Jan 17 (DN) Krishan Sanjula scored a fluent knock of 84 in 125 balls with 5 fours and a six, leading SSC to a 71-run in the Major Clubs Limited Overs Cricket Tournament final at the SSC grounds yesterday. With this victory, SSC coached by Saman Jayantha emerged as double title holders, having shared the Major Clubs League joint championship with Police SC earlier, completing the double. It was a low-scoring game on the SSC wicket. SSC led by Avishka Fernando won the toss and elected more..

Dec 17 (DN) In a bid to secure spots for the 2024 Paris Paralympics, SL is sending its top five para-athletes to compete in the Dubai 2024 Grand Prix � Fazza International Championships. National Paralympic Committee made the announcement, revealing that the event will take place from February 12 to 15 in Dubai. The Fazza Grand Prix tournament, one of Asia�s major para-sports events, will feature participants from 32 countries. The participants include Nuwan Indika, more..

Jan 17 (Island) National Movement for Social Justice (NMSJ) has urged the Wickremesinghe-Rajapaksa govt to put off the two-day debate on the proposed Online Safety Bill scheduled for Jan 23 and 24th. NMSJ, led by former Yahapalana speaker Karu Jayasuriya, has warned that the Bill, if enacted, will severely hinder freedom of expression and have a negative impact on the digital as well as the overall economy. On behalf of the NMSJ, its General Secretary Sunil Jayasekera issued warning more..

Dec 17 (FT) Minister Kanchana Wijesekera revealed that over one million electricity disconnections occurred in 2023, marking the highest number in history. Out of nearly seven million users, defaulted payments led to 1,064,400 disconnections. CEB and LECO were responsible for 965,566 and 98,834 disconnections, respectively. Comparatively, in 2019, there were 573,073 disconnections for the entire year, more..

Dec 17 (DM) Negotiations are underway with regional countries, including India, as per the UN Law of the Sea to explore economic activities in a sea area extending 250 nautical miles beyond SL's exclusive economic zone, the National Oceanic Affairs Committee Secretariat said. This was revealed when the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Int'l Relations met the National Oceanic Affairs Committee Secretariat, an agency affiliated to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently more..

Jan 17 (TM) The Election Commission (EC) hopes that the necessary funds for the preliminary work related to the upcoming Prez Election will be received by the end of June this year. EC Chairman, R.M.A.L. Rathnayake said that they had already initiated certain work related to the Prez Election such as the revision of the voters� registration, but that they received separate funds for such activities. �We will consider the 2024 voters� registration in holding the Prez Election. more..

Dec 17 (Island) JVP-led NPP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake has said the era when politicians bought votes to win elections is over. He said that people had now realised the public was no longer swayed by election bribes. �The people have learnt that handouts they receive are not free and they will have to pay for them after the elections,� Dissanayake said. �We are going to put an end to this culture at the coming election. These politicians distribute various things to get the votes more..

Jan 17 (FT) Parliamentary Affairs Committee led by Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena announced that the fourth session of the ninth Parliament is scheduled to come to an end on 24 Jan. Speaker confirmed that the official termination date will be confirmed through a gazette issued by the Prez. Prior to being prorogued, parliamentary sessions are currently scheduled for 23 and 24 Jan, with 25 Jan designated as a Poya day. 2nd reading of controversial Online Safety Bill is set to more..

Jan 17 (TM) A recent Govt audit report on the management of overcrowding in prisons has revealed that the prisons capacity has exceeded by 232%. Performance audit claimed that upon consideration of the data gathered for the last 7 years, from 31 Dec 2015, to 31 Dec 2022, number of inmates in the overall prison system in SL has increased from 139% to 232% of the capacity in prisons. more..

Dec 17 (CT) Dept of Examinations announced revised dates for both the 2023 GCE A/L Exam�s Agricultural Science Question papers I and II, following the department�s decision to annul the GCE A/L Agricultural Science Question Paper I. The decision comes following the cancellation of the second paper of the A/L exam�s Agricultural Science subject on last Friday (12), due to reports of several questions of the paper being leaked on several social media platforms days prior to exam. more..

Jan 17 (DM) Polluted air which comes from India with the wind flow has caused haze in some areas in SL, Dept of Met said. �Polluted air which comes from India along with the wind flow has caused haze in areas such as Bandarawella and Badulla, A duty forecaster from the Dept said. �The wind flow from New Delhi comes in a circular motion where it travels from Delhi towards Bay of Bengal. This wind flow which curves from Bay of Bengal enters SL from East. This is how it affects SL,� more..

Jan 17 (TM) While the Govt has sought three weeks to respond to the health sector non-medical employees� unions� demand regarding the increase in the disturbance, availability, and transport (DAT) allowance of Rs. 35,000 being provided to doctors to also be afforded to them, the unions are yet to decide on the future of their course of action following the conclusion of the 24-hour token strike today. more..

