Apr 29 (TM) The Ministry of Education�s Health and Physical Education textbook for grade 11 students claims that young girls who are victims of rape may also be held responsible for being raped because of their irresponsible behaviour in some cases. In the book, rapists are described as people who can have mental illnesses or as behaving very irresponsibly. It goes on to state that a (rape) victim�s biggest concern would be more..

Apr 29 (CI) Bangladesh need a change in mindset to push towards winning Test matches rather than be satisfied with draws, their head coach Russell Domingo has said. The result of the first Test in Pallekele - the first draw in 29 Tests played in Sri Lanka - was mostly welcomed by Bangladesh, who came into the series having lost four of their last five Tests, including a 2-0 defeat at home to an under-strength West Indies. Domingo said he has sensed a culture of fear within the ranks, more..

Apr 29 (DM) Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of SL (TRCSL) says the proposed implementation of mobile number portability (MNP) by the end of the year is essential as it will help break the ongoing consumer lock-in practice adopted by telcos. TRCSL Director General Oshada Senanayake said that even though there are challenges in implementing the facility due to the archaic Telecommunications Act, Commission will ensure that MNP will not be delayed further more..

Apr 29 (CT) SL Cricket captain Dimuth Karunaratne said that they are banking on their spinners to get the job done in the series concluding second Test against Bangladesh. The hosts went with a three-man pace attack in the opening Test on a wicket that had a good coverage of grass on it. The plan did backfire though as the pitch turned out to be flat with the game ending in a draw. �We always play a game to win,� Karunaratne said more..

Apr 29 (CT) A road closure for VVIP movement connected with the visit of the Chinese Defence Minister in Sri Lanka resulted in a spontaneous public protest by motorists who honked loudly from behind a traffic police line, a clear sign that the anger on the streets against the Nandasena Gotabaya Rajapaksa govt is mounting less than 18 months into his tenure. The incident took place at the Marcus Fernando Mawatha round-about in Colombo 07 on Wednesday (28) night. more..

Apr 29 (TM) For the second time this year, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) felt tremors of Covid-19 fears yesterday (26) as one of the close contacts of a highly-placed official in SLC headquarters at Maitland Place, Colombo has been found to have tested positive for the deadly virus. The said official has reportedly visited the Pallekele Stadium where the first Test between SL and Bangladesh was held from last Wednesday (21). Whether this official had breached the bio-security bubble in Pallekele more..

Apr 29 (FT) Attesting to resilience despite the COVID-19 impact, merchandise exports in March have crossed the $ 1 billion mark, an achievement last enjoyed in September last year. The strong performance in March (up 62.4% year-on-year) helped to boost merchandise exports earnings in the first quarter by 11.51% to $ 2.6 billion. �SL�s exports show a remarkable rise despite current pandemic situation across the world,� more..

Apr 29 (AD) Attorney General filed indictments against six suspects in connection with the investigation into the large haul of explosives found in the area of Lactowatta in Wanathawilluwa. Indictments were filed in the Puttalam High Court, based on 14 charges, including the collection of explosives and the maintenance of an explosives manufacturing factory. On the of 16th Jan in 2019, the CID seized 100kg of explosive substance and 100 detonators buried near a house more..

Apr 29 (CT) Pakistan Super League (PSL) today conducted a replacement draft for the six teams to complete their squads ahead of the resumption of the 2021 edition of the tournament, which had been suspended after 14 matches following a spate of COVID-19 cases among players and support staffers. Two Sri Lankan players, Seekuge Prasanna and Thisara Perera, were among those who were picked for PSL 6 which will resume on 2 June, with the final on 20 June. more..

Apr 29 (EN) The SLFP will oppose any move to arrest main opposition SSJB MP Harin Feranndo over a controversial statement he made in parliament last week, SLFP General Secretary Dayasiri Jayasekara said. He told reporters that, as per parliamentary privileges, no one can question an MP over a statement made in parliament. In a controversial speech on April 20, Fernando made a startling revelation of an alleged omission by more..

