Jul 28 (Island) In SL sporting arena, there have been some high profile clashes. Susanthika Jayasinghe versus S.B. Dissanayake, Guy De Alwis versus Johnston Fernando, Kumar Sangakkara versus Mahindananda Aluthgamage were some such. Often these clashes faded away after a few weeks of interest. But the one that went to wire, with both parties not willing to pull punches was Lasith Malinga vs Dayasiri Jayasekara. more..

Jul 28 (CB) Having taken 4 hours and 7 minutes to bowl 50 overs in the first ODI against SL, Bangladesh have been fined for maintaining a slow over-rate in Colombo. The team was found two overs short of its target after time allowances were taken into consideration. According to Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which deals with minor over-rate offences, players are fined 10% of their match fees for every over that's short of the target and more..

Jul 28 (SO) Top order batsman Kusal Mendis, despite recent dips in form, is a highly talented cricketer and batsman whose talent was spotted and gifted to Sri Lanka cricket through the Observer-Mobitel Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year contest which is in its 41st year. Mendis was adjudged Observer-Mobitel Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year six years ago, immediately after Trinity Lion Niroshan Dickwella, who too went on to win the prestigious award in 2012. more..

Jul 28 (ST) Regardless of how they dump Chandika Hathurusingha from his head coach position at the end of the current series, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) will hire a new head coach within the next fortnight targeting the home series against NZ in August. Will this change SL�s cricketing landscape? That�s anybody�s guess. A cursory look at the game�s recent history proves that short-sighted moves such as these have only deepened more..

Jul 28 (CT) South Asian Games Silver medallist Omaya Udayangani and this year�s World University Games participant Gihan Ranaweera dazzled to take 200m honours as six new meet records were set at the SL University Games Athletics Championship 2019 which commenced at Sugathadasa Stadium yesterday. Omaya, hailing from Welimada, won the Silver medal in the women�s 4x400m relay and the Bronze medal in the 400m dash as a teenager during more..

Jul 28 (SO) The redeveloped Badminton Courts Complex at the Sri Lanka Badminton (SLB) headquarters in Colombo 7 was declared open by Minister of Sports Harin Fernando at a ceremony held last Thursday (25). The event was attended by a host of senior sports officials, including the new SLB president Rohan de Silva who played an exhibition match with Minister Fernando against vice president Parakrama Basnayake and Nalaka Weerakkody. more..

Jul 28 (SO) India�s automobile leader, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) will launch the island�s first automobile manufacturing and assembly plant with an investment of Rs. 3 billion in Welipenna next month. The project will be launched on Aug 17 in collaboration with Mahindra�s local partner Ideal Group, with an eye on the export market. The joint venture project for the assembly and manufacture of Mahindra vehicles more..

Jul 28 (EN) SL's state-owned 1990 Suwaseriya free ambulance service has helped 217,338 patients be hospitalised over the last 3 years, a minister said. �If we look at this figure as an average, we have seen about 200 people hospitalized every day for the past three years," Minister Harsha de Silva said. "This number has risen to 700 per day now," he said. Over the three years, the service has received 1.2 million calls and has dispatched the ambulance on 240,801 occasions. more..

Jul 28 (SO) Champaka Ramanayake, the pioneer coach of Lasith Malinga found himself seated in the opposing camp as the fast bowler played his final ODI match against Bangladesh on Friday. But Ramanayake said he was extremely honoured to be the first coach of Malinga who he discovered as a 16-year old playing in the outskirts of Galle. �I am very proud to have been Malinga�s coach. He was a very special bowler and created many records in international cricket,� said Ramanayake. more..

Jul 28 (CI) On any other working Friday, the toss wouldn't have held much significance. But this was different. Lasith Malinga was playing his final ODI, and had Bangladesh batted first, which Tamim Iqbal later said they were certain to do had they won the toss, Malinga's final 10 overs may have played out in front of a half-empty R Premadasa Stadium. Not a disaster, but certainly anti-climactic. more..

