Jul 22 (TM) Teachers and principals who are presently boycotting online educational activities and work at regional learning centres have decided to escalate their trade unions actions by declaring themselves unavailable for exam duties. This announcement comes after the failure of the talks held recently between the Governmental educational authorities and the teachers and principals trade unions over unresolved more..

Jul 22 (DM) Govt will be compelled to increase fuel prices once again to generate dollars to pay for imports, UNP Dy Leader Ruwan Wijewardene said. Mr. Wijewardene who was speaking to some party activists said the biggest issue today is the shortage of dollars. �Shortage of dollars will result in stoppage of essential imports. Fuel has to be imported no matter what import the govt is going to ban. There would be a fuel shortage shortly if sufficient dollars are not found to pay for imports. more..

Jul 22 (DM) While claiming that the all citizens above 30 years of age would be vaccinated within the next two months, Minister Namal Rajapaksa today expressed hope that the inter provincial travel restrictions could be lifted soon. Addressing a gathering at the inaugural ceremony of the Ape Game Ape Para road development project in the Hambantota District today he said SL was in the first place in the world�s anti CORONA immunization campaign and that a clear indication of more..

Jul 22 (FT) The samples of five COVID-19 patients from Piliyandala suspected to have contracted the Delta variant have been sent to the Sri J'pura University for further testing, it has been revealed. The patients are employees of a private garment manufacturing facility in Jamburaliya, where 120 COVID-19 patients were detected from the 186 tested. �Five suspected patients were detected from the variant PCR, but it has not been more..

Jul 22 (Island) Rajamanikkam Ranjani, the mother of J. Ilashini, the 16 -year-old girl died while working at SJB MP Rishad Bathuideen�s residence, said that she had been compelled to send her daughter to the MP�s house because she had no way of paying back family debt. Ranjani said her daughter had started working at the MP�s house at the age of 15. �My daughter called me several times and said that she was being subjected to torture and that she could not stay there. Her death is suspicious,� more..

Jul 22 (Island) Former JVP MP Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa yesterday claimed that investigations into the death of J. Ilashini, who killed herself while working as a domestic aide at SJB MP Rishad Bathiudeen�s house, were progressing at a very slow pace. Dr. Jayatissa urged the law enforcement authorities to expedite the investigations and ensure that justice was served. In response, SDIG Ajith Rohana said two teams, consisting of officers of the Divisional Crime Detective Bureau and more..

Jul 22 (Island) The public must not think vaccination ensures their safety one hundred percent, Sri Lanka Medical Association (SLMA) President, Dr Padma Gunaratne said. She said the National Hospital, Colombo, treated about 200 new cases a day and about 100 of those needed oxygen support, and the current situation was similar to that before the imposition of travel restrictions. Dr. Gunaratne said that the silver lining was more..

Jul 22 (FT) It probably wasn�t a mere slip of the tongue that made Prez Rajapaksa declare: �Not only three more years. I have five additional five years� (The Island). He should have said �if I win a second term�. What makes him regard an additional five years apart from the remaining three of his current term of office, as automatic and axiomatic? Later in this column I argue that the KDU bill furnishes clues. The Prez�s unambiguous declaration of intent to continue for the next eight years slaps down more..

Jul 22 (FT) As we read this we have a breaking story from Germany. Not much more than 150 mm rain but persistent over a period had led to severe floods resulting in some significant misery and loss of lives. The visuals are quite horrific. The issue has placed climate change well into the ongoing political campaign as a result, not that Germans are ignorant or averse to taking pro-climate decisions. In SL, the X-Press Pearl as a shipwreck with cargo still on board is extending its pollution episode for more..

Jul 22 (Island) SriLankan Airlines recorded a triumph at the prestigious Asian Leadership Awards (ALA) 2021 by winning the award for Best in managing health at work in the Asian HR Leadership Awards category. This award officially recognises and applauds the holistic approach taken by the airline to curtail the outbreak of Covid-19 at the workplace. SriLankan Airline�s efforts to ensure the wellbeing of employees since the onset of the pandemic whilst maintaining a productive working more..

Jul 22 (USE) The United States donated 500,000 Rapid Diagnostic Tests (RDTs) as part of its commitment to support Sri Lanka�s fight against COVID-19. These tests, worth 300 million SL rupees (USD 1.5 million), were delivered to the Ministry of Health through the United States Govt�s development arm, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). These RDTs come in addition to over 1.5 million Moderna vaccines the American people donated to SL on Friday. more..

Jul 22 (FT) Very little is remembered or known by the younger generation of Sri Lankans about the nature of the non-violent Tamil political struggle for equal rights that preceded the violent armed struggle. Indeed for many the history of Tamil political resistance to what was perceived as majoritarian hegemony commences only from Black July 1983. Yet the fact remains that the Tamil quest to achieve equality in the island was basically more..

