Oct 24 (Island) Accusing President Rajapaksa of having deceived the public sector, National Trade Union Centre affiliated to the JVP called for major trade union campaign to win their demands. President of the party�s trade union arm K.D. Lal Kantha, said that President Rajapaksa in his capacity as the Minister of Finance and Planning had not taken into consideration the JVP�s demand for Rs. 10,000 salary increase. more..

Oct 24 (Island) Director General (DG) of Wildlife Conservation H.D. Ratnayake disclosed that the Ministry of Economic Development had given clearance to his human resources strapped Department to recruit 210 Wildlife guards to take forward its programme to curb the Human�Elephant Conflict around the country. He said clearance also had been given to purchase 30 double cabs and 40 Single Cabs to the Department Funds had also been allocated to District Secretaries to re-erect more..

Oct 24 (FT) The much-awaited Budget 2015 was yesterday presented by the Govt as focused on national development and industries, but dismissed by the Opposition as election-targeted relief. President Rajapaksa punctually delivered the extensive Budget, beginning with an exhaustive recap of economic fundamentals that prevailed before 2004 and initiatives that were put in place subsequently by his Govt. �Having restored security and peace during the first five years and more..

Oct 24 (Island) President Rajapaksa yesterday presented his tenth budget in Parliament. Having presented the budget for the next fiscal year, a smiling President Rajapaksa asked the opposition, "How is the Budget presented by a godaya [a country bumpkin]?" He was responding to a UNP MP who had claimed that the country was being ruined by a cabal of �country bumpkins�. Earlier, the govt advanced the presentation of more..

Oct 24 (DM) While the 2015 budget was being presented by President Rajapaksa in parliament yesterday, much public attention was focused on frauds and shady deals in a multitude of projects run by huge Chinese companies, the national and international controversies or complications arising from these. Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi responding in parliament to a question raised by UNP�s economic activist Harsha de Silva revealed on Thursday that the govt had lost more than more..

Oct 24 (DM) There are times that we should ditch our nation state identity and think as members of humanity to save the Earth�s people from a common enemy or a threat. This message has been underscored in many a Hollywood movie like �Independence Day� though in the end it is the American hero who saves the Earth. But perhaps the first time, a real-life situation has arisen for the entire world to come together and fight a common enemy which, if not controlled or conquered, more..

Oct 24 (PTI) Slamming BJP govt's policy vis-a-vis Sri Lanka, party's Tamil Nadu ally MDMK on Saturday said that it was acting against the minority Tamils and warned that this may have its repercussions in the future. Party founder Vaiko took objection to senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy's demand that India's highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna, be conferred on Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, more..

Oct 24 (SL) Sri Lankan politics is really about how good a salesman you are. The voter patterns in the post independent country suggests that if the package on offer is attractive, very little interest is placed on the contents. Sadly that has also had its more than safe share of inclusion in the candidates the country continues to represent. The ramifications of this foolhardy approach to a country acutely in need of peace and reconciliation more..

Oct 24 (ST) He was the Assistant Station Master of the Jaffna railway station nearly 30 years ago. Today he has returned as the Station Master to the place he considers �home�. Narayanasamy Thavananthan recalling his time there from 1983 to 1990-when train services were terminated due to the conflict- says one of the main changes he sees is the newly constructed railway station with its Dravidian design. more..

Oct 24 (DBS) Karl Marx expanded famously on Friedrich Hegel�s remark about �history� occurring twice and stated that history repeats firstly as tragedy and secondly as farce. If a recent development in Sri Lanka runs its full course as intended, then one may very well say history repeats itself in Sri Lanka as a tragic farce or farcical tragedy when it comes to Ranil Wickremesinghe. With a presidential election being anticipated more..

