Jan 24 (DM) Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) officials yesterday threatened to send a second string team to Bangladesh for the bilateral tour, Asia Cup and also the ICC World T20 unless the national players signed their annual contracts last night before boarding their plane to Bangladesh in the early hours of today. �Players refused to sign their contracts just like last year and asked SLC for a 20% share of income from ICC events. more..

Jan 24 (DM) Though most believe that the general standard of party politics in Sri Lanka has degenerated to its worst levels it is still the most important arena because the decisions taken at various levels -- the executive, legislature, provincial and local councils -- affect hundreds of thousands if not millions of people. In other fields of activity ranging from sports to stage and screen acting and from medicine to engineering and other professions, what is done is important but more..

Jan 24 (DM) Sama Samaja means �same society� or �equal society�. Thus, though it was used to represent socialism, it had a broad meaning that attracted even bourgeois radicals. Sama Samajism was introduced at a time where liberal democracy in Lanka was in crisis. The Ceylon National Congress (CNC) which vaguely represented liberal democratic thinking in Lankan society could not cope with the rising majoritism among Sinhala leaders. The CNC failed to demand independence or more..

Jan 24 (DM) Popular actor and well-known public servant, Rodney Fraser will be contesting the upcoming PC elections representing the UNP. In a discussion with the, he said he was not contesting just to go along with the trend, but to serve the public better. Q: For more than a decade you were a member of the Maharagama Municipal Council. Why did you suddenly decide to contest Provincial Council elections? more..

Jan 24 (SL) With hydro storage at just 20% and consistent breakdowns at the Norochcholai Lakwijaya coal power station, the country is poised to have to endure electricity cuts in the near future, with no respite in sight, warn CEB engineers. The Lakwijaya Power Plant in Norochcholai has been ridden with problems since it was first commissioned in March 2011, casting shadow over hopes of achieving power efficiency with a 900MW more..

Jan 24 (ST) Despite energetic public campaigns child sexual abuse is reported to be on the rise, with a leading NGO saying four to five cases of abuse are recorded each week. The Govt, however, says the picture is �complicated� by the authorities having to follow the law in laying charges where males having sex with under-aged girls were having �love affairs� and had promised marriage. As police deal with a string of cases of rape and more..

Jan 24 (Island) The JVP-led Ceylon Teachers Service Union (CTSU) has complained to the Human Rights Commission over several issues related to the Grade V scholarship exam and admissions to govt schools. CTSU General Secretary Mahinda Jayasinghe said that the Education Ministry had not issued the cut-off marks for six popular schools including Richmond, Rahula, St. Servatius, Colombo Isipathana, more..

Jan 24 (ENS) The 1974 bilateral agreement between India and Sri Lanka demarcated the boundary between the two countries from Palk Strait to Adam�s Bridge and clarified certain issues handed down unresolved and undetermined from the colonial period. The Centre, in a counter affidavit to a PIL that came up for hearing on Thursday before the first bench of the Madras High Court, maintained that it did not more..

Jan 24 (Island) Out of an estimated collection of Rs. 200 million per day by the private bus industry, most bus owners lost Rs. 10 to Rs. 20 million to extortion and misappropriation of money by crew members, Minister C.B. Ratnayaka said. He pointed out that to eliminate the problem, many private bus owners� associations had asked the govt to introduce a pre-paid card system. A Cabinet paper he submitted had been approved, he said. more..

Jan 24 (Hindu) A review petition against an order of a Division Bench dismissing a public interest litigation seeking adequate measures to protect Tamil fishermen from alleged attacks by the Sri Lankan navy was dismissed at the Madras High Court Bench. Division Bench comprising Justices R. Sudhakar and V.M. Velumani dismissed the review petition citing that there were no sufficient grounds to review the earlier judgment. more..

