Mar 4 (DM) Nestl� was recognised as SL�s number one F&B company at the recent Business Today TOP 30 awards. The company jumped nine places from its previous ranking to become one of the top 10 companies on the list, which featured SL�s best-performing corporates across all industries. The event awarded organisations that had achieved growth in challenging times during the 2018-2019 period, demonstrating resilience and ingenuity in serving consumers and supporting SL�s more..

Mar 4 (Island) The govt had been compelled to seek legal assistance regarding university students protesting opposite UGC as their action had affected the public adversely, Minister Bandula Gunawardane said. "We are a govt that addresses the peoples problems without using violence or suppression. I have allowed students to meet me any time. Although students protested opposite the UGC and Ministry almost everyday, the govt had not used force to disperse them. more..

Mar 4 (AD) The Ministry of Health has decided to convert Leprosy Hospital in Hendala into a quarantine facility for passengers arriving in the country from Italy, South Korea and Iran where COVID-19 is spreading at a faster rate outside of China. Delivering a special statement in this regard on Wednesday (4), Health Services Director General Dr. Anil Jasinghe stated that every passenger reaching Sri Lanka from the aforesaid more..

Mar 4 (NR) United Leftist Front says a decision has not been reached to pledge allegiance to the Samagi Jana Balawegaya led by Sajith Premadasa. Chief Secretary of the Front attorney Lal Wijenayake said his group will support the JVP led National Movement for People�s Power. Wijenayake speaking at a media briefing in Kandy said a certain group portraying to be the United Leftist Front signed the MoU of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya during the event at the Nelum Pokuna on Monday. more..

Mar 4 (BBC) There are over one million tuk-tuks (also known as auto rickshaws) in Sri Lanka. They are cheap to use but can also be very polluting. Now electric tuk-tuks are being developed as well as conversion kits to change petrol powered vehicles to run on batteries. But will they take off? The Travel Show's Lucy Hedges looks at the technology and test drives an electric vehicle with tuk-tuk driver Thushari Medagamage to find out more. more..

Mar 4 (AD) Akila Viraj Kariyawasam has informed UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe that he is willing to resign from his position as UNP General Secretary, for the unity of the party. He revealed this while speaking to media following the Working Committee meeting of the UNP held this evening. Former MP Rajitha Senaratne, acting as a mediator, yesterday held discussion with Samagi Jana Balawegaya more..

Mar 4 (MFA) Sri Lanka will lead the Science, Technology and Innovation sector in the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC). A BIMSTEC Facility for Technology Transfer is planned to be opened in SL in the future. SL will also appoint a Director to the BIMSTEC Secretariat in June this year. This was agreed during the finalization of areas of cooperation among BIMSTEC Member States during the 20th Session of Senior Officials� more..

Mar 4 (AD) Four Extraordinary Gazette notifications pertaining to the administrative functions of the forthcoming General Election have been issued last night. These gazette notifications are on the deposits from independent groups, procedure for casting votes, appointment of returning officers and assistant returning officers, signed by the Commissioner-General of Elections, Saman Sri Rathnayake. 22 returning officers and 22 assistant returning officers have been appointed more..

Mar 4 (DM) Peng Liyuan, wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping, has written back to a group of students from Devi Balika Vidyalaya in Sri Lanka, expressing her appreciation for their support for China's fight against the COVID-19 epidemic and encouraging them to make contributions to carrying forward China-Sri Lanka friendship. In her reply letter on Monday, Peng told the students from Devi Balika Vidyalaya that their letter & paintings more..

Mar 5 (CT) Today, much debate goes on in the public arena about Parliamentarians crossing from this side to that. Many of the views aired suggest this is generally viewed with disdain, even contempt. I for one, have crossed over a few times, but I am not at all ashamed of the fact! This is so because, on each occasion I chose to do so, I was satisfied according to my own conscience that what I was doing was right. Media never makes it easy for one who takes such decisions; more..

