Sep 3 (DN) An alliance of Turmeric importers has written to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa seeking his intervention to release a stock of one million kilogrammes of turmeric which is currently at Colombo Port adding that the importers would in exchange donate Rs. 100 million to local farmers and purchase locally grown turmeric hereafter. The importers cite that the scarcity has led to rampant smuggling of turmeric and exorbitantly priced sales in the black market. more..

Sep 3 (CT) Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena said, he will take stringent action against any MP who violates the oath taken by him/her in the Legislature, based on provisions contained in Articles of the Constitution and the Standing Orders of Parliament. He said that if any MP, be they from the Govt or the Opposition airs views in the House to the effect of dividing the Nation or the creation of another State in contrary to the oath taken by them in Parliament, stern action will be instituted more..

Sep 3 (DN) Sri Lanka ranked high, out-performing South Asian neighbours in its Air Quality measurement according to the Environmental Performance Index 2020 (EPI) released by researchers at Yale & Columbia universities. The index, now in its 22nd year, has become the premier metrics framework for global environmental policy analysis, ranking 180 countries on several performance indicators. more..

Sep 3 (CT) The TNA said they are not in favour of repealing the 19th Amendment, to make way for the adoption of the 20th Amendment. TNA Leader and MP, R. Sampanthan, has stated the SLPP regime should not tamper with the 19th Amendment under any circumstances. He had mentioned that following the adoption of 19th Amendment, the country had begun to traverse on the path to true democracy. He had observed that during the 52-day rule of the short-lived coup instigated by the govt, more..

Sep 3 (CT) At least two Sri Lankans are reported to have died in an explosion inside an international fast food outlet in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), officials said yesterday. The explosion that took place on 31 August night had triggered-off due to a gas leak within the premises, they said. The Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet was situated on the Airport Road in the UAE Capital, Abu Dhabi. The victims were residents of Haputale and Weligama, Warakapitiya in Matara, they added. more..

Sep 3 (PMD) Prez Rajapaksa instructed officials to grant deeds for dispute-less lands occupied by the public within 3 months. President pointed out that during his recent island-wide one of the major issues raised by the people in many districts was that non-availability of title deeds to their lands. Prez said although the people have lived and cultivated lands for generations, not having title deeds have severely affected them. more..

Sep 3 (EN) State-run National Housing Development Authority has been authorized to sell 25 billion rupees in bonds to build middle class housing, Minister Ramesh Pathirana said. �The funds from the bond will be used for several middle class housing projects,� Minister said. The houses will be given on concessionary terms. �The recipients will be given repayment terms of 20 to 25 years. We expect to solve the problem of middle class housing with these projects.� more..

Sep 3 (FT) The 19th Amendment may have been introduced for many reasons. One reason may have been to curtail the powers of the Executive President and to strengthen the powers of the Legislature instead. What led to this is the subject of discussion and debate from the time the 19th Amendment became law in 2015. A generally held view is that the real motive was to curtail the powers of Presidency that Mahinda Rajapaksa enjoyed as Prez, and to strengthen the powers of the PM more..

Sep 3 (AD) Uva-Kuda Oya Police has arrested drug trafficker with 2g 90mg of heroin concealed inside a shoe. The 34-year-old was identified as Lakshman Kumara alias Tsunami Kaluwa, a resident of Thelulla area. A pair of shoes, a wrist watch and a mobile phone used to conceal heroin have also been seized by the police. The suspect was produced before Wellawaya Magistrate�s Court today. In a separate development, four other drug dealers including Chaminda Roshan alias Meegoda Chawwa more..

Sep 3 (FT) A successful strategy for the Opposition will have to contain three components: a lucid grasp of present oppositional realities and past errors, the best practices of Oppositions � and comebacks in pertinent/related fields of endeavour�in the island�s contemporary history, as well as the best practices of Oppositions in contemporary world politics. Facts as They Are was the translation of the title of a booklet (Athi Thathu) authored by R. Premadasa, aged 31 published by MD Gunasena in 1955 more..