Jul 22 (HRW) We are writing to you on behalf of Brandix to clarify our stance on the article published on Human Rights Watch titled Sri Lanka: Protect Garment Workers� Rights During Pandemic. We would like the opportunity to provide clarity for the statements made in the article, and believe that you will incorporate below accordingly, to provide an accurate and balanced view to your readers. On the article on the HRW website, dated July 12, SL: Protect Garment Workers� Rights During more..

Jul 22 (FT) National Apprentice and Industrial Training Authority (NAITA) in collaboration with leading ICT solutions provider Huawei, recently announced the opening of NAITA-Huawei ICT Academy for Vocational Training, with the presence of Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris, State Minister Dr. Seetha Arambepola, NAITA Chairman Tharanga Naleen Gamlath, Huawei SL CEO Liang Yi and other officials. The initiative aims skilling 300+ passionate youth annually, with knowledge and practice more..

Jul 22 (EN) When Prez Rajapaksa pardoned former MP and murder convict Duminda Silva, he should�ve also pardoned the other individuals convicted along with him, in the interest of fairness, former MP Hirunika Premachandra said. �Three others were also convicted for the murder of [Premachandra�s father and former MP Bharatha Premachandra]. What about them? They too should�ve been pardoned in the interest of more..

Jul 22 (FT) The Embassy of Japan in SL yesterday said it was grateful to Minister Namal Rajapaksa for gracing the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020. On behalf of Ambassador Sugiyama Akira, the Minister and Deputy Head of Mission Kitamura Toshihiro met with Rajapaksa yesterday just before his departure to Tokyo. During the meeting, Kitamura expressed sincere appreciation to Minister Rajapaksa for visiting Japan to grace the opening ceremony of more..

Jul 22 (Island) GMOA yesterday urged the Ministry of Health to expand a pilot project to treat asymptomatic COVID-19 patients in their own homes. The GMOA Secretary Dr. Senal Fernando said that over 1,500 new COVID-19 cases were reported every day and it would soon lead to the congestion of interim treatment centres and dedicated COVID-19 hospitals. �Thus, we will again see a delay in admitting a COVID-19 patients to hospitals in the Western Province and more..

Jul 22 (AD) The trade unions of teachers and principals have commenced a protest in front of the Colombo Fort Railway Station today (22). According to Ada Derana correspondents, the protestors have marched up to the Presidential Secretariat. Galle Road near the Presidential Secretariat is now blocked due to the demonstration. Reportedly, several trade union representatives are holding a round of discussions with more..

Jul 22 (Island) The Hambantota International Port (HIP) has recorded its highest discharge levels of bulk cargo recently, when a shipment of gypsum consigned to Insee Cement was unloaded at a rate of 24,000 Metric tons per day by port operations. The HIP in a statement issued yesterday (21) quoted Thusith Gunawarnasuriya, Director Procurement & Logistics of Insee Cement as having said that this was an extraordinary achievement for a Sri Lankan port in terms of speed and efficiency. more..

Jul 22 (CT) Chief Secretary of the Central Province lodged a complaint with the Police Anti-Corruption Unit charging that Chairman of the Kadugannawa UC, Amila Weragoda had deliberately forged a letter issued by him and containing his signature to obtain a diplomatic passport. Following a formal probe it has revealed that the letter issued by the Chief Secretary of the Central Province with the title Chairman of Kadugannawa UC had been forged by Weragoda to suggest that it had been issued more..

Jul 22 (CT) �In spite of stringent laws against child labour and abuse, the fact that a minor was employed as a domestic worker in the home of an MP is abhorrent; that a child had been subject to torture and sexual violence is shocking. We must understand that the loss of this life cannot be compensated,� Sarasagopal said. �The death of this young girl should be the last. We need to do the needful to rectify this situation at the earliest. more..

Jul 22 (AD) Attorney General has appointed a Deputy Solicitor General and a team to provide legal advice for the action on the case of the 16-year-old girl who died while serving as a domestic worker at MP Rishad Bathiudeen�s house. Meanwhile, two police teams in addition to the Borella Police are conducting investigations into the death of the teenager. The police teams had arrived in Dayagama yesterday to record statements from 06 persons in connection to the incident. more..

Jul 22 (DM) There is a possibility of an emerging wedding cluster if the public does not adhere to health guidelines when hosting weddings, General Shavendra Silva warned. He said the Health Ministry has allowed to conduct weddings with a maximum of 150 participants or a limited 25 percent seating capacity. However, it was reported specially in the areas out of the Western Province that weddings were hosted exceeding the capacity. "It is very unfortunate that weddings are held more..

Jul 22 (CI) India shut the door on Sri Lanka in the first ODI. In the second match, Sri Lanka failed to close out the game. And just like that, in a matter of three days, the fate of the series was sealed. However, in the era of the World Cup Super League, there are no dead rubbers. Teams no longer play just for the pride. So in the third ODI on Friday, Sri Lanka will be aiming for ten crucial points to get back into the race for the direct qualification for the global event in 2023. more..

