Mar 16 (WB) Despite robust growth and reduced poverty, female labor force participation in Sri Lanka remains at a low 36% compared to 75% for men �and below international standards. This number stands in stark contrast with Sri Lanka�s human capital improvements for women, such as high female education levels and low total fertility rates. Leaving many women out of the workforce means that Sri Lanka loses about 20% of its gross domestic product on average. more..

Mar 16 (Island) In order to protect SL�s endangered water resources and environment, SL�s Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA) launched the Sayura Rakina Ralla (Protect the Sea) community-led programme. Under this umbrella initiative the organisation also launched the Sayura Rakina Ralla Facebook page and a theme song to engage and educate the public on proper waste disposal and minimizing the use of non-biodegradable waste, thereby encouraging more..

Mar 16 (EN) Imported COVID-19 cases are on the rise in Sri Lanka, with more returnees from the Middle East testing positive for the virus. Chief Epidemiologist Dr Sudath Samaraweera said that this is due to high community transmission in Middle Eastern countries. Of the 331 COVID-19 cases that were recorded over a period of 24 hours that ended at 6am today, 83 were returnees, health ministry data shows, indicating a spike in more..

Mar 16 (FT) The corrugated carton industry said it was facing unprecedented pressures and challenges due to skyrocketing global prices, as of last October, for all types of paper, and called for Govt and stakeholder support. Fears are growing amongst several corrugated and brown box manufacturers, who are currently going through the toughest situation the industry has ever faced - and there�s no sign of it easing up anytime soon. �The corrugated box manufacturing is an eco-friendly industry, more..

Mar 16 (EN) Sri Lanka says that the 51% stake in the West Container Terminal (WCT) in Colombo port was only an offer made by the Adani Group. �That is the offer they made, the breakdown will be finalised after discussions,� minister Keheliya Rambukwella said at the weekly cabinet briefing held this morning. He said that the govt of SL is interested to see whether the local companies are also interested in the WCT. �We are looking for other options while accepting Adani�s 51%,� He said. more..

Mar 16 (AD) Former Governor of Western Province Azath Salley has been arrested this evening by the CID. The arrest was made on the advice of the Attorney General, his coordinating officer said. DIG Ajith Rohana noted that Salley will be detained and interrogated under the provisions of PTA. Convening a media briefing recently, Leader of NUF Azath Salley made controversial statements with regard to the law of the country. more..

Mar 16 (CT) On his maiden visit to Lanka IOC's Trincomalee Oil Terminal on 14 March, India�s High Commissioner to SL, Gopal Baglay, was briefed on the various activities and initiatives of the Lanka IOC. Lanka IOC accorded a warm welcome to the High Commissioner and delivered a presentation on the oil sector in Sri Lanka including the history and development of the Trincomalee oil tank farms. The High Commissioner inaugurated a 22-KL finished lube tank storage of LIOC's Lube Blending more..

Mar 16 (ICC) Richie Richardson of the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees imposed the sanction after Dimuth Karunaratne�s side was ruled to be two overs short of the target after time allowances were taken into consideration. In accordance with Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to minimum over-rate offences, players are fined 20 per cent of their match fees for every over their side fails to bowl in the allotted time. more..

Mar 16 (CT) To restrict the use of asbestos in buildings, the Environment Ministry has decided to ban the use of asbestos when constructing pre-school and school buildings. The regulation will come into effect before the end of the year. Environment Ministry has taken steps to provide clay from the Yan Oya and Ampara clay deposits to address the scarcity of clay, which affected the tile industry. more..

Mar 16 (Island) The govt has no intention of forcibly acquiring any private land in the Northern Province, SLFP MP Dr. Suren Raghavan said, commenting on transferring documents from the Jaffna Office of the Land Reform Commission to A'pura. This was done so that the Commissioner General of Lands could examine the documents, Dr. Raghavan said. He made the statement answering a question posed by a journalist in Vavuniya. Dr. Raghavan was recently appointed SLFP leader of the Vanni District. more..

