Oct 5 (TM) Minister Jeevan Thondaman�s recent statement in Parliament regarding the gross politicisation of a key national utility service provider � National Water Supply & Drainage Board (NWSDB), highlights the corrosive nature of the long-standing political culture of promises of employment given to supporters of political parties and politicians. It is a fact that the NWSDB is infamous for its efficiency when discharging its duties to the customers or the public at large. more..

Oct 5 (Island) Cutpurses who find themselves in situations where they have to take to their heels to escape from their pursuers pretend to be good guys; they sprint, shouting, Pickpocket, pickpocket!. Politicians employ the same ruse as the light-fingered individuals in a spot when the irate people are out for their scalps. They pretend to champion good governance and accuse others of bribery and corruption. The SLPP-UNP govt, which is troubled by the prospect of being kicked out of power more..

Oct 5 (DM) In recent times, Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe has been making headlines with his candid and outspoken remarks on critical geopolitical issues during his foreign visits. His latest interview with DW News in Germany, although more of a verbal sparring match than a usual run-of-the-mill television interview, shows a stance against what could be termed as biased narratives perpetuated by Western woke media. In a world filled with carefully scripted diplomatic more..

Oct 5 (DM) Sri Lanka has seen the first advertisement of a political campaign appearing on television these days. There is no clear date for any election, but this advertisement remind us about the system change we voiced for and where protesters or revolutionists failed. There were too many camps inside the aragalaya site in Galle Face and also too many ambitious groups wanting credit or power for all the troubles they took to keep the fires that fueled the revolution going. more..

Oct 5 (DN) I had good confidence about my medal before this Asian Games said SL javelin thrower Nadeesha Dilhani Lekamge the 36 year old athlete who won the silver at the Asian Games said. Lekamge who hails from Parakaduwa village at Ratnapura said the day when I competed this Javelin throw event I had good confidence and I wanted to do my best. Age is not a barrier and it is only number; my age is 36, added Lekamge. more..

Oct 5 (ST) A machine to analyse the chemical composition of pesticides purchased by Sri Lanka Tea Board (SLTB) at a cost of Rs 32.13 million in 2009 has proved useless. This was revealed during the questions for oral answers session in Parliament last week. SJB MP Kavinda Jayawardhana had asked the Minister of Plantation Industries to inform the House of the date on which a machine to analyse the chemical composition of pesticides was purchased for SLTB; expenditure borne for it; more..

Oct 5 (FT) In a bid to strengthen consumer rights and streamline the grievance reprisal process, Cabinet approved a comprehensive program presented by Minister Nalin Fernando. At the heart of this endeavour is the establishment of a National Operations Centre, a dedicated hub tasked with coordinating and executing special raids through a collaborative effort. Initiative aims to significantly reduce the time and effort invested in investigating customer complaints & making decisions more..

Oct 5 (FT) Aimed at playing a pivotal role in helping the country navigate through the ongoing crisis, and seize emerging prospects to help revive the nation, the 44th National Conference of Chartered Accountants organised by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of SL (CA SL) was ceremoniously inaugurated on Tuesday on a grand scale. The inauguration, graced by Int'l Federation of Accountants (IFAC) President Asm�a Resmouki and CB Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe, more..

Oct 5 (FT) A report by the IMF titled Governance Diagnostic Assessment revealing rampant state corruption in Sri Lanka was tabled in parliament by SJB MP Dr. Harsha de Silva yesterday. �The report is deeply embarrassing for our country, as it highlights that corruption permeates numerous state agencies from the highest to the lowest levels,� he remarked. MP pointed out that the Govt�s lack of action against fraud and corruption was cited as one of the reasons for the delay more..

Oct 5 (FT) Leading tourism associations have raised concerns about the potential adverse effects of Govt-mandated minimum room rates (MRR) on the sustainability of the industry. In a joint press conference held with the SL Inbound Tour Operators Association (SLAITO), SL Association of Professional Conference, Exhibition and Event Organisers (SLAPCEO) and Association of Small & Medium Enterprises in Tourism SL (ASMET) more..

Oct 5 (CI) Rohit Sharma pursed his lips and furrowed his brow. Sitting cross-legged on a white sofa in the banquet hall of the Gujarat Cricket Association Clubhouse, he threw up his hands to take issue with the line of questioning. "That's not my job, sir," he said. "Declaring all this is not my job." He had been asked, four years too late, on his view on the result of the 2019 World Cup final: a tied Super Over, which saw England lift the trophy by virtue of hitting more boundaries than NZ. more..

Oct 5 (FT) National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) lodged a complaint with CID against Isolez Biotech Pharma Ag. Ltd. for importing a batch of human immunoglobulin IV manufactured by Livealth Biopharma Ltd. India, in violation of the due procedure. The NMRA said the drug had been imported and used in the country without obtaining necessary approvals. According to the NMRA, the company had submitted forged documents to SL Customs for clearance purposes when more..

