Nov 6 (ST) Following the recent visit of the Chinese delegation led by Yang Jiechi, a member of the Communist Party of China�s Politburo, SL received a concessionary loan of US$500 million. Will this resolve SL�s debt crisis? China�s support was to enable Sri Lanka to pay off debt to other lenders. This is not a solution, but simply a way of deferring a solution, warned a top political economist Prof. Mick Moore, more..

Nov 6 (ST) Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has granted 13 million rupees to revamp the picturesque Welagedara Stadium in Kurunegala expecting to host more first class matches in the future. The construction of widening the cricket square with a 10-pitch square started at an auspicious time recently. There are six centre wickets in the existing cricket square and at the request of Kurunegala District Cricket Association (KDCA), SLC has allocated funds for KDCA to revamp more..

Nov 6 (TM) Sri Lanka is the world�s fourth largest tea producer with just under 350,000 tonnes of tea produced annually, which amounts to 17% of the world�s tea crops. Therefore, it is surprising that the same country which is known for its high-quality tea is failing at a similar brew. While the name Ceylon tea is known around the world, there was a beverage grown locally even before tea in Sri Lanka, then Ceylon. Historical records show that coffee predates tea by over a hundred years in SL, more..

Nov 6 (CI) Lankan Premier League (LPL) has been given the green light by the SL govt, following Thursday's discussions with health authorities and the nation's president. The tournament is now likely to start on Nov 27 - six days later than presently scheduled - and will almost certainly be played entirely at Sooriywawewa stadium. SLC said it had now secured permission for less-stringent quarantine protocols, which had been more..

Nov 6 (Island) Amidst a backdrop of uncertainty, Hatch and London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) SL successfully completed the fourth iteration of the KICKASS Bootcamp, a one-month long development programme designed to address fundamental business development skills and gender-specific elements faced by women thereby empowering a whole new batch of future women leaders. KICKASS Series 4 saw 12 startups and 13 founders take part in all its sessions, more..

Nov 6 (CT) Two bulk carriers with 64,500 tons of imported fertilisers from China arrived at the Port of Colombo to provide relief to farmers affected by the shortage of fertiliser in the agro-plantation sector in the country. The Long Shore arrived at the Unity Container Terminal of the Colombo Port carrying 31,500 tons of fertiliser while the Pola Indian arrived at the new North Pier carrying 33,000 tons of fertiliser. The Long Shore was built in 2010 and is sailing under the flag of Panama. more..

Nov 6 (FT) The Govt has planned to elevate the Kotmale Reservoir Dam by 30 metres, thereby increasing the existing water capacity of the reservoir. This modification in the structure is intended to irrigate more arable lands in Anuradhapura & Puttalam Districts of the Mahaweli H-Zone, thereby increasing paddy cultivation and other agricultural crops, State Minister Siripala Gamlath said during an inspection tour more..

Nov 6 (Island) The govt had no intention of increasing bus fares, State Minister of Transport Dilum Amunugama said in response to a request made by private bus owners and operators for a temporary fare hike during Covid-19 pandemic. Lanka Private Bus Operators Association President Gemunu Wijeratne, on Wednesday, asked for a fair hike. Minister said there would be no fare hikes. He also said in the face of the current situation, passengers as well as bus owners should more..

Nov 6 (DM) Paddy Marketing Board will purchase 300,000 tonnes of paddy from the next harvest to stave off possible rice mafia, Agriculture Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage said. He said such a stock, once milled, would provide rice sufficed for one month. He said it would enable the govt to prevail upon the market forces. �At the moment, we have only 20,000 tonnes. We are actually planning to buy ten percent of the Maha harvest at Rs. 50 a kilo. Farmers will receive fertilizer subsidy more..

Nov 6 (Zenger) An unprecedented surge in air pollution in Sri Lanka over the past week is being blamed on winds from India�s peninsular region blowing in high levels of bad air. The recent high pollution levels in Sri Lanka were recorded soon after air pollution levels in India�s capital of New Delhi increased to severe on Oct 23. �The pollution levels in northern SL are higher than the southern parts because of northern winds more..