Mar 16 (TM) Indian and Sri Lankan officials have reviewed the construction progress of the Surgical Unit at the Teaching Hospital in Batticaloa today. The Project Steering Committee meeting on construction of the Surgical Unit was chaired by Indian Deputy High Commissioner Vinod K Jacob and was held in Colombo. The meeting was co-chaired by S. Janaka Sri Chandraguptha, Additional Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Nutrition and Indigenous Medicine. more..

~Mar 16 (DN) A Parliamentary Sub-Committee has been appointed to formulate an appropriate methodology in order to include Law as a subject in the school curriculum. This sub-committee was appointed at a special joint meeting of the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Education and Justice chaired by Education Minister Prof. G.L Peiris and Justice Minister Ali Sabri PC recently. Accordingly, a committee consists of more..

Mar 16 (NR) The Court of Appeal order issued to the Secretary General of Parliament to refrain from taking any action regarding the Parliamentary seat of MP Ranjan Ramanayake has been extended till the 19th of March. The order was issued by Appeals Court bench comprising Chairman of the Court of Appeal Justice Arjuna Obeysekera and Justice Mayadunne Corea. The petition filed by MP Ranjan Ramanayake seeking an interim injunction preventing the removal of his Parliament seat more..

Mar 16 (NR) The govt has directed attention towards reaching several decisions related to coconut plantations, including banning cutting coconut trees. Minister of Plantation Ramesh Pathirana said the decision will be implemented within the year. Accordingly, coconut trees will be included in the Felling of Trees (Control) Act and necessary laws are being formulated. Under the Felling of Trees (Control) Act special permission must be obtained to cut jackfruit, breadfruit and palm trees. more..

Mar 16 (Island) Global Tamil Forum (GTF) spokesperson Suren Surendiran said that the Tamil community did not believe in commissions appointed by the govt of SL to address post-war reconciliation issues. In an interview with the BBC Sinhala service, Surendiran said that the Tamil community expected the UNHRC to address their grievances. (BBC) Sri Lanka is facing a new UN resolution calling on it to hold human rights abusers to more..

Mar 17 (GV) As the 46th session of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) winds its way in Geneva, it is now almost certain that the country specific resolution on Sri Lanka, presented by the UK led Core Group on Sri Lanka, will be passed by the Council. The world is looking at Sri Lanka�s human rights track record and trajectory. The occasion has opened up a renewed debate and discourse domestically including an examination of key principles of human rights in Sri Lanka. more..

Mar 17 (CT) From its very inception the 13th Amendment didn�t augur well. Whether it was the unlucky number or the way it came about the 13A has been plagued with one hindrance or the other and has created a better steeple chase track for those who pursue it than the Grand National itself. Last Friday the UK-led Core Group on SL (CGSL) tabled their resolution on SL at the UNHRC. Therein they call upon the GoSL to fulfil its commitments on the devolution of political authority more..

Mar 17 (DM) Dr. Kenneth de Zilwa, a capital markets expert and business cycle economist, shares his views with the in an interview on the financial challenges confronting SL. He is also a board member of the Institute of Policy Studies. Views expressed are his personal. Q: How do you assess the overall growth prospect of SL under the prevailing circumstances? A: I remain extremely optimistic about the growth prospective of SL more..

Mar 17 (DM) Over the past year - from 2020 to date, the Covid virus held the world in an iron grip of fear and paralysis. Worldwide around 120 million people have fallen victim to the virus, 61 million have recovered and sadly around 2. 66 million have died of it. Thanks to scientific break-throughs and mass inoculation programmes, today numbers are fast dropping. Suddenly, out of the blues during the past week there have been reports that one of the more popular and the more affordable vaccine more..

Mar 17 (CT) It is not easy to decode Wimal Weerawansa�s (WW) game-plan, if he has one deeper than the antics that meet the eye. One school of thought is that he is plain dumb, a loose cannon, a ghastly racist with no well-laid plot. I am wary of this trivialising view. What bothers me is that a caucus of WW, Gammanpilla (UG), Vasudeva (VN) and representatives of 12 parties, met at WW�s house. I also got a report from a knowledgeable friend that an the inner circle more..