Oct 5 (Island) From athletics administrators to so-called track and field experts who have been criticizing schools� coaches for ruining the careers of budding athletes and have been placing the blame for the medal drought at international level on schools� coaches during the last couple of decades. But finally, it was a schoolgirl trained by a schools coach who ended the decades long gold medal drought at the Asian Games more..

Oct 5 (Island) The curtain-raiser of cricket�s showpiece event gets underway today in Ahmedabad, a venue where Michael Tissera helped Ceylon record a four wicket win over an Indian side captained by Tiger Pataudi in 1965 in an unofficial Test match. More than half a century later, SL are yet to win a Test match in India. We have much to learn from Tissera�s leadership qualities. As a captain, he took risks and treated everyone equal. Many years later as Chairman of Selectors, more..

Oct 5 (DN) Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe is more concerned about Cricket and Football Audit reports and ordered to hand over them to Special Investigation Unit (SIU) for finding Sports Offenses. The special investigation report of Sri Lanka Cricket and the special audit report issued by the National Audit Office with the special investigation report of SL Football Federation and the internal audit report conducted by the Ministry of Sports were submitted to the SIU for finding Sports Offenses more..

Oct 5 (DM) The controversial Rs. 2.6 million electricity bill of MP Namal Rajapaksa was paid in haste as the Fundamental Rights (FR) petition filed against the default of the bill is scheduled to be taken up before the Supreme Court on the 6th of next month, former JVP Provincial Councillor Nalin Hewage said. He said that a lawyer from Polonnaruwa has filed a FR petition before the SC over the default of the particular electricity bill and it is to be taken up for hearing next month. more..

Oct 5 (DN) Proud cricketing son of the Central hills Kumar Chokshanada Sangakkara, former SL skipper has mae the city of Kandy and Sri Lanka proud, as he has been appointed as the new chairman of the Maryleborne Cricket Club (MCC) world cricket committee, he has made the city of Kandy and Sri Lanka proud. Sanga, as he is fondly called, was born to Kumari Surangana and Swarnakumara Sangakkara on Oct 27, 1977 in Matale. Later his parents settled in Kandy more..

Oct 5 (CT) A chaotic scene unfolded yesterday, leaving thousands of train passengers greatly inconvenienced as a private dispute between a security officer and a deputy railway guard at Maligawatte railway yard escalated into a flash strike by railway guards. The striking guards demanded the immediate termination of the said security officer�s service, plunging the railway system into turmoil. Strike originated from an altercation more..

Oct 5 (TM) An Acting Consultant Anaesthetist at the Colombo North Teaching Hospital in Ragama not accepting the relevant letter through which she has been released to the District General Hospital in Hambantota, has created uncertainty regarding the chance of the latter Hospital, which is maintaining its patient-care services without an anaesthetist for nearly two months, to have a permanently attached anaesthetist. Through a letter dated 25 Sept 2023, the Director General of Health Services more..

Oct 5 (TM) Former CB Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal and former Presidential Secretary Lalith Weeratunga have been released from the case filed by Ven. Thiniyawala Palitha Thera over alleged public funds misappropriation. Additionally, the case has been dismissed by the Court. The monk had filed a personal complaint against the duo, accusing them of misappropriating public funds during Cabraal�s tenure as the CB Governor. He alleged that Cabraal, while serving in the role more..

Oct 5 (Reuters) Central Bank reduced key its policy rates by 100 basis points on Thursday, as expected, doubling down on efforts to spur growth and finalise the first review of a $2.9 billion bailout package from the IMF. The CB lowered the standing deposit facility rate and the standing lending facility rate to 10% and 11%, respectively, to put the crisis-hit economy on a firmer growth footing. "The Board arrived at this decision following a careful analysis of the current and expected developments," more..

Oct 5 (DN) The 13th edition of the ICC Men�s Cricket World Cup will see the winners of the 10-team tournament earn US$4 million, along with the trophy that they will lift at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Nov 19. The first match of this World Cup between England and NZ will be held today in Ahmedabad at Narendra Modi Stadium and this game will see the last World Cup finalists NZ and England once again on Indian soil. This edition runners-up will receive US$2 million, more..

Oct 5 (FT) Govt is to call for Expression of Interests (EOIs) first on Hotel Developers Lanka Ltd., owning company of Hilton Colombo, Lanka Hospitals Corporation and Canwill Holdings Ltd. (Hyatt) whilst for others it will be later. Timeline for EOIs was announced by State Owned Enterprises Restructuring Unit (SRU) Director General Suresh Shah during a presentation to the media involving Treasury Secretary Mahinda Siriwardena more..

