Feb 27 (TM) The Energy Ministry has confirmed that it will not reverse its recent decisions, despite a looming strike threatened by certain CEB unions. A Ministry official stated the institution has been attentive to all concerns raised thus far but is not in a position to halt its current trajectory. A media official from the Ministry indicated there are no plans to address the unions' requests following the announcement of the token strike yesterday. more..

Feb 27 (NW) Several trade unions representing government officers engaged in disaster relief operations have decided to withdraw from relief duties and launch a trade union action starting Friday (27), the unions said. The decision was announced in a joint statement issued by the All Ceylon Disaster Relief Services Trade Union, Technical Officers’ Trade Union, and associations representing Grama Niladhari (GN) Officers’ Trade Unions. The unions said more than 93 days more..

Feb 27 (FT) Govt has declared the Regulations to Repatriation of Export Proceeds into SL Rules No. 01 of 2026 through Extraordinary Gazette No. 2473/30, following Cabinet approval on Monday to present the regulations to Parliament for concurrence. The move aims to facilitate greater participation of exporters in local foreign-denominated investment instruments. On 13 Oct 2025, Cabinet approved issuing local loan instruments denominated in foreign exchange more..

Feb 27 (TM) Centre for Environmental Justice (CEJ) issued a warning that it will pursue immediate legal action against any Govt official or authority that attempts to proceed with the proposed Jaffna Int'l Cricket Stadium project, in defiance of environmental recommendations. They said the fate of the proposed Stadium on the Mandaitivu Island will be entirely determined by the findings of more..

Feb 27 (AD) Organized criminal and alleged drug trafficker Arumahandi Janith Madhusankha de Silva, alias Podi Lassie, has been brought back to SL from India by a special police team this morning. He had been arrested by Indian security authorities following a diplomatic engagement and with the intervention of Interpol. Podi Lassie, who allegedly fled to India by sea after being granted bail on Dec 9, 2024, was reportedly apprehended by security officials in Mumbai in January 2025. more..

Feb 27 (Island) Central Bank (CBSL) announced that investigations had identified 24 companies and applications operating prohibited pyramid schemes. In a public notice issued under Section 83C of the Banking Act, No. 30 of 1988 (as amended), the CBSL said the following entities had been ascertained and determined as prohibited schemes: Tiens Lanka Health Care (Pvt) Ltd, Best Life Int'l (Pvt) Ltd, Mark–Wo Int'l (Pvt) Ltd, V M L Int'l (Pvt) Ltd, Global Lifestyle Lanka (Pvt) Ltd, more..

Feb 27 (ST) Peradeniya Uni Vice Chancellor Terrance Mudajith reopened the Management Faculty’s newly refurbished computer lab after extensive damage caused by Cyclone Ditwah in November last year. The cyclone disrupted academic activities. The refurbished lab has been equipped with 100 computers and 85-inch smart boards donated by philanthropist Sujeewa Wickramanayake, proprietor of EW Enterprises of Suriyawewa. Vice Chancellor Mudajith opens more..

Feb 27 (FT) SL’s leading textile and apparel industry platform will return for its 15th edition from 5 to 7 March at the SL Exhibition and Convention Centre (SLECC), Colombo, bringing together global technology providers, manufacturers, exporters and sourcing specialists under one roof. Export Development Board (EDB) CEO Mangala Wijesinghe said the exhibition aligns with the EDB’s mission to drive export growth through strategic guidance, policy support and trade facilitation, more..

Feb 27 (FT) ACP Asset Management and its investment manager ACP Corum on Wednesday announced the launch of its SL Opportunity Fund, the first and only European-regulated Undertakings for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities (UCITS) fund dedicated to SL assets. Fund offers international investors a regulated and liquid investment portal into SL. The launch builds on ACP Corum’s earlier SL AMC strategy, which delivered returns of more..

Feb 27 (FT) Seylan Bank has reported its financial results for the year ended 31 Dec 2025, reporting a strong growth in profitability. The bank recorded a Profit Before Tax (PBT) of Rs. 19.6 billion, reflecting a 22.3% increase compared to Rs. 16 billion reported in the previous financial year. For the year under review, Profit After Tax (PAT) stood at Rs. 12.1 billion, a 20.5% growth over Rs. 10 billion recorded in the corresponding year of 2024. The reported PAT of Rs. 12.1 billion represents more..