Mar 17 (CT) For the prosperity of the Govt and to develop the land, now the lungs of Colombo, also known as the environmental university or Muthurajawela Wetlands, is in a turbulent symbiotic marriage, losing its bits and pieces to various individuals. The most debated Muthurajawela Wetlands is currently in a death-dealing situation, where once random businessmen used to erect billboards, and now it turns sideways without more..

Mar 17 (CT) A book titled Geneva Crisis � The Way Forward compiled by the Ambassadors� Forum of SL was launched at the Foreign Ministry. The inspiration behind the book was Sarath Wijesinghe, PC and former Ambassador to Israel. The collection of articles, interviews and speeches represents a wide range of views, which gives a holistic view of the problem which is what Ambassador Wijesinghe sought to do. He said the book was conceptualised as a solution to entire future of Geneva issue, more..

Mar 17 (ST) The whole country is of one mind in wanting investigators to identify the mastermind(s) behind the Easter Sunday attacks and ensure that they are produced before the Courts and punished. Not only the Roman Catholic community which bore the brunt of the attacks nor the Muslim community on whom the responsibility is sought to be apportioned due to the fact that the suicide bombers were all Muslims. The inhuman attacks have to be viewed as a national issue affecting all more..

Mar 17 (DM) This govt is no different from any other that ruled SL in the past. They all use the same kind of ruse, trick, facade, smokescreen and what not, to keep the masses who expected much from them hoodwinked. But there is a stark difference in the type of tactic this government uses to fool the masses, or at least those who form the bulwark of their support, the Sinhala Buddhist voter in the South. They use racism as a continuous, systematic and ongoing tool to whip up anti minority, more..

Mar 17 (ST) SL�s tourism industry has been given the tough task of achieving 800,000 arrivals by the end of the year that is expected to cash in revenue of US$1.5 billion. Tourism Promotion Bureau officials said that the Presidential Task Force for Tourism had informed the Central Bank that they needed to ensure they achieved the target of 800,000 arrivals to generate US$1.5 billion. Although tourism authorities had pointed out that this was a tall order and that it was only possible to achieve more..

Mar 17 (Island) Politics has been an occupation and a lucrative business venture for many. Politicians. They spend a lot of money to get elected. Under the proportional representation system, it could be several millions. Thus, as in any business venture, the main aim after getting elected would be to recover the costs at the earliest. Then they go on to accumulate wealth to last for generations, in the form of real estate or hidden bank accounts more..

Mar 17 (DM) Don�t we all love food delivery platforms? They bring us food when we are short on time and introduce us to new spots we did not know existed. They make us more productive, while allowing us to continue working as our lunch magically appears at our desks, and finally, they bring us joy after a long day at work, when our food is waiting for us at home. It is this convenience that consumers pay a premium for and the reality is we are moving towards a society that values more..

Mar 17 (FT) The SL-Japan Business Council of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce has organised a webinar titled After the Pandemic: The Way Ahead, which will be held today 17 March, at 3.30 p.m. The opening remarks will be made by Ambassador of Japan to SL Akira Sugiyama. Thereafter, Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) Colombo Office Resident Representative Masatomo Itonaga will make a presentation on JETRO: Creating Opportunities for Private Sector Innovation. more..

Mar 17 (CT) The death of a 33-year-old SL female at a detention centre in Japan has raised concerns in the society. She had died due to hunger. When Ceylon Today inquired from the Sri Lankan Embassy in Tokyo about this unfortunate incident, Roshan Gamage, Minister- Consulate at the Embassy, said the responsibility and the well-being of anyone in detention lies with the Japanese Immigration Bureau. more..