Apr 29 (ST) Consumers are badly affected by the rise in prices of essential commodities specially sugar, dhal and big onions despite the govt�s efforts to provide them some relief by reducing taxes drastically, consumer protection societies said. The Finance Ministry has extended special commodity levy (SCL) of 25 cents per kilo on sugar, dhal and big onions for another six months commencing from April 14 for the second time since its initial enforcement in October 13, 2020. more..

Apr 29 (FT) The Export Development Board (EDB) yesterday urged the private sector to be better geared to face any possible challenge with the recent escalation of COVID-19 in the country. �We are concerned about the recent escalation of COVID-19. The situation is quite uncertain. Looking back at the experiences we had to undergo, it is critical for our exporters to plan and prepare for any challenge that may come our way,� EDB Chairman Suresh de Mel told the Daily FT. more..

Apr 29 (FT) Sri Lanka reached its highest number of daily COVID-19 patients with health authorities stating that 1,466 persons tested positive for the virus yesterday. This is the second consecutive day where over 1,000 COVID-19 patients were detected in the island. A total of 1,111 persons tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday and the Health Promotion Bureau stated that 13,965 PCR tests were performed on Tuesday. more..

Apr 29 (IPS) COVID-19 affected the entire world; many died, millions got sick, and the misery continues. Second and third waves of SARS.Cov-2 infection are devastating most countries. Non-strategic lockdowns and curfews (as in SL) further aggravated the peoples� misery, sufferings, daily lives, and economies, more than that from the virus. The toxic combination of COVID-19 and curfews devastated local productions and supply chains, livelihoods, people welfare, food security, more..

Apr 29 (Island) Minister Prof G.L. Peiris announced that the results of the GCE A/L exam would be released within seven days. He said that 362,000 candidates had sat the examination held during the first week of November last year. Teachers who evaluated the answer scripts and the Commissioner General of examinations had worked tirelessly to complete the evaluation process, Prof. Peiris added. Despite hardships, amidst the pandemic, the Ministry personnel continued to work so that more..

Apr 29 (TM) The delivery of a pilot stock of 15,000 doses of the Sputnik V anti-Covid-19 vaccine, manufactured by the Gamaleya Research Institute of Russia, that was scheduled to arrive today has been struck by a delay of four days. SPC General Manager said the pilot stock of the vaccine would arrive by 3 May. �There has been a small delay and the pilot stock of 15,000 doses of SputnikV would be received by SL on 3 May.� more..

Apr 29 (DN) The Mayor of Nuwara Eliya had apparently not heeded the Govt�s instructions when organising an Avurudu event in the vicinity of Lake Gregory, said Central Province Governor Attorney-at-Law Lalith U. Gamage yesterday. He added that it was also suspicious if the same event was organized in such a manner in order to inconvenience the Govt and the President. He said further that while the Govt had specified that functions and events be held in accordance more..

Apr 29 (Island) Opposition in a discussion with diplomats requested that SL be provided with a field hospital with 300 ICU beds. SJB MP Eran Wickramaratne said that the capacity of the State Health Sector logistical services to handle the surge of Covid positive cases was in danger of imminent collapse. He said SL had only around 700 ICU beds and many international organisations and friendly countries had field hospitals with ICU facilities which could be set up in matter of hrs. more..

Apr 29 (Island) Attorney-at-law Rushdhie Habeeb alleges that the recent arrest of ACMC leader Rishad Bathiudeen, MP, in connection with the ongoing police investigations, is part of a despicable conspiracy to undermine Muslim politicians at the national level. Habeeb said so yesterday in his capacity as the lawyer for SJB MP Bathiudeen when The Island sought clarification as regards to Opp. political parties� response more..

Apr 29 (DM) The public cannot choose the Coronavirus vaccine they want and instead must go with what is given to them, State Minister Sudarshini Fernandopulle told Daily Mirror yesterday. Sri Lanka has so far used the Astrazeneca Covishield vaccine while stocks of the Chinese Sinopharm vaccine are currently in Sri Lanka awaiting clearance to be used on locals. Fernandopulle said that the Sputnik V vaccine purchased from Russia is scheduled to arrive in Sri Lanka soon. more..