Jul 28 (AA) The teardrop-shaped island just off the Southern coast of India, Sri Lanka, can be a nation grossly misunderstood at times. While it has often been portrayed as a war-ravaged country, social media posts project it as a tranquil island, teeming with tropical beaches and wildlife. �Many Western journalists, have sometimes portrayed the country as an irredeemably violent place. But that picture of Sri Lanka is as untrue as the Instagram posts that suggest it is an uncomplicated paradise more..

Jul 28 (SO) BA Sanjeewa whose steady 74 gave his a comfortable win by five strokes over Navinda Ranga on the final day of the Lectra Grand-Prix July Edition played at the Nuwara Eliya golf course yesterday. Sanjeewa who led overnight by one stroke played steady golf to obtain a score of 74 having expected a thrilling final but Navinda Ranga who finished as runner-up. JMD Indika the early leader of the 4 round Monthly Grand Prix Ranking Event finished in third spot. more..

Jul 28 (Island) A total of 39 witnesses have testified before the Parliamentary Select Committee probing the Easter Sunday carnage and more witnesses will appear before the proceedings are concluded. The following witnesses have already appeared before the PSC: Defence Secretary General (Rtd) Shantha Kottegoda, former Chief of National Intelligence (CNI) Sisira Mendis, former Director of TID, DIG Nalaka De Silva, more..

Jul 28 (Island) The Geoffrey Bawa awards this year will also focus on music and art, among other skills. The main awards, however, will be for outstanding architectural constructions, as in the past years. This year, the fifth cycle of the awards, will also be celebrated with a specially designed residence on Ward Place dedicated to music, art and designs for fashion and additional art creations to extend Bawa�s interests and skills in the fields. Addressing a news conference convened by t more..

Jul 28 (AD) SC has fixed a Fundamental Rights petition, filed against appointing President�s Counsels without a proper procedure, for support on Aug 31st. The petition was filed by Attorney-at-Law Upul Kumarapperuma has cited the Attorney General on behalf of the President, Chairman and Secretary of SL Bar Association (BASL) and the Secretary to the Prez. Petition was taken up before the Supreme Court 3-judge bench Justices Priyantha Jayewardene, L.T.B. Dehideniya more..

Jul 28 (ST) The govt will on Tuesday present development officer (DO) appointments to 16,800 graduates, despite the Auditor General expressing serious concern over the poor performance of such officers already in the over-staffed public service. The new intake is the second phase of the Govt�s jobs-for-20,000-graduates initiative. In a special audit report, AG has questioned the efficiency of DOs, although he notes that more..

Jul 28 (SO) Police expect to collect Rs. 142 million in fines, nabbing 5,705 drunk drivers in a span of 22 days. The drivers were arrested as part of an ongoing special traffic operation which commenced on July 5 under the orders of Acting IGP C.D. Wickramaratne. Under S. 216 of the Motor Traffic Act the minimum fine imposed on an individual found guilty of drunk driving is Rs. 25 000. �Accordingly we expect a minimum of Rs. 142 million as fines following court proceedings� more..

Jul 28 (CT) The planned UNP-led alliance, which was set to be launched at the Sugathadasa Stadium on 5 Aug, has already run into obstacles. This has led to speculations that the likelihood of the proposed alliance seeing the light is highly unlikely, political sources revealed. The main opposition at the moment is to the appointment of the General Secretary of the proposed alliance, the Democratic National Front (DNF). The name of Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne has been proposed more..

Jul 28 (ST) With the birth of a National Democratic Front (NDF) on August 5 under the leadership of PM Ranil Wickremesinghe, moves are afoot to increase the number of ministries to 48 and deputies to 45. The new NDF is to be set up with the UNP�s existing parliamentary strength. With its allies, it now stands at 106. A further three or more SLFP MPs are expected to join this number. This is without participation of TNA or JVP more..

