Jan 14 (TM) SL govt is unable to resume a mutually beneficial tea-for-oil barter deal with Iran due to escalated tension between Iran and the US in the past few days. This is despite the appointments of new heads for state-owned institutions SLTB and CPC. The barter deal with Iran was on a temporary hold during the interim period between the 2019 prez election and the appointment of heads for state institutions, citing more..

Jan 14 (ST) Thousands recruited to the state sector by the last regime are facing termination with the advent of the new govt. Around 6,800 have lost their jobs at the state agencies that had employed them. UNP MP Range Bandara, who tabled a question in Parliament on Tuesday, said the action amounted to political vengeance and called on the govt to take immediate steps to re-absorb them. more..

Jan 14 (AA) Sri Lankan beauty queen and Mrs. World pageant titleholder Caroline Jurie, 27, plans to use her new-found fame to inspire and empower children in the island nation. Mother of the two-year-old girl and hailing from a middle-class family from Kandana, a suburb of capital Colombo, she always aspired to be a model, though she had never walked on a ramp, till she competed for the Mrs. Sri Lanka pageant. more..

Jan 14 (RN) Public Service Commission states that no final decision has been made with regard to the request made by Dr Shafi Shihabdeen to be reinstated. In a statement, the Secretary of Public Service Commission Daya Senarath said that Dr Shafi has submitted a request asking to be reinstated as the Senior House officer Obstetrics and Gynaecology through the Secretary of Health Ministry to the Health Service Committee more..

Jan 14 (CT) With dengue allegedly claiming the life of one pregnant mother from Mancholai, the total number of dengue patients recorded within the first nine days of 2020 amounted to a few over 125. Director of NDCU, Dr. Anura Jayasekara said, however, that the numbers could be higher than those that had been recorded. The numbers recorded by the Epidemiology Unit were those which had been confirmed, he observed. more..

Jan 14 (AD) MP Ranjan Ramanayake�s UNP membership will be temporarily suspended, says the party�s General Secretary Akila Viraj Kariyawasam. He made this announcement addressing a media briefing held at Sirikotha, today. Ramanayake is a MP representing Gampaha electoral district. Kariyawasam stated that this decision was arrived at taking into consideration the complaints received by the party concerning MP Ramanayake. more..

Jan 14 (Hindu) The former Chief Minister of the Northern Province of SL, C.V. Wigneswaran, on Monday asserted that he was for the return of SL Tamil refugees living in Tamil Nadu and other parts of India to home soil. When asked whether his recent call for the granting of dual citizenship to the refugees marked any nuanced shift in position from the one he took about five years ago, when he had urged the refugees to return to SL, more..

Jan 14 (AD) The Council of the European Union has renewed the so-called EU terrorist list, which sets out persons, groups and entities subject to restrictive measures with a view to combating terrorism. LTTE of Sri Lanka continues to remain among the banned organizations in the updated list. �Persons, groups and entities on the list are subject to the freezing of their funds and other financial assets in the EU. more..

Jan 14 (FT) As Chaudhary Group (CG) Managing Director Nirvana Chaudhary increasingly takes command of his family-owned, third generation business empire from his father, CG Chairman and President Binod Chaudhary, a role he has been groomed for since he was a child, Nirvana outlines his local and global vision for the multinational group in the next decade and beyond, while sharing lessons learnt, inspirations, and how CG tackles poverty via philanthropy. more..

Jan 14 (CT) President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's ascension to the presidency of Sri Lanka is, we know, being watched keenly by major players in the global political stakes, as each of them seeks advantage to further their national strategic interests in the Indian Ocean as well as in Sri Lanka. The fact is that developments in the Middle-East gulf region, with Iran now seemingly well set on pursuing production of nuclear arms, make Sri Lanka's position on either side with the Indian Ocean on more..

Jan 15 (CT) The President should understand the need to be firm with foreign duplicity, for he has suffered from this himself. I have written about the incident at length, in a newspaper several years ago, and more recently in Lakmahal at War for Peace. The incident is also described in Kamal Gunaratne's book Gota's War, and was cited in a recent article in the context on the current Swiss shenanigans. What happened was that the then American Political Affairs Officer, Paul Carter, more..

Jan 15 (CT) Mrs. Srikanthaluxmy Sivanesan, nee Arulanantham, the Librarian at the University of Jaffna died of a heart attack, last month on Christmas day. Her death was sudden and again, a reminder that life is short and in dividing our energies we have to choose what is important and beneficial to the community. In that respect, our Librarian has done most of what she wanted to accomplish, within the short span of fifty-eight years that she was allowed. more..

Jan 15 (CT) JVP politburo member and Chairman of the NTUC, K.D. Lalkantha, says the best way to defeat enemies, is by representing people and their pulse. Q: You did not get the expected result at the Prez Election. Does that mean your opinion was not accepted by society? A: When you say that we did not get the expected result, it is serious. The most difficult election for a party like ours is the Presidential Election. more..