Jan 24 (NV) The First lady of Sri Lanka Shiranthi Rajapaksa is in Uganda for a four-day official visit. Shiranthi Rajapaksa who is in Uganda on the invitation of the First Lady of Uganda Janet Museveni was welcomed on arrival by the Minister Karooro Okurut. Also at the airport to receive the visiting First Lady was Uganda's High Commissioner to Sri-Lanka and India, Elizabeth Paula Napeyok and more..

Jan 24 (CT) Annually, about 500 children succumb to injuries they sustain due to accidents, the Ministry of Health stated. In addition, about 18,000 children suffer from broken limbs every year. The main reason for such incidents is the lack of proper understanding of health and safety standards concerning children. The ministry further added that over three-fourths of the accidents that occur could be easily avoided, especially more..

Jan 24 (CG) Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa says some groups were given arms by the govt during the war for their own protection from the LTTE, but as the war ended those groups willingly returned the arms following a govt request. He said this while speaking at a function in the Eastern province where, during the war, there were allegations raised by human rights groups that the Govt was working with two LTTE breakaway more..

Jan 24 (CT) In addition to fears about child abuse in schools and en route hazards, parents now have to worry about playground safety following the tragic and needless death of 9-year-old Senetha Wijesinghe on Tuesday. Senetha, a student of Ananda College and the only son in a family of two girls, was crushed to death by a heavy roller he and his little friends chose to play with on that fateful morning. The roller used in some ongoing construction work had been left on a slope more..

Jan 24 (CT) Reading the record of the interview that Tissa Jayatillaka has given to Lackshman Piyasena, I was reminded of a folktale my father was never tired of relating, as I sat on the arm of his easy chair. The story goes as follows: Once upon a time a Guru went on a long voyage with his favourite pupil. One day, night fell as they came to a river that had dried up. The Guru wanted to sleep on the soft sand of the riverbed. Pupil warned him against his choice, pointing to the risk of a sudden flood. more..

Jan 24 (CT) �Though Sri Lanka is still considered a low prevalence country for HIV/AIDS, most local HIV/AIDS experts agree that interventions must shift from general awareness campaigns to behavior change approaches targeted at vulnerable and at-risk populations. Govt bureaucracy, lack of systematic data on risk behaviors, low knowledge levels, infection rates of at-risk groups and limited financial and human resources, however, more..

Jan 24 (LBO) Stocks close up 0.47% Friday with telco and tobacco stocks gaining. All Share Price Index closed 29.49 points higher at 6,255.63, up 0.47%. The S&P SL20 closed 8.97 points higher at 3,478.09, up 0.26%. Turnover was 1.45 billion rupees, down from 1.9 billion rupees a day earlier, with stocks of 78 firms closing in the red against 115 gainers. Aitken Spence closed 1.20 rupees lower at 103.80 rupees with four off market transactions of 386.80 million rupees contributing to 27% more..

Jan 24 (Island) Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi told Parliament that Norochcholai power plant had been shut down for 271 days from time to time due to various reasons since its opening. She said the power plant had been opened on Feb 13, 2011 and during past 1076 days, it had been closed down for 107 days for general maintenance purposes, five days in view of the scheduled commissioning of the Second Phase, 14 days owing to additional reasons and it had been fully shut down more..

Jan 24 (CT) upreme Court yesterday terminated the fundamental rights petition filed by 100 residents of Applewatte, Maligawatta, after both parties signed an agreement to settle the issue, subject to certain conditions. When the matter was taken up before the Bench comprising Justices Chandra Ekanayake, Eva Wanasundara and Rohini Marasinghe, Deputy Solicitor General, Viraj Dayaratna, informed Court that both parties more..

Jan 24 (Reuters) The Sri Lankan rupee traded firmer on Friday, heading for a second straight day of gains, due to exporter dollar conversions in the absence of importer demand for the greenback, dealers said. However, the rupee is expected to fall in the absence of any intervention by the central bank, they said. The central bank said on Monday that inflows of $1 billion from a recent sovereign bond sale would be kept in reserves, contrary to market expectations. more..

