Oct 31 (Island) An urgent review of Sri Lanka�s relationship with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) was necessary in the wake of the humanitarian agency�s refusal to accommodate Major General Jagath Dias, on a programme scheduled to be held in Australia, govt sources said. Perhaps, the ICRC�s presence here was no longer necessary due to the conclusion of the conflict four years ago, more..

Oct 31 (CT) �Now remember� said the coach �You must always get behind the ball� �Now, how do I do that?� demanded the young cricketer �Sure it�s the same all the way around!� To the followers of the local sporting scene the FIFA imposed life ban on Manilal Fernando, the former big man of Sri Lankan soccer, would be distressing news indeed. It is not that we have high expectations of our sports administrators. When everything else around is so rotten to expect superior integrity more..

Oct 31 (CT) According to the 'Buddha Charitha', the Life of the Enlightened One, Maha Pajapati Gotami, the Buddha's maternal aunt and adoptive mother (having raised him after the death of her sister, Queen Maya, the Buddha's birth mother) was the first woman to request ordination from the Buddha and to join the Sangha Order. The Buddha, it is said, had refused her initial request for ordination, going off to Vesali. Undaunted, Gotami is said to have cut off her hair, donned yellow robes and more..

Oct 31 (LBO) SriLankan Airlines is negotiating a US$ 250 million facility for working capital. The carrier is looking for 4-year funding, from international markets CEO Kapila Chandrasena said. SriLankan has mapped out an ambitious re-fleeting program involving fuel-efficient Airbus A-350 and new A3330 aircraft to replace its gas guzzling ageing A330 and A340 aircraft and turnaround its finances. But until the new aircraft comes, the airline is expected to lose money. more..

Oct 31 (Island) The actions of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and Opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe were similar when it came to cheating the public with false promises, UNP Vocational Joint Trade Union Alliance (VJTUA) member Ananda Palitha charged. Palitha said the promise of the former Petroleum and Industries Minister, to look into the substandard fuel imported by Vitol Group of Companies and the assurance given by Wickremesinghe, that he would more..

Oct 31 (Xinhua) 37 countries have confirmed attendance for the main Commonwealth summit to take place in Sri Lanka next month despite ongoing protest over human rights violations. Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said that the bulk of the 53 Commonwealth members have already confirmed participation. "At this point 37 countries have confirmed their attendance. With that affirmation it is safe to say that participation more..

Oct 31 (Island) Senior members of the UNP were making misleading statements despite party leader Ranil Wickremasinghe�s positive response to some of the points in the eight-point proposal on reforming the party made by the bhikkus, Ven. Girambe Ananda Thera said. Thera said that those senior UNP members were attempting to sabotage efforts to reform the party due to the fear of losing their positions. One of the important proposals made by the United Bhikku Front (UBF) is more..

Oct 31 (LB) A Sri Lankan is among the recipients of the Commonwealth's 2013 Youth Worker Awards held at the Commonwealth Secretariat headquarters in London, UK on Wednesday. Sri Lanka's women's rights activist Priyadarshini Ariyaratne was the Asia Regional Winner of the Commonwealth Youth Worker Award. The winners were announced at the event and Ms. Ariyaratne was one of the four recipients of the Youth Worker Awards. Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General more..

Oct 31 (Xinhua) A mega development project to build a 1.43 billion U.S. dollar port city along the shoreline of Colombo will be put for cabinet approval next month with construction expected to begin in December. The project, which aims to reclaim a 230 hectare site from the sea to build a mini-city that is expected to include a Formula 1 racetrack, is projected by the Sri Lankan govt to attract 15 billion U.S. dollars in investment more..

Oct 31 (AD) The National Transport Commission says that 18 private luxury buses will be granted permission to operate on the Colombo-Katunayake Expressway (CKE). The bus fare for traveling on Luxury Buses will be Rs 125 while Super Luxury Buses will charge Rs 180 per person. Sri Lanka�s second expressway, linking the BIA in Katunayake and the capital Colombo, allows motorists to travel to Colombo in 20 minutes from the airport instead of the regular two hours duration in the past. more..

Oct 31 (Island) The Court of Appeal has, in a recent judgement, said that the Commissioner General of Prisons is not entitled to keep any accused appellant in his custody, when petitioner is acquitted by the Court of Appeal. The Court has said it is not necessary for the prison authorities to produce the accused appellant before the High Court Judge to get a release order. Appellate Court has directed the Commissioner General of Prisons to release the accused appellant from prison custody, more..

Oct 31 (USE) U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka Michele Sison paid a visit to Youth Empowerment Grantee Vadamarachchi Organization of the Deaf (VOD) on Oct 30. This Jaffna-based organization recently participated in a program with the Southern Province Deaf Association in a residential youth camp. The objectives of the program were to build understanding and bridge differences among Muslim, Tamil, and more..

Oct 31 (APP) Mission Commander of the visiting Pakistani Naval Ships PNS Khaibar and PNS Nasr, Commodore Ali Abbas, SI(M), Commander 25th Destroyer Squadron called on the Commander Western Naval Area, Director Operations Sri Lanka Navy and High Commissioner of Pakistan alongwith Commanding Officers of the ships. Commodore Ali Abbas had earlier visited Sri Lanka in the aftermath of tsunami of 2004 and was then Commanding PNS Khaibar. He stayed at port of Colombo and more..

Oct 31 (CT) A landmark international conference to highlight and deliberate on issues relating to collegiate education, with regional participation, will be held at the Lighthouse Hotel, Galle, from 8 � 10 November. The theme of the conference will be 'Leadership to Inspire Learning.' The international parley, organized by key personnel of the Colombo- based international schools who come under the common banner - The International Schools of Sri Lanka (TISSL), will play hosts to more..

