NoV 19 (CT) The sudden spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus has caught both the govt and larger society by surprise and generated collective alarm. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has been chiding the people for failing to be more careful about their safety and taking the necessary precautions. Until the recent outbreak took on serious proportions, people felt obliged to wear face masks to avoid being questioned by police rather than for their own personal safety & that of those around them. more..

Nov 19 (DM) The month of November in 1989 was colder than in past years. It was in fact chilling from a metaphorical sense. This was largely because of the rebel JVP movement coming to an end with the killing of its leader Rohana Wijewera. There were no advanced communication equipment back then, but the JVP communicated its ideas and warnings quite clearly to the public. Fast forward the clock by 31 years and now we have another crisis (the pandemic) gripping the country and more..

Nov 19 (CT) The Sri Lanka Medical Association (SLMA) conducted a Seminar on Thursday (12) focusing on �COVID-19, Dealing with life stressors�, at a time when the number of COVID-19 cases reported from the second wave topped 12,000, the total number of cases reached 15,723 by Friday (13) morning and the death toll rose to 48. Needless to say the very figures being recorded in the second wave and more..

Nov 19 (CT) Govt has allocated Rs 288 billion (Rs 288,000 million) for health in Budget 2021 under the slogan Health First. This is equivalent to 8.01% of the total budgetary outlay, excluding foreign debt servicing commitments (Rs 507 billion) which are estimated at Rs 3,594 billion for 2021. If foreign debt servicing is also included in Budget 2021, then GoSL�s total expenditure for 2021 will increase to Rs 4,101 billion, while GoSL�s Health commitment in that aspect will decline to 7.02%. more..

Nov 19 (ST) As I was contemplating a topic for this week�s column with the focus ideally being COVID-19-related on Thursday morning, the phone rang. It was a friend from Male, the capital city of the Maldives. �How are you?� he asked. After a warm greeting since I hadn�t spoken to him for a while, I asked: �It�s a long time since we last spoke. Anything interesting?� We then got into a long conversation about the plight of Sri Lankan workers in the Maldives, particularly the capital city. more..

Nov 19 (GV) With the enactment of the 20th Amendment, Sri Lanka embarks yet again down the fraught path of authoritarian presidentialism. Whether this latest adventure ends in a democratic nightmare, or is as fleeting as its two predecessors, the 18th and 19th Amendments, remains to be seen. The legitimacy of both these previous constitutional reconstructions were undone by their own creators within a single term of office. The potential for the 20th to go the same way is already visible, more..

Nov 19 (TC) In its pre-budget note on the state of SL economy, Collective for Economic Democracy (CED) has recommended that the govt stop relying on austerity measures, export promotion and Foreign Direct Investment to shore up the COVID-19 hit economy. CED favors deficit financing, State investment, encouragement for domestic investment and measures to boost local demand to meet the unprecedented domestic and global crisis. PM and Finance Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa more..

Nov 19 (DM) Another elephant succumbed to injuries after being electrocuted near Nimalawa Sanctuary recently. While most electric fences don�t necessarily have electricity, they are just a simulation to keep elephants away and protect crops. However, the postmortem report revealed that the elephant died of electrocution and a suspect was taken into custody. While it's illegal to draw electricity in this nature, more..

Nov 19 (DM) It was obviously not a year that made for pomp and pageantry, even if that was the desire. All issues have been either framed or impacted by Covid19. In any case, he�s not, for example, a Mahinda Rajapaksa. Covid-19 of course was so sobering that the contrast was lost. No-frills is good, but presidents are not elected to be less or more showy than their predecessors. It�s about manifestos, mandates and delivery. Delivery ran into the Covid19 wall, but this doesn�t mean that more..