Oct 5 (DM) Only 12 out of the 225 MPs have declared their assets and liabilities to date, SJB MP Dr. Harsha de Silva told Parliament. Dr. de Silva highlighted that members declining to declare their assets and liabilities could be disturbing in the aftermath of the IMF focusing on corruption in its governance diagnostic assessment on SL. �In this report the IMF has said SL institutions are corrupt from top to bottom,� he said, while adding, �The assessment says SL has failed to achieve more..

Oct 5 (TM) Although the second service extension granted to incumbent IGP Chandana Wickramaratne is to end on 9 Oct, no nominations for the post have been referred to the Constitutional Council (CC) so far, and another extension is likely to be granted to him. Wickramaratne, whose initial service extension expired on 26 June 2023, was granted another 3-month service extension by Prez and Defence Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on 9 July, and the same was approved by the CC on 14 July. more..

Oct 5 (Island) President of the Catholic Bishops� Conference (CBC) Most Rev. Dr. Harold Anthony Perera said that there was absolutely no difference of opinion between the CBC and Archbishop of Colombo Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith on the responsibility on the part of the govt to punish those who planned suicide attacks or neglected public security. Bishop Perera reiterated their longstanding demand for the implementation more..

Oct 5 (FT) Lowest common denominator thinking and the abandonment of meritocracy have contributed to growing mediocrity, in most, if not all, aspects of SL society, in the past half century. The policies, strategies and tactics adopted by SL leaders since the 1950s smack of lowest denominator thinking. The expression lowest common denominator describes, usually in a negative manner, a plan of action, a rule, proposal, or opinion that is deliberately simplified or more..

Oct 5 (AD) Railway under-guards have called off their strike after a successful discussion with respective authorities. The discussion, which took place this morning, was attended by representatives of the Ceylon Railway Guards� Union and other railway trade unions, State Minister Lasantha Alagiyawanna and SL Railways officials. Now that the trade union action has come to an end, the railway department is working to bring the disrupted train operations back to normalcy more..

Oct 5 (EN) Fitch Ratings has removed confirmed the ratings of 15 banks in Sri Lanka, and removed the negative rating watch on the completion of a domestic debt restructuring. Except for Cargills Bank, stable outlooks were assigned. �The successful conclusion of the local-currency sovereign debt restructuring, including the exclusion of banks� holdings of treasury securities from the DDO programme, has alleviated some of the pressure on the banks� capital position,� more..

Oct 5 (FT) The entire country is now aware of recent developments; a delegation came to assess the progress of an agreement and conveyed the impossibility of specifying a release date for the second IMF instalment. Regardless of the rhetoric, the second instalment will eventually materialise, as the IMF seeks program success following the initial disbursement. IMF�s concerns do not encompass SL�s political turbulence, media suppression, or Govt�s anti-democratic stance. more..

Oct 5 (TM) Tamil political parties in the Northern Province staged a protest yesterday demanding a thorough investigation into the threats made to former Mullaitivu District Court Judge T. Saravanarajah, and measures to ensure the safety of Judges and the independence of the Judiciary. This protest was staged by several Tamil political parties such as Illankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi, Eelam People�s Revolutionary Liberation more..

Oct 5 (Island) World Bank predicts that SL�s poverty will increase to 27.9% in 2023 from 25% in 2022 as the country continues to suffer from the most extreme deployment of macro-economic policy in the history of its central bank. The World Bank in a report titled SL Development Update: Mobilizing Tax Revenue for a Brighter Future said: �Poverty is projected to increase from 25% to 27.9% between 2022 and 2023. Poverty reduction could resume from 2024 and continue in 2025, more..

Oct 5 (DM) Several more countries apart from China have requested Sri Lanka to provide Toque macaque monkeys for their zoological gardens, Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said today. He told Parliament that the govt had informed them to make the request through the respective embassies in those countries. The Minister said the requests for the export of monkeys have been halted as animal rights organisations and activists had filed a petition challenging the move. more..

Oct 5 (EN) Former Prez Mahinda Rajapaksa continues to give mixed signals on his party�s continued support for Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe; on the one hand commending the latter�s outburst at a foreign journalist and, on the other, criticising price increases and hardships on the public. Fielding questions from reporters on Wednesday (4), Rajapaksa said Wickremesinghe�s controversial interview with a DW more..

Oct 5 (EN) A group of residents in Ambalangoda have mailed their electricity bills to govt MP Sanath Nishantha who is said to have settled the outstanding electricity bills of his colleague Namal Rajapaksa. �We saw in the media that you had settled MP Rajapaksa�s bills. Please also settle the bills of these poor daily-wage earners,� one resident told Swarnavahini. Channel�s footage of the residents posting a collection of their bills to Nishantha, who serves as State Minister more..