Feb 27 (FT) Salam Ramadan, the grandest event in the SL Muslim Calendar, is set to take off in a big way this year from today to 1 March. The three-day event under the aegis of the Western Province Governor and the Colombo Municipality will be held at Green Path from 5 p.m. to midnight. As many as 125 stalls offering a great variety of products and services will be participating, including specialised stalls offering traditional Muslim food items and arts like Henna and calligraphy, more..

Feb 27 (Island) Former captain Marvan Atapattu has warned SL that muddled planning and last-minute tinkering will continue to leave them stumped on the world stage after another sobering exit from the T20 World Cup. The former champions crashed out of the Super Eight stage with a game to spare following three straight defeats, their meek loss to New Zealand on Wednesday a bitter pill to swallow in front of a packed house. Sri Lanka were second best from the toss to the post-mortem, more..

Feb 27 (CI) "I'm going to put it very simple: it's hurtful, it's painful and it's shameful," Farveez Maharoof, the former SL allrounder, said, pretty much summing up the mood among cricket fans in the island after their abject failure against New Zealand on Wednesday in Colombo. That it came after being bowled out for 95 by England and meant Sri Lanka's T20 World Cup 2026 was over just added to the sense of dejection. "It's not a pitch that you can play through the line, I get it. more..

Feb 27 (Island) A senior electrical engineers attached to the CEB have warned that unresolved structural and policy issues within the power sector could threaten the long-term stability of the national grid, urging authorities to act swiftly to address mounting technical and administrative concerns. They said the electricity network was operating under increasing strain due to delayed infrastructure upgrades, financial constraints, more..

Feb 27 (FT) Cabinet of Ministers this week approved the immediate renovation of a critical 2.2-km stretch of highway connecting the Kerawalapitiya Expressway access point to the Elakanda highway, a key route serving the industrial zone developed by the SL Land Development Corporation. The area, spanning around 400 acres, hosts major entities including Litro Gas, Ceylon Petroleum Cooperation, Ceylon Electricity Board, as well as several Board of Investment-approved projects. more..

Feb 27 (FT) Commercial Bank of Ceylon has achieved another performance milestone in 2025, becoming the first private sector bank in the country to expand its loan book beyond Rs. 2 trillion, with a growth of Rs. 541 billion over 12 months at a monthly average of over Rs. 45 billion, demonstrating its commitment to national economic resurgence. Recording the highest annual loan growth in absolute terms in the history of the institution, bank said gross loans and more..

Feb 27 (ST) Although the Registrar General’s Dept issues clear directives to state offices stating that birth, marriage and death registrations certified and issued by them do not become invalid after six months, some public authorities insist on a certificate that had been taken within the past six months. The former head of the Registrar General’s Dept, P S P Abeywardena, in June 2022, informed Controller General of more..

Feb 27 (FT) People’s Bank announced the strongest financial performance in its history for the year ended 31 December 2025, reporting an all-time high standalone Profit After Tax (PAT) of Rs. 40.2 billion. This landmark achievement underscores the bank’s exceptional stability and its pivotal role as a driver of national economic activity. Despite the external challenges posed by Cyclone Ditwah during the year, the bank utilised proactive business continuity measures and prudent risk management more..

Feb 27 (FT) Bank of Ceylon (BOC) has concluded the financial year ended 31 December 2025 with a landmark performance, achieving a Profit After Tax (PAT) of Rs. 76 billion, an 18% increase over the previous year, while Profit Before Tax (PBT) reached Rs. 120.8 billion. Beyond financial growth, this year marked a pivotal shift towards sustainable and inclusive banking, with strategic initiatives in green finance, social development, and digital innovation driving economic & environmental impact. more..

Feb 27 (DM) The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Sri Lanka must be granted full financial and operational independence, Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) President and former SEC Commissioner Rajeev Amarasuriya said, so that its regulatory effectiveness is strengthened. Amarasuriya asserted that the autonomy is crucial to attracting and retaining professionals capable of overseeing an increasingly complex and evolving capital market. more..

Feb 27 (ST) Sri Lanka is at a critical juncture in its smart nation development trajectory while the world has been moving at breakneck speed in the Artificial intelligence or AI race, as of Feb 2026, SL has a highly competent workforce, but only a 6.2 per cent AI adoption rate, which is far lower than the global average, AI Data Scientist A.D. Magedaragamage said. AI is no longer a technology trend but the very foundation of geopolitical and economic power in the 21st century. more..

