Apr 4 (ST) Permission has been granted by the Transport & Highways Ministry for roadside sellers to sell their wares on either side of the roads in lieu of the upcoming season. This will be in effect until April 18 on roads that come under Highway Development Authority as long as it does not inconvenience the public. Vendors can sell their products in temporary stalls. No registration is required although; permission can be obtained from the relevant Divisional Secretariat if necessary. more..

Apr 4 (TM) Leader of the PHU Udaya Gammanpila yesterday said that the PHU will support the privatisation of State owned enterprises (SOEs) under five conditions. He said that most of the SOEs have become corrupt and ineffective as a result of political interventions. "The experience of the last 75 years is that public enterprises have become a burden to the people due to reasons such as politicisation, corruption and inefficiency. more..

Apr 4 (FT) The first-ever National Agriculture Policy is set to go before the Cabinet approval this month, according to Minister Mahindananda Amaraweera. Speaking at the Agripreneur Conference on last week, organised jointly by the Agriculture Ministry, SL Agripreneurs� Forum, HNB, Colombo University MBA Alumni Association and the Daily FT, the Minister said the proposal for the National Agricultural Policy will be presented to the Cabinet of Ministers within weeks. more..

Apr 4 (Xinhua) Sri Lanka is set to increase duty-free allowances for migrant workers at the airport starting May in order to encourage remittance, Minister Manusha Nanayakkara said. The increase will be based on the amount of money remitted by the workers, Nanayakkara said. Under the new scheme, there will be five categories of concessions. For people having remitted 2,400-4,799, 4,800-7,199, 7,200-11,999, 12,000-23,999 and 24,000 U.S. dollars or more, they will be eligible more..

Apr 4 (Island) As a nation we are used to appointing commissions or committees when faced with disasters, natural or man-made. Often these committees and their reports are an eyewash, masterfully crafted by politicians to buy time during moments of crisis. Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe this week appointed a five-member Cricket Advisory Committee headed by former skipper Sanath Jayasuriya. It is hoped that this committee is fully empowered as well to more..

Apr 4 (DN) Chameera Ginige of Sri Jayawardenapura University and Bimandee Bandara of Hilwood College emerged open men�s and women�s champions at the 76th National Table Tennis Championship concluded at S. Thomas Gymnasium Mt Lavinia on Sunday. This is the second time Ginige has won the men's title. The men�s singles final Chameera Ginige defeated Prasad Silva after a tough 3-2 setter game while young Bimandee Bandara outclassed more..

Apr 4 (Island) The Amnesty International has expressed serious concerns over the proposed enactment of new Anti-Terrorism law. In its end of mission statement, AI Senior Director Deprose Muchena, who led the delegation said that any anti-terrorism legislation should be in line with international human rights law. The Opposition here and international organisations including ICJ have condemned the proposed new law. more..

Apr 4 (ANI) Keeping up the high tempo of bilateral and mutual cooperation in the maritime domain, the 10th Edition of the annual Indian Navy and SL Navy bilateral maritime Exercise SLINEX-2023 started on Monday in Colombo. Deputy HC of India Vinod Jacob on Monday took part in the opening of the annual bilateral naval exercise SLINEX2023. SLINEX-2023 aims to enhance interoperability, improve mutual understanding and exchange best practices/ procedures in multi-faceted more..

Apr 4 (TM) The Govt is finding it difficult to release the funds required to hold the Local Govt (LG) Elections, State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe said. Minister Semasinghe claimed that the national economy had not yet stabilised to the level that was required to release the funds. �The country's economy is yet to stabilise to its fullest potential. Therefore, the Govt is still finding it difficult to release the money required for holding the LG Elections�. more..

Apr 4 (FT) Labour and Foreign Employment Minister Manusha Nanayakkara said the Govt has decided to further extend the timeline issued to allow Sri Lankans working abroad to import electric vehicles till the end of August 2023. The objective of the Govt move was to boost foreign exchange inflows via the banking system, to overcome the ongoing foreign exchange crisis and to appreciate the contribution made to the national economy by expatriates to reduce foreign currency scarcity. more..

Apr 4 (AD) Further investigations are underway regarding various connections that Salindu Gunaratne alias Kudu Salindu, is alleged to have had with terrorist groups, according to the relevant investigation officers. The officers have informed this to the courts today (3). They have stated before the courts that the investigations are being carried out into the relationships that Kudu Salindu is said to have had with pro-LTTE groups and other international terrorist groups. more..

Apr 4 (DM) In a desperate attempt to keep the main opposition - SJB alive, Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa invited all SJB MPs to dinner at the Monarch Imperial in Battaramulla last evening in order to coax them into remaining in the party which is now on the verge of collapse. Senior SJB members who attended the dinner said that among the drinks and food which was hosted by Premadasa, there was also a plea made by more..