Jan 24 (CG) The Govt has initiated a massive diplomatic drive ahead of the UNHRC meeting in Geneva in March, Minister Maithripala Sirisena said today. He said that several Govt Ministers have undertaken overseas visits while more will travel over the next few days to brief foreign Govts on the ground realities in Sri Lanka following the end of the war. Minister said that while President Rajapaksa had briefed heads of states during his recent overseas visits others in the govt have also more..

Jan 24 (Island) Implementing pictorial warnings on cigarette packets had been blocked by certain "powerful and invisible" hands of tobacco companies, Parliament was told. JVP MP Anura Kumara Dissanayake said that the govt, specially the Health Ministry and the National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol had done a tremendous task that should be complimented in bringing about regulations to print pictorial more..

Jan 24 (CG) Officers of Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) confiscated Sri Lanka-bound 2.075 kg heroin from a Chennai resident at Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh yesterday. Seized contraband is worth Indian Rs 5 crore in the international market. Accused Rabiq Suleman, 45 was arrested from near Nana kheda bus stand on a specific intelligence input, said sources. He bought heroin from a small village near Ujjain and had plans to smuggle the contraband to Sri Lanka, said a CNB official. more..

Jan 24 (Island) Principals and teachers in govt schools yesterday staged a poster protest at the Borella junction against delays in rectifying anomalies in their salaries and promotions. Operational Committee member of the Teachers-Principals Trade Union Joint Committee Mahinda Jayasinghe said that more than 70,000 teachers were waiting for promotions since 2010, but the govt was still to act on the matter. "We haven�t got promotions since December 31, 2010," more..

Jan 24 (PTI) Sri Lanka on Friday announced it will release 61 Indian fishermen held in the country for alleged poaching, days after the two sides agreed to resolve the issue that has become an irritant in bilateral ties. �As per the arrangements, India is to release 59 Sri Lankans and 3 trawlers. Sri Lanka would release 61 Indian fishermen and 15 boats,� Fisheries Ministry spokesman Narendra Rajapaksa said. Development came after more..

Jan 24 (LT) A member of the Central Committee of JHU Ms. Nirosha Athukorala has left the party. She has been dissatisfied regarding the various conflicts that exist within the party. She has got the membership of the SLFP today on an invitation from the Minister Basil Rajapaksa. She is one of the few who had spent a large amount of money on JHU for elections. However, she has said it is better to join the SLFP, the main political party of the UPFA, than staying in the JHU which pretends to oppose more..

Jan 24 (CG) Northern Province Chief Minister C.V Wigneswaran says President Rajapaksa is breaking all his promises given to the Tamils and the international community. Wigneswaran said that the Govt had made so many promises to the TNA but has failed to implement those promises. He says President Rajapaksa is showing to world what the TNA had earlier warned of. He says now the Govt is more focused now on the next provincial council elections and not the UNHRC session more..

Jan 24 (DM) UNP MP Gayantha Karunathilaka today spoke of a crisis within the Govt over the chief ministerial posts even before submitting nominations with some members lashing out at the former chief ministers. �Issues over the chief ministerial postsare emerging within the SLFP. This is evident by the posters and cutouts displayed by some UPFA candidates. Some are urging for the appointment of a chief minister from Colombo more..

Jan 24 (DM) Beauty alone will not be a factor when selecting UPFA candidates for the elections to the Western and Southern Provincial Councils, SLFP General Secretary Maithripala Sirisena said today. He said there was no certainty that tele-drama or film actors or actress who appeared before the two nomination boards would get UPFA nominations. The minister said, however, all former UPFA members of the Western and Southern Provincial Councils would be nominated. more..

Jan 24 (SMH) Hitting a tennis ball around the streets of Galle was how a man with one of the longest surnames in world cricket learnt the game. Eastlake's Sri Lankan import Anil Rideegammanagedera has brought the same technique that has yielded 6500 first-class runs and more than 300 wickets to the ACT region's up-and-coming junior talent. While coaching is something the 37-year-old is passionate about, the veteran all-rounder also has plenty to offer the Demons more..