Mar 5 (CT) Over the past few years, I have contributed several pieces to this and other journals on a number of issues regarding Sri Lankan Muslims, such as MMDA, burqa, niqab and abaya, ifthar dinner parties, madrasas, mosques, sharia, Muslim leadership, and so on. Those pieces, as expected, attracted measured appreciation as well as outright condemnation, both by Muslims as well as non-Muslims. In all those contributions, my views were governed by lessons I learnt from more..

Mar 5 (Roar) Late this January, UK finally, and officially, ended its membership in the European Union (EU). Although the process began four years ago, this break in 2020 is less than a clean one. The UK is now in a transition period, during which much of the previous rules apply, for the next 10 months at least. But as the EU and UK hammer out the details of new trade relations, it�s worth asking, how will all this affect Sri Lanka? more..

Mar 5 (DM) Sri Lankans are looking forward to two things next month; the Sinhala-Tamil New Year and the General Elections. Hence we can say that the wait till then amounts to hope; hope that something positive can be witnessed when these two events take place. There was a recent Facebook post in Sinhala which translated to English reads as follows: Waiting for someone to arrive amounts to hope. Waiting for someone despite knowing that the person wouldn�t come is love. more..

Mar 5 (DM) The impasse over the symbol has compounded internal squabbling of the UNP beyond redemption. The party led by former PM Ranil Wickremesinghe refuses to budge an inch from its stance that the elephant symbol should be on the ballot paper at the upcoming General Elections. Nevertheless, the faction led by Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa has stiffened its position that the UNP should be party to the newly formed alliance SJB and settle for a common symbol. more..

Mar 5 (CT) Former JVP Leader Rohana Wijeweera's son, Uvindu Wijeweera, who is studying at the South Ural State Uni in Russia, is in SL for a short holiday. There was much talk recently about a statement made by Uvindu to the Media. We interviewed Uvindu about his political stance. Q: Was there any special reason for you to come to SL this time? A: I was appointed as the President of Int'l Students' Association of our Uni in Russia, more..

Mar 5 (CT) One of the foreign agreements that had received much attention in Sri Lanka recently is the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) agreement. The MCC, also known as MCC compact, was established in 2004 by the US Congress during the tenure of late US president, George Bush. It was established with the objective of providing development assistance to low income countries. Every year, a country is selected for this grant through a rigorous process and the eligibility more..

Mar 5 (CT) US imposed a travel ban on Army Commander and Acting Chief of Defence Staff Shavendra Silva and his family. This is a direct result of the brutal motherland betrayal of the UNP, the so-called Yahapalana leadership, TNA and JVP, in the anti-motherland co-sponsorship with the UNHRC Resolution 30/1, adopted on 1 Oct 2015, and being continued with various crafty amendments by the US and a couple of European countries. However, it is a pleasure to watch that the present SLPP more..

Mar 5 (Island) The West has, rightly, drawn the attention of the world to the potentially globe-wide devastating economic impact of the coronavirus epidemic (COVID-19) but saving lives is of equal importance. Death is the great and ultimate leveller and socially-conscious sections are probably hoping that the need to ward-off COVID-19 and its dire effects would be bringing the peoples of the world together in a united effort to manage the contagion. In these difficult circumstances mortality more..

Mar 5 (Island) SL political leaders have an enormous predilection for foreign models, as is common knowledge. They have introduced a Constitution, which is a political chimera, as it were, containing features of the French and British systems of govt. The Provincial Council system is based on the Indian devolution model. But they have chosen to ignore the Swedish model anent the salaries, perks, privileges, etc. of MPs. The CID, which switched its allegiance to the present regime, more..

Mar 5 (CI) Lendl Simmons batted through the innings, while Andre Russell and Kieron Pollard clobbered Sri Lanka through the middle overs to propel West Indies to a commanding score in Pallekele. Despite a half-century from Kusal Perera, Sri Lanka couldn't get close - they lost five wickets, all to Oshane Thomas inside the Powerplay. And although Perera and Wanindu Hasaranga did their best to revive the innings, more..