Apr 29 (DM) The health authorities today reserved 45 more ICU beds from KDU hospital, Colombo North, Colombo South and Negombo hospitals for the benefit of COVID patients, Minister Channa Jayasumana said today. State Minister Prof. Channa Jayasumana said there was no shortage of ICU beds otherwise. He said the ICU beds originally reserved for COVID patients remain occupied at the moment. �We have reserved 40 ICU beds earlier only for such patients. more..

Apr 29 (TM) With the detection of the highly transmissible and virulent UK Covid-19 strain in SL, health experts recommended the maintenance of a two-metre social distance between individuals as opposed to the previous one-metre distance. Because of the high transmissibility of the variant, SL College of Internal Medicine President Dr. Harsha Sathischandra said that it is recommended that individuals maintain a distance of 2m more..

Apr 29 (CT) Army is ready to set up more COVID-19 treatment centres as required, if the number of patients increase in future due to the prevailing pandemic situation, said General Shavendra Silva. He also said the Army is ready to provide even 10,000 beds to hospitals if needed. He said, matters pertaining to places where the infected would be treated was discussed at length on 27 April. He also said the Prez instructed to take necessary steps to facilitate the treatment of all infected people. more..

Apr 29 (FT) Health authorities yesterday confirmed six more COVID-19-related deaths which brought the country�s COVID-19 fatalities to 661. An individual from Hali-Ela was transferred to the Teldeniya Base Hospital while receiving treatment at the Badulla General Hospital but died yesterday. The cause of death is cited as acute COVID-pneumonia. The individual was 72 years old. On Tuesday, a 69-year-old individual from Wattala died of COVID-pneumonia while receiving treatment at more..

Apr 29 (TM) Although no islandwide, blanket lockdown is planned at the moment, the imposition of such a lockdown has not been ruled out in light of the worsening Covid-19 situation in the country. Responding to inquiries made by The Morning as to whether a blanket lockdown or inter and intra-district and provincial travel restrictions would be imposed, General Shavendra Silva said that no such restrictions are planned more..

Apr 29 (FT) Before any vaccine was available, NZ and Vietnam beat COVID-19. NZ just recently had a concert with a 50,000 audience. Perfectly safe. So, it is plain wrong to assert that the only solution is inoculation. Shouldn�t securing a top-level advisory team from NZ be far more pressing a Governmental priority than pushing through Port City legislation? Not being Carrie Lam and this not being Hong Kong, shouldn�t Prez GR be phoning PM Ardern in-between those calls to/from Prez Xi? more..

Apr 29 (FT) Port City Colombo is a brand-new modern city development built as an extension of the Central Business District of SL�s vibrant commercial capital, Colombo. The city is located on 269 hectares of reclaimed land from the sea between the old city centre and the Colombo port, features South Asia�s premiere residential, retail and business destination, offering unmatched planned city living along the warm waters of the Indian Ocean. The development will comprise of five different more..

Apr 29 (SLN) A special operation conducted by the Navy in the seas off Sillalai, Jaffna on 28th April, made way to get hold of over 240kg of Kerala cannabis. Accordingly, the operation carried out by the Northern Naval Command in the seas off Sillalai, led to the recovery of 240.95kg of Kerala cannabis in 105 packages, stuffed in 07 sacks. The haul of cannabis had been subtly concealed in a shrimp farming enclosure, when it was recovered by the Navy. It is suspected that the smugglers more..

Apr 29 (EN) There will be we shortage of medicines in SL due to the COVID-19 situation in India, the SL Chamber of the Pharmaceutical Industry (SLCPI) said. �The orders placed with our manufacturing partners and principals in India and other countries are being fulfilled and we will ensure that our consumers will continue to have access to quality medicines, seamlessly,� the SLCPI said in a press release. There has been speculation of a drug shortage in SL as the pandemic continues to more..