Oct 24 (Island) The �Presidential Election� budget presented by President Rajapaksa yesterday had made a song and dance about increasing the minimum salary to Rs. 15,000 but the actual difference was only Rs. 750 the UNP said. Pointing out that the budget proposals were a desperate attempt to fool the people in the run-up to the next presidential election by targeting every segment of society, UNP MP�s Harsha de Silva more..

Oct 24 (DM) Western �creationists� were trying to rob Sri Lanka of crucial data related to extra-terrestrial life to further their agenda and undermine Buddhist teachings on the universe, Minister Wimal Weerawansa has said. Speaking at a religious event at a temple in Hanwella, Mr. Weerawansa charged that a team of �sudu mahaththuru� (white gentlemen) from an international space research institute had more..

Oct 24 (ANI) Sri Lanka's Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Jayantha Perera, will leave for India tomorrow on a five-day visit. Navy Commander Kosala Warnakulasuriya, said that Vice Admiral Perera is visiting India at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Admiral R.K. Dhowan. Vice Admiral Perera's visit to India will be taking place soon after the visit of Sri Lankan Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa's meeting with more..

Oct 24 (PTI) A commemorative postage stamp on Sri Lankan Buddhist monk Anagarika Dharmapala, who is credited to have revived Buddhism in India in the 19th century, was released here today by President Pranab Mukherjee "I congratulate the Department of Posts for taking this initiative of bringing out a commemorative postage stamp on Anagarika Dharmapala. "I hope that this gesture will contribute towards further more..

Oct 24 (CT) Nearly 22% of last year's (2013) govt revenue was generated through the Value Added Tax (VAT), the data shows. Next came Excise duty, also with 22% of total govt revenue (inclusive of tax revenue), Income Tax (18%), Non-Tax Revenue (12%) and Customs Import Duty (7%), amongst others. Imposition of VAT on wholesale and retail trade and better performance in certain sectors such as hotels, restaurants and catering services more..

Oct 24 (CG) The UNP today informed parliament it backs the proposed 19th Amendment to the Constitution and wants it passed in Parliament without a debate if other political parties also support it. Opposition UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe said that there are reports on some websites indicating there is a move by the Govt to submit the proposed 19th Amendment as an urgent Bill in Parliament next month. more..

Oct 24 (CT) Another budget has come and gone accompanied by the expected sweeteners because of the envisaged presidential election to be held in under two months from now. Such carrots are on top of the other soothers offered a few weeks ago to the voter, such as a reduction in energy prices. However, the end results of such actions would be runaway budget deficits. Those deficits will have to be bridged by internal and external borrowings. Internal borrowings will cause interest rates more..

Oct 24 (CT) Sri Lankans know how to laugh. They also know how to laugh at themselves. They can even laugh with others who laugh at them. They know how to make political jokes and to use humor to critique people, things and political positions. �Puswedilla� is a hit and has been one for a long time now. Pusswedilla, as the �stage play� or rather series of plays is referred to, in fact does what political satire is supposed to do, which in the most crudest of terms is ridicule dedicated to exposing more..

Oct 24 (CT) The resumption of train services to Jaffna, and to Kankesanthurai (KKS) in the near future, brings back nostalgic memories to many. Until the importation in the 1960s of Chinese compartments made of steel, there were the wooden cars made of Burma teak. The first and the second class Chinese ones were fitted with box spring seats covered with foam rubber and velvety cloth. Sofa style wooden seats more..

Oct 24 (CT) �It�s the battle for your mind� �It�s the battle for your mind� voiced the lanky character in the �Hampada� denim and casual T shirt in classroom no 4. His husky voice reverberating through the corridor. It was our Marketing Instructor lecturing in a cramped-up room many years ago in downtown Colombo. I was able to unearth the notes of this exercise kept in a remote section of my house and infested with small insects. The Instructor was explaining to the class more..

