells a litre of diesel at Rs.76. A CPC official said it would not reduce diesel prices. Sources said LIOC had decided to reduce diesel prices after its islandwide market share dropped more..

Sept 20 (HNS) The Sri Lankan police have begun investigations into a large-scale money laundering racket carried out in Colombo which involved money being transferred from Maldives to illegal money transfer agents in Sri Lanka. The investigation comes in the backdrop of several raids carried into such illegal money transfer agencies. �We have identified several locations in which Maldivians had transferred money through these agents in Colombo. more..

Sept 20 (Island) The Mahinda Rajapaksa regime having evicted the poor from Colombo and selling their lands to foreigners was shamelessly asking for their votes to rule the CMC, the UNP said. UNP MP Gayantha Karunathillake said that the govt had earlier said that the evicted persons will be relocated in far off Avissawella but with elections round the corner it was as usual making misleading statements, to the effect that new houses will be built within Colombo itself. more..

Sept 20 (AFP) Tamils from across Europe demonstrated at the UN's European headquarters on Monday, calling for a probe into alleged war crimes committed by Sri Lanka at the end of the country's 2009 civil war. According to local police, around 1,000 protesters gathered in Geneva's iconic Place des Nations, to urge the Human Rights Council to investigate the killing of tens of thousands of civilians by Sri Lankan forces in the final push of the country's more..

Sept 20 (DM) The National Secretary of the Children�s Rights Advisory Network (CRAN) Dr. I.M. Chandana Bandara said statistically 250,000 children between 05 and 14 years of age were not attending school. Addressing a ceremony to mark the International Literacy Day at the Hindu Tamil School in Kurunegala he said more than 8% of the children in the estate sector, handicapped children, and those of low income families were not attending school. more..

Sept 20 (Island) The Ministry of Land and Land Development has taken steps to compensate land owners of the Northern and Eastern Provinces, whose lands had been acquired for military purposes, an official from the ministry said. "Nearly 56 land owners who had owned 78 acres of land near the Karainagar Navy camp were compensated last week after 25 years," the Senior Assistant Secretary to the ministry P. M. P. Udayakantha said. more..