Aug 15 (NW) A video circulating on social media claiming to show Justice and National Integration Minister Harshana Nanayakkara livestreaming while driving on August 13, 2026, is actually footage recorded three years ago, a fact-check has found. According to Fact Crescendo SL, the video dates back to Aug 13, 2023, when Nanayakkara was serving as the NPP’s Moratuwa electorate organizer, before he became a Cabinet minister. The video resurfaced on social media after more..

Aug 15 (DM) SL’s relationship with artificial intelligence has crossed a critical threshold. According to the Digital Outlook SL 2026 report, 81% of the island’s internet users now use AI to search for information, with a quarter abandoning traditional search engines entirely. However, as millions turn to tools like ChatGPT for educational, financial, and medical queries, experts warn that algorithmically generated confidence is dangerously outpacing basic digital literacy. more..

Aug 15 (DN) Araliya Group Chairman Dudley Sirisena, said that paddy harvests will be purchased at Govt-certified prices from today (15) morning, following discussions with Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake. Sirisena said the agreement was reached during a meeting with the President, Ministers K.D. Lalkantha, Wasantha Samarasinghe and other Govt officials yesterday. He said the discussion focused on the difficulties currently faced by paddy farmers and possible solutions. more..

Aug 15 (ST) A team of medical specialists at the National Hospital, Kandy has successfully performed surgery and saved the life of a man who had a piece of timber embedded approximately 10 inches deep beneath his eye. Accident occurred on Aug 6 while 53-year-old H A R Kumara, resident of the Wattegama area, was working at a timber shed. A piece of timber approximately 4 feet long, 4 inches wide and 2 inches thick had penetrated approximately 10 inches deep into the left side of his face, beneath his eye. more..

Aug 15 (ST) The second death anniversary of the late Most Ven. Galboda Sri Gnanissara Thero, also known as Podi Hamuduruwo, was marked last Sunday with the awarding of scholarships to 460 beneficiaries under the Nena Isura scholarship programme. The scholarship programme was initiated in 2024 under the guidance of Ven. Kirinde Assaji Thero, Chief Incumbent of the Hunupitiya Gangarama Temple, with the aim of empowering children facing economic difficulties across the country. more..

Aug 15 (DN) Sri Lankan Netball team gave a disappointing performance when they lost to Singapore by a big margin of 82-54 in the 14th Asian Netball Championship semi-final played in Hong Kong yesterday. With this defeat, SL missed the chance of entering the final as well as taking part in next year’s World Cup in Australia. Only the two finalists will qualify for the World Cup, and Singapore is getting that chance once again, while SL has to come back empty-handed this time. more..

Aug 15 (CI) The last time India toured SL for Tests they were bang in the middle of a golden era and ended up making the hosts look ordinary. A lot has changed since then, including the frequency and the length of Test series between two teams that always made for close contests in SL. To that great Indian team that toured in 2017, SL was more home than India. The pitches offered more bounce and consistent turn, allowing the Indian spinners to dominate and outbowl the hosts despite the presence of Rangana Herath. more..

Aug 15 (DN) SL captain Dhananjaya de Silva backed his team to challenge India in the opening Test of the two-match series, which will commence today at Galle. The series forms part of the 2025-27 ICC World Test Championship cycle, and both teams are expected to put up a good fight. This match is a significant occasion as it is the 50th Test at Galle Stadium, and Dhananjaya is privileged to lead the team at this ground, which is familiar to him from his school days at Richmond College. more..

Aug 15 (FT) Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa thanked UN Special Rapporteur on the Independence of Judges and Lawyers Margaret Satterthwaite for raising concerns over the proposed 22nd Amendment, saying they echoed warnings by the BASL, the legal fraternity and the Opposition over its implications for judicial independence. Premadasa questioned the Govt’s decision to extend the proposed higher retirement ages to sitting SC judges, rather than limiting the change to future appointments. more..

Aug 15 (FT) Japan has confirmed that construction of the long-delayed second passenger terminal at Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) will commence before November this year, following the revival of the project with Japanese assistance. The confirmation was given during discussions between Minister Anura Karunathilaka and a Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) delegation led by Senior Vice President Hara Shohei and Chief Representative Honzu Shigeo. more..

