Sep 5 (FT) Aseni, whiz kid interested in all issues relating to economics, and her grandfather, Sarath Mahatthaya, an ex-official of the Ministry of Finance, are in conversation on the current acute economic crisis in SL and the challenges faced by Prez Wickremesinghe when making a turnaround in the economy. Aseni has watched Ranil�s statement to Parliament, his interim budget speech, and various interviews given to Western media from time to time. She has been intrigued by some bold more..

Sep 5 (EN) Irrigation Det has issued a flood warning to areas around the Attanagalu, Kalu, Kelani, Ging and Nilwala rivers as the river basins are already saturated with water posing a threat of floods if rain continues. Dept of Meteorology issued a red notice on the country�s prevailing weather situation on Monday (5), valid for 24 hours. Very heavy showers above 150mm may occur in parts of the Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces and Kandy, Nuwara-Eliya, Galle and Matara districts, notice said. more..

Sep 5 (DM) The Prez's Office today said that there had been no request by the controversial Hindu guru Nityananda, to seek asylum in Sri Lanka as reported by the Indian media. Officials from the President's Office said that despite reports stating that the Hindu Priest had sent a letter to Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe, requesting a medical visa to enter the country and then seek asylum here, there had been no such request. "Even the foreign ministry has received no such request," official said. more..

Sep 5 (EN) SL will experience up to one hour of power cuts from Tuesday (6) to Friday (9), Chairman of PUCSL Janaka Ratnayake said. All groups A, B, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V and W will have a one-hour of power cut between 6 pm to 9 pm. The state-run CEB announced that power cuts would only take place after 6 pm on Monday. SL�s power cut durations had to be increased slightly to to a sudden breakdown in the Norochcholai power plant, and the unavailability of fuel. more..

Sep 5 (EN) SL�s govt under new Wickremesinghe does not want any confrontation with any international partner at the upcoming UNHRC sessions but will oppose any anti-constitutional move forced upon the country, Foreign Ministry Ali Sabry said. Diplomats said that SL is likely to face a new resolution against the island nation�s human rights conduct and the new draft will include references to recent allegations of govt more..

Sep 5 (AD) A committee has been appointed by Prez�s Secretary Saman Ekanayake to facilitate and efficiently carry out the process of repatriation of Sri Lankans who have gone to India as refugees due to the war. The other members of this committee, headed by Additional Secretary to the Prez Ms. Chandima Wickramasinghe, are Controller General of Immigration and Emigration, senior official of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, senior official of the Registrar General�s Dept a senior official more..

Sep 5 (DM) Claiming that the SLFP sans any policy now, Former Prez Chandrika Kumaratunga said there are only a bunch of mad hatters in the party now. She told reporters in Colombo that the SLFP was the most Democratic Party in SL after the Independence and that its party democracy has been destroyed. "There is no SLFP today. There are no policies or people in the party. Only the name-board is there," he said. She said what matters for her is not the party but the policies and more..

Sep 5 (TM) Following the SLFP Constitution being amended to empower its Chairman to remove party officers from their respective positions at their discretion, amidst opposition from several senior SLFP members including Ministers Nimal Siripala de Silva and Mahinda Amaraweera, divisions have arisen within the SLFP. Last week, several amendments were implemented to the Constitution of SLFP, including a clause more..

Sep 5 (FT) IMF last week announced a provisional $ 2.9 billion loan to SL for recovery from an economic crisis which has caused extreme inflation, shortages and protests. But once the loan is approved, the country has decisions to make on how best to spend the funds. Recent evidence shows that universal social protection could be critical to getting the country back on track. SL�s current crisis requires a large-scale emergency response. The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant damage to more..

Sep 9 (DM) There has been no discussion on appointing former Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa as the PM or to any other position,� UNP Deputy Leader Ruwan Wijewardene said. �There is no deal between the SLPP and Prez with regard to Mr. Rajapaksa. Besides he is yet to decide whether he is to remain in politics or not,� Wijewardene told the media after a religious ceremony held in Colombo to mark the 76 anniversary of UNP. At the same time UNP Deputy Leader said Mr. Rajapaksa more..

Sep 9 (AD) Telephone service providers have decided an upward tariff revision for all mobile and pay TVs services with effect from today. It is reported that the decision has been taken under the approval of the Telecom Regulatory Commission of SL (TRCSL). Thereby, mobile, fixed, broadband and other pre-paid and post-paid service tariffs will be increased by 20%, while all pay TV tariffs will increase by 25%. It is stated that tariff increment has been done in accordance with VAT revision. more..