Jan 15 (CT) The seizing of taped conversations that former Minister Ranjan Ramanayake had with an assortment of persons on a variety of subjects, including personal foibles, was one of the outcomes of a police raid on his home. An unexpected outcome has been the almost immediate release of a large number of these recordings into the public realm after the police raid. This has provided the general public with an unexpected diversion into the lives, conversations and peccadillos of those more..

Jan 15 (DM) President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in his policy statement affirmed he would ensure that his government will remove all inefficiencies and make the public sector responsive to the people�s and country�s needs. On the same line of thought, addressing top public servants recently, he also highlighted the importance of efficiency, productivity and transparency in every state entity with a direct linkage to the day to day public life. He added, �Unnecessary Ordinances and more..

Jan 15 (Roar) A young male tourist sits cross-legged outside the Fort Railway Station in Colombo. Arranged neatly in front of him are rows of colourful wristbands. To his left, a cardboard sign on which is penned the words, I�m travelling the world, could you support me please?�replicated in Sinhalese on his right. The image caused some outrage, locally on social media, one user writing, �This is an awful trend where privileged, more..

Jan 15 (CT) This upcoming week promises to be an interesting one for Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa. He will be on separate occasions meeting the Foreign Ministers from Russia and China, Minister Sergey Lavrov and Minister Wang Yi respectively and Assistant Secretary, State Department of US Alice G. Wells at the Presidential Secretariat on 14 Jan 2020. With the UNHRC March session looming around the corner, the challenge before the new President would be how successfully more..

Jan 15 (Island) Soldiers of the SL Army who combed dense jungles for nearly two and a half decades and effectively neutralised a formidable enemy are now tilling fields, growing trees and cleaning beaches. They have already made a tremendous contribution towards the country�s efforts to restore the fast depleting forest cover while being involved in greening and beautifying urban spaces and leading the national campaign against dengue from the front. They have demonstrated more..

Jan 15 (TM) At the dawn of each New Year or subsequent to an election, the print and electronic media have often asked me what my expectations of the govt were and I have responded. However, I did not do so at the dawn of 2020, although it is difficult not to respond to the requests of representatives of the media whom I have known for decades. Some inquired why I maintained a relatively low profile with regard to national matters, in particular over the previous 18 months. more..

Jan 15 (Island) Summer temperatures continue to establish new records. The capital clocks up an unprecedented 49c, a more familiar ​figure in Middle Eastern cities. Bush fires have continued to burn for months, destr​oying hundreds of thousands of forest and farm land (an area bigger than Scotland has been consumed by the fires so far) and thousands of houses. Farm animals by the thousands have perished in the intense heat and insurance claims are expected to exceed one billion Dollars. more..

Jan 15 (Island) There is a saying in Tamil Thai piranthal wali pirakkum which means with the beginning of January a new pathway is also paved. This is the essence of Thai Pongal, which marks the beginning of all things auspicious for the Hindus. Cosmic phenomena have baffled mankind since time immemorial. Sun worshipping or Heliolatry was one of the most widespread forms of worship the world has ever known. more..

Jan 15 (AD) A week long general amnesty has been declared to Tri-Forces absentees, enabling them to receive a discharge or to rejoin and continue their service. A press release issued by the Defence Ministry on Tuesday states that the General Amnesty period has been declared under the directions of Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa and will be in force for seven days commencing from Feb 5, 2020. This measure has been taken with the intention to provide an opportunity for more..

Jan 15 (DN) PM Mahinda Rajapaksa said a Sports University will be established in the future and Diyagama will be upgraded into a sports complex. He made these remarks at the South Asian Games medal winners� felicitation ceremony held at Nelum Pokuna Mahinda Rajapaksa Theatre yesterday. PM further said the govt plans to concentrate more into sports economics because it plays a major role to sustain athletes and their developments. �I�m very honoured and proud to deliver my speech more..

Jan 15 (CI) Suranga Lakmal returned to Test squad after missing the tour of Pakistan due to dengue fever, while Kusal Perera has been dropped. Despite having lost 1-0 in Pakistan, SL made no other changes to the 15 that toured Rawalpindi and Karachi in Dec. This means that Lahiru Thirimanne remains in the squad, despite seemingly having lost his place in the XI to Oshada Fernando, while offspinner Dilruwan Perera also retains more..

Jan 15 (AD) Colombo Chief Magistrate granted bail to the 12 university students arrested for allegedly assaulting another student at the Uni of Colombo. Chief Magistrate Lanka Jayaratne ordered each suspect released on personal sureties of Rs. 200,000 while also strongly advising them against acting in any manner that would disturb the peace. The accused were also ordered to refrain from influencing the witnesses and warned that the bail granted would be cancelled and more..

Jan 15 (Island) Dialog Axiata PLC announced the launch of SAVIYA, a mobile based advisory service for dairy farmers to improve dairy production capacity, quality of milk produced, and health of livestock. The service is provided in partnership with the International Executive Service Corps (IESC) who aim to advance sustainable growth in Sri Lanka�s dairy sector by supporting farmers and related enterprises through the Market-Oriented Dairy (MOD) Project, funded by the USDA more..

