Oct 14 (TM) Raising concerns over the recent incidents of ragging and student indiscipline that have occurred with the resumption of onsite academic activities in State universities, including cyber-ragging related incidents, Committee of VCs and Directors (CVCD) stated that a comprehensive strategy planned by universities, the law enforcement authorities, political parties, and the media, with the support of civil society, more..

Oct 14 (Island) SJB leader Sajith Premadasa has warned Prez Ranil Wickemesinghe that he would face the same fate as Gotabaya Rajapaksa if he continued to follow the advice of Namal Rajapaksa. He questioned the rationale behind Prez Wickremsinghe backing the Rajapaksas�s push for a rehabilitation bureau. He alleged that the Rajapaksas were planning to send those who protested against them to rehabilitation centres on the pretext of bringing in new legislation more..

Oct 14 (Island) Officials of the Department of Wildlife Conservation said that illegal gem mining was taking place in the buffer zone of the Gal Oya National Park, but they were unable to take any action as other state institutions promoted it. The mining activities were taking place with neither an Initial Impact Assessment (IIA) nor an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), officials said. The Gems and Jewellery Authority and Agrarian Services had allowed illegal gem mining. more..

Oct 14 (DM) IMF announced a downgrade in SL�s growth projections for 2023, expecting GDP to contract, as opposed to the previous expectation of the economy witnessing positive growth. IMF, in the World Economic Outlook report that puts the spotlight on countering the cost of living crisis, stated that SL is expected to see its real GDP contract by 3% in 2023. By 2027, the country is expected to have a growth of 3.7%. Earlier this year, IMF projected SL�s GDP to grow by 2.7%. more..

Oct 14 (FT) Colombo stock market gathered further strength yesterday with sharp gains by indices and more importantly net foreign buying with October so far producing over Rs. 1.4 billion thereby boosting year to date figure to Rs. 16.7 billion. ASPI gained by 3.3% or 295 points and the active S&P SL20 rose by 4.4% or 117 points. Turnover was Rs. 2.5 billion. Asia Securities said the indices recorded their biggest single-day gain in two months yesterday on improved sentiment in the market as more..

Oct 14 (Island) A multi-day fishing craft carrying several Navy personnel has disappeared off SL early this week. Navy lost contact with the men onboard and efforts to locate the missing vessel had so far failed. Six personnel are believed to have been on patrol at the time communications were lost. They had been on a routine patrol. It is also speculated that the unit was looking for a vessel carrying narcotics. more..

Oct 14 (FT) International Human Rights Activist Muheed Jeeran warned that cheques worth Rs. 60 billion bouncing in 2Q as a grave sign. �It is a grave sign that shows the chain of business cycles is edging closer for a sudden stop,� he said. As per payments bulletin released by the Central Bank for 2Q22 over 250,000 cheques worth Rs. 59.6 billion have been returned during the 2Q as against 192,300 cheques in 1Q. The report also showed that the volume of cheques returned more..

Oct 14 (FT) Public Utilities Commission of SL said it had received over 200 complaints about irregularities at fuel filling stations countrywide. Commission said it has taken steps to resolve these complaints following the petroleum consumer complaint resolution mechanism approved by the Cabinet Ministers in 2021. �We have already taken steps to resolve the increasing number of complaints the Commission has received so far,� PUCSL Chairman Janaka Ratnayake said. more..

Oct 14 (DM) Two hill country leopard cubs about ten-days-old, left by its mother were recovered from an estate in Dikoya by the wildlife conservators of Nallathanniya Range Office. Range Forest Conservator Prabhash Karunatilleke said one of the cubs was a male and the other a female and that both of them were in perfect health. He said the two cubs were left in a safer location, where the mother would be frequenting. He said, as they expected, the mother leopard that arrived in about an hour, more..

Oct 14 (EN) SL is in the process of donating over 40 million US dollar worth six million Pfizer vaccines to Myanmar after majority of the people are reluctant to obtain the fourth or the second booster dose. SL, which struggled to bring down the Covid-19 vaccines in the initial stage of the pandemic, bought 18 million Pfizer vaccines for booster doses. However, many Sri Lankans have yet to get their both first and second boosters because only a few Covid-19 patients are detected on a daily basis. more..

Oct 14 (TM) NPP Economic Council Member Sunil Handunnetti warned that there could be a rise in tax evasion by the public, as the Govt has introduced higher taxes at a point where people are unable to pay taxes. �If such a trend occurs, it would be justifiable, as the people are unable to pay such taxes,� he added. Govt will impose further taxes on top of the recently announced income taxes in the upcoming Budget 2023 in Nov, more..