Nov 6 (DM) The Int'l Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegation in Colombo will support a pilot project for online phone calls for detainees in the coming weeks, officials said. �The calls will allow detainees to maintain contact with their loved ones, amidst the administrative restrictions that have been put into place,� the ICRC said. Meanwhile, it also said that since March 2020, the ICRC, in coordination with the Ministry of Health, supported the efforts of Sri Lankan detaining authorities more..

Nov 6 (CT) Govt, on 7 Nov, is expected to receive 50,000 antigen test kits which would enable the swift receipt of test results conducted on COVID-19 infected, said State Minister Prof. Channa Jayasumana. He said the WHO has consented to grant 500,000 antigen test kits to Sri Lanka in this connection and added that during the first phase of this programme the Govt would receive 50,000 such test kits. Prof. Jayasumana said his Ministry has also called for tenders for prompt purchase more..

Nov 6 (TM) Cabinet has approved the amended version of the project agreement by the CEB and Lakdhanavi Ltd. for the construction of a 300 MW LNG (liquefied natural gas) power plant. Accordingly, Power Ministry is expected to begin construction immediately. In February this year, Govt awarded the contract to construct the second phase of the 300 MW LNG power plant in Kerawalapitiya to Lakdhanavi Ltd, overturning more..

Nov 6 (SLN) A special search operation carried out by the Navy in the sea area off Vettalakeni on 05 th Nov 2020, led to the apprehension of two (02) suspects attempting to smuggle about 213kg of Kerala cannabis worth over Rs. 63 million, by sea into the island. Incidentally, the Northern Naval Command managed to take hold of this stock of Kerala cannabis (about 213kg) in 98 packages stuffed in 08 polythene sacks, after inspecting a suspicious dinghy in the sea off Vettalakeni. more..

Nov 6 (CT) The World Health Organization (WHO) office in Sri Lanka raised concerns, regarding the spread of false information online concerning COVID-19. The public is urged to fact check before sharing any information online by visiting the authorised online websites in which information on the current COVID-19 situation will be properly updated by relevant authorities. Information that has been shared online, if detected as being false, it has to be reported to 1999. more..

Nov 6 (CT) This second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic could abate within the next six to eight weeks, as long as another COVID-19 cluster does not appear within the next few days, Deputy Director General (Public Health), Dr. Hemantha Herath said. He lamented that 2nd wave, which started with the Brandix cluster in the Minuwangoda facility, had been prolonged with the emergence of the sub cluster at Peliyagoda Fish Market. more..

Nov 6 (FT) Mass Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said the Govt was tasked with presenting the most challenging budget in the recent history. �The country is faced with an unprecedented situation. Many new challenges could arise during these uncertain times. Our key focus this year is to improve the living standards of the people while continuing the development work,� he said at an event to inaugurate several road development projects in Kundasale electorate. more..

Nov 6 (AN) The Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission (IPHRC) of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) expressed its deep concerns on Thursday over multiple reports indicating that the Sri Lankan govt is cremating all people who die in the COVID-19 pandemic. This effectively bans burials, a practice followed by many religious minorities, including Muslims. The issue has been raised by many human rights organizations, and UN Special Rapporteur more..

Nov 6 (FT) The dual COVID-19 cluster that emerged from a garment manufacturing facility in Minuwangoda and the Peliyagoda Fish Market expanded to 9,092, with 383 persons testing positive for the virus yesterday. 383 persons were contacts of the Peliyagoda cluster. A total of 12,400 COVID-19 patients have been identified in the island to date, including 1,465 Sri Lanka returnees from abroad, 950 Navy personnel more..

Nov 6 (Island) National Coordinator of the CMEV Manjula Gajanayake said that increasing the number of the Election Commission members from three to five was an irrational decision. Gajanayake said that elections in the country had been managed by a single person for 60 years before the EC was appointed in 2015. �It would have been better to reduce the required quorum of the EC to two out of the three members rather than increase the number of members� he added. more..

