Mar 30 (ST) Kumudini Sandya Kumari, a mother of two, left for Saudi Arabia to work as a housemaid on May 10, 2023, via a private foreign employment agency in Kurunegala, to provide for her family amidst the economic difficulties. �As the fishing industry was unsuccessful, my wife suggested that she go abroad. I was helpless, so we sent her abroad through the agency in Kurunegala,� Sandya�s husband, W. Niranjan Fernando, said. Sandya�s hopes soon turned to horror as she was mistreated more..

Mar 30 (CT) SriLankan Airlines faced significant operational challenges, as revealed by a recent Right to Information (RTI) request, which disclosed the cancellation of 2,012 flights and 586 flight delays over a five-month period from August to December last year. Gayani Ariyaratne, Information Officer of the airline, confirmed that these disruptions occurred primarily due to operational, commercial, technical or engineering issues. more..

Mar 30 (AD) A delegation of the Parliament of SL led by the Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena attended the 148th Assembly of Inter-Parliamentary Union held in Geneva from 23-27 March. The delegation comprised MPs Ranjith Madduma Bandara, Ashok Abeysinghe, Sumith Udukumbura, Manjula Dissanayake, as well as Secretary General of Parliament Kushani Rohanadeera. Addressing the General Debate under the theme Parliamentary diplomacy: Building bridges for peace and understanding more..

Mar 30 (ST) An influx of red onions from Jaffna has brought down the price of red onions in markets in the south. Traders at the Dambulla economic centre said they had been receiving large quantities of red onions; therefore, the price of a kilo, which was at Rs 350, is now going at Rs 200. The merchant associations at the economic centre, too, said that the price of red onions had come down drastically. The association�s chairman, C.S. Siriwarena,said that they had informed more..

Mar 30 (CT) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe has informed Cabinet and the Election Commission that there is no chance of holding any election until the economic reforms programme that is being carried out with the IMF is concluded. Prez has said that the economic reform process done together with the IMF was crucial for the country to progress economically, and therefore, priority should be given to the IMF programme. According to a top govt official, Prez Wickremesinghe has informed more..

Mar 30 (DM) The National Hospital Colombo (NHC) Deputy Director Dr. Rukshan Bellana, said today that the hospital's main water tank tower and other water storage tanks have not been cleaned in the past 20 years. He revealed that the hospital currently has approximately 161 water storage tanks, including the main water tank tower. Surprisingly, there are no records available documenting the cleaning schedule or installation dates for these tanks, said Dr. Bellana adding that more..

Mar 30 (DM) Abolition of corporal punishment in SL is problematic because of the attitude of children, parents and the teachers, said the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA). NCPA Chairman Channaka Udaya Amarasinghe said that the main issue in Sri Lanka is the attitude of children, parents and the teachers with regard to the implementation of the ban. �The main issue is that a child who complains of physical harm ends up going through various hardships. more..

Mar 30 (DM) The TUFF, the political party led by one time LTTE commander turned politician Vinayagamurthi Muralitharan alias Karuna Amman, decided to support President Ranil Wickremesinghe if he contests the presidential election. Mr. Muralitharan who once served as the Deputy Minister of Rehabilitation in the Mahinda Rajapaksa govt, supported Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the 2019 prez election. �The Prez has turned around the economy. The rupee is appreciating against the US dollar. more..

Mar 30 (DM) BBS General Secretary Ven. Galagodaaththe Gnanasara Thera who was sentenced to four years of rigorous imprisonment, has been admitted to the Prison Hospital. The Colombo High Court Judge Aditya Patabendige handed down the sentence on Thursday (28), following Ven. Gnanasara Thera's defamatory comments against Islam made in late 2016. It was reported that Ven. Gnanasara Thera had been undergoing medical treatment prior to his sentencing and hence was referred to more..

Mar 30 (DM) The minimum expenditure required by a person to fulfill the basic needs for a month has gone up by 144% in January, 2024 when compared to 2019, the Official Poverty Line declared by the Dept of Census and Statistics (DCS) has revealed. Additional Director General (Statistics) of the Dept Shyamalie Karunaratne said a person to fulfill the basic needs required only Rs. 6966 per month in 2019 whereas a person to fulfill the same needs now require Rs. 17,014. more..

Mar 31 (ST) SL�s strenuous efforts to remain non-aligned in its foreign relations could not have been better reflected than by this week�s twin high-powered delegations visiting New Delhi and Beijing, trying to appease both at the same time and returning with a bagful of pledges�to those countries. But what is in it for SL? There�s nothing official so far. In Delhi, Prez Wickremesinghe�s Chief of Staff led the team to discuss a wide range of subjects, from a land bridge across more..

Mar 31 (CT) Providing only the best for children is a common slogan often mentioned and a taken-for-granted false reality in the country. In reality, children are not provided the best, especially in the current context where the economic crisis has left parents with no other option but to compromise in every aspect of their lives including providing for their children. Hiding behind the false sense of security, the authorities have been evading taking child safety measures for the longest; more..

