Feb 12 (FT) Hotels Association of SL (THASL), has expressed serious concerns over issues raised by W15 Group Managing Director Hardy Jamaldeen, a distinguished member of the association; noting that such incidents have the potential to tarnish the country�s image and compromise visitor safety. In a letter dated 7 Feb, addressing the Tourism Minister Harin Fernando, the association noted that the implications of such incidents extend beyond mere reputational damage, more..

Feb 12 (CT) With an overall tally of three gold medals and three silver medals, Indian shuttlers dominated the elite competition organised and conducted by Sri Lanka Badminton (SLB), the Li Ning SL International Challenge, which concluded successfully at the Dadella Int'l Indoor Courts in Galle on Sunday. They won gold medals in the Men�s and Women�s Singles and Mixed Doubles, and claimed the silver medals in Men�s and Women�s Singles and Women�s Doubles. more..

Feb 12 (TM) Dept of Police has refuted the reports that the CID has arrested a suspect who allegedly slandered politicians on social media platforms under the newly enacted Online Safety Act (OSA). This, despite the Public Security Minister stating at a public event that an arrest had been made by the CID. Minister Tiran Alles had said that a person who had allegedly slandered politicians on social media platforms with the support of more..

Feb 12 (AD) Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) has filed legal action against 7 persons, including five staff members of the Dept of Motor Traffic (DMT) for the unlawful registration of hundreds of vehicles. Accordingly, the CIABOC said it has filed said action against the seven persons over the registration of approximately 400 vehicles that had not been cleared by the SL Customs, thereby incurring a significant loss of revenue to the state. more..

Feb 12 (AD) NBRO has warned that the quality of air in parts of the island has dropped further to unhealthy levels. Accordingly, the NBRO highlighted that apart from Nuwara Eliya, the air quality in all other districts is at an unhealthy level, with Colombo, Kandy and Jaffna recording particularly high levels of unhealthy air quality. The NBRO further warned that according to the US Air Quality Index (AQI), the quality of air recorded in Colombo, Kilinochchi, Jaffna, Trincomalee, Badulla, more..

Feb 12 (DM) Claiming that opposition camps have been astonished by the NPP's Indian visit, NPP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake said today that more surprising events are to be unfolded in the near future. Speaking at the Anuradhapura District Women's Convention, he said an era had begun now, where more and more surprises would take place. "How did you know about our Indian visit? You got to know it either through the SJB camp, Prez Ranil's camp or Mahinda Rajapaksa's camp. more..

Feb 12 (EN) SL has started discussions with Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) to establish a branch in the island nation�s central city of Kandy, Ministry of Information Technology said, as the country is aiming fast track digital economy. Led by State Minister Kanaka Herath, visited the IIT Madras last week for the discussion. �Accompanied by distinguished academics and industry leaders, the delegation aimed to explore potential collaborations and finalize more..

Feb 12 (CT) During the recent visit to India, the primary focus of discussions with the Indian Govt revolved around regional security, said NPP MP Vijitha Herath. The delegation concluded its 5-day visit to India and held a media briefing yesterday. Responding to a query, Herath explained, �The main focus of our discussions centred on regional security, particularly in South Asia. We deliberated on various geopolitical more..

Feb 12 (DM) Opposition MP and Leader of UPF, Champika Ranawaka, urged the govt to adopt a scientific approach in restructuring the country�s external debt. He emphasised the importance of considering the secondary market trading values of SL�s US$-denominated International Sovereign Bonds (ISB) when negotiating for a haircut. �The secondary market value of our ISB is US$ 55, which means if there are US$ 1,000 million worth of bonds in the market, it�s traded at US$ 550m today. more..

Feb 12 (EN) Sri Lanka will introduce India�s Unified Payment Interface (UPI), a revolutionary digital payment move to achieve a cashless economy, which may help to tighten loopholes that have allowed for tax evasion in the island nation. The UPI will help the public to use their smartphone as a virtual debit card. In other words, people do not need any cash or card to carry out transactions. They can simply use the smartphone as a debit card and send and receive money through it. more..

Feb 12 (FT) Minister Kanchana Wijesekera dismissed claims by the Verit� Research Institute that Sri Lanka has the highest electricity tariff in South Asia. Wijesekera vehemently disagreed with the facts presented and expressed intention to report the matter to the relevant institution for further investigation. �We agree that our electricity tariffs are high, but the report has been prepared based on facts to mislead the public. more..

Feb 12 (FT) Both the Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe and the Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa have declared that the guiding principle of their economic management is the ideal known as the social market economy. This is the economic ideology that was followed by Germany after the World War II since its leaders did not want to go by unbridled free capitalism or state-controlled communism to rebuild the war-ravaged country. It was believed that neither system cared for people who more..