Nov 6 (Island) Nearly 200,000 people in 320 Grama Niladhari Divisions in Kelaniya, Peliyagoda, Biyagama, Kandana, Pamunugama, Katunayake, Katana, Mahara, Kadawatha, Ragama, Welisara, Ja-Ela, and Ekala would benefit from a water project initiated by Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara. He said relief would be provided and water made available after the 18th of this month under the scheme. The daily production capacity of the new water treatment plant would be increased from 180,000 more..

Nov 6 (FT) Jeffrey Tucker of The American Institute of Economic Research sums it up: �Instead of dealing rationally with a textbook virus, as we had done during the whole of the 20th century, we embarked on a new social/political experiment in lockdowns. We attempted to intimidate a virus with PhDs and political power, hoping that it would shrivel and die, and in so doing dramatically disabled human freedom and social functioning. What do we have to show for it? Massive carnage, more..

Nov 6 (FT) It can be said that SL has already fallen to the bottom of the deepest abyss possible. It cannot be considered a result of being pushed into the abyss by an outside force, but a situation created voluntarily, by the people of the country themselves, including the leaders and intellectuals. SL is a stupid nation that still maintains a system of education based on rote learning and memorisation. It is unavoidable that the child becomes an incompetent mutt devoid of intellect when more..

Nov 6 (AD) A total of 383 new cases of coronavirus were identified in the country within yesterday while a majority of them are from the Colombo District (168) and Gampaha District (157). The remaining Covid-19 patients are from Kalutara (24), Kegalle (6), Matara (5), Batticaloa (1) and Kurunegala (1) districts. Twenty-one (21) police officers are also among the infected persons detected yesterday. more..

Nov 6 (AD) A 32-year-old woman fed food laced with poison to her three daughters before trying to commit suicide by consuming it herself following a family dispute with her husband. The incident had reportedly taken place at around 8 a.m. this morning at the Ananthapuri area in Nilaveli, Trincomalee. The 32-year-old mother of four had fed the food laced with poison to her three daughters before consuming it herself. The 16-year-old eldest daughter has died while the woman and her 2 other daughters, more..

Nov 6 (Island) Offering customer�s greater avenues of convenience coupled with a future-fit payment security model Genie, SL�s first PCI-DSS-certified payment app, powered by Dialog Axiata PLC, Sri Lanka�s premier connectivity provider, has adopted tokenization technology to eliminate friction in its payment process and provide a quick checkout experience. With increased attention surrounding mobile payments and a myriad of merchants migrating online, payment security is an more..

Nov 6 (EN) A group of women detainees at the Welikada jail in Colombo are staging a protest as tensions arising from the discovery of five Covid positive inmates in the overcrowded prison yesterday spilt over. The sick inmates who are four women and one man have been transferred to the Angunakolapelessa jail and efforts were being made to safeguard the other prisoners Colombo Commissioner of Prisons (Administration) more..

Nov 6 (AD) The Ministry of Health says that another 563 coronavirus patients have been discharged from hospitals after recovering from the virus. This increases the total number of Covid-19 recoveries in Sri Lanka thus far to 7,186. 324 of the patients discharged today are from the Punanai treatment centre, 52 are from Neville Fernando Hospital, 25 from Kathankudy Hospital, 23 from Hambanthota District General Hospital, 16 from IDH and 16 from Rambukkana Hospital. more..

Nov 6 (Island) Vice Chancellor of the Uni of Jaffna, C. Satkunarajah has given strict instructions to the Deans of its faculties to ensure that the answer scripts of students are marked without delay. To make sure this happens, he has instructed the Deans to set the dates in advance for the setting of papers, the first marking, second marking, approval of heads of department, approval of Dean and the handover of marks to examination department. The VC has also told the council meeting that more..