Nov 19 (Island) PM Mahinda Rajapaksa, who is also the Minister of Finance, has presented Budget 2021, which looks a good story with a happy ending. It has offered something to everyone, and is bound to go down well with those who are to benefit from tax exemptions and other such relief. All 75 budgets presented in the SL Parliament have been tales told by Finance Ministers. Most budget proposals, especially the progressive ones, have remained unimplemented, all these years, more..

Nov 19 (CT) Departures for foreign employment declined sharply by 57.2% to 40,689 in the first half of 2020 from 95,007 in the corresponding period of 2019, highlighted a recent report from CB. The decline was mainly due to the temporary ban imposed by SLBFE on departures of migrant workers and with the travel restrictions imposed in labour receiving countries due to global COVID-19 pandemic. more..

Nov 19 (ST) Jaffna Stallions becomes the first franchise cricket team in the 2020 Lanka Premier League (LPL) to hold a full-blown training session. With the impeccable guidance and leadership of Thilina Kandamby, the Head Coach, and Thisara Perera, the captain, the team takes part in a 3-day residential cricket camp from Nov 13 to 15 at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium. All the SL players will take part in the training camp where Thisara Perera, Wanindu Hasaranga, more..

Nov 19 (DN) Lanka Premier League (LPL) Twenty20 Cricket Tournament received another tremendous boost with former India fast bowler, Munaf Patel joining the Kandy Tuskers as one of their overseas players. The 37-year-old right-arm seamer is probably one of the most high profiled players to join the franchise having played in the 2011 champion ICC World Cup Team. Patel played 13 Test matches, 70 ODIs and three T20Is for India before his career ended soon after the 2011 Cricket World Cup. more..

Nov 19 (FT) Treasury Secretary S.R. Attygalle said that the upcoming special single Goods and Services Tax (GST) which is one of the major proposals in 2021 Budget will be either revenue neutral or positive as the rate will be determined prior to its implementation from January. On Tuesday in presenting the 2021 Budget, PM Mahinda Rajapaksa proposed to improve the efficiency of tax collection through more..

Nov 19 (CT) The sentencing of Lalith De Silva the SriLankan Airlines Regional Manager New Delhi, who was convicted on the 16th of September 2020 by the Metropolitan Magistrate Court of New Delhi for insulting the modesty of one of his Indian national female staff members during the time he was stationed in New Delhi India, was postponed to the 18th March 2021 yesterday. The case State Vs Lalith De Silva which was listed before Judge S.H. Dev Saroha, Metropolitan Magistrate, more..

Nov 19 (Island) The 2019 Junior National Athletics Championship witnessed 20 new meet records being established in various age categories. The All Island Schools Games athletics Championship also registered an outstanding number of 49 new records last year. Standards of junior athletics keep improving and at times juniors have come close to matching the feats of their senior counterparts. However many have raised eyebrows over outstanding athletics performances of juniors more..

Nov 19 (CT) Independent Television Network (ITN) have bagged the Lanka Premier League (LPL) broadcasting rights for Sri Lanka, while global sports broadcasting giant Sky Sports have won the rights for UK, and Geo and PTV have won the telecast rights in Pakistan. LPL is scheduled to kick-off from 26 Nov till 16 Dec at Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium (MRIC) in Hambantota. more..

Nov 19 (DN) Intense preparations are underway at the Mahinda Rajapaksa Int'l Cricket Stadium (MRICS), Hambantota to host the inaugural Lanka Premier League 2020 (LPL), which will commence on Nov 26 when Colombo Kings takes on Kandy Tuskers, in the first game of the competition. The ground staff is currently engaged in preparing the venue, which will hold a record 23 matches in 15 days, including the finals of the much-awaited LPL. In total, MRICS will have 10 center wickets more..

Nov 19 (DN) The Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka (SEC), Viraj Dayaratne commended the Budget Proposals and said it includes several measures to develop the capital market. As an incentive to promote and popularize Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITS) that was enabled by the SEC by way of its Rules published in the Gazette on July 31, 2020, the proposals state that the investments in REITS are exempted from the Capital Gains Tax and more..

