May 11 (NR) The SJB will commence a social effort against the coronavirus pandemic. Speaking at a meeting today Leader of the Opposition Sajith Premadasa said, the programme named Vipakshaye Husma, will focus on serving the public as a responsible opposition at a time of need. Premadasa said the govt is fully responsible for the sudden spike in COVID-19 cases adding as a people-centred Opposition, the SJB will take steps to formulate a plan to ensure safety of citizens. more..

May 11 (TM) Following Consumer Affairs Authority�s (CAA) recent prohibition against blending edible coconut oil with any other oil, Govt authorities have ruled out a possible price hike in pure coconut oil. State Ministry of Coconut, Kithul, and Palmyrah Cultivation Promotion and Related Industrial Product Manufacturing and Export Diversification Co-ordinating Secretary Malraj Peiris denied possibility of a price hike of coconut more..

May 11 (CT) Ceylon Teachers Union (CTU) slammed Education Minister G.L. Peiris for deciding to hold discussions on reopening schools. �The Minister makes irresponsible decisions. He doesn�t take these decisions based on any advice or recommendation given by health authorities,� charged CTU General Secretary Joseph Stalin. He claimed that it is known that six departments, which come under the Education Ministry, was closed because of the pandemic. more..

May 11 (CT) Medical experts have pointed out the lethargic manner in which various vaccinations being given to the public, to prevent them falling victim to COVID-19, has become a real hindrance to the successful curbing of the spread of the third wave of the pandemic here. They alleged that out of a stock of 600,000 doses of the Sinopharm vaccine that had been donated by China, due to the direct intervention of Prez Rajapaksa, only 2,000 jabs had been given to the public on 9 May. more..

May 11 (SI) In its review of Switzerland�s record on enforced disappearances on Tuesday, the CED raised the issue of illegal adoptions of Sri Lankan children that happened a few decades ago. While acknowledging that the Alpine nation had accepted its failure to prevent the illegal adoptions, the committee said that a rich country like Switzerland should do more for these children who are now adults. more..

May 11 (TM) Minister Udaya Gammanpila said that those who have taken only the first dose should not have any fears or doubts about taking the second dose. Although there was an agreement to purchase the AstraZeneca vaccine, the Minister further reminded that due to the sudden increase in the number of Covid 19 patients in India, the export of vaccines from India to SL was suspended. This caused a problem for nearly 600,000 Sri Lankans who were waiting to obtain the second dose. more..

May 11 (CT) Non-provision of fertiliser to tea plantations following the Govt's decision to ban the import of chemical fertilisers could destroy tea plantations across the country, warned President of Low Country Estate Labourers' Union (LCELU), Ruwan Gallage. He said that fertilisers are essential for tea cultivation and that plantations country wide are now accustomed to chemical fertilisers. In the early days, tea was usually fertilised about twice a year. But now it is four times a year. more..

May 11 (AN) SL Christians held a special Eucharistic celebration to call for divine intercession against the COVID-19 pandemic to save the country and the world. Meanwhile, the govt has reinforced restrictive measures to stop the spread of the virus, further limiting freedom of movement between provinces as of midnight today, 11 May. 128,479 cases have been reported so far, with 105,611 people recovered and 827 deaths. more..

May 12 (DM) Weeks ago the Presidential Media Unit announced, Prez Rajapaksa, following up on promises made in his election manifesto, had decided to immediately ban the import of fertilizers, weedicides & pesticides -agro-chemicals. Following the sudden blanket ban on these items, it was reported that ships carrying the aforementioned banned goods had been turned away. From way back in the 1970s, NGOs had been campaigning for a ban on the use of petroleum-based more..

May 12 (ST) Last week was World Press Freedom Day. Unlike in earlier years, there was little or nothing to celebrate. The combined forces of a spreading pandemic and rising authoritarianism saw to that. From Latin America through Africa to Asia, the heavy hand of repressive govts rode on the back of Covid, spreading its own virus. Admittedly restrictions were placed on social contact and gatherings of like-minded people to commemorate an annual event recognised the world-over more..