Nov 6 (Island) SLPP National List MP Gevindu Cumaratunga said that he strongly believed SL should adopt a system similar to that of the US as part of the overall measures to ensure a level playing field at the presidential election. Convenor of Yuthukama organization Cumaratunga said that he would soon hand over their proposals to a Committee led by Romesh de Silva, PC, tasked with formulating the new Constitution. more..

Nov 6 (AD) The remittance flow to SL is projected to decline by 9% in 2020 due to the economic crisis induced by Covid-19 pandemic and shutdown, according to a World Bank report published recently. "The coronavirus-related global slowdown and travel restrictions will also affect migratory movements, and this is likely to keep remittances subdued even in 2021," WB stated. In the report titled Phase II: COVID-19 Crisis through a Migration Lens, WB also warned that not only Sri Lanka, more..

Nov 6 (EN) Colombo Port and the Dept of Customs has been hit by Coronavirus as total cases went up and several Covid-19 infected elderly persons turned up dead in their homes in the northern part of the capital. �The port has been subjected to a Coronavirus attack (darunu Coronavirus attack),� SLPA Chairman Daya Ratnayake told reporters. �We are working together to take all steps necessary to emerge from this. We are following health rules. All essential work is being carried out. more..

Nov 6 (FT) Health Ministry has issued instructions on an alert level system formulated on the country�s COVID-19 response and activities permitted at specific stages, saying the Ministry would announce the current alert level based on the epidemiological situation of COVID-19 in the country. The document, signed by Director General of Health Services Dr. Asela Gunawardena, outlines four alert levels and the restrictions imposed at each level. more..

Nov 6 (Island) The govt of Japan announced the conferment of The Order of the Sacred Treasure, Gold and Silver Rays upon Janak Bandaranayake on 3 Nov for his contributions to promoting cultural exchange between Japan and Sri Lanka. Bandaranayake worked at the Embassy of Japan in SL over a span of three decades and contributed to deepening cultural ties between Japan and SL. He was also instrumental in inaugurating Rupavahini through a Japanese grant aid in early 1980s, more..

Nov 6 (CT) SJB MP Harsha de Silva stated that the Shakthi Sahal (Rice) Programme which he initiated to strengthen small and medium scale rice mill owners during his stint as the Minister of Trade Affairs has been destroyed by this regime. �Due to the crass actions of the present Govt, scores of rice consumers had been forced to pay an exorbitant price for it. Despite a record rice harvest obtained during the present season, Govt has failed to impose a certified price for various varieties more..

Nov 6 (EN) Sri Lanka will use an antigen test kit for expedited COVID-19 detection that will deliver results in 20 minutes, prior to using the costlier PCR test for further testing, the Ministry of Health said. At present, health officials are heavily dependent on PCR tests to identify patients which makes random tests too expensive and time consuming. A PCR test costs about LKR 6,000 at private hospitals and due to a backlog, more..

Nov 6 (FT) The Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) on Wednesday held an advanced seminar on governance via video, strictly abiding by the health guidelines of both countries. Minister Song Tao of the Int'l Department of Central Committee of CPC, Party Secretary Liu Cigui of CPC Provincial Committee of Hainan Province, SLPP Chairman Prof G.L. Peiris, Secretary General Sagara Kariyawasam, SLPP MPs including more..

Nov 6 (NR) 213 individuals have tested positive for COVID-19 today. The Commander of the Army Lt General Shavendra Silva said the group was identified as contacts of the Minuwangoda-Peliyagoda cluster. Accordingly, the number of infections recorded in the country increased to 12,783 while the Minuwangoda-Peliyagoda cluster rose to 9,305. The number of coronavirus recoveries recorded in SL increased to 7,186 today with 563 individuals discharged during past 24-hours. more..

Nov 6 (CT) DPF Deputy Leader and SJB Kandy District MP, M. Velukumar, said that the Govt was making use of Muslim politicians for its political purposes, but was not halting the oppression caused to them. Velukumar further said the Govt, which came to power by oppressing the minorities and sowing racism in the minds of the majority community, was still following that trend. He lamented that due to impact of COVID-19, more..