Feb 12 (FT) One of the important issues that appears to have gone under the radar since the debt crisis of April 2022 is the overvaluation of the SL rupee. This is in spite of the fact that many commentators argued that the overvaluation of the SL rupee was an important contributor to the debt crisis (see CBSL, 2023; Athukorale and Wagle, 2023). To the extent that they pay any attention at all to the exchange rate, they argue that the sharp depreciation of the currency following more..

Feb 12 (DM) A complaint has been lodged with the SL Human Rights Commission (SLHRC) alleging that the Sri Lanka Cricket Umpires' Committee had leaked papers from last year's umpires' exam. Chandana Kannangara, a Grade Four umpire from the SL Cricket Board, told the media outside the SLHRC after lodging the complaint that the SL Cricket Board had conducted an examination last year to upgrade the Grade Four umpires to Grade Three, with over 100 candidates participating. more..

Feb 12 (AD) The health sector trade unions have decided to resume their trade union action as discussions held with the Minis.m. today, Ada Derana learns, after which he is scheduled to leave for the US. Meanwhile, political sources also claim that new appointments to the board of officials of the UPFA will be made following the SLFP leader�s return to the island. more..

Feb 12 (AD) The health sector trade unions have decided to resume their trade union action as discussions held with the Ministry of Finance regarding their demands were unsuccessful. Accordingly, 72 health sector trade unions, excluding doctors� unions, will launch an indefinite strike from 6.30 a.m. tomorrow (13), the unions said. The decision had been taken following a meeting held between representatives of Finance Ministry more..

Feb 12 (EN) Central Bank of SL has appointed two new members to its governing board, which is responsible for the administration and management of the CBSL and determination of general policies. The GB comprises Governor Dr P Nandalal Weerasinghe, A N Fonseka, Dr Ravi Ratnayake, Anushka S Wijesinha and Vish Govindasamy. �We hereby announce the appointments of Mr. Rajeev Amarasuriya and Mr. Manil Jayesinghe to the GB,� the Central Bank said. more..

Feb 12 (DM) National People's Power (NPP) was trying to become the main opposition in the country, SJB MP S. M. Marikar said today. �What we can gather from the recent visit of NPP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake to India is that his party is trying to become the main opposition in the country,� Marikar told a news briefing. �We don�t mind NPP becoming the main opposition as we will be in the government when they become the main opposition of this country� he added. more..

Feb 12 (TM) CEB has commenced curtailing the release of hydropower to maintain water levels during the upcoming dry season. It is reliably learnt that the CEB is targeting the generation of hydropower while maintaining reservoir capacities at a minimum of 600 MW considering the agricultural and drinking water requirements. As of Friday, hydro generation was only 24.3% while the major share of the grid had been generated by more..

Feb 12 (AD) A SriLankan Airlines flight has turned back to Melbourne following an incident shortly after take-off on Monday evening (12). SriLankan Airlines flight UL605 left Melbourne Airport just after 6.30pm (AEST) but declared an emergency soon after and requested to return to Victoria. The Airbus A330 landed safely back in Melbourne at 7.24pm. The scare was sparked by reports of smoke in the cockpit, according to Travel Talk. The airline didn�t address that directly, but said it had more..

Feb 12 (EN) The US supports addressing SL�s food security challenges, US Ambassador to SL Julie Chung has told Minister Nalin Fernando. �The ambassador emphasized the importance of enhancing food security in the country. She also stated that to slash the food price increase and to adapt to the inflation, SL needs to diversify the market,� a statement by the Ministry said. The trade ministry focuses mainly on decreasing the cost of production, minimizing post-harvest wastage, more..

Feb 12 (AD) The Ceylon Petroleum Storage Terminals (CPSTL) signed an agreement with US-based petroleum products distributor Shell-RM Parks today. The relevant agreement was signed at the CPSTL Head Office, pertaining to the storage and distribution of fuel in SL. As per the newly signed agreement, CPSTL is now able to store and distribute Shell-RM Parks petroleum products in SL. On 8 June 2023, the Govt of SL signed an agreement with RM Parks Inc, more..

Feb 12 (DM) A total sum of Rs 20 billion is needed for the presidential and general elections, Director General Election commission Saman Sri Ratnayake said. Ratnayake told journalists that he had already informed this matter to Parliament and to the finance ministry. Prez election is due this year while the term of the present Parliament would end in 2025. However there are constitutional provisions for the President to dissolve Parliament anytime after it completes four and a half years of its term more..