Nov 19 (FT) The freshly-unveiled Budget 2021 policies are aimed at focusing on multiple aspects of the economy to drive forward growth, including capital market expansion, socioeconomic development and attract investment, a top official said, terming it as the bedrock for SL�s next wave of economic expansion. State Minister Ajith Nivard Cabraal, speaking at the KPMG Budget Analysis 2021 Road to Resilience and Recovery, more..

Nov 19 (FT) Govt could be opening a Pandora�s Box by mandating a wage in the Budget, a top plantations industry expert said, warning that it ignored market realities and the collective bargaining system practiced by the sector for decades. Sunshine Holdings Group Managing Director Vish Govindasamy, responding to questions as part of the KPMG post-Budget conference, opined that including the plantation wage in the Budget was an unwise step by the Govt, as it created more..

Nov 19 (Island) National Chamber at the outset acknowledge and appreciated the Govt efforts to maintain consistency in taxation policy framework commenced last year with introduction of certain tax cuts and relaxations, without resorting to ad-hoc revenue enhancement measures in the midst of extremely difficult times confronted with Covid-19 pandemic on behalf of the membership, business community and general public at large. We observe the budget proposals deliberated under more..

Nov 19 (Island) Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi told Parliament yesterday that the COVID-19 virus was going to last for the next three and a half years and people would have to learn to live with the problem. Minister said so responding to a question raised by SJB MP Hesha Withanage, who demanded to know from the govt why some of the experts who had been involved in the battle against the virus during more..

Nov 19 (FT) PM Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday launched the Phase II of BIA Expansion project, the largest development project to be launched in the country this year. Ambassador of Japan to Sri Lanka Akira Sugiyama attended the ground-breaking ceremony of the BIA Project Phase 2 and Minister Prasanna Ranatunga and State Minister D.V. Chanaka joined to grace the occasion. The ground-breaking ceremony marked the construction of a new multi-level passenger terminal building, more..

Nov 19 (FT) The first-ever foreign direct investment to the Hambantota Port industrial zone will be signed off today involving a Chinese investment worth $ 300 million initially to manufacture radial car and truck/bus tyres for export. The Chinese company is Shandong Haohua Tire Ltd. which is one of the largest private tyre manufacturers in China with a production capacity of 20 million PCR tires and 5.5 million TBR tires annually. Its decision to set up manufacturing facility is given high quality more..

Nov 19 (FT) The dual COVID-19 cluster that emerged from Divulapitiya and Peliyagoda yesterday expanded to 14,893, with 327 new cases identified within the day. 325 cases were contacts of the Peliyagoda COVID-19 cluster, while two were overseas arrivals. This brings the total number of confirmed patients to 18,402. The total count also includes 1,491 Sri Lankans who arrived from abroad, 950 Navy personnel and more..

Nov 19 (Island) Attorney General Dappula de Livera advised the CID bigwigs on the inquiry into what he called the Brandix covid cluster. Among those present at a meeting summoned by the AG were DIG, CID and Director of CID. Acting IGP C.D. Wickremaratne named a team of CID officers to probe the eruption of the second corona wave. AG�s Coordinating Officer, Nishara Jayaratne said that Acting IGP had been informed of the need to conduct a high-level investigation more..

Nov 19 (Island) Having COVID-19 infected prisoners in the old Bogambara prison premises in Kandy was like keeping a ticking time bomb in the city, Kandy District MP Lakshman Kiriella told Parliament. At the time for Notices of Motions and Orders of the Day, MP Kiriella, with the permission of the Chair, said that he had warned Bogambara prisons now used as a quarantine centre that it would lead to the transmission the virus but the authorities had not heeded his warning. more..

Nov 19 (AD) The Ministry of Health today (18) released a set of guidelines for conducting rapid antigen tests for the detection of COVID-19 infection. Directions have been issued to use the rapid antigen test kits donated by the WHO from today onwards. The test can be carried out at all govt hospitals including the National Hospitals, Teaching Hospitals, General Hospitals, District Hospitals, and Regional Hospitals. more..