Oct 31 (PTI) Amid speculations over PM Manmohan Singh's participation in the CHOGM at Colombo next month, DMK reiterated that India should boycott it to register protest over the alleged war crimes against Tamils in Sri Lanka. In a sharp reaction to reports in a section of the press that Singh was likely to attend the meet, DMK chief M Karunanidhi said people of TN expect that there should not even be a symbolic participation more..

Oct 31 (DN) The Naval Deployment Panama located in the South Eastern Naval Area was commissioned as SLNS Mahanaga by Navy Commander Vice Admiral Jayanath Colombage. In keeping with traditional naval customs, the Navy Commander handed over the Commissioning Warrant to the SLNS Mahanaga Commanding Officer Captain PAJN Ponnamperuma who read it out declaring the commissioning of the naval base. The Commissioning Pennant was hoisted more..

Oct 31 (PTI) A Sri Lankan court on Thursday extended the judicial remand of 39 fishermen of Karaikal and Rameswaram, arrested by the Lankan navy last month for allegedly fishing in their waters. Four fishermen from Rameswaram were arrested on Oct 4, while 35 belonging to Karaikal were arrested on Oct 14 and lodged in Vavuniya and Jaffna prisons respectively. Mannar court magistrate Aanandhi Kanagarathinam extended the remand of the four Rameswaram fishermen till Nov 13, more..

Oct 31 (Hindu) PM Manmohan Singh has told Union Minister G.K. Vasan that a decision on his participation in the CHOGM would be taken at the appropriate time keeping in mind the sentiments of Tamils� and a recent resolution passed by the TN Legislative Assembly in this regard. He conveyed this to Mr. Vasan when he met the PM today and highlighted about the expectations of Tamils� on the need to boycott CHOGM by India. more..

Oct 31 (USE) I congratulate Chief Minister Vigneswaran on his success in the recent northern provincial elections. This was an historic milestone. The high turnout and participation in the province was a victory for the democratic process. The Chief Minister and his provincial council have begun the important work of meeting the needs and expectations of the citizen of the Northern Province. I also commend your efforts to reach out to all communities within Sri Lanka. more..

Oct 31 (CT) The Prisons Department yesterday refuted the claim made by the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, Rashida Manjoo, that Sri Lankan women prisoners are subjected to treatment considered more harsh than that meted out to men. Deputy Commissioner of the Department, G.B. Wijetunge, said he does not agree with the contents of Manjoo's report, adding that women prisoners are not treated any differently from their male counterparts. more..

Oct 31 (AD) Private and SLTB bus fares will be increased by 7% from tomorrow, the National Transport Commission (NTC) said. Southern Expressway bus fares from Maharagama to Galle will also be increased from Rs 470 to Rs 500. Ministry of Private Transport on Oct 12 announced that private bus fares will be increased by 7% with effect from Nov 1 and that the relevant cabinet paper submitted by the Minister has been granted approval. more..

Oct 31 (HEO) The family of a pizza delivery driver who was stabbed to death as he delivered his last ever order before starting a dream job have described him as "the most caring and loving son a parent could have". Thavisha Peiris, 25, was killed on Sunday night as he was delivering a Domino's take-away in the Southey area of Sheffield. Speaking from their family home in Sri Lanka, his father Sarath Mahinda Peiris and mother Sudarma Narangoda said: "We sent our son to the UK to study more..

Oct 31 (DN) The CHOGM will bring wide international recognition to Sri Lanka with President Rajapaksa assuming the chair of Commonwealth Heads of Govt, Justice Minister Rauf Hakeem said. Justice Minister Rauf Hakeem expressed these views addressing a meeting at the SLMC office at Mahaiyawa, Kandy. "After assuming the CHOGM chair, President Rajapaksa will be elevated to the position of a leader responsible for the entire Commonwealth's activities in addition to more..

Oct 31 (Reuters) Allan Border, Steve Waugh, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Muttiah Muralitharan are among the cricketers who will accompany Ian Botham at various points of his latest charity walk in Sri Lanka. Former England great Botham starts his expedition on Friday in Kilinochchi in the north of the country and will cover 160km in eight days before finishing at the Seenigama cricket ground in the south. more..

Oct 31 (CT) Residents of Mount Lavinia complain that 'civil policemen' have been visiting their homes to collect personal information from them with no valid reason or formal clarification given for such an exercise. A resident said, "A couple of men came to my house with a form, asking me to fill it out. I demanded that they show some means of identification as the form had no government seal or any official govt identification on it. It was simply two pieces of printed paper with a sheet of more..

Oct 31 (AAP) Australian and Indian foreign ministers say they will not follow Canada in boycotting the CHOGM in Sri Lanka due to concerns over the country's human rights issues. Speaking at a press conference with her Indian counterpart Salman Khurshid in Perth on Thursday, Julie Bishop said it was important to engage with Sri Lanka as it rebuilt itself in the aftermath of a bloody 30-year civil conflict. "It's our view that Commonwealth countries should work with SL to meet the challenges more..

Oct 31 (DM) Sri Lanka has come to the 60th position in the World Prosperity Index above neighbouring India in 106th spot, Nepal at 102 and Bangladesh at 103. In the 'Prosperity Index' ranking of 142 countries compiled by London-based Legatum Institute. Sri Lanka has moved up eleven places to 60th in overall Prosperity since 2009. Over the past five years, the country has increased twelve places to 35th in Social Capital sub-index, more..