Sep 3 (DM) The youth wing of the UNP Jathika Yovun Peramuna (JYP) has passed a resolution calling for the appointment of former State Minister Ruwan Wijewardene as the new party leader, its office bearers said today. JYP Secretary Dharshana Brahamana said that 32 of the 42 executive members of the youth front had voted in favour of the resolution calling for the appointment of Mr. Wijewardene as the new leader. more..

Sep 3 (AD) A Sri Lankan national has died in an accident caused by an explosion of gas pipeline in Abu Dhabi, the capital of United Arab Emirates (UAE). The deceased is a 28-year-old youth named Samith Rangana, hailing from Warakapitiya in Weligama, Matara. The incident reportedly took place on the 31st of Aug. Rangana�s mother said the family members are yet to receive any information about his demise and appealed to the authorities to repatriate his remains to Sri Lanka. more..

Sep 3 (EN) President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has appointed a high powered ministerial committee to promote investments for import substitution and exports made up of cabinet and non-cabinet rank ministers. The cabinet sub-committee will have PM Mahinda Rajapaksa who is also Finance Minister, Douglas Devananda (Fisheries), Gamini Lokuge (Transport), Bandula Gunawardene (Trade), Dalas Alahapperuma (Power), Johnston Fernando (Highways), Wimal Weerawansa (Industries). more..

Sep 3 (UN) Since April 2020, the United Nations in Sri Lanka has been collecting human interest stories showing how everyday heros persevere against the backdrop of the COVID-19 lockdown. These stories focus on first-person accounts about the work they do. The stories seek to find room for hope despite socio-economic fallout from COVID-19, focusing on people�s aspiration to succeed despite the mounting challenges. more..

Sep 3 (DM) Govt is planning to increase the export earnings of coconut up to US $ 1 billion during the next 5 years, Plantations Minister Ramesh Pathirana said yesterday. He revealed this at a programme held to mark the World Coconut Day, at the Coconut Research Institute in Lunuvila. �We intend to plant coconuts on 100,000 hectares of paddy land. A discussion has already been held with the Agrarian Services Dept in this regard. Our intention is to bring in a transformation in the coconut industry,� more..

Sep 3 (DM) CIMA, the world�s leading and largest professional accountancy body, launched Hundred & 10%, CIMA SL�s first-ever virtual career festival. The festival is a week-long event to be held from Sept 13-19, 2020, featuring global and local industry leaders coming together for a one of a kind career festival. Sharing her thoughts on the initiative, CIMA SL Country Manager Zahara Ansary, ACMA, CGMA, said, �The environment has dramatically changed since COVID-19 hit the world more..

Sep 3 (AD) The extraordinary gazette notification on the draft Bill of the 20th Amendment to the Constitution has been published. The relevant draft Bill was approved by Cabinet of Ministers on Wednesday during its meeting, chaired by President Rajapaksa. It was then sent to the Govt Printer for the publishing of the Gazette. The draft bill is expected to be tabled in parliament within the next two weeks. more..

Sep 3 (wsws) Socialist Equality Party (SEP) has decided to conclude the defence campaign it conducted over the past two months to demand the military end its harassment of the party�s Northern District candidates in the Aug 5 general elections. SEP Political Committee thanks all those, nationally and internationally, who supported this important campaign. On June 30, SEP issued the following statement, Hands off the SL Trotskyists: SEP demands military stops harassing its more..

Sep 3 (EN) SL�s private credit was negative for the third straight month in July 2020, contracting 3.6 billion rupees, while credit to govt and state enterprises surged. Banks loaned 172 billion rupees to the govt in July 2020, up from 133 billion rupees in June central bank data showed amid as tax revenues fell due to a combined effect of a pre-Coronavirus stimulus and post-crisis lockdowns and a slowdown. State enterprises borrowed 31.3 billion rupees, taking the total to Rs. 982.6 billion. more..