Jul 22 (DM) Public Health Inspectors have decided to inspect weddings and take legal action against the violators of health guidelines. PHI Union Head Upul Rohana said they had received a spate of complaints with evidence pertaining to violation of health guidelines at weddings. �Accordingly, we deployed our officers to inspect the wedding celebrations where they witnessed poor behaviour of participants violating health guidelines. PHIs had to issue warnings and allow to carry on,� more..

Jul 22 (DM) Checks and balances that are the foundation of the rule of law must be exercised so as to stop misuse of powers. However, reports have recently emerged claiming that public health justifications are allegedly used to restrict rights associated with freedom of speech. There have also been concerning reports regarding arrests and questionable detentions/ quarantine orders from govt critics. more..

Jul 22 (EN) Sri Lanka�s rupee remains inactive in the forex market on Thursday while some short-maturity bond yields picked up, market participants said. Sri Lanka markets were closed on Wednesday for the Eid-ul-Adha Muslim festival. Sri Lanka�s interbank forex markets are not allowed to deal above 200 to the US dollar and import customers are not allowed to be given dollars above 203 to the US dollar in curbs announced after money printing triggered forex shortages. more..

Jul 22 (DM) A special investigation has been launched by the Kandy Police with the assistance of the CID to find those who are spreading false news about the Moderna vaccine on social media. The investigations were initiated following a complaint lodged by the Medical Officer of the Medico-Legal of the Kandy General Hospital. The doctor claimed that there is some false news circulating on social media such as Facebook and Whatsapp that the Moderna vaccine is harmful to the human body and more..

Jul 22 (EN) SL could export sugar at 2500 rupees a kilogram (about 12 US dollars) after banning agro-chemicals, and also produce 20 percent of the country�s organic fertilizer. Farmers will be saved with a superior organic fertilizer produced two state sugar firms, State Minister Janaka Wakkumbura said. State sugar enterprises were aiming to get an organic certification by 2023 and export sugar at high prices, more..

Jul 22 (AD) A special program will be implemented to administer the Pfizer vaccine for persons who have received visa approval for foreign employment, Minister of Labour Nimal Siripala de Silva said. Nearly 8,000 migrant hopefuls who have received work permits and visa for 15 countries are yet to be vaccinated with a vaccine approved by destination countries, Minister said. Minister de Silva had mentioned this at a discussion held with officials of the Ministry of Health including more..

Jul 22 (Raajje) Maldives President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has engaged in discussions regarding challenges posed by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, with the Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa during his ongoing unofficial visit to Sri Lanka. President Solih, accompanied by First Lady Fazna Ahmed, paid a courtesy call on the SL president on Thursday, at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo. Discussions revolved around a number of topics including the commitment of both countries more..

Jul 22 (DE) Given the intense speculation that incumbent President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will be replaced by his brother Basil Rajapaksa as the SLPP candidate in the 2024 Prez election, Gotabaya�s announcement on Monday (19) that he intends to seek a second term came as a surprise to many. He had earlier said he would be president only for one term, and given his reputation, people believed him. more..

Jul 22 (Island) Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) report on the Muthurajawela land reclamation activities for the proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) power plant had a number of holes and implementing the project would have devastating ecological, hydrological and socio-economic impacts, environmentalists said yesterday. They said that given that fact Sri Lanka, too, would stop using LNG by the 2040s, the entire project would be a waste of public funds. more..

Jul 22 (Island) The govt annually spent Rs. 100 million on elephant thunder, a firecracker used to chase away elephants, well known elephant expert Dr. Prithiviraj Fernando said. It was in addition to significant sums spent on minimising human-elephant conflict through schemes such as translocating problematic jumbos, elephant drives and electric fences, Dr. Fernando said. �Farmers spend a lot of money and time, protecting their crops and store the harvest in their homes. more..

Jul 23 (DM) �The boss has said it loud and clear that he will contest a second time! Now the other side (opposition) would have to nominate Basil. If not, even someone from the tuk-tuk party could also do the job!� The above is the rough English translation of an FB post by someone who has essentially backed individuals and parties opposed to the Rajapaksas and the SLPP (i.e. Maithripala Sirisena and Sajith Premadasa, UNFGG and SJB). He�s obviously referring to Prez Rajapaksa�s more..

Jul 23 (CT) As Sri Lankans, most of us are blessed with the free education of this country. If you compare this blessing word of free education with the globe you would understand more value of this. And we have seen people just consider free education is all about education for free and think it is merely like a product or service given free of charge. In this context, Jayawardena (2013) defined free education as �Free Education is not only to provide education at free of cost but more..

Jul 23 (DM) Pakistani High Commissioner Major General (R) Muhammad Saad Khattak discussed the current developments of bilateral relations between the two countries following PM Imran Khan�s visit in February, this year. Q: During the visit of Pakistani PM Imran Khan, there were agreements for cooperation in various sectors. What tangible action have been taken since then to realise what was agreed upon? more..