May 12 (DM) CEO/General Secretary of National Christian Evangelical Alliance of SL (NCEASL) Deshamanya Godfrey Yogarajah completes 30 years at the helm of the institution, providing leadership towards serving the people. He speaks of his experiences, challenges, and how they helped him become a good leader. Q: You have been at the helm of the NCEASL for 30 years. How did you start at this institution? A: I joined in 1990. more..

May 12 (DM) For some reason, we thought that we were immune from the Coronavirus. We thought there was something that protects us. We bragged and boasted, pooh-poohing the dire warnings issued by medical professionals and international bodies dealing with the brunt of the Covid 19 outbreak. Did not we even sneer when the so-called powerful countries like the US, UK and Italy struggled with unbelievable death rates and strained health support systems? We did. more..

May 12 (Island) Foreign Policy decision-maker, of a state, have to take into consideration the prevailing geopolitical environment of the int'l system, and of the region concerned, at a given time, when there is a foreign policy aspect involved in the decision that has to be taken regarding any issue Omission, or failure to give consideration to this aspect of the issue, can lead to disastrous consequences. Several examples from the recent political history of SL can be given to illustrate this point. more..

May 12 (DM) Globally new cases of Covid are falling, after an all-time peak through March to April this year, according to the WHO. The levelling-off has mostly been attributed to vaccination programmes around the world. However, the Director of the global health agency warned that if the Coronavirus is allowed to spread in parts of the world where vaccine rollout has been stalled, dangerous strains of the virus will continue to more..

May 12 (CT) Our page 1 story yesterday highlighted the lethargy of those in the medical field when it came to the administration of vaccines to curtail the spread of COVID-19. It is no secret that the President has taken the lead in streamlining the inoculation process. For the success of a certain endeavour, the leadership alone is not sufficient. No doubt, we need to appreciate the services rendered by the Prez, Doctors and Nurses engaged in the healthcare system, to curb the spread of more..

May 12 (Island) Covid-19 morbidity and mortality rates have been on the rise steadily since the conclusion of the recent avurudu celebrations. What we are experiencing at present looks the early warnings of a viral tsunami, whose landfall is only a matter of time. The national healthcare system has reached breaking point, as a collective of professional outfits��the SLMA, GMOA, the Association of Medical Specialists, and the SLMA Intercollegiate Committee��have pointed out more..

May 12 (Island) Oneli Vithanawasam of Lyceum International School, Wattala won the Online Under 18 Girls� Youth Chess Championship as she scored six points to clinch the top award. Vithanawasam played exceptionally well to beat Prasansa Premanath in the fifth round and drew with Esandi Newansa and Piyumi Uthpala in the last two rounds to finish the event with six points. During the first four rounds she beat Hasandi Akuratiya, Miyuni Jayasinghe, Tenuli Rathnayake and more..

May 12 (CT) It is shocking but true. 70% of the 801 (around 560) persons who had died of COVID until 10th May 2021, as per the Statistics dated 10th May 2021 were above the age of 60. Most of them would have been people who had led careful lives to get to that point, only to be struck down by a virus that caught their govt unprepared. How many had been vaccinated beyond the age of 60? This is a query as all those had not been from Colombo, where the vaccination at one point was given to those more..

May 12 (TM) Transit passengers from India would not be affected by last week�s travel ban imposed by the CAA on Indian travellers arriving in SL, especially Indians entering the island for quarantine purposes. The travel ban imposed by the CAA on people arriving from India, stricken by the coronavirus pandemic, came into effect last Wednesday. The decision was taken as per the directives issued by Health Ministry to control more..

May 12 (Island) Patali Champika Ranawaka�s somersault into the political establishment remains one of the more interesting developments from the last quarter century or so. Beginning with the JVP, moving to the nationalist right, only to later turn to the neoliberal right, he remains shrouded in enigma, a cut above the rest: while most of his colleagues go round in circles, shifting parties as you would shift from one musical chair to another in a never-ending cycle, he prefers straight lines. more..