Aug 15 (FT) Colombo stocks market ended the week in green, extending its upward momentum to a third straight session on buoyant investor sentiment. During the week, ASPI gained 1.18% or 253.08 points and the S&P SL20 was up 1.29% or 77.56 points. Yesterday, with 113 counters closing in green against 108 in red the ASPI ended up 0.39% or 84.17 points at 21,623.17 and the S&P SL20 was up 0.56% or 33.63 points at 6,065.72. Market turnover was Rs. 2.24 billion on nearly 76 million shares traded. more..

Aug 15 (ST) Sri Lankan fishermen, whose livelihoods have been affected, confronted Indian poachers in mid-sea off the coast of Puttalam this week, fisher unions said, urging authorities to redouble efforts to curb unlawful fishing in Sri Lankan waters. SL fisher unions said fishermen from Tuticorin and Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu were emboldened enough to bring their boats just five kilometres off Bathalangunduwa Island on the northwest coast. more..

Aug 15 (FT) Govt has shortlisted five out of eight interested parties for the divestiture of its stake in Canwill Holdings, with two Indian hotel companies and three bids involving SL firms advancing to the Request for Proposals (RFP) stage. Finance, Planning & Economic Development Ministry this week named India’s Chalet Hotels, and Juniper Hotels, among the five pre-qualified bidders. The other shortlisted parties are a consortium comprising Phoenix Ventures, and Bluestone Capital, more..

Aug 15 (FT) The CB expects headline inflation to remain above its 5% target in the near term, with risks tilted to the upside as energy and transport costs, exchange-rate pass-through and food prices add to price pressures. In its Monetary Policy Report for Aug 2026, the CBSL said headline inflation based on the Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI) averaged 5.9% in the second quarter, ending an eight-quarter period during which inflation remained below the target by more than the margin specified under more..

Aug 15 (FT) Bank of Ceylon (BOC), SL’s largest bank, posted Rs. 67 billion Profit Before Tax (PBT) for the first half of 2026 as it continued to make significant contributions to the economy and growth. Chairman Kavinda de Zoysa said: “Building on our strong financial base and enduring commitment to the nation, BOC remains dedicated to supporting Sri Lanka’s economic growth and sustainable development. During 1H 2026, our focus on operational excellence, prudent risk management and more..

Aug 15 (FT) Central Bank of SL (CBSL) has projected economic growth of 4-5% in 2026, but warned that the outlook remains exposed to geopolitical, external and climate risks. In its Monetary Policy Report for Aug 2026, CBSL said near-term growth prospects had improved as the economic spillovers from geopolitical tensions in the Middle East were less severe than previously anticipated. Improving domestic demand and continued macroeconomic stability are expected to support growth over the medium term. more..

Aug 15 (FT) Sri Lanka at present appears to be the proposed two-year extension to the retirement age of judges which the Govt argues could assist in making a reduction in the massive backlog of pending cases amounting over 1.1 million as per the Justice Ministry. Few seem to be realising that this is only a symptom of a far more deep-seated issue arising from years of neglect of the judiciary system where under funding, inadequate remuneration, understaffing and under development of infrastructure more..

Aug 15 (FT) Is Rosamund Pike somehow SL’s version of the late Diana Spencer, in her avatar as an angel of mercy? There are, certainly, worse things for a country such as we are still emerging from a crippling war, than having the Gone Girl turn up to help remove our landmines. The British actress – star of the James Bond movie, Die Another Day; and more recently, Oscar-nominated for her role in I, Tonya – was in SL this week as ambassador for the Mines Advisory Group (MAG). more..

Aug 15 (Island) A large part of the community of lawyers in the unofficial bar in this country is in uproar against a motion on the part of the govt to raise the age at which judges of some courts must compulsorily retire. Some of the most eminent scholars of law in this country and, indeed, in the world, are actively engaged in a sustained public protest campaign against the proposal and they cite the law, as is their wont. To me this is not simply a question of law and conventions more..

Aug 15 (Island) SL politicians are notorious for rushing in where their counterparts in mature democracies fear to tread. Whenever they secure special majorities in Parliament, they cannot resist the temptation to amend the Constitution to further their political interests. All previous govts with two-thirds majorities did so and plunged the country into political quagmires. Ironically, those short-sighted politicians and their parties subsequently had to vote for the abolition of such ill-conceived more..