Jan 17 (FT) Last week, according to media reports all Govt hospitals were almost completely closed. Except for sensitive and crucially important places like the Apeksha cancer hospital, the Lady Ridgeway children�s hospital, Emergency admissions and Cardiac treatment, all others were reported closed from Tuesday to Friday and came back to normalcy by Saturday morning. Not due to lack of medicines or other necessities, but due to a string of work stoppages by all hospital staff other than the medical doctors. more..

Jan 17 (FT) Govt has published a Bill to establish the Commission for Truth, Unity and Reconciliation in SL in the Gazette of 29 Dec, 2023 that was issued on Jan 1, 2024. Foreign Affairs Minister discussed this initiative with a group of civil society, and it was once again discussed during the preparation of the Bill. We had Presidential Commissions of Inquires such as, Udalagama Commission in 2006 to investigate and inquire into alleged serious violations of human rights arising since 1 Aug, 2005; more..

Jan 17 (EN) SL�s manufacturing has expanded for the second month in Dec 2023, and service maintained strong growth, driven by holiday demand and tourism, based on a Purchasing Managers� Index compiled by the central bank. The manufacturing PMI was 52.7 above the 50 points, but slightly the 57 point, expansion seen in November. New orders and production increased but employment was down. �The increases in New Orders and Production were driven by the manufacture of food & beverages sector more..

Jan 17 (DM) A productive economy cannot be built in a single day, and the entire nation should work with dedication towards that, Education Minister Susil Premajayantha said. More than enough space is available in all 19 open university premises owned by the Education Ministry, and immediate action should be taken to carry out cultivations that can be used on a daily basis. In countries with extremely cold climates, during the six months when there is no snow, people engage in growing plants more..

Jan 17 (DM) SL's Supreme Court today held that former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa's decision to grant a Presidential pardon to former MP Duminda Silva is arbitrary and not valid in law. Accordingly, the Supreme Court three-judge-bench comprising Justices Preethi Padman Surasena, Gamini Amarasekara and Arjuna Obeysekera ordered to set aside the Prez pardon granted to Duminda Silva for not following the Constitutional provisions. more..

Jan 17 (EN) State-owned Enterprise Restructuring Unit has called for expressions of interest to sell Litro Gas and Litro Gas Terminal according to a public notice. Applications must be submitted by February 16. The govt has 99.93% of the shares through SL Insurance Corporation, and four workers have the balance. The firm supplies 4.7 million households and 80% of the market is domestic. It has 14,000 business customers. It operates two fuel stations in the Southern Expressway. more..

Jan 17 (CT) Impact of the polluted air currents currently prevailing over Sri Lanka is expected to diminish in the next two to three days, Ajith Weerasundara, Deputy Director (Waste Management) and Media Spokesman for the Central Environment Authority said. Weerasundara stated that the air currents flowing throughout the country, during this period have been of a polluted nature. Stressing that this phenomenon is an annual occurrence in December and January, Weerasundara clarified that more..

Jan 17 (TM) Public Utilities Commission of SL (PUCSL) is to meet on 21 January to discuss the CEB latest proposal to revise electricity tariffs with effect from 1 Feb. On 12 Jan, CEB's Acting General Manager Dr. Narendra Silva had written to the PUCSL, seeking the latter's approval to reduce electricity tariffs by an average 3.34%, from 1 Feb. Responding to a query as to whether the PUCSL had made any decision regarding the CEB's proposal, more..

Jan 17 (CT) In order to address the protein requirements essential for animal feed production in the country, successful research has been conducted on the cultivation of larvae from the Black Soldier Fly (BSF), a species commonly found around garbage. The research, led by Prof Nilantha Liyanage, of Uni of Ruhuna and Prof A.W. Wijerathna, of the Uni of Sabaragamuwa, along with a group of university doctors and professors, reveals the potential of extracting a significant quantity of protein more..

Jan 17 (AD) Seven suspects including the former Secretary to the Ministry of Health, Janaka Chandragupta, were further remanded on Wednesday over the controversial procurement of substandard human immunoglobulin vials. As such, on the orders of Maligakanda Magistrate�s Court, the seven accused were put behind bars on remand until Jan 24. Chandragupta was arrested by the CID on Dec 18, when he arrived at the premises to record a statement substandard human immunoglobulin scandal. more..

Jan 17 (Island) Some 330 foreign birds have been illegally imported from Suriname in a private plane via Mattala Mahinda Rajapaksa Int'l Airport (MRIA). Centre for Environmental Justice (CEJ) Senior Advisor Hemantha Withanage and CEJ Executive Director Dilena Pathragoda have questioned the Wildlife and Forest Resources Conservation and Director General of the Dept of Wildlife Conservation on the illegal importation of exotic birds and violations of fauna and flora protection ordinance. more..