Jan 24 (LT) Ms. Tamara Kunanayakam, who had been appointed as the Sri Lanka�s Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva but was removed within a short period of nine months, says at no time was she contacted or consulted by any Govt official on reappointing her to her earlier post or on any other matter since her departure from the diplomatic service in July 2012. She says the news item carried by more..

Jan 24 (CG) Elections Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya met political party secretaries today and discussed the upcoming Provincial Council elections. At the meeting the Polls Chief had assured transparency when counting the ballots following the elections, UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayake said. Meanwhile Attanayake said that popularity and not policy seems to be the stand adopted by some to try and win the Provincial Council elections this year. more..

Jan 24 (NS) Australian PM Tony Abbott made a stopover in Sri Lanka a while ago on his way back to Australia. He was received by PM D.M. Jayaratne at the Katunayake Airport. He was on his way to Australia after a foreign tour and had just visited Sri Lanka. Minister GL Pieris, MP Namal Rajapaksa, Australian High Commissioner, Robyn Mudie, Chairman, Airport and Civil Aviation Services Prasanna Wickamasuriya were among those who met with Abbott. more..

Jan 24 (TOI) Union minister G K Vasan on Friday said the Katchatheevu agreement with Sri Lanka should be reviewed to ensure the fishing rights of Indian fishermen. The minister expressed his opinion while speaking to newspersons in Chennai, a day after the Centre informed the Madras high court that Katchatheevu belongs to Sri Lanka and that Indian fishermen have no right to fish near the islet. more..

Jan 24 (Island) The Leadership Council (LC) of the UNP was to meet last evening in Parliament to discuss among other matters the letter handed over to its Chairman Karu Jayasuriya by nine UNP MPs on Tuesday requesting nominations for reformists Maithri Gunaratne and Shiral Lakthilaka to contest the Southern and Western Provincial Council elections respectively in March. An LC source said that the request of the nine UNP MPs would be studied fully and serious consideration given more..

Jan 24 (DM) The Health Ministry has decided to ban 19 varieties of food flavours with effect from July 1 this year following instructions of the Food Advisory Committee, the Ministry said. Accordingly the importation, manufacture, storage, distribution or selling of food flavours without a valid certificate of the concerned authorities from their countries of origin, would be banned. Among the flavours to be banned are Aloin, Berberine, Beta-Azarone and Cinnamyl Anthracillate, Cade Oil, more..

Jan 24 (DM) Following are excerpts of the panel discussion held as part of the �Invest Sri Lanka� Investor Forum, that concluded in Singapore this week. High Commissioner of SL to Singapore, Ferial Ashraff, Senior Minister Dr. Sarath Amnugama, Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal, SEC Chairman Dr Nalaka Godahewa, and CSE Chairman Krishan Balendra, who participated at the discussion, answered questions more..

Jan 25 (NS) A workshop held last year led to the creation of the blog, Written for Reconciliation. Here contributors spoke about the various aspects of reconciliation and how we, as the youth of the nation, could help understand and accept people regardless of their ethnicity or gender. Through this blog, the contributors themselves came together and accepted that reconciliation is easier said than done. Harmony between various ethnic communities is not easy to achieve. more..

Jan 25 (NS) Skateboarding has been around for over five decades, first originating among young Californians looking for something to surf when the waves were flat. However to Sri Lanka, it is still a somewhat novel concept, but the young and energetic duo Hash Bandara and Umanga Samarasinghe hopes to change this. Bringing their expertise in fashion and graphic designing together with skateboarding Hash and Umanga have dared to push limits. more..

Jan 25 (SO) More than two years after the first expressway experience of Sri Lanka with the opening of the Southern Highway in November 2011, people are now aware of the importance of having high mobility road network in the country to connect not only the Southern part of the country with the capital Colombo but also the rest of the country. When their two days journey to the south is reduced to just one day, and hours long more..