Aug 15 (SO) Sri Lanka is once again facing a tragedy that has become all too familiar. Torrential rains, landslides, floods and powerful winds have left communities devastated across many parts of the country, exposing not only the destructive force of nature but also the country’s continued struggle to prepare for increasingly extreme weather occurrences. The latest figures released by the Disaster Management Centre (DMC) paint a grim picture. more..

Aug 15 (TM) Sri Lanka is considering a new Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) (Registration and Supervision) Act of 2026 (the Bill), which would repeal and replace the Voluntary Social Services Organisations (VSSOs) Act, No. 31 of 1980. The Bill is being advanced during SL’s ongoing Financial Action Task Force (FATF) mutual evaluation cycle and appears intended to demonstrate progress on anti-money laundering, countering terrorist financing (AML/CTF) obligations. more..

Aug 15 (GV) Sri Lanka’s crisis of 2022 was much more than an economic collapse. It was a profound crisis of governance that exposed the weaknesses of the relationship between the state and its citizens. Economic mismanagement, political upheaval, institutional decay and social divisions came together to demonstrate how vulnerable a state can become when public institutions lose their credibility and citizens lose confidence in those institutions. The lesson should be clear. more..

Aug 15 (SO) Booking a taxi or ordering food has become part of everyday life in SL. Millions of people use ride-hailing and delivery platforms expecting one simple thing: to reach their destination or receive their parcel safely. But a growing trend on social media is raising uncomfortable questions about whether customers are unknowingly becoming online content for strangers. Videos recorded by some ride-hailing drivers and delivery riders using dashboard cameras, more..

Aug 15 (DM) SL’s prison system – and the judiciary – that keep flooding overcrowded prisons with an endless stream of inmates is a worthy case study of what one would call systemic incompetence. Thanks to the accumulated rot, the prison system is now exploding in violent riots with alarming frequency, reminiscent of a Latin American narco-state. The crisis in the prison system is what successive govts in the past and an inept bureaucracy made it to be. The same quarters are now blaming a conspiracy behind more..

Aug 15 (DM) The European Union (EU), it is reported, has called on Lanka to adopt comprehensive anti-discrimination laws to protect LGBTIQ persons as well as for decriminalisation of same sex relations as a means to achieve GST+ benefits. Wow! Same sex relationships and fluid gender expressions are widely acknowledged and recorded in regional literature. They were accommodated within pre-colonial South Asian societies. As for the death sentence, it is a dead letter. more..

Aug 14 (DM) A 53-year-old woman has been arrested by the Illegal Assets Investigation Division over properties and assets allegedly acquired through drug trafficking. Police said the investigation was launched after the IGP received information regarding a drug trafficker residing on Ferguson Road in Colombo 14, who had allegedly accumulated substantial assets through the illegal trade. Following reports submitted to court by the division, assets & properties were frozen more..

Aug 14 (DM) When a vehicle needs to be stopped for a traffic offence, police officers must carry out the interception openly and professionally at a location visible to other road users and should not hide in isolated locations or behind bushes while attempting to stop motorists, DIG in charge of the Traffic and Road Safety Range, W.P.J. Senadheera said. DIG also reminded traffic officers that departmental circulars and guidelines clearly set out how roadside duties should be performed. more..

Aug 14 (DM) An illegal betting operation known locally as Kotu Kapima has emerged as a growing social and financial concern in SL, with authorities warning that the underground scheme was attracting increasing numbers of gamblers and large sums of money. The issue was highlighted during a meeting of the CoPE Subcommittee, where National Lotteries Board Chairman Cyril Perera warned about more..

Aug 14 (CI) "The only thing I have to tell Niroshan Dickwella is to keep well. That's why he's in the team." Dhananjaya de Silva minced no words as he responded to probing questions on the recall of 33-year-old Dickwella to the SL Test squad. With no other wicketkeeper-batter selected - Dinesh Chandimal now bats at No. 3 and does not keep wicket in Tests - Dickwella is almost certain to be named in the XI on Saturday. There are few players in SL who polarise opinion like Dickwella, more..

Aug 14 (AD) More than 200,000 cases are resolved annually through Mediation Boards, Minister of Justice and National Integration, Attorney-at-Law Harshana Nanayakkara said. Minister made these remarks while attending the National Mediation Day celebration held today. He said 2026 could be considered a significant year for the mediation process, noting that more than Rs. 800 million had been allocated to the Mediation Boards Commission through this year’s Budget. more..