Apr 4 (ST) SL�s apparel industry is facing tough times as the sector�s biggest players are operating at half the capacity and at the same time some of their factories are closing down operations while banking their hopes on the second half of this year. Some of the bigger players noted that they too were running at half capacity which is the case with all other businesses in the apparel sector as orders have dropped considerably. In this respect, the industry has dropped in orders from 20-25%. more..

Apr 4 (DM) The police seemed to have no mercy when they repeatedly fired water cannons at a group of IUSF members seeking a meeting with the University Grants Commission (UGC) this afternoon at the Lipton Circus, affecting even bystanders. A force of several hundred police sleuths including the riot squads backed by a military unit blocked and hindered a group of about 30 IUSF members who gathered at the Lipton Circus around 2.30 pm today to go to the UGC to seek a meeting. more..

Apr 4 (EN) SJB MP Eran Wickramaratne rubbished speculation that key members of the party plan to cross over to the govt, even as other party seniors continued to give mixed signals amid allegations from the party leader that the govt was attempting to buy opposition MPs. He dismissed media reports of potential crossovers as ridiculous, rubbish and nonsense, claiming that such reports raise questions about the credibility of media more..

Apr 4 (EN) Stocks closed lower on Tuesday recording a low turnover as banking sectors brought the index down, due to the long weekend and holidays, which dampened investor sentiment, an analyst said. The main All Share Price Index closed down 0.68% or 62.96 points to 9,173.97. The market generated a turnover of 768 million rupees. �The market is muted mainly due to the upcoming long weekend and fears of potential debt restructuring coming back,� an analyst said. more..

Apr 4 (FT) The circular economy is a long-term economic model that prioritises resource conservation and waste reduction. It is based on the principles of reducing, reusing, and recycling, and it aims to create closed-loop systems in which waste from one process is used as input for an-other. The circular economy aims to make the economy more sustainable and resilient by reducing reliance on finite resources, lowering environmental impact, and promoting eco-nomic growth. more..

Apr 4 (AD) The Court of Appeal has issued an interim order suspending the implementation of a decision taken by the Cabinet of Ministers to reduce the mandatory retirement of govt nurses to 60 years. The Appellate Court bench consisting of the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Nissanka Bandula Karunaratne and Justice A. Marikkar issued this order, after considering the petitions filed by a group including the Public Service United Nurses� Union. more..

Apr 4 (DM) The Ministry of Trade will take stern action against traders who sell goods at exorbitant prices during the festive season, Trade Minister Nalin Fernando said today. He told Parliament that the Trade Ministry, Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) and the Department of Measurement Units, Standards and Services will implement a joint program from Thursday (6) to raid traders who sell goods exceeding the controlled or maximum retail prices. more..

Apr 4 (TM) Further to articles published recently by The Morning regarding the affiliation between Prophet Uebert Angel who was recently exposed of money laundering by Al Jazeera Investigative Unit (iUnit) and local Prophet Jerome Fernando, sources close to The Morning have revealed that several financial frauds have been occuring within the church that has not been spoken of openly. Jake Perera, Director more..

Apr 4 (FT) Some well-meaning citizens are concerned about the Anti-Corruption Bill creating a new offence that will make it possible to prosecute/persecute persons who bring up cases of bribery and corruption. They want section 119 of the Anti-Corruption Bill to be excised. �119. Every person who makes an allegation in any information or complaint made by him to the Commission under section 43 knowing such allegation to be false or having reason to believe that such allegation more..

Apr 4 (AD) Professor Sunil Ariyaratne has been appointed the new chancellor of the Uni of Visual and Performing Arts. Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe made this appointment with immediate effect, for a 5-year period, in compliance with Section 32 of the University Act No. 16 of 1978, Amended by Act No. 07 of 1985. Prez�s Secretary Saman Ekanayake, has forwarded the letter of appointment to Prof Sunil Ariyaratne, confirming his appointment as Chancellor of Uni of Visual & Performing Arts. more..

Apr 4 (EN) SL�s central bank said it is keeping policy rates unchanged in April as liquidity conditions loosened from central bank dollar purchases and a steady fall in private sector sterilization. Private credit is still negative and state energy enterprises are market pricing output, further reducing demand. �The subdued aggregate demand on account of tight monetary and fiscal policies and improved domestic supply conditions more..

Apr 4 (Island) Chief Justice Jayantha Jayasuriya PC paid a glowing tribute to the late President�s Counsel Nihal Jayaamanne posthmously for yeoman service the latter had rendered to legal profession for decades. He did so after unveiling the bust of Jaymanne at the Colombo Law Library. CJ said that the late Jayamanne�s service to the legal fraternity was immeasurable and the latter had served as a lawyer for more than 50 years. He was a �A true friend and great human being,� he added. more..