Mar 31 (ST) SLPP�s Executive Committee met this week at the residence of its Chairman, former Prez Mahinda Rajapaksa. Prior to that meeting, however, SLPP MPs and ministers supporting Prez Wickremesinghe met with the president at the Presidential Secretariat. They assured Prez that he had no reason to worry about SLPP & insisted that everything that goes on within the party happens according to their wishes. more..

Mar 31 (CT) On Thursday, in New York, President Joe Biden and his two Democratic predecessors, Barrack Obama and Bill Clinton, appeared together in a fund raising event to launch Biden�s reelection campaign against Donald Trump, their common foe and America�s ugly manifestation. The fundraiser reportedly netted in over $25 million boosting Biden�s impressive war chest which is said to be more than $150 million. Trump is handicapped with less than a third of that to spend on elections more..

Mar 31 (SO) TOS Lanka Co. (Pvt) Ltd, a BOI company, has launched a CSR project that employs prison inmates on a part-time basis to service their operations. President of TOS Lanka, Jitsuo Mikasa, who was in SL recently, said that this initiative has been launched with Dept of Prisons and appreciated the positive manner in which the Govt institution responded to this. He said that they outsource some of their work to the Prisons Dept which in turn gets them done through inmates. more..

Mar 31 (TM) While a key national-level election approaches in six months, with the country still facing considerable downside risks, Wickremesinghe Govt is engaged in balancing acts on multiple fronts, which include political, economical, and geopolitical complexities. Oxford Economics, a UK-based advisory firm, has recently stated that SL�s GDP is about 25% below the pre-pandemic trend as the country�s economy more..

Mar 31 (SO) Reduce, Re-Use, Recycle. We know the 3Rs by heart, yet only a few of us follow this golden rule. We throw a lot of things away, without even thinking about the impact it has on our planet and on our health. But if we think hard enough, we can reduce waste by a great extent � for example, we can reduce food waste by cooking only the amounts that we can eat. If you have a reusable bag, take it to the supermarket instead of asking the cashier to put your items in sili-sili bags. more..

Mar 31 (Island) What will come first, the presidential or the parliamentary election? That is the multi-million dollar question. But Basil Rajapaksa, American citizen recently back from his second home in the U.S. where his family lives, and recently replaced as the pohottuwa�s national organizer by nephew Namal, muddied the waters a little more last week by telling a television talk show that both elections can be held together on one day. Despite shedding his title, BR remains the eminence more..

Mar 31 (ST) A new public regulatory framework with clear transparency, accountability, and oversight rules will come into effect this year once the new legislation is passed in parliament aimed at limiting corruption opportunities and malpractices in the current public procurement process. Reports of the Ministry of Finance, AG�s Dept, and the Dept of Management of Audit indicate malpractices have led to inefficiencies and waste of scarce resources of the Govt in the context of tight fiscal space. more..

Mar 31 (CI) 18-year-old Vishmi Gunaratne scored her first T20I half-century as SL levelled the three-match series against South Africa with a seven-wicket win in Potchefstroom. Gunaratne and Kavisha Dilhari shared an unbeaten fourth-wicket stand of 76 off 46 balls to successfully chase 138 after South Africa opted to bat first under stand-in captain Nadine de Klerk. This was SL's fourth-highest successful chase. Laura Wolvaardt, the regular skipper and match-winning centurion more..

Mar 31 (TM) Amidst exchange rate fluctuations in SL, consumers are raising concerns about the apparent lack of correlation between these fluctuations and the prices of essential goods, particularly medicines. Despite a notable decrease in the exchange rates over the past year, consumers allege that prices have remained stagnant or even increased, highlighting a disparity that disproportionately affects the poor. more..

Mar 31 (ST) Aiyo Sirisena, I suppose there is no better way to address you now, having heard your latest statement that you are aware of who masterminded the Easter Day terrorist attacks five years ago. Just when we think that you will fade away and that we will be safe from your antics, you keep returning like a bad smell! To give you credit where it is due, you are a master of generating controversy using the element of surprise. This is what you did 10 years ago, telling us one day more..

Mar 31 (ST) SL�s spinning all-rounder and T20 skipper Wanindu Hasaranga will miss the ongoing IPL entirety due to an injury in the left heel, SLC confirmed yesterday. Hasaranga was brought for INR 1.5 crore by Sunrises Hyderabad for the 2024 season, much lower than what he fetched at the 2022 auction where Royal Challengers Bangalore paid INR 10.75 crore to get the SL star�s services. �He is not taking part in the IPL as he needs to do some rehabilitation after meeting podiatrist,� more..

Mar 31 (CI) Bangladesh's poor catching once again brought about their undoing as Sri Lanka took the opening day honours in the second Test in Chattogram. The hosts spilled three chances on the first day which saw SL close the day on 314 for 4. Mahmudul Hasan Joy, at second slip, dropped Nishan Madushka in the sixth over of the day. SL were 13 for 0 at that time; the openers ended up adding 96. Mahmudul had also dropped Kamindu Mendis before he opened his account more..