Mar 17 (CM) If you had asked me this question at any point other than in the last two years, the answer would have been pretty straightforward - Aravinda de Silva's knock in the 1996 World Cup final, or even the one in the semi-final against India.But now my answer simply has to change, because there's one innings that will stay with me for the rest of my life, one that I was privileged to see first-hand. I'm an opener, and as such, my role is mainly to set up an innings. more..

Mar 17 (TM) The largest global travel trade fair, Internationale Tourismus-B�rse (ITB) Berlin�s magazine represented Sri Lanka�s bio-bubble, the novel concept of tourism, amidst a prevailing pandemic, according to the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA). Commenting to ITB magazine, SLTDA Chairman Kimarli Fernando stated that German tourists are keen to return to the Island and 12% of the arrivals since 21 January to date has been recorded from Germany. more..

Mar 17 (DM) On March 5, a group of journalists and a human rights activist went to Iranaimathanagar shore from which people used to go to the Iranaithivu island by boat. To find out facts behind the islanders� protest against the burial of COVID-19 victims, the group tried to visit the island. But the group was not allowed by the Navy personnel at the Iranaimathanagar shore. Therefore, Daily mirror reached Govt officials and more..

Mar 17 (DN) SL Captain Dimuth Karunaratne said that the ODI series defeat would make them even more determined to make an impact in the upcoming Test series against the West Indies. SL will begin their preparations for the Test series with a two-day practice match against the Cricket West Indies (CWI) President�s XI at the Coolidge Grounds in Antigua commencing today. �The Tests will be a different ball game and the boys are shaping up well. We've done well in the last series more..

Mar 17 (Island) AIA�s large and growing in-force portfolio with recurring, high-quality sources of earnings has supported a 5% growth in operating profit after tax and a 7.5% increase in the final dividend to 100.30 Hong Kong cents per share. For the full year, value of new business (VONB) of US$2,765 million was 33% lower, reflecting operational challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Sales momentum returned as movement restrictions were eased with VONB up 15% more..

Mar 17 (TM) The growth of SL�s construction sector has led to an increase in demand for building materials, chief among them being sand, which is primarily sourced from river beds. However, due to the impending sand shortage faced by the country, industry leaders are now forced to turn to alternatives. According to data, annual national demand for sand from the construction industry is an estimated 7 million m3. more..

Mar 17 (FT) Singapore Tourism Board (STB), in association with TravTalk, will host an exclusive webinar for the Sri Lanka travel trade today at 11 a.m. SLT. Themed Charting our Pathways to Tourism Recovery, the webinar will provide an update on the phased approach for Singapore�s efforts in tourism recovery with relevant COVID-19 protocols in place. While travel between the two countries remains suspended due to the pandemic, the webinar will foster closer travel trade networking more..

Mar 17 (Island) Expolanka Holdings acquired three logistics companies in the US for US$ 2.2 million to expand its logistics operations based out of New York�s John F. Kennedy (JFK) International Airport, stock market analysts said. Expolanka revealed that its subsidiary acquired 100 percent stakes in New York- based Seville Container Freight Station Inc., Seville Freight Systems Inc. and Seville Transfer Ltd. for a purchase consideration of US$ 2.2 million on March 1, this year, more..

Mar 17 (Island) The mysterious death of Ven. Olande Jinarathana Thera was finally unraveled last week with the Govt Analyst determining that the Dutch monk had committed suicide. There were no toxic substances found in his body, a senior official said. �Final toxicology report ruled out death due to poisoning�. Bhikku�s stomach contents were examined for traces of chloroform, drugs or any other toxic substances in his blood, more..

Mar 17 (FT) All BreadTalk outlets will be closed from 20 March until further notice due to poor business. RIL Property PLC said its fully owned subsidiary FoodBuzz Ltd., has put the closure down to adverse market conditions resulting from the Easter Sunday attacks as well as the ongoing pandemic. Thus, FoodBuzz Board of Directors have decided to temporarily suspend their business operations until a decision is taken going forward. At present there are 10 BreadTalk outlets in the country. more..