Nov 19 (DM) Referring to the incident where MP Dilip Wedaarachchi consumed a raw fish during a news briefing, the GMOA Editor said eating raw fish could be harmful to the human body. He said that there are parasites on and inside of the skin of the fish, despite they being in fresh or salt water. �There are also bacteria in fish's skin. These parasites and bacteria are not good for the human body,� he said. �Therefore, we are not recommending the consumption of raw fish and more..

Nov 19 (FT) Three COVID-19 deaths were confirmed by health authorities yesterday, bringing the total number of COVID-19-related deaths to 69. Two individuals from Colombo as well as one individual from Kandana passed away due to COVID-19. Individual from Kandana was 70-yr-old and passed away at home. He died of diabetes complications that arose with COVID-19. An individual from Colombo-13 also died of diabetes complications that worsened due to Covid-19. more..

Nov 19 (FT) Marking his first year Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa yesterday pledged to unremittingly continue his efforts to serve SL by taking forward protection of national security, deliver on development goals and uphold law and order, and expressed confidence that SL would be able to overcome COVID-19 challenges through citizen cooperation. Recapping in detail steps taken by him and the Govt during the past 12 months, more..

Nov 19 (Island) The state funeral of the late Mahanayake of Ramanna Mahanikaya most Venerable Aggamaha Pandith Napana Pemasiri Thera will take place on Sunday afternoon at the S.W.R.D. Banadaranaike Vidyalaya Grounds at Pallekele. The remains of the late prelate are lying at the Vidyasagara Maha Pirivena of Hurikaduwa in Menikhinna in Kundasala. People of all walks of life in large numbers have been paying their last respects to the late prelate from Wednesday. more..

Nov 19 (FT) Let�s face reality in the backdrop of Budget 2021 being presented. Corporate SL faced a blow when the first COVID-19 wave swept past SL even though many of us were not directly affected. The economy crashed in Q1 to -1.6% and most companies had a negative growth other than for the very aggressive companies that took the gaps in the market place. In the backdrop of Q-2 data not being released speculation is that Sri Lanka has registered a -17% GDP growth with exports and more..

Nov 19 (AD) Prez Rajapaksa has arrived at the parliament complex during the ongoing debate of the Second Reading of the 2021 Budget. The President arrived at the Parliament premises at around 11.30 and remained in his office at the parliament before attending the Budget debate at 11.40 am. This marks the first time that the Prez has entered the Chamber of Parliament after the ceremonial opening of the first session of 9th Parliament. He entered the chamber amidst a warm welcome from MPs, more..

Nov 19 (Island) Chief Opposition Whip Lakshman Kiriella in Parliament yesterday requested Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena to allow ACMC leader and Vanni District SJB MP Rishad Bathiudeen to participate in parliamentary proceedings. �MP Bathiudeen is now among COVID-19 infected persons. He is not allowed to come to Parliament. We have brought this matter to the notice of the Speaker several times. Speaker is duty bound to protect the rights of MPs. more..

Nov 19 (AD) Schools will reopen for Grades 6 and above from the 23rd of November as previously scheduled, said Minister of Education Prof. G. L. Peiris. However, this will not apply to the schools in the Western Province and areas currently under lockdown. In addition, students in the Western Province are not allowed to attend schools outside province boundaries while students outside Western Province may not more..

Nov 19 (EN) A year is a long time. This year has been longer than most. While that is not an indictment of the incumbent govt or of its leadership per se, few would disagree that 2020 has cast the powers that be in a less than flattering light. A historic parliamentary election victory notwithstanding, the ruling SLPP has been at the receiving end of some unexpectedly harsh criticism, not from opposition lawmakers or partisan pundits, but from ordinary citizens of different political more..