Mar 5 (DN) St. Peter�s College have been rather quiet this season, though, based on past records, they can turn the tables. Their U-19 season has been only a below-average show and nothing to brag about. In fact the Petes have been limping this season and will be waiting to fire, when the contest among the Catholic schools, renews tomorrow for the 86th occasion at the P. Sara Oval against traditional rivals St. Joseph�s College. The aim of the boys from Bambalapititya, current holders more..

Mar 5 (DN) The 91st edition of Battle of the Maroons cricket encounter between arch rivals Ananda College and Nalanda College will take place at the SSC grounds on March 7 and 8 for the Dr. N.M. Perera Memorial Challenge Trophy. Nalanda who have won three matches outright in 16 outings against Gurukula Kelaniya, Dharmasoka Ambalangoda and St. Sylvester�s Kandy and lost outright to Trinity College will be looking to their three players who figured in U-19 WC more..

Mar 5 (FT) Export Development Board (EDB) called on the private sector to plan and prepare for the novel COVID-19 challenge, which has caused market and supply chain disruptions globally since February, and is threatening to impact trade. �Next quarter is going to be quite challenging. The situation is going to be extremely bad over the next three months, where we will see a drop of exports about 20% to 25%, more..

Mar 5 (DN) One of the largest sea food exporters in Sri Lanka TESS Group has come forward to start operations in the abandoned Oluvil Fisheries Harbour said Chairman of Ministries sectaries� Union, Keerthi Sri Weerasinghe. He said that the TESS Group will first clear the sand dunes helping the opening of the now defunct harbour. They will then operate the fish processing plant which was never used to date. �It�s ironic to note that TESS was one of the contractors of the Rs. 16 billion more..

Mar 5 (SO) The newly elected president of the Table Tennis Association of Sri Lanka (TTASL) State Minister Kanaka Herath said that his aim is to make the sport financially stable. Herath had also held this post in 2017 and revealed plans to conduct the South Asian Table Tennis championship during that period when Sri Lanka were ranked number two in the South Asian Region. Now Sri Lanka has failed to maintain that standard at competitions like in the Asian and Commonwealth Games. more..

Mar 5 (EN) Social media blackouts and protectionism hurt women-led micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) which rely on such platforms for marketing, a preliminary study from a think tank has found. Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), said new businesses which are cropping up on social media exclusively use such platforms to sell products, based on a survey of 40 businesses operating on FB and Instagram. more..

Mar 5 (FT) SLPP yesterday said that they are confident of securing 150 seats in Parliament, aided by the rift within the UNP, which has been warring for months over positions and the symbol to contest the General Election. Speaking to media, former MP Dilan Perera said the rift within the UNP had created an opportunity for the SLPP to obtain a two-thirds majority in Parliament at the General Election. He claimed the constant disagreements within the UNP discouraged its supporters. more..

Mar 5 (SLN) Two Russian Navy ships Yaroslav Mudry and Victor Konetsky arrived to the port of Colombo on a three day goodwill visit today (4). The visiting ships were welcomed by SL Navy in compliance with naval traditions. Subsequently, the Commanding Officers of the 02 Russian Navy ships Captain Victor Vasilyevich Kostriukov and Captain Mikchail Aleksandrovich called on Commander Western Naval Area, Rear Admiral Sumith Weerasinghe at Western Naval Comm Hq. more..

Mar 5 (EN) SL�s central bank kept its policy rates unchanged in February 2020, saying market interest were continuing to fall but warned of a fallout from novel Coronavirus that will hit economic activities. �The decision of the Monetary Board is consistent with the aim of maintaining inflation in the 4-6% range while supporting economic growth to reach its potential over the medium term,� the central bank said more..