Oct 24 (CT) Even today, this moment, we are talking about casinos. Ranjan Wijeratne deported Joe Sim the Casino King. What about our local Joe Sims or Packers? The difference today is, the local casino owner is a big wig in the Sri Lankan Govt. Some even hold policy-making top jobs in the govt. The UNP gave up billions in casino amnesties, blank amnesty for tax defectors. Tax amnesty was used as a pretext to help casinos. I came to know Ranjan Wijeratne when he had left more..

Oct 24 (CT) People-friendly, beautified Colombo is a traffic nightmare, with fuming drivers spending hours on choked roads every day, while an expert warned that putting up new expressways in this congested space would not provide solutions. 7 million trips are made each day in the Colombo metropolitan areas and this is estimated to grow to 12.2 million trips in 2035, according to the Urban Transport System more..

Oct 24 (ST) The Council of the Peradeniya University which met yesterday called for an inquiry into the fax purported to have been sent by the Presidential Secretariat, Peradeniya University Vice Chancellor Athula Senaratne said. The fax said three-wheelers would be given away duty free to university employees after a sum of Rs. 25,000 was deposited at a named account of the People�s Bank in Kandy. The Vice Chancellor said that before he went to Dubai for a conference more..

Oct 24 (ST) The Health Ministry has instructed all medical officers and Public Health Inspectors to be on the alert for arrivals to the country who suffer from fever or breathing difficulties as it is possible for people infected with the Ebola virus to enter without undergoing screening at the airport. There is a freeze on admitting new students from African countries affected by the deadly virus, said Higher Education Ministry Secretary Dr. Sunil Jayantha Navaratne. more..

Oct 24 (ST) A mix-up at a 5-star hotel in Colombo on Wednesday (15), resulted in a hotel employee being hospitalised and an American guest spending a night at the Welikada Remand Prison. Samuel Dealey, 40, head of Washington-based Monument Communications, was in SL for meetings with clients. He was asleep in his room at the hotel when, close to midnight, steward Tisira Sunanda knocked on his door. more..

Oct 24 (Island) The govt was taking speedy action to assist 580 displaced families from Kanjikudichchi Aru and Thangavealau-thapuram villages in the Thirukovil area of Ampara, District Secretary Neil de Alwis said. He said that Minister Chandrasiri Gajadheera had allocated funds from the Rehabilitation Authority to construct 100 houses for them. Rs 1 million had been allocated for the construction of a Hindu temple as the overwhelming majority among those families were Tamils, more..

Oct 24 (DM) A-78-year-old German lady who was visiting Meemure in Udadumbara with a group of 11 German nationals went missing since yesterday, police said. They said three men and eight women had been engaged in mountain climbing and the missing lady had returned to the bus halfway through saying that she was unable to continue but the others had found that she was not in the bus on their return and had complained to the Udadumbara police about her disappearance. more..

Oct 24 (DM) External Affairs Minister G.L. Peiris yesterday reiterated Sri Lanka�s commitment to working constructively with the UN system and said it was absolutely vital to preserve and enhance the confidence of the world community in it. He made these remarks at an event held to mark the 69th UN day where he assured that Sri Lanka had recognised the importance of the UN and therefore would continue to work actively with the UN more..

Oct 25 (GDI) Major General (Retd) Nanda Mallawaarachchi, who was appointed as the new Secretary to the Ministry of Sports, assumed duties on Friday. Mallawaarachchi was the first Secretary of the Ministry of Law and Order, which was established in August 2013 under the President, and was replaced by former IGP Mahinda Balasuriya on Tuesday. Major General Nanda Mallawaarachchi replaced the former secretary of the Ministry Anura Jayawickrama. more..

Oct 25 (LT) It is reported that a group that included the wife and son of the vice-chancellor of Peradeniya University Prof. Athula Senaratna had created a pandemonium after consuming liquor at government owned Peradeniya Rest. They had used poles and clubs to smash furniture and electrical equipment. A complaint had been made at Peradeniya Police Station but with the mediation of the vice-chancellor the incident had been directed to �Samatha Mandalaya�. more..