Oct 14 (AD) The Department of Meteorology says the low-level atmospheric disturbance still persists in the vicinity of the island and therefore cloudy skies are expected in most parts of the island. Showers or thundershowers will occur at times in Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, Southern and North-Western provinces. Heavy showers about 100 mm can be expected at some places in Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central and North-Western provinces and in Galle and Matara districts. more..

Oct 14 (TM) Minister of Justice Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe said that a dialogue had been initiated to reform the politically influenced diplomatic service, and that the relevant authorities are seeking to formulate a State policy connected to international relations. �We have started a dialogue on reforming the diplomatic service. We will have to do it and as a country we will have to go forward. We are trying to work out a State policy connected to foreign relations,� he added more..

Oct 14 (EN) Minister Keheliya Rambukwella is exploring possibilities of starting more paying wards in state-owned hospitals to sustain the free health service to the most needy people while catering to increasing demand of quality in health services. SL�s unprecedented economic crisis has forced the govt to look into all the possibilities to cut costs across all the sectors while SL's free health & education services more..

Oct 14 (DM) At least 11 complaints, including the latest from Colombo 7, amounting to more than Rs.3 billion in financial fraud has been lodged against Thilini Priyamali, the owner of Thico Group Private Ltd as of today, police said. SSP Nihal Thalduwa said a businessman from Colombo 7 who lost Rs.750 million allegedly to Thilini Priyamali was the latest victim to complain against Priyamali. It was reported that the businessman, who has a doctorate, has business deals in Malaysia as well. more..

Oct 14 (FT) On 3 October 2022, Parliament was told by the State Minister of Defence Premitha Bandara Tennekoon that another investigation on the 21 April 2019 Easter Sunday attacks will begin soon. This time it appears investigators from pro-Western countries such as the US FBI, UK�s Scotland Yard, Australian Federal Police and Maldivian National Police are due to be roped in to do what Sri Lankan Police perhaps could not do. The question that will therefore arise is, why not similarly invite more..

Oct 14 (NF) PM Dinesh Gunawardena requested the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to assist the govt�s initiative to establish a digital database of the labor workforce in SL. He pointed out that the Ministry of Labour has taken steps to establish a comprehensive digitalized database of the workforce and urged the ILO to assist in expediting the process. This was discussed when ILO Country Director Simrin C Singh and Senior Employment Specialist of ILO Headquarters, more..

Oct 14 (RW) The deepening economic crisis is forcing people to make heartbreaking choices between going hungry, buying life-saving medicine, or finding the money to send children to school. A needs assessment by the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies reports of more than 2,900 households in 11 of the country�s 25 districts has found that 96% have been affected by the current crisis in some way, with food insecurity, health, livelihoods, and nutrition among more..

Oct 14 (EN) Sri Lanka is seeing a rise in sexually transmitted disease detections as inexperienced sex workers enter the profession, health officials say after the country�s intermediate regime Central Bank printed money to trigger the worst currency crisis in its history. Traditional high-risk communities including drug users and homosexual persons with multiple partners continue to be factors in the rise of STIs, more..

Oct 14 (FT) IMF has warned of a global recession. CBSL Governor revealed that the SL economy had contracted by 4.8% in the first half of 2022 and is expected to contract further in the second half. World Bank estimates the total contraction for SL this year to be 9.2% and 4.2% next year. In the midst of all this the country has suffered another humiliation at UNHRC in Geneva. Yet, a brave faced Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe (RW) presented to the Parliament his fourfold strategy to stabilise more..

Oct 14 (CI) A for Australia: Defending champions for the first time, and also staging the T20 World Cup for the first time. Seven Australian grounds will host 45 matches and 16 teams over 28 days. One of the teams that qualifies into Group 2 will play Pakistan in Perth on Oct 27 and then take a four-and-a-half hour flight to Brisbane to cover the road distance of 4310km (or 3606km as the crow flies) for their next match, against Bangladesh on Oct 30. If that makes you worry about jet lag, more..

Oct 14 (TM) A group of parents have formed the National Parents� Association (NPA) to protect the future of the Sri Lankan community with the aim of actively contributing to any future aragalaya (people�s struggle) that may take place, to overcome the socio-economic crisis that has arisen in the country. Members of the NPA stated that it is the parents who have been most affected due to the prevailing socio-economic crisis. more..

Oct 14 (CT) Udayanga Weeratunga, who arranged Russian and Ukrainian tourist visits to Sri Lanka in the past months, said due to logistics issues, Russia�s Aeroflot Airlines will not fly to Mattala Int'l Airport, but only to the BIA. He said as there are no back-to-back flight operations and a lack of facilities such as food and business lounges for tourists, flying to Mattala was not feasible. He said he brought in over 38 trips of Russians and Ukrainians in the past to Mattala Airport amidst more..