Apr 4 (AD) Catholic Bishops� Conference in SL has urged the govt to uphold the Constitution and the democracy of the country and not to proceed with any unwarranted measures to interfere with the independence of the judiciary and preserve the freedom of speech and expression of all its citizens. Issuing a statement on the independence of the judiciary and the freedom of speech, the Catholic Bishops� Conference calls upon the Government to restrain and defend any attempts made by more..

Apr 4 (FT) Leading business magazine LMD reported in its latest monthly edition that the business confidence gauge gained some ground in March, following the free fall in the previous month. LMD-NielsenIQ Business Confidence Index (BCI) � the only gauge of its kind in SL � has regained some lost ground to register 72 basis points, it added that: �The reality, however, is that it is a whopping 60 points lower than it was a year ago (132) and 52 notches below the all-time average (124).� more..

Apr 4 (AD) The existing fuel quota under the QR code system has been increased for the Sinhala and Tamil New Year festive season with effect from midnight today. As previously planned according to the increasing fuel need for the festive season, the CPC has ordered and received the necessary fuel stocks, the PMD reported. Accordingly, the proposal has been made to increase three wheel quotas from 5 litres to 8 litres, motorcycles from 4 litres to 7 litres, buses from 40 litres to 60 litres, more..

Apr 4 (TN) Cricket runs in the blood for Shavon Daniel. A left-handed top-order batter and right-arm off-spin bowler widely regarded as a player who could break into the Sri Lanka senior team. His father and uncles played at domestic level while his elder brother Jehan and cousin Ashian Daniel both represented SL Under-19s, Sri Lanka emerging teams and SL A. �I was very fortunate that I was born into a cricketing family and more..

Apr 4 (AD) Cabinet of Ministers has given its approval to pay the basic salaries of govt employees contesting the Local Govt (LG) election, for the period from 09 March to 25 April. At least 3,000 public servants, who have handed over nominations for the election, are currently on unpaid leave, Govt Information Dept revealed. However, as the LG election was repeatedly postponed, govt employees contesting the polls are struggling financially as their unpaid leave was extended. more..

Apr 4 (DM) Sri Lanka is among 23 best places to travel around the World in 2023, according to the Forbes. The Forbes said that Sri Lanka was chosen by Juliana Broste, a 12x Heartland Emmy Award-winning travel filmmaker and host, showcasing adventures and fun things to do around the world. �It�s no secret, Sri Lanka has had a hard time,� says Juliana Broste. �Even with inflation, visitors will find Sri Lanka a spectacular, affordable destination worth the long haul. more..

Apr 4 (AD) SL fugitive gangster Maddumage Lasantha Chandana Perera alias Angoda Lokka, who was found dead in Coimbatore in 2020, had died of cardiac arrest, according to the final report submitted by India�s Crime Branch-CID before a court in Coimbatore last week. With this, the agency has closed the investigation into one of the two cases it registered following the death of Angoda Lokka under suspicious circumstances. more..

Apr 4 (DM) Colombo Chief Magistrate�s court today ordered the Court Registrar that the Govt Analyst�s report pertaining to the death of businessman Dinesh Shafter be forwarded to the panel of medical experts who were appointed to perform a fresh post-mortem inquiry into the Shafter�s death. Colombo Additional Magistrate Rajindra Jayasuriya made this order after taking into consideration a request made by the counsel who watched the interest of the family of Dinesh Shafter. more..

Apr 4 (AD) Sectoral Oversight Committee on Int'l Relations meeting held recently, under the Chairmanship of Namal Rajapaksa, has taken up into discussion the possibility of setting up a SL Embassy in Romania. Accordingly, the Committee has questioned the representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the challenges pertaining to the establishment of a mission in Romania. Committee was of the view that given the considerable percentage of SL population more..

Apr 4 (CT) Rukshani Wijemanne (38) has been shortlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize 2023. Her shortlisted story Principles of Accounting is the story of a young man, caught in a cycle of failure. He dreams of being successful, and longs to find significance. Wijemanne is one of six writers shortlisted for the Asia Prize, which was won last year by Singaporean Sofia Mariah Ma and in 2021 by Sri Lankan Kanya D�Almeida. The World�s most global literature prize more..

Apr 4 (AD) The Colombo Fort Magistrate has ordered an issue against the demonstration slated to be staged by trade union activists this afternoon. The order was issued after taking into account a request made by the OIC of Colombo Fort Police. Accordingly, the protesters are barred from marching towards the Presidential Secretariat, President�s House and the Finance Ministry premises through several roads in Colombo � Olcott Mawatha, Lotus Road, York Street, Bank of Ceylon Mawatha, more..