Jul 28 (ST) The ICC has finally come out in defence of Umpire Kumar Dhramasena for his controversial awarding of six runs off the fourth ball in England�s last-over run chase. In their first public statement since the game on July 14, cricket�s global governing body insisted the right process was followed by the officials. The decision in question is over the fourth ball of the final over. A throw from deep mid-wicket ricocheted off the bat of a diving Ben Stokes at the striker�s end and more..

Jul 28 (DM) If the people take the correct decision at the end of this year, I will implement all the programmes that were envisaged by my father, the former President Ranasinghe Premadasa, Minister Sajith Premadasa said. Speaking at the function held to mark the inauguration of the renovation of the 167 year-old Darmasalawa of the Sri Sugathavanaramaya temple in Divulapitiya the minister said the country did not spend money on weapons after the end of the war in 2009, more..

Jul 28 (ST) A one-on-one meeting between President Maithripala Sirisena and Opposition Leader Mahinda Rajapaksa is on the cards as political parties step up preparations for this year�s presidential election. The request for such a meeting came from the SLFP and the SLPP responded favourably this week. The idea is to enable the two leaders to agree on the final contours of the proposed joint alliance � SLNPP more..

Jul 28 (Island) There is an old joke about farmers playing village volleyball. When one of the younger fellows couldn�t bend down fast enough and far enough to retrieve the ball swooping low in front of him, the older player behind him let out a bark: did you swallow a crowbar before coming here? Imagine a politician trying to do just that, if not orally, but at least having a crowbar strapped to his upper back to reinforce his backbone. Will that satisfy the new cardinal standard for political strength? more..

Jul 28 (Island) The letter sent by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (Chamber) Chairman, Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya to PM Ranil Wickremasinghe on July 03, 2019 is not in the public domain. Nevertheless, the Chamber, in a media release stated it wished to express its concerns about the increasing level of speculation among its membership and society at large. It relates to the consequences arising from the proposed Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) and MCC more..

Jul 28 (Island) The Sirisena-Wickremesinghe administration�s failure to abolish the executive presidency has brought Sri Lanka to this impasse. Replacing the executive presidency with a more democratic alternative was the founding promise of the uniquely disparate alliance that successfully challenged the Rajapaksa behemoth in 2015. The failure to honour that promise has placed in jeopardy every single achievement of more..

Jul 28 (AD) 19th Presidential Cinema Awards Ceremony was held under the patronage of Prez Sirisena at Nelum Pokuna Theatre. Prez has presented awards to 27 outstanding performers from 79 films screened from 2016 to 2018, with 11 Purogami Awards, Swarnasinghe Awards and the Vishwakeerthi Award. The Swarnasinghe Award for Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to veteran actors more..

Jul 28 (DM) The eighth SL presidential election is expected to be held on or before Dec 7 this year. Although dates have not been announced yet, many names are being bandied about as potential candidates. Among them is Hambantota District MP and Cabinet Minister of Housing and Construction Sajith Premadasa who is also the UNP deputy leader. Sajith Premadasa is the son of former President Ranasinghe Premadasa more..

Jul 28 (ST) If he brought honour and fame to his country, there were touching moments for international cricketer Lasith Malinga on Friday. He was loved for the game he played, both when he bowled and when he batted. He was also the heartthrob of the lasses for the bronze patches on his overgrown hair, macho in his own way. Most sought after by them were the selfies they took with their hands around Malinga. more..

Jul 28 (TM) With the future of the proposed Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Compact agreement between Sri Lanka and the US on the fence, US Ambassador to SL Alaina Teplitz has sent an urgent letter to President Sirisena seeking his intervention to ensure Cabinet approves the deal. Prez Sirisena has refused to approve the agreement following allegations and concerns raised over some of the clauses. more..