Oct 14 (TM) The Parliamentary Opposition sans the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People�s Power (NPP) has joined forces against the Govt�s postponement of the Provincial Council (PC) elections. Towards this end, members of the Parliamentary Opposition, including SLFP Chairman, independent MP and former Prez Maithripala Sirisena, TNA Spokesman and M.A. Sumanthiran (PC), independent MPs Dr. Nalaka Godahewa, Prof. Charitha Herath and Prof. G.L. Peiris more..

Oct 14 (Island) Chairman of the National Council sub-committee on identifying short-and medium-term programmes related to economic stabilisation, Champika Ranawaka, yesterday ordered Ministry of Finance and the Dept of Census and Statistics to conduct a National Households Survey for 2022 immediately. Ranawaka mentioned that this survey had not been conducted during the last 3 years. The survey would help to understand the prevailing social situation and prepare future policies, more..

Oct 14 (ANI) Indian women's cricket team will look to record its seventh Asia Cup title, while SL will eye its maiden cup on Saturday when the two teams lock horns at the Sylhet Int'l Cricket Stadium in Bangladesh. India have made it to the eighth final of the Asia Cup with six titles to their name until now. Bangladesh have won it once with no other team winning it ever. India have dominated the Asia Cup since its inception in 2004. SL stole a one-run victory over Pakistan on Thursday to fix more..

Oct 14 (AD) Court of Appeal has ordered the Colombo Fort Magistrate�s Court to postpone the proceedings related to the private plaint against former Prez Maithripala Sirisena over the 2019 Easter Sunday terror attacks. Announcing the decision of the writ application filed by Sirisena, Appeals Court judge bench ordered to postpone the matters for 10 weeks, starting from today. Sirisena had filed the writ application before more..

Oct 14 (EN) Sri Lanka will reduce its power cut duration due to increased hydro power generation Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekera said on Friday after the island nation received heavy rains across the country. Hydro power on Friday accounted for over 50% of Sri Lanka�s power generation followed by thermal power. The country has been experiencing heavy rains this week and all reservoirs are getting adequate rainfall, the state-run CEB data showed. more..

Oct 14 (DM) UNP Headquarters Sirikotha is expected to be relocated after it has been found that there are some geological issues pertaining to its present location. When contacted, UNP Assistant Leader Akila Viraj Kariyawasam said the matter is still under discussion. �We had an initial discussion with the party leader Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe on the matter but no final decision has been made," Kariyawasam said. Kariyawasam confirmed that the initial proposal was to relocate more..

Oct 14 (TM) Prior to the related debate in Parliament, Bureau of Rehabilitation Bill will be put through a consultative process, to allay any fears against this proposed piece of legislation, which would also be open to the general public to recommend changes, Minister of Justice Dr. Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe said. He said that he had initiated a consultative process and a dialogue with regard to the said Bill prior to the debate more..

Oct 14 (Island) Popular actress and a leading figure in the aragalaya movement, Damitha Abeyratna said that she only received about 800,000 rupees from well-wishers during the anti-govt protests. These funds were spent on the daily activities of the protests, she said. �People didn�t take to the streets for the fun of it. They did so because politicians had failed. The unprecedented economic crisis is the reason why protests occurred,� she said. Abeyratna said she had no intention of contesting more..

Oct 14 (CT) All the discussions with regard to getting the insurance claim, for the MV X-Press Pearl disaster, worth millions of dollars have been successful, President�s Chief-of-Staff Sagala Ratnayake said. He said a discussion was held recently at the Presidential Secretariat with the participation of the insurance agents, representatives of the company that owned the ship and several relevant parties. All of them showed a positive response with regard to matter, more..

Oct 14 (AFP) A confident SL open the Twenty20 World Cup on Sunday fresh from being crowned Asian champions, but face negotiating a tricky preliminary round to join the big guns in the main draw. They kick off the global showpiece in Geelong against a Namibian team looking to spring another surprise after making the Super 12 stage on their tournament debut last year. Originally scheduled to take place in 2020 before being moved because of Covid, the eighth edition of the event begins more..

Oct 14 (Island) Women leaders from four provinces in SL have urged local govt authorities to strengthen efforts to protect women, who have been affected by the country�s economic, political, and Covid-19 crisis this year.From March to Sept 2022, UN Women hosted a series of Multi-party Dialogues on Women, Peace and Security in nine districts to identify and discuss solutions to challenges faced by women there. Close to 200 persons including women leaders participated in the sessions, more..

Oct 14 (TM) While sources at SL Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) claim that former SLTDA Director General Dhammika Wijayasinghe was removed due to a violation of SL Administrative Service (SLAS) regulations, State Minister of Tourism Diana Gamage claimed that WIjayasinghe�s removal was a result of sexism, saying certain people find it unacceptable for women to lead offices. Gamage stated that more..