Sep 3 (CT) Cabinet has granted approval to suspend importation of vehicles for the foreseeable future. Decision has been taken following an assessment done by the Govt, under the premise that there are sufficient new vehicles for purchase already present in SL. Govt also issued a circular stating that holders of vehicle permits would be allowed to use their tax concessions against the purchase value of vehicles that have already been imported. more..

Sep 3 (AD) Chief Opposition Whip MP Lakshman Kiriella says that the plot of land in Hanthana which was recently clear is a private land belonging to him. Kiriella, issuing a press release on the matter, stated that he had bought the land of about 08 acres from a planter. The MP emphasized that the relevant land area does not belong to the govt, pointing out that it is clearly stated in the documents of registration office and that its ownership is also registered with the Pradeshiya Sabha. more..

Sep 3 (FT) Ceylinco Life has commissioned two large solar panel installations in Anuradhapura and Jaffna which are believed to be the largest in those cities, with a cumulative capacity to generate 120 MWh per year and further reduce the company�s carbon footprint by 42.6 tons. The company said the installation in A'pura has a system capacity of 50Kw and is expected to generate 66 MWh annually. Project which is the second largest solar installation by Ceylinco Life will result in a saving of more..

Sep 3 (DM) SL Navy and Air Force were joined by Russian warships and three Indian coastguard ships to avert a major environmental disaster while battling raging fires that erupted in an oil tanker carrying some 270,000 metric tonnes of crude oil off the eastern seas of SL. Latest reports indicated that the fire that started near the engine room is now spreading rapidly to all areas of vessel & could pose major environmental fears. more..

Sep 4 (DM) Sri Lanka is being increasingly besieged by illegal drugs and attendant crimes such as terrorism, gun violence, gang warfare, extortion, burglaries, robberies and prostitution. The country�s youth are falling victim to narcotic drugs while drug lords make billions of rupees, often with political patronage and police protection. The recent arrests of scores of officers of the Police Narcotics Bureau, one of the specialized agencies tasked with making the country narcotics-free, more..

Sep 4 (CT) Emeritus Professor of Uni of Colombo G.L. Peiris, who has transformed from an academic to a politician, said recently that we should not be afraid of power. What he meant was that the people should not be afraid of the govt exercising its two third majority in Parliament to pass whatever the legislation they want. Why should the people be afraid when the real power is with them? Gene Sharp in his landmark book, From Dictatorship to Democracy, A Conceptual Framework for, more..

Sep 4 (CT) �What is the point if you can�t even spend a couple of extra rupees for your pleasure? These are the prices we have here. Buy if you want or just leave, for god�s sake!� This was the response we received from a vendor, who was selling goods at a stall located at Galle Face, on an ordinary Sunday morning, when we inquired as to why he charged Rs 120 for a bottle of soft drink, which had a maximum retail price of Rs 100. more..

Sep 4 (DM) During an exclusive interview with one time Norwegian peace envoy to SL Erik Solheim, which was published in Daily Mirror, senior journalist Easwaran Rutnam had posed a question whether he (Solheim) ever thought the LTTE was genuinely committed to peace, based on his internal discussions with the organisation. Solheim had answered: �Absolutely. There is a misconception in the South. Please recall that the LTTE pursued peace when it was at the peak of its power. more..

Sep 4 (DM) The COVID-19 pandemic is still haunting the school system and how kids interact with each other. This is despite the world health authorities having confirmed that children rarely develop severe symptoms of COVID-19. Classes are held in schools in Colombo, suburbs and villages in a restricted manner. That in a way would be quite welcoming for those students who are lazy and those who prefer the luxury of studying in an undisturbed location like one�s home. more..