Mar 31 (ST) Mahanama College openers Dulnith Sigera and Kavindu Amameth came to the rescue of the side against D.S. Senanayake College as the 18th Battle of the Golds big match ended in a draw at the SSC. On the second day, Mahanama, in response to DSS�s 370 for 4, resumed from their overnight 94 for 2 and could only score 239 runs, with Inuka Karannagoda scoring an unbeaten 61. They were forced to follow on but Dulnith & Kavindu cracked unbeaten centuries more..

Mar 31 (CI) On a dry surface that showed signs of turn from the get-go, SL made use of arguably the best of the batting conditions to prop themselves up to 314 for 4 at the end of the opening day's play of the second Test in Chattogram. Dinesh Chandimal and Dhananjaya de Silva were at the crease at stumps on 34 and 15 respectively, though a bulk of the scoring was accomplished by their top three comprising Nishan Madushka, more..

Mar 31 (SO) The much acclaimed motor racing extravaganza called the Fox Hill Supercross will be worked off after a lapse of five years on April 21 at Diyatalawa. This year the SL Military Academy commandant Thushara Mahalekam has taken great pains in organizing the event in association with the SL Motor Sports (SLAS). Addressing the media at a Press briefing at the Hilton Hotel on Thursday he thanked all who have given their best to make it a grand show for the year 2024. more..

Mar 31 (ST) An impressive half-century�a 49-ball 51, inclusive of seven boundaries by Nethmi Poorna, laid the foundation for Sri Lanka Under-19 Women�s team to record a thrilling 6-run win over the England Under-19 Women in the Women�s Youth Tri-Nation T20 Tournament encounter played at Sooriyawewa yesterday. The win also saw the host side coasting to their second successive win of the tournament, having overcome the Australia Under-19 Women by 5 wickets in the first match played. more..

Mar 31 (TM) Amid a nationwide ban on vehicle imports, a massive fraud has been uncovered by the National Audit Office (NAO) at the Dept of Motor Traffic (DMT). The fraud has resulted in substantial financial losses due to alleged fraudulent entries of chassis and engine numbers for illegally-imported or assembled vehicles and issuance of false motor vehicle registration certificates. Accordingly, it has been revealed that 6 new luxury vehicles, more..

Mar 31 (AD) The Ministry of Health has initiated an investigation into the death of a 50-year-old patient at Ragama Teaching Hospital after being administered a vaccine. The hospital�s director, Dr. Sampath Ranaweera said that another internal probe is underway at the hospital level regarding the incident. The patient, who was admitted to the hospital on 22 March due to a medical condition concerning his ear, reportedly died after being administered co-amoxiclav vaccine, more..

Mar 31 (ST) Sri Lanka is set to exchange its existing dollar bonds for new securities with the aim to mobilise further international financial assistance in the wake of ongoing talks between a steering committee of bondholders and a govt team which began in London this week, Finance Ministry sources disclosed. The group of bond holders is expected to sign non-disclosure agreements as the first step for open discussions, a high official of the ministry who wish to remain anonymous said. more..

Mar 31 (AD) National Audit Office has made recommendations to the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) to increase the number of raids on traders selling beyond the Maximum Retail Price (MRP) as well as on importers and wholesalers. This was mentioned in a new report published by the audit office, with respect to the contribution of CAA in protecting the consumer. This audit was conducted to evaluate how the CAA has performed to implement the provisions of more..

Mar 31 (EN) SL�s port development has taken a new turn of an advanced port development with the assistance of China, PM Dinesh Gunawardena has said. �SL�s port development has taken a new turn of an advanced port development with the assistance of China, which we appreciate,� Gunawardena said addressing the BOAO Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2024 in Hainan in China. �Sri Lankan, Colombo port will become a hub, a new developed port with financial instruments that could cater more..

Mar 31 (TM) The number of HIV cases reported in 2023 has seen a 14% increase, with most cases being reported from males between the ages of 20 and 30 years. National STD/AIDS Control Programme Director Dr. Janaki Vidanapathirana said that 695 new HIV cases had been reported in 2023 � a 14% increase compared to the numbers reported in 2022. �Most are males between the ages of 20 and 30 years,� she said, noting that more..

Mar 31 (SO) The Shell brand will re-enter the Sri Lankan fuel retail market later this year after signing a retail brand licence agreement with RM Parks (Pvt) Limited. Shell left Sri Lanka in the 1960s after the fuel industry was nationalised. RM Parks is a partnership of the Tristar Group, a fully integrated energy logistics business serving the downstream oil and gas industry. The company is set to rebrand a network of 150 retail fuel stations across the country. Global Executive Vice President of more..

Mar 31 (SO) The Mannar 250MW wind power project is one of the largest green energy project�s of the country with state-of-art turbine design with highest ever onshore capacity of 5.2MW, less footprint area on ground, with higher generation, high reliability, low maintenance, and low noise. It is estimated the collective savings to the nation attributable to this 484MW, amount to over USD 60 million by displacing high-cost fuel-based tariffs, improving energy sustainability. more..