May 12 (TM) Over a year after the Covid-19 outbreak in SL and with the country now facing its third wave, face masks and hand sanitisers have become essential items that are purchased by the public on a regular basis. Prior to the outbreak, face masks were only available at pharmacies and in the case of hand sanitiser, they were available in supermarkets, cosmetic shops, and pharmacies. Today, however both these items that are making up basic personal protective equipment (PPE) more..

May 12 (FT) The Consumer Affairs Authority has been instructed not to proceed with legal action relating to the new hybrid 18-litre cylinder introduced by Litro Gas Lanka, a top official of the CAA revealed yesterday. �CAA is not filing legal action due to political pressure. Selectively applying the law is extremely worrisome,� asserted CAA Executive Director Thushan Gunawardena. The CAA and Litro Gas Lanka have been locking horns over more..

May 12 (FT) Softlogic Finance (SFL) has announced plans to raise Rs. 2.24 billion via a Rights Issue to boost its capital. The company�s Board has resolved to issue five new shares for every six held at Rs. 10 each. The move will entail issuance of 223.966 million new shares. The current stated capital is Rs. 4.5 billion. Softlogic Finance said that the funds raised via Rights will enable it to infuse fresh capital, to strengthen Tier 1 Capital based on the Company�s forecasted business expansion during FY22. more..

May 12 (FT) Shareholders of NDB have reaffirmed their faith in NDB, with its Rights Issue snapped up and the bank slated to successfully complete the fresh capital raising worth Rs. 9.5 billion. The success is significant in the midst of the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, with the capital raising exercise aimed at supporting the growth momentum of NDB. The 28 for every 61 held Rights Issue entailed 106.78 million shares at Rs. 75 each. NDB said yesterday existing shareholders and more..

May 12 (Island) The govt has requested Canada not to enact Bill 104 recently adopted by the Ontario Provincial Parliament that resolved that SL had committed genocide during the war. Authoritative sources said that in terms of the Canadian Law in spite of the passage of the controversial Bill 104 moved by MP Vijay Thanigasalam (Scarborough�Rouge Park) of SL origin, it wouldn�t be enacted until more..

May 12 (CT) Former Sports Minister Harin Fernando believes SLC are making a mistake by removing Dimuth Karunaratne from the captaincy of the ODI team. Harin took to Twitter to open up on Dimuth�s omission from the ODI side and thereby losing the ODI captaincy. He said the team badly needs an anchor to hold the team, match and the players together. �I feel SLC is making a big mistake. I am no cricketer, but the team badly needs an anchor to hold the team & the match, players together!� more..

May 12 (Island) In the best interest of SL cricket and its progress I thought to pen a few words regarding the recent selection purely to give confidence to all concerned and hoping that it will be treated in the best interest of the game. We all know that cricket in SL is the only game that our country has gained world class status of which we are very proud of. Since it is a very competitive sport in the int'l arena, authorities in charge have a huge task to meet the demand locally and internationally. more..

May 12 (TM) The Vehicle Importers� Association of SL (VIASL), whose members� livelihoods have been drastically affected by the ban on vehicle imports since April 2020, is struggling to meet with Govt officials to discuss the terms of a quota for resuming vehicle imports while mitigating foreign exchange outflow. VIASL President Sampath Merenchige stated that the proposal for the quota had been in preparation since March, and more..

May 12 (Island) SL�s selectors have been ruthless axing as many as six seniors for the upcoming tours of Bangladesh and UK where they will play T-20 and ODI series. The national cricket team in limited overs cricket in particular has been struggling to make an impact in the last four years. Already forced to play the qualifying tournament of the T-20 World Cup, SL is in the borderline in the limited overs championship as well and unless they get the house in order, they will have to qualify for the 50 over World Cup more..