Jan 17 (AD) President of the Inter-Company Employees� Union Wasantha Samarasinghe has filed a Fundamental Rights (FR) petition before the Supreme Court, seeking a court order declaring that certain provisions of the proposed Ant-Terrorism Bill are unconstitutional. Naming the AG as the respondent in his petition, JVP politburo member claimed that the Bill, presented to the Parliament by Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, allowed for the unwarranted arrest and detention of persons by more..

Jan 17 (BNN) In a move to further bolster its tourism sector, SL Transport Board has launched a luxury bus service tailored specifically for foreign tourists, beginning its operations in the capital city of Colombo. The service, an initiative of the Ministry of Transport and Highways, is set to operate within four main tourist circuits in the city. The luxury buses are managed and driven by personnel specially trained for this purpose, ensuring more..

Jan 17 (EN) Agriculture Sector Skills Council, a private sector professional body, handed over 100 agricultural drones to the Department of Agrarian Development to drive the modernization of the country�s agricultural sector. The drones were handed over at the International Container Terminal of the Colombo Port on Wednesday. �These drones can be used to apply fertilizers and pesticides to paddy, maize, chillies and other plantation crops,� the ASSC said in a statement, more..

Jan 17 (TM) SLPP Leader, former Prez and Govt MP Mahinda Rajapaksa said that there is also a possibility that there will be no candidate representing their Party for the upcoming Prez Election. In response to a query by the media regarding the SLPP's preparations for the Prez Election, attorney Rajapaksa said that they had not made any decision on the matter thus far. �We are currently re-organising the Party. We will have to look at the grassroot level and consider the most asked for candidate. more..

Jan 17 (CT) Five Chinese nationals and a Sri Lankan were arrested following a raid carried out by the CID on an online micro-loan providing company in Dehiwala yesterday. 8 desktop computers, 13 laptops and 41 mobile phones were also seized from the company in question as part of the operation conducted by the Cyber Crimes Investigation Dept of the CID. A network of online loan service providers, who provide short-term, high interest micro loans, more..

Jan 17 (DM) The main opposition SJB today urged the govt to postpone the debate on the proposed Online Safety Bill scheduled for next week and initiate another round of discussion with the stakeholders. The suggestion came from SJB MP Eran Wickramaratne, who told a news briefing that more discussions are needed to address the issues pertaining to the legislation. �The On Line Safety Bill is a dangerous piece of legislation and therefore the govt should not rush it,� MP said. more..

Jan 17 (EN) Dept of Motor Traffic (DMT) will end the backlog of issuing laminated driving license for 865,000 temporary paper holders by October this year, State Minister Lasantha Alagiyawanna said, as the island nation�s economic recovery has helped to start printing them in usual laminated papers. SL�s unprecedented economic crisis forced the DMT to suspend imports of printing materials in the face of severe dollar shortage after declaring bankruptcy and sovereign debt default. more..

Jan 17 (DM) A lack of market transparency and a host of other issues has led to the increase of vegetable prices, a SJB MP said. SJB MP and Chairman if the COPF Dr. Harsha de Silva said lack of transparency in the market and a host of other issues have led to the increase of vegetable prices. �Stocks of vegetables go through two middlemen right from the growers until they reach the retail market. The one who purchases vegetables from farmers sells it to another buyer and the stocks more..

Jan 17 (DM) Russian Federation has donated USD 1.5 million worth of sunflower oil to SL through the UN World Food Programme. The official handing over ceremony took place at the Partnership Secretariat for World Food Programme Co-operation (PSWFPC) premises in Colombo, yesterday. Accordingly, Russian Federation has granted 130.41 MT of fortified Sunflower oil through the World Food Programme (WFP). The initial batch of 351.9 metric tons was received on July 4, 2023, more..

Jan 17 (DM) Despite forecasts predicting a decrease in vegetable prices after the festive season, the actual prices have remained high. Most vegetable varieties are now priced at over Rs. 1,000 per kilo, with carrots and beans reaching the highest levels, surpassing Rs. 1,200 per kilo. Yesterday, the country witnessed its highest recorded vegetable price, with a kilo of carrots reaching Rs. 1,400 at the New Manning Market in Peliyagoda. more..

Jan 17 (WHO) Maldives and Sri Lanka have achieved hepatitis B control, the World Health Organization announced today after an expert panel verified that the two countries have had consistently high coverage of hepatitis B vaccine doses in infants and a low prevalence of the deadly disease, corroborated through serological surveys conducted recently in both countries. �I congratulate and commend Maldives and Sri Lanka on their achievement which once again demonstrates the earnest efforts more..

Jan 17 (DM) With the current competitive education pattern, parents have to spend 30 percent on tuition classes as much as the govt spends on school education, Finance State Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya said. He said that as of today, tuition fees have become among the essential currencies of the country. "In general, a child spends Rs. 20,000 on tuition. There are 5.7 million families in our country, and parents spend about Rs. 121 to Rs. 122 billion for tuition. more..