Feb 12 (Island) The Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) flayed the govt for having agreed to grant some Indian companies access to the biometrics of Sri Lankans under the proposed Unitary Digital Identity Framework project. FSP Education Secretary Pubudu Jayagoda said the High Commissioner of India to SL, Santosh Jha had, on 01 February, told the media that an Indian company would print national identity cards more..

Feb 12 (AFP) Australian dominance of major cricket events continued on Sunday when they beat India by 79 runs in the U-19 World Cup final in South Africa. Australia's senior men's team won the world Test championship and Cricket World Cup in 2023 � beating India in the finals on both occasions. Australian women's team are the current 50-overs and T20 World Cup champions. Sunday's final between the only unbeaten teams in the tournament was surprisingly one-sided. more..

Feb 12 (DM) Privilege Committee of Parliament has recommended that Defence Secretary Kamal Gunaratne and Army Commander Vikum Liyanage must apologise to MP Chandima Weerakkody for making threatening statements against the MP during a committee meeting inside the Parliament Complex. Privilege Committee has issued the recommendation after investigating into a privilege issue raised by MP Weerakkody in Parliament last October, stating that the Defence Secretary more..

Feb 12 (Island) SLPP parliamentary group member Sarath Weerasekera yesterday took exception to a govt decision to finalise technical level talks on the proposed Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreement (ETCA) with India before the end of March this year. The issue hadn�t been taken up at a govt parliamentary group at any level or discussed in Parliament, the former Public Security Minister said. more..

Feb 12 (DM) A woman was injured when two armed men broke into the Meegoda Economic Center, shot at her and robbed a shop before fleeing early this morning. The woman, who was the cashier at the time, was hit by three bullets in her abdomen and was admitted to the Homagama Hospital. A CCTV camera installed in the shop recorded the robbers looting cash from the drawer. Robbers stole money from the top drawer of the store and shot at the woman after demanding for the key to get more..

Feb 12 (TM) The SLFP is ready to support the abolition of the Executive Presidency at any time, senior party leadership said. However, the party would however oppose any attempt by the incumbent Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe to remain in power beyond his term under the pretext of doing so, SLFP's Senior Vice President, Prof. Rohana Luxman Piyadasa stressed. He said that they had no objection regarding the abolition of the Executive Presidency, but they would not allow more..

Feb 12 (EN) SL�s Interim Secretariat for Truth and Reconciliation Mechanism (ISTRM), recently held a forum to discuss the draft bill for a Commission for Truth, Unity, and Reconciliation (CTUR), amidst Human Rights Watch criticism. �The primary objective of the forum was to discuss various aspects of the draft bill for a CTUR, which will play a pivotal role in addressing grievances of persons affected by the conflict in the North and East, promote reconciliation and non-recurrence,� more..

Feb 12 (Island) Iranian tea importers had offered to double the quantity of tea they buy from SL under the Iranian tea-for-oil barter mechanism from its current US$ 5 million to US$ 10 million during the winter months � December to March -Niraj de Mel, President of the Sri Lanka Tea Board (SLTB) said. De Mel added that the Iranian New Year, celebrated in the third week of March, and Ramadan, would also lead to an increase in the demand for tea. Since the commencement of the tea-for-oil more..

Feb 12 (AD) India�s Unified Payment Interface (UPI) transactions, via LankaQR, was officially introduced to SL at a virtual launch held on Monday (12). The real-time payment system aims to enhance digital payments for Indian tourists in SL. India�s instant payment technology Unified Payment Interface (UPI) services were simultaneously launched in SL and Mauritius on Monday, in the virtual presence of Indian PM Narendra Modi, more..

Feb 12 (CT) To celebrate World Pizza Day on 9 Feb, TukTuk Wine & Dine in Negombo embarked on a challenge to create the largest pizza in SL. Executive Chef Duminda Wanigasekera spearheaded this endeavour, which took place on 9 February evening at the hotel premises. The pizza measured an impressive 50 inches and weighed 12 kg. To put this dish together, Chef Wanigasekera and his team utilised a tomato base blend, incorporating a medley of ingredients such as Mozzarella more..

Feb 12 (CT) A woman who had been evading the authorities for 35 years following her involvement in a murder case and subsequent death sentence, was apprehended by the Homicide and Organised Crime Investigation Unit of the CID. The incident dates back to 1989 when the Borella Police initiated an investigation into the murder of a quality inspector from the CEB in Wellawa, Athurugiriya. The investigation was prompted by a complaint filed by the deceased�s wife. more..

Feb 12 (DM) Amidst an intensified crackdown on crime and narcotics, SL is witnessing a surge in shootings again despite a decrease in the first month of the launch of the Yukthiya operation. As the Yukthiya operation against organized crime gains momentum, concerns have mounted regarding the recent shooting incidents. According to police reports, gun-related violence has surged recently, causing panic and chaos. more..