Feb 27 (TM) Battle of the Maroons, the traditional big match between Ananda and Nalanda, the origin of which dates back to the 1920s, will this year be played out from 27 Feb to 1 March. It is a special cricketing encounter which has always been played in a spirit of brotherhood as Nalanda College had been first formed as a branch school of Ananda, before being registered as a separate school in 1925. Having played 95 games between more..

Feb 27 (Island) Dr. BJCP describes the foundation of a cognitive architecture taking place with over a million neural connections occurring in a second. This in fact is the result of language learning and not the process. How do we actually learn and communicate with one another? Is a question that was originally asked by Galileo Galilei (1564 -1642) to which scientists have still not found a definitive answer. Naom Chomsky (1928-) one of the foremost intellectuals of our time, more..

Feb 27 (Island) Three teenage girls from a children’s home in Kalutara have been arrested for breaking into a canteen and making off with a stock of confectionery worth Rs. 40,000. Upon being informed of the theft, the police lost no time in recovering the sweets and making arrests. Those who conducted the raid posed for photographs with the recovered items and released them to the media. Such is their selective efficiency. One may recall that some years ago, the police arrested more..

Feb 27 (ST) If innovation can be the cornerstone of a growing economy, then research must surely be the lifeblood of the nation. But do we spend enough on research or isn’t it a fact that new govts create new research units – virtually reinventing the wheel – to provide solutions to the nation’s ills? Often these exercises result in R&nD (in my lingo – Research and ‘non’ Development). This is no fault of a new administration because the numerous research agencies that the govt has to more..

Feb 27 (DN) Last week, the media reported that all future recruitment to SL Transport Board (SLTB) will be strictly based on qualifications and professional experience. Initiative seeks to establish a transparent, merit-based process across all job categories and will be implemented in every SLTB regional office islandwide in the coming days. Deputy Minister Dr. Prasanna Gunasena revealed that 1,640 employees recruited as drivers and conductors are currently engaged in more..

Feb 27 (SO) This week marked 36 years since the murder of Richard de Zoysa, an internationally known journalist, artiste, political and cultural critic, and human rights activist whose work straddled theatre, media, and public life. In the early hours of Feb 18, 1990, a group of armed men abducted him from his home in front of his mother. His body was found the following day on the beach at Koralawella, Moratuwa. more..

Feb 27 (CT) In the early days of 2026, a large-scale scandal, involving the coal procurement process emerged, focusing on how the Govt handled the awarding and management of a multi-billion-rupee tender for importing coal for the Lakvijaya Power Plant – SL’s largest power station, which produces roughly 50% of the country’s daily electricity requirement. The controversy arose when the Opposition highlighted that the quality and calorific content of the recent coal procurement more..

Feb 27 (CT) Unemployment numbers are down; GDP is growing, in fact, faster than originally forecasted; inflation is under control and consumer confidence is within acceptable range. They tell a very radiant and healthy-looking story. Anura Kumara Dissanayake (AKD) and his govt cannot go to the electorate rattling off these macro-econ numbers expecting the voters to believe the optimistic side of the picture. Those politicians who canvassed vote by propagating data mirages more..

Feb 27 (TM) Govt is planning to introduce pivotal legislative and infrastructure initiatives to secure its rapidly expanding digital economy. At the forefront of this national initiative is the proposed Cyber Security Bill, a legal framework designed to address the vulnerabilities of modern digital governance. As SL accelerates its transition towards a fully digitalised economy, integrating services from State administration to private financial more..

Feb 27 (TM) The energy sector has once again drifted into uncomfortable territory. Amid persistent allegations surrounding coal imports for the Lakvijaya Coal Power Plant in Norochcholai, Govt has appointed a seven-member expert committee to evaluate the methodology used in supplying coal. On paper, this is a welcome move. In reality, it must become much more than a procedural response. The committee, chaired by Prof. W.D.A.S. Rodrigo of Uni of Moratuwa, brings together expertise more..

Feb 27 (DM) The govt finds itself once again at a crossroads of public trust and governance integrity. What should have been a routine strategic fuel procurement to power the country’s largest electricity generator has instead spiralled into a political, economic and social crisis — revealing serious vulnerabilities in administrative oversight and accountability. Former Minister Champika Ranawaka has questioned why, in the backdrop of former Ministers Mahindananda Aluthgamage and more..