Apr 29 (CI) Centuries from Dimuth Karunaratne and Lahiru Thirimanne gave SL full control of the first day of the second Test in Pallekele, as the home side ended at 291 for 1 at stumps. The pitch offered next to nothing to the Bangladesh bowlers, but the visitors were also guilty of sitting on defensive lengths and spread-out fields from quite early on. It allowed Karunaratne, fresh from his maiden double-century last weekend, more..

Apr 29 (AD) Six Grama Niladhari Divisions in Trincomalee District have been placed under isolation order with immediate effect, says the Commander of SL Army General Shavendra Silva. Thereby, the following Grama Niladhari Divisions will be isolated until further notice: Uppuveli police area: � Sumedagampura GN Division; Trincomalee police area: � Moodovi GN Division � Koviladi GN Division � Linga Nagar GN Division; China Bay police area: � Kavattikuda GN Division � China Bay GN more..

Apr 29 (DN) People�s Bank showcased its digital baking prowess yet again by completing a mammoth 5,822,504 transactions and dispensing Rs. 65.3 billion from April 1 to April 15 2021. This includes transactions completed via bank�s Internet banking, mobile apps ATMs, CDMs and Kiosks. People�s Bank has been at the forefront of providing digital financial services to the rural areas of the country and has gained unparalleled success in turning Sri Lanka into a digital society. more..

Apr 29 (Island) The SJB scoffed at police headquarters request for a report on the Easter Sunday carnage the party had handed over to the representatives of the Catholic Church on Monday at St. Anyhony�s Church, Bambalapitiya. SJB MP Dr. Harsha de Silva emphasised that there was absolutely no basis for police headquarters claim that a confidential report had been handed over to the Executive Director of the Centre more..

Apr 29 (SLN) SL Navy on 27th and 28th April apprehended 02 Indian dhows, loaded with about 2790kg of dried turmeric, about 803 kg of cardamom and several other consumer goods, in northwestern waters of the island, across the IMBL. Apart from the above consignments, 12 Indian nationals aboard 02 dhows were also held by the Navy. Navy whilst on patrol in the seas off the Kudiramalei Point on 27th & 28th Apr intercepted 2 suspicious Indian dhows which had entered SL waters via IMBL. more..

Apr 29 (AD) Director General of Health Services announced that all religious congregational activities will be prohibited until further notice due to the prevailing Covid-19 situation in the country. Meanwhile the maximum number of persons allowed to gather at any place of worship has been reduced to 25. Previously the maximum number of persons allowed at religious places had been 50. DG of Health Services Dr. Asela Gunawardena states that based on risks of current Covid-19 situation, more..

Apr 29 (EN) The govt of SL is planning to purchase four Mi-171 helicopters from Russia at a cost of USD 720,000 even as the country struggles to acquire COVID-19 vaccines for the public, Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa said. �Yes, we should strengthen our security forces. There is no argument that national security is important. But is this the time to order four helicopters, each costing USD 180,000?� more..

Apr 29 (FT) The $ 750 million issue of multi-tenor SL Development Bonds (SLDBs) went undersubscribed by 12% as the Central Bank accepted bids worth $ 652.6 million. At the SLDB auction concluded yesterday bids worth $ 659.78 million were received reflecting an under subscription of around $ 90 million. However the CB said an issuance window for SLDBs will be opened with the announcement of the auction results until the close of business of day prior to settlement more..

Apr 29 (Island) STF, on Tuesday, raided an artificial toddy distillery at Ottiyawatte in Kochchikade and taken into custody three persons along with stocks of ingredients and paraphernalia used to manufacture the illicit brew. The raiders seized 4,000 litres of molasses, 2,760 bottles of artificial toddy, 7.5 kilos of sugar, 5.9 kilos of ammonia and three sacks containing 500 gram packets of yeast. Two women were among the three suspects arrested. They are residents of Katana and Kochchikade. more..

Apr 29 (EN) SL�s govt ignored health warnings and encouraged the public to celebrate the Sinhala & Tamil New Year as if there were no epidemic, TNA MP Shanakiya Rasamanickam said. He told reporters in Batticaloa yesterday that the govt ignored repeated requests from public health inspectors (PHIs) to impose inter-district movement restrictions during the April holidays, which has led to a surge in cases. more..