Oct 25 (DN) Special allowance of university academics, doctors and judicial service employees to be increased. Pension and insurance scheme for trishaw drivers. * Proposal made to increase the minimum salary of a private sector employee to Rs. 10,000 by 2015. Rs. 500 allowance to be added each month and the EPF payment from the employer to be increased up to 14%. * Minimum salary of a state sector employee to be more..

Oct 26 (SO) Construction work on the Northern Expressway will begin next year, according to Minister Nirmala Kotalawala. The resumption of rail services between Colombo and Jaffna after 24 years and the Yal Devi express train wending its way to Jaffna with President Rajapaksa on board thrilled people in the North that they could reach Colombo in a matter of hours. Northern Expressway from Enderamulla in Gampaha to Dambulla constructed in 4 phases, would consist of 4 lanes initially. more..

Oct 26 (Island) With a presidential election now a certainty next January, the populist budget that President Rajapaksa who is seeking re-election for a third term presented on Friday was an inevitable sine qua non - "(a condition) without which it could not be." Despite professions that this would be no election budget, the contrary proved to be the case with the president who has also been the finance minister during his two-term tenure (he�ll probably keep the portfolio upon more..

Oct 26 (SO) Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya said all the Budgets presented by President Rajapaksa in his capacity as Finance Minister reflected three main aspects- development, security and welfare. These Budgets must not be referred to as development- oriented budgets but as people-oriented Budgets. He said it was not only the Budget but all Govt programs had welfare measures and the Govt could go before the more..

Oct 26 (NS) The JVP�s Sunil Handunnetti captured the Opposition�s sentiments with regard to Budget 2015 best. He said �අද අය වැය දිනය නෙමෙයි...වඩා හොඳයි මේකට අල්ලස් දිනය කියල කිව්වා නම්� (this is not Budget Day�it would be more appropriate to call it Bribe Day). There was at once dismay (at the political impact of the budget) and acknowledgment that at least on the face of it the budget would resonate well with a wide cross-section of the population. more..

Oct 26 (SO) These comments are being written before President and Finance Minister presents his tenth consecutive budget to parliament and it will be read on Sunday when all controversial issues will be �all over the bar the shouting�. Nonetheless our comments will reflect on the expectations of the people before the presentation of the budget. It will enable them to gauge to a great extent whether the budget has addressed the essential needs of the people. more..

Oct 26 (SL) Following Friday�s unveiling of the national budget, Governor of the Central Bank Ajith Nivard Cabraal speaks to The Sunday Leader on some of the crucial economic issues affecting the country. Q: The oil price globally has seen a significant decline, what impacts will this have to Sri Lanka? A: Oil has been a very volatile commodity and we have seen wide fluctuations in prices over the last several years. more..

Oct 26 (CT) President Rajapaksa, in his Budget Speech, responded to the fervent and repeated pleas of millions of elderly citizens of Sri Lanka, when he proposed a minimum of 12% interest for the fixed deposits of the elderly. While the dramatic concession was music to the ears of millions, it was especially sweet to all of us at Ceylon Today. For almost a year, this newspaper has been campaigning for the needs of elderly citizens, who have been watching with dismay, nay horror, more..

Oct 26 (Island) In the context of the present raucous cry for the abolition of the executive presidency emanating from certain NGOs, political parties and prominent individuals, the question we have to ask ourselves is whether these people have given adequate thought to what we will be doing by abolishing the executive presidency and reverting back to a parliamentary form of govt. In order to form an informed opinion on this matter we have to look back at the 31 years of parliamentary govt more..

Oct 26 (SL) While the people are happy at the govt�s decision to reduce the prices of fuel and electricity, the Opposition has been critical of the govt�s move and stated that the govt is only reducing the prices of goods because of the upcoming elections and after the elections people will be taxed further. UNP MP Ravi Karunanayake said that while the govt has hoodwinked the people with these sorts of gimmicks for the past ten years, more..