May 12 (TM) The delayed Provincial Council (PC) elections have now been pushed till next year without a final decision on the proposed amendments to the elections being reached at last Tuesday�s meeting of governing party members with PM Rajapaksa while another party leaders� meeting has been scheduled for this Tuesday (11). Govt, it is also learnt, is not too keen on holding PC elections this year. Meanwhile, the much-anticipated parliamentary debate on Colombo Port City more..

May 12 (Island) GMOA said that the health administration hadn�t been able to reach a consensus on the second jab for those who received the Oxford-AstraZeneca (Covishield) vaccine first dose. The govt, both in and out of Parliament has acknowledged a shortfall of over 600,000 Covishield doses. GMOA spokesperson Dr Naveen de Zoysa said contrary to various statements made over the past several days in that regard, more..

May 12 (DM) Disaster Preparedness and Response Division of the Health Ministry said that 7% of PCR tests carried out in the first week of May had returned positive. The percentage of positive cases remained as high as 10.18 after 18,584 PCR tests were conducted on May 3 and 8.59 after conducting 22,379 tests the following day. The health authorities had conducted 25,232 PCR tests on May 1, and there had been 1,662 positive cases. Accordingly, percentage of positive cases was 6.59. more..

May 12 (Island) Terrorist Investigation Division has asked five persons for being in uniform similar to that of the LTTE�s self-styled police, controlling traffic in the Jaffna town recently to be present at its headquarters in Colombo. They and Jaffna Mayor Visvalingam Manivannan were taken into custody a few weeks ago by the Jaffna police for allegedly promoting LTTE uniform, They were bailed out after being produced before the Magistrate. The case is scheduled to be taken up for hearing on more..

May 12 (Island) The SJB, on Monday called on Prez Rajapaksa to summon an all-party conference on managing the evolving COVID-19 crisis quickly. Senior SJB MP Kabir Hashim, urged the govt to heed the advice of medical experts and seek broad consultation to better manage what they termed as the hour of national crisis. The SJB was prepared to help Hashim said. �We the SJB urge the Govt to call an all-party conference to effectively manage more..

May 12 (DM) Although trade relations between Sri Lanka and Germany have grown deeper over the years, there still prevail untapped markets, specially in the organic products segment, senior representatives of the Delegation German Industry and Commerce in SL (AHK SL) said. German Industry and Commerce Chief Delegate Andreas Hergenr�ther noted that while Germany has been SL�s third largest export market for many consecutive years, there remains room for more..

May 12 (CT) A leading underworld figure in Kaduwela, Urujuwa, was killed last night. According to Police, he was killed during a Police shooting, in Wadurammulla. Nawagamuwa Police said a Police team had visited an area with Urujuwa to search for weapons, on a tip-off given by Urujuwa. Accordingly, Police had visited two places to seize weapons. At the first location, they had found some weapons, including five swords, 38 T-56 ammunition, six grenades and a revolver. more..

May 12 (FT) Health officials yesterday stated that 2,530 persons tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the country�s total patient count to 131,060. The patients detected yesterday are all persons linked to New Year Cluster and Divulapitiya, Peliyagoda, Prisons, and New Year clusters have expanded to 124,976 patients. This includes 82,785 persons from Peliyagoda cluster, 31,616 persons from New Year cluster, more..

May 12 (CT) A new Digital ID containing information regarding the date, place, time and type of vaccine given to an individual by the Govt, will be issued to the public in order to monitor those who had received the vaccination, Minister Namal Rajapaksa said. At a discussion held with the Ministry of Health and the Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA), Rajapaksa said a decision to issue the ID was taken in order to ensure an efficient rollout of vaccines. more..

May 12 (CT) Pregnant women and young children are vulnerable to the present variant of COVID-19, Chief Epidemiologist, Dr. Sudath Samaraweera said. He said that with the current viral spread, pregnant women who contract the disease may develop complications which could affect the fetus resulting in premature birth or the infant contracting the viral infection after birth. He urged pregnant women to seek immediate medical attention as soon as COVID-19 symptoms are identified. more..