Sep 9 (ANI) China, Colombo's largest bilateral lender, may disagree with Western creditors on SL's debt restructuring. A senior IMF official said that SL's ongoing economic crisis would deepen if China disagrees on debt restructuring. "If one creditor or creditors are not willing to provide these assurances, that would indeed deepen the crisis here in SL and would undermine the repayment capacity," Peter Breuer, senior IMF mission chief said when asked what if China does not agree on a debt more..

Sep 9 (FT) TRCSL-approved price increase for all mobile, fixed, pay-TV will come into effect from today, a move operators said was long due whilst customers termed it as unfair amidst the ongoing economic crisis. Telecom providers jointly announced that the regulator TRCSL has approved an upward tariff revision for all Mobile, Fixed, and Pay-TV service providers. Thereby, mobile, fixed, broadband, and other services tariffs more..

Sep 9 (CT) Southern Province Association of Small & Medium-Scale Bakery Owners said, it was pointless to establish unions to announce that prices of bakery items have increased whenever wheat flour prices increase. Responding to All-Ceylon Bakery Owners� Association (ACBOA) statement, the small- and medium-scale bakery owners association chairman, Kamal Perera said the responsibility of an association should be to get a fair price for bakery owners and consumer more..

Sep 9 (AD) MP Jagath Pushpakumara has been re-elected as the Chairman of the Committee on Public Petitions for the Third Session of the Ninth Parliament. Jagath Pushpakumara�s name was proposed by MP Piyankara Jayaratne and was seconded by MP Vadivel Suresh at its inaugural committee meeting held recently (01) at the Parliament premises. MP Jagath Pushpakumara also served as the Chairman of the Committee on Public Petitions during the Second session of more..

Sep 9 (TM) Right to Information Commission of SL (RTICSL), which ordered the SL Police to inform in writing on what basis it rejected an inquiry made under the Right to Information (RIT) Act regarding the alleged use of expired tear gas to disperse protestors in the past few months, stated that strict decisions will have to be made in the future if the Police do not act upon the RTI Act. Journalist Tharindu Jayawardena had more..

Sep 9 (TM) The Lanka Private Bus Owners� Association (LPBOA) has lodged a complaint with the Police Headquarters about the recent protests, which it claims has disrupted bus operations. LPBOA Chairman Gemunu Wijeratne said that the complaint was handed over to the IGP last Thursday (1) describing the inconvenience and loss the sector had to bear due to the blockage of certain roads pertaining to protests, which resulted the bus routes being altered. more..

Sep 5 (AD) Litro Gas company says that the price of a 12.5 kg domestic LP gas cylinder will be reduced by Rs. 113 with effect from midnight today (05). Meanwhile the price of a 5 kg cylinder will be reduced by Rs. 45 and the 2.3 kg cylinder by Rs. 21. As per the revised pricing formula, the domestic Litro Gas refill price will be revised with effect from midnight today. Accordingly, the new price of a 12.5 kg Litro gas cylinder will be Rs. 4,551 while the 5 kg cylinder will be priced at Rs. 1,827. more..

Sep 5 (Island) SL govt would be held accountable for the economic crimes perpetrated against the people, at the Geneva UNHRC sessions scheduled to commence on 12 Sept, SJB said. SJB MP Lakshman Kiriella, addressing the media said that the UNHRC would table a resolution against Sri Lanka at the Geneva summit and it would be further detrimental to the national interests. �For the first time in UNHRC history this term accountability for economic crimes is being used. more..

Sep 5 (AD) The Supreme Court has ordered for an appeal submitted by former Minister Rishad Bathiudeen seeking the annulment of a verdict issued by the Court of Appeal against him, regarding the deforestation of the area located around the Wilpattu Forest Reserve, to be taken up for consideration on Jan 19, 2023. This petition was called before the three-member SC bench consisting of Justices Gamini Amarasekara, Achala Vengappuli and Arjuna Obeysekara today. more..

Sep 5 (Reuters) Foreign Minister Ali Sabry said a constitutional amendment bill trimming presidential powers is expected to become law in a couple of weeks. "The new amendment will reduce presidential powers and bring back participatory governance," Sabry told reporters at the foreign ministry. The bill, which will require a two-thirds majority in the house to become law, was proposed to help shore up stability and more..

Sep 5 (TM) In an attempt to attract US dollars amidst the ongoing dollar crisis in SL, Litro Gas Lanka Ltd. is set to launch a new mobile application that will enable SL expatriates living abroad to purchase liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders for friends and family in Sri Lanka. �They will be allowed to purchase up to two cylinders per order, at an approximate price of $ 15 each, following which the closest dealer will keep the cylinders ready,� Litro Gas Chairman Muditha Peiris said. more..

Sep 5 (TM) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe, who emphasised that the rule of law cannot be preserved without the Police and an independent Judiciary, stressed that the two institutions should be protected moving forward. The President also pointed out that democracy and the rule of law must be established properly within the country in order to ensure the country�s economic recovery. Prez said this while addressing a ceremony held at Bambalapitiya Police Field Force Headquarters last Saturday (3), more..