Jul 28 (TM) Human Rights Commission of SL (HRCSL) in correspondence addressed to President of Bar Association of SL (BASL) raised concerns over the unethical and unprofessional conduct of certain members of the regional bar associations. The misconduct had been reported in several areas, especially following the 21 April attacks, where lawyers had refrained from representing suspects arrested in relation to the terror attacks. more..

Jul 28 (SLA) SL Army lending its legendary know-how and the knack for continued revival of indigenous SL Martial Art, Angampora which boasts a history of more than 5000 years took one more leap forward on Friday and established SL's state-of-the-art Angampora village near the Iranamadu tank bund, adjacent to Security Force Hq-Kilinochchi precincts during a formal ceremony, consecrated by rites & rituals that had withstood test of time. more..

Jul 28 (SO) The Secretary of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has been instructed to gather all information with regard to the complaints received on the Kurunegala Magistrate Sampath Hewawasam in order to begin deliberations on the issue, Sunday Observer reliably learns. The JSC, which is headed by Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya is likely to meet to deliberate on the issue early next week. more..

Jul 28 (ST) A host of high profile witnesses from the CID, TID, STF, CBSL and AG�s Department appeared before the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) probing the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks. Sittings were held continuously over three days. Attention was again drawn to how lapses on the part of different agencies possibly prevented a fuller picture emerging about the intentions of the Zahran and his radical Islamic more..

Jul 28 (RN) During his meeting with Media persons on June 27, President Maithripala Sirisena threw in a truism that went hardly noticed. �Mark my words, as the elections come closer, you will see that every major political party in this country is in turmoil,� Sirisena said. The clock is ticking towards what can be expected to be one of the most important elections in our time. There isn�t much time for the contestants to decide, as more..

Jul 29 (CT) For many years before the Attorney-General assumed his high office, his colleagues had been only too familiar with his propensity for horsing around and playing politics with the law. Alas, the warning signs went unheeded by the President who anointed him Attorney-General. Thus, the AG romped and galloped around town with impunity for three years before dragging the venerable Attorney-General�s Department into scandal after scandal of unprecedented turpitude. more..

Jul 29 (CT) Sri Lanka inherited the system of parliamentary democracy from the British, one of the positive legacies of their colonial rule. Even though the original Westminster model was given up, first in favour of a republican constitution in 1972 and that again in favour of an executive presidential republic in 1977, political party system and the principle of electing peoples� representatives to legislature have basically remained intact with periodical gerrymandering. more..

Jul 29 (Roar) Over the past few decades, surfing has caught the hearts of adventurous Sri Lankans across the island. Surfing hotspots along the coast from Mirissa all the way to Arugam Bay provide surfers of every level with plenty of perfect locations to try out their skills. Surfing is steadily growing in popularity among Lankans and has become more than just a sport for many local surfers who have built their lives around it. more..

Jul 29 (ST) There is a powerful thrust to communal politics that is now global in nature, led by unscrupulous demagogues who whip up their supporters with chants of hate. This week, as I watched the President of the United States wave his hands benevolently even as his supporters screamed send them back to four congresswomen of colour (despite the fact that the women were all American citizens), who remained defiantly opposed to his policies, one fact became clear. more..

Jul 29 (ST) Last Sunday at the re-consecration of the blood splattered statue of Jesus Christ at the reconstructed Easter Sunday bomb damaged Katuwapitiya�s St Sebastian�s Church in Negombo, the Archbishop of Colombo, Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, turned his religious pulpit into a political podium; and transformed what could otherwise have been a Godly homily into an unholy political sermon. Cardinal�s eminent thoughts were less on religion and more on politics, less on forgiveness as more..

Jul 29 (CT) Microfinance institutions, that have mushroomed throughout the country, have turned out to be rackets in which thousands of poor people have got caught. Although such institutions highlight that they are working for the welfare of the masses; these microfinance racketeers have even driven poor people to suicide. For about two decades, microfinance companies have been pretending to be an effective more..