Jan 15 (EN) Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa has ordered plantations workers wages to be hiked to 1000 rupees a day from March 1. Plantations companies and workers signed a collective agreement in Feb 2019 agreeing to a daily wage of 700 rupees, up from 500 rupees. The govt later said a supplementary 50 rupee a day would be provided with tax payer money for a year. �Prez has decided the minimum daily wage of more..

Jan 15 (CT) Pakistan U-19 clinched a 4 wicket victory over Sri Lanka Juniors in the teams' second warm-up assignment in Pretoria. After winning the toss and batting first, skipper Nipun Dhananjaya anchored the innings as wickets fell regularly around him. He smashed an impressive 55 runs with 1 four and 2 sixes during his 88-ball innings and getting his side to a healthy total. Despite a below-par performance from most of the batsmen, middle order batsman Sonal Dinusha made more..

Jan 15 (DN) The last time Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe were locked in a Test match contest in Colombo and in Harare, the difference between the two sides was Rangana Herath, the most successful left-arm bowler in Test cricket history with 433 wickets. Herath destroyed the Zimbabwe batting in both Tests played in Harare in 2016 with a generous haul of 19 wickets leading his country from the front in the absence of regular Test skipper Angelo Mathews who was injured. more..

Jan 15 (FT) Ranil Wickremesinghe is ready to renounce his party leadership but will only do so leaving behind a united and strong party, said UNP General Secretary Akila Viraj Kariyawasam said. He made the comment in response to a question posed regarding the party leadership issue which will be taken up at the party Parliamentary Group meeting to be held tomorrow. What was needed most at this juncture is party unity, more..

Jan 15 (EN) The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) is saying that it has sufficient stocks of fuel to supply local consumers even if the fuel supply to Sri Lanka gets hit by growing tensions in the Gulf region. CPC states that several fuel vessels are scheduled to arrive in Sri Lanka in shortly and that it already has sufficient stocks of fuel for 19 days and added that fuel tankers carrying 16,000 tonnes of fuel and 15,000 tonnes of fuel are due to arrive this month. more..

Jan 15 (AD) Speaker of Parliament Karu Jayasuriya has stated that a decision regarding disclosing the Forensic Audit report on the Central Bank bond scam to the members of parliament, will be taken during next parliament sitting week which starts on January 21. These forensic audit reports have been received by the Parliament and the Speaker has taken measures to abstain from releasing the aforesaid to Members of Parliament upon the instruction of the Attorney General. more..

Jan 15 (PMD) �Sri Lanka is a small country. Fortunately or not, it is geographically placed in a most strategic location. As a result, the country has to face many political challenges. The only way to overcome them is to be economically strong. The economic independence will ensure political independence�, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa told the visiting Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi who called on him more..

Jan 15 (DN) Nelson Mendis, the renowned Cricket Coach, who has been instrumental in inspiring and moulding the characters of so many cricket stars of Sri Lanka, during their younger days, completes six decades of coaching this year. Mr Mendis as he is fondly referred to was Cricket Coach, a Prefect of Games and a Master in Charge of Cricket at Nalanda during the seventies, and has the distinction of nurturing as many as 26 national level cricketers. more..

Jan 15 (AD) The leak which was observed in the Moragahakanda Reservoir for the past several days has been repaired completely, according to the officers in charge of the project. They added that following the completion of fixation, the iron fence that was temporarily attached to the dam is now being removed. A few weeks ago, a leak was observed in the upper corner of the main dam of the Moragahakanda Reservoir for as the maximum water capacity of the reservoir had reached. more..

Jan 15 (RN) Sri Lanka and Russia will work towards boosting bilateral trade up to USD 700 million, with increased cooperation on the cards in areas of counter-terrorism, oil exploration and tourism infrastructure development. Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena and Russia�s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced a number of informal agreements reached between the two countries. Lavrov, who began his diplomatic career more..

Jan 15 (CGTN) China-Sri Lanka cooperation has never targeted any third party and also it should not be affected by any third party, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Tuesday. Wang made the remarks during separate meetings with SL President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and PM Mahinda Rajapaksa in Colombo, stressing that deepening cooperation between China and Sri Lanka will surely be conducive to the peace and development of the region. more..

Jan 15 (EN) Central Bank in a circular outlined how banks should provide a debt moratorium for small and medium scale enterprises, in line with a request made by the Prez and PM. �Based on discussions�had with the licensed banks, it is observed that the proposed scheme may not cause an undue level of stress or threaten the stability of the banking system,� the central bank said. SMEs operating in manufacturing, services, agriculture and construction with an annual turnover more..

Jan 15 (AD) MP Ranjan Ramanayake was brought to the Colombo Crimes Division (CCD) following his arrest at his residence in Madiwela. He is to be produced before the Nugegoda Magistrate Court tomorrow (15), police said. UNP MP Ranjan Ramanayake has been arrested by the CCD. CCD officers had arrived at the MP�s official residence in Madiwela, with an arrest warrant. He was subsequently taken into custody and more..