Mar 5 (FT) With the rapid deployment of digital services and expansion of e-Government initiatives to deliver citizen services in the country, electronic transactions in Sri Lanka will grow substantially in the near future. This increases the probability of identity theft, financial fraud and other security breaches. Therefore, the requirement to authenticate citizens as well as organisations involved in digital transactions becomes pivotal. To address this requirement, to authenticate citizens more..

Mar 5 (FT) High Commissioner-designate of Sri Lanka to the UK Saroja Sirisena assumed duties on 2 March. She was received upon arrival at the London Heathrow Airport by the Special Representative of the UK Foreign Secretary Kathryn Colvin. Prior to assumption of duties, religious observances and chanting of seth pirith were conducted by the London Buddhist Vihara Chief Incumbent and Chief Sangha Nayake of Great Britain Ven. Bogoda Seelawimala Thero more..

Mar 5 (AD) Accelerating economic development is the primary challenge facing Sri Lanka today and most of the security issues that Sri Lanka has faced over the years have been due to the exploitation of the economically disadvantaged, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said. The proposed people-centric model takes this factor into account, said the President at a forum with representatives of the ICT sector more..

Mar 5 (DN) Sri Lanka needs to popularize boating as a lifestyle to create awareness on the boating activities among the relevant stakeholders and more importantly to increase revenue in a big way, EDB, Director General Jeevani Siriwardena said. Having identified Boat and Ship Building as a focused sector in the National Export Strategy (NES) 2018-2020, EDB has also undertaken various initiatives to improve the internal and external market demand for boating related products and services. more..

Mar 5 (Island) Jaffna Magistrate Peter Paul, on Tuesday, imposed a fine of Rs 185,000 on a restaurant owner for serving a customer with a lunch including a cockroach. The cockroach was spotted by one of the customers who ate lunch at the restaurant on Feb 10. Using their smart phones they took pictures of the dead cockroach. When customers brought the matter to the notice of the restaurant owner, they were threatened. The customers ran out of the restaurant and more..

Mar 5 (CT) Reflecting on the last Presidential Election, TNA leader, R. Sampanthan pointed out that during the campaign, the Sinhalese people were made to feel that their safety was at risk, which was not the case. He said thus during a meeting with the Netherlands Ambassador Tanja Gonggrip on 3 March. He further explained that the withdrawal from the co-sponsorship of UNHRC Resolution by the Govt will not do any good for the country. more..

Mar 5 (AD) Two employees of the Duty Free shopping complex at the BIA have been arrested while attempting to smuggle out gold worth over Rs 24 million. The two suspects were arrested at around 8 a.m. this morning (4) at the arrival lounge of the airport by Customs officers. 1 kg and 103 grams of gold jewellery, gold biscuits as well as pieces of gold were discovered in the pockets of their trousers and the waists. The gold is estimated to be worth around Rs 24,489,480. more..

Mar 5 (WB) As COVID-19 reaches more than 60 countries, the World Bank Group is making available an initial package of up to $12 billion in immediate support to assist countries coping with the health and economic impacts of the global outbreak. This financing is designed to help member countries take effective action to respond to and, where possible, lessen the tragic impacts posed by the COVID-19 (coronavirus). Through this new fast track package, the WB Group will help developing countries more..

Mar 5 (Island) A Presidential Commission Inquiring (PCoI) into incidents of political victimisation, during the UNP-led yahapalana administration (Jan 2015 to Nov 2019), on Tuesday (3) heard two of UNP lawmaker Ranjan Ramanayake�s leaked audio clips. Rear Admiral D.K.P. Dassanayake, accused of forced wartime disappearance of 11 Tamil persons, handed over the 2 explosive clips�in one Gampaha Dis. MP more..

Mar 5 (DN) The total number of international tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka during February 2020 was 207,507. In comparison to February last year, there was a decline of 17.7 % when the arrivals were 252,033, according to Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority -Monthly Tourist Arrivals Report. This month, the largest source market for tourists was India, followed by the United Kingdom and Russian Federation and almost 92 % of tourists travelled by air to Sri Lanka. more..