Sep 4 (DM) Human rights issues related to enforced disappearances in SL still continue. The grievances and the anxieties of those loved ones of the disappeared due to the �88-89 insurgency and the three-decade-long separatist war exist to this day. In this context Daily Mirror spoke to human rights activist and award-winning filmmaker Dr Visakesa Chandrasekaram to discuss his latest film Paangshu and the wider issue of more..

Sep 4 (CT) The main focus of the recently proposed Cabinet Paper on reforms to the education curriculum is to create a more pragmatic approach to education through its content and learning methods, while focusing on providing the child with access to technology and vocational education at various levels. At a special meeting between the representatives of the newly established Presidential Task Force on Education Reforms, including curriculum revisions, Minister of Education more..

Sep 4 (Island) Ex-President Chandrika Kumaratunga would have us believe that her successors, Mahinda Rajapaksa and Maithripala Sirisena, are responsible for the ruination of the SLFP, which her late father founded. She has taken it upon herself to rebuild the SLFP with the help of a young team. Can any of the ex-Presidents absolve himself or herself of the blame for ruining the SLFP? The SLFP is in the current predicament because its leaders save S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike and Sirimavo, more..

Sep 4 (CT) 20th Amendment is a stale subject. But now it has become a much discussed hot topic. For many legislators in the Parliament it was a scapegoat. Having voted with both hands not the sound voting enunciated by the former speaker Karu J.) for the now much disputed 19A, they all rationalized their stand by projecting an impending further amendment which never saw the light of day. For the masterminds who hoodwinked them it was a great achievement though the outcome more..

Sep 4 (TM) Ishara Engineers & Lorry Body Builders (Pvt) Ltd. in Pitakotte has introduced a brand new low-cost food truck body for those who are looking to get into their own food-inspired start-up. The budget vehicle is ideal for food businesses that are looking to get their business off the ground or even for those who have been in the industry for some time and are looking to expand, and perhaps reach a different market. Ishara Engineers & Lorry Body Builders, the company that is manufacturing the product, more..

Sep 4 (FT) The biggest component of the BIA expansion project worth Rs. 108 billion will kick off later this month. Commissioning of this major expansion follows the impending completion of the Rs. 6 billion worth improvements made at BIA. The two-part project consisting of Package A and Package B is funded by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Japanese Govt has provided a loan of Yen 74,397 million, more..

Sep 4 (Island) One of cricket�s sharpest brains � Ranjan Madugalle � is set to appear in his first Test match in SL as a Match Referee when Bangladesh tour the island. Madugalle, a veteran of 193 Test matches started his career with the ICC in 1993. Although he has officiated in over 50 Test matches in places like England (12 at Lord�s alone), this is the first time he will be officiating in a Test match in SL. It will be also the first time ever that he will function as Match Referee in a game involving SL more..

Sep 4 (DN) The inaugural Vantage FFSL President�s Cup ended on a high note with Colombo Football Club emerging Champions drubbing Blue Eagles Sports Club by 4 goals to nil to clinch the title. The main man who initiated this tournament was Amir Alagic, Technical Director of Football Federation of SL (FFSL), whose advice was sought in formulating this tournament, which ultimately turned out to be a kick start event for the game of Football in the country, with the approval of Anura de Silva, more..

Sep 4 (Island) Respected track and field coach Sajith Jayalal, the guru behind the success of highest ranked SL athlete, believes that achieving tough Olympic qualifying standards is a matter of proper management of athletes & coordination of a diverse range of professionals from psychologists, nutritionists to doctors to get the best out of top athletes. �You don�t need big investments on infrastructure to achieve top performances. more..

Sep 4 (DN) President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has directed the state agencies dealing with infrastructure to inform the expenditure needed for the infrastructure of the planned Eravur Investment Zone to be included in the 2021 Budget. This is where the President had asked Govt heads in state agencies such as the National Water Board, CEB, SLT, RDA to provide him with a expenditure from et al which would be presented to Parliament in November to be included in the 2021 Budget. more..