Sep 5 (Island) Proposals pertaining to the restructuring of the CEB would be finalised within two weeks, a member of the committee handling them said. Minister Kanchana Wijesekera, who had a lengthy discussion with the experts, said that the main framework would be presented to the Cabinet by the end of the month. The committee, which was recently appointed by Minister for restructuring CEB, has held talks with development agencies more..

Sep 5 (DM) SL is looking at a holistic and a long lasting solution for human rights and stressed the need to go for a truth seeking Mechanism within the framework of the constitution of SL, Foreign Minister Ali Sabri said today. He said that the policy of the Ranil Wickremesinghe govt was not to agree on an external mechanism as the Constitution of SL does not allow that. He said SL would advocate for a domestic mechanism which is transparent and acceptable to all the communities living in SL. more..

Sep 5 (CT) The plantation community is forced to buy wheat flour from private stores at a higher price because the two main companies that distribute wheat flour in SL have not released enough flour to the market. They said the price of a 450g loaf of bread and that of other snacks had been raised at various levels. Bakery owners claim that they must purchase flour from wholesalers to meet their baking needs. According to bakery owners, a 50 kg bag of wheat flour is sold at a maximum wholesale more..

Sep 6 (ST) In Biblical times it was considered a miracle when an ass spoke. How times have changed! The more one reads or listens to what seems like the collective wisdom of Darwin, Einstein, Marx and Wittgenstein spewing from the mouths of some of our worthy (if an overstatement is excused) politicians and their ever-serving acolytes in search of a few dollars, the more one is convinced that the perspicacious utterances of our own wunderkinder present formidable challenges to more..

Sep 6 (DM) Ex-prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa is back after a whirlwind tour of self-exile that took him to the Maldives, to Singapore, and finally to Thailand. None of his hosts was enthused to have him for longer and Gotabaya himself seemed to have felt that the whole experience was an act of needless humiliation. He has every right to return home and the govt of Sri Lanka has a constitutional obligation to take him back. However, the same constitutional rights should be extended to all Sri Lankans, more..

Sep 6 (TM) The long-delayed Central Expressway Project Section III (CEP III) will likely be suspended due to the inability to secure necessary foreign funds given the country�s present financial instability. It is reliably learnt that the project has until now been unable to attract a viable foreign funding agency suitable to the country�s present financial requirements and therefore discussions are currently ongoing as to whether the project more..

Sep 6 (DM) There are several proposals in the Interim Budget that are desirable such as those relating to public sector institutions which, together with politicians, have been sucking the lifeblood of the citizens of this country, contributing thereby to our gradual descent towards bankruptcy. However, I will identify and deal with only one proposal which appears to be impractical, to say the least, and will in all probability create some serious problems for a large percentage of the population more..

Sep 6 (ST) Prez and Finance Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe�s interim budget, with ambitious goals of significantly increasing govt revenue and reducing public debt by 2025, was passed by Parliament on Friday in a vote where many in the opposition chose to abstain. NPP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake asked for a division on the second reading of the interim budget, known as the Appropriation (Amendment) Bill at the end of a 3-day debate on Friday evening. more..

Sep 6 (CT) National Carrier, SriLankan Airlines turned 43 years this year. It has also racked up a shocking total debt of USD 1.126 billion, or Rs 401 billion and Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva, stressed about selling shares of SriLankan Catering and Ground Handling in a bid to restructure the airline and minced his words about any investor coming forward to buy it out. Due to high levels of corruption and mismanagement, more..

Sep 6 (TM) At a time when a significant share of Sri Lankans are questioning as to what is happening in the country as far as political, economic, and social stability are concerned, Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe, on 3 Sept, stated that democracy and the rule of law must be established within the country in order to ensure economic recovery. He stressed that the rule of law cannot be preserved without the Police and an independent Judiciary, and that therefore, the two institutions should be protected. more..

Sep 6 (DM) Three new political party alliances are preparing for the forthcoming elections, while the country is reeling under an unprecedented economic crisis. Two alliances comprising of a few small parties headed by Wimal Weerawansa and another small section of the ruling party led by Dullas Alahapperuma are almost formed. Both these groups were with the govt until they totally bankrupted the country. The third is in the making under the leadership of the SLFP, more..

Sep 6 (CT) A recent FAO release, quoting Fisheries State Ministry Secretary Jayantha Chandrasoma, said that more than 50% of animal protein requirements of Sri Lankans is obtained through fish consumption. �But the increase in fish prices has impacted negatively on the affordability of fish and fisheries-related products, particularly for low-income groups,� the release further quoting Chandrasoma said. He had also said that SL�s fisheries industry is undergoing more..