Apr 10 (FT) Today is an eventful day for the NPP administration, as it faces the first No-Confidence Motion (NCM) against a Cabinet Minister since coming into power in late 2024. Ironically, the NCM - which is moved against Power and Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody – contains allegations of corruption although fighting corruption was the main campaign theme of the NPP-led political alliance during the previous national election cycle. more..

Apr 10 (Island) Former Foreign Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris yesterday said that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake should remove Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody unless the minister stepped down on his own.Prof. Peiris, addressing a press conference called by the Opposition, said that Jayakody couldn’t under any circumstance continue to serve as a minister after the CIABOC moved the Colombo High Court against the govt member over a previous financial scandal. more..

Apr 10 (NW) A no-confidence motion against Minister Kumara Jayakodi is scheduled to be debated in Parliament today. Motion, submitted by the Opposition, is based on allegations related to the procurement and quality of coal imports and their impact on power generation. Opposition MPs have claimed that issues linked to coal procurement and supply contributed to disruptions in electricity generation, prompting the move to bring a no-confidence motion against the Minister. more..

Apr 10 (FT) In a major boost for the country, SL has reached a staff-level agreement with the IMF on the combined Fifth and Sixth Reviews under its $ 3 billion EFF, positioning the country to access around $ 700 million in fresh financing, subject to key reform conditions. IMF said the agreement remains contingent on the restoration of cost-recovery electricity and fuel pricing, alongside the completion of financing assurances and more..

Apr 10 (NW) The ultra-luxury cruise ship Silver Dawn arrived in Galle (09) carrying 596 tourists and 411 crew members, bringing the total number onboard to 1,007. The vessel, currently anchored off the Galle Harbour, is 213 metres long and features 11 decks equipped with high-end luxury facilities. Tourists arriving on the cruise ship are scheduled to visit several popular destinations including the Galle Fort, Balapitiya Madu River, Unawatuna, Rumassala and Koggala. more..

Apr 10 (TM) SJB MP Dayasiri Jayasekara taking part in parliament sessions on Tuesday charged that the National Olympic Committee of SL (NOCSL) had failed to hold its annual general meeting for 2025, while failing to pass its budget for this year. He alleged that under such suspicious circumstances the NOCSL was planning to press ahead with its election of office bearers for the four-year term 2025-29 on 25 April. “NOCSL has also failed to submit the completed audit report for 2024, more..

Apr 10 (Island) Lankan Australian playwright S Shakthidharan, widely known as Shakthi, has won the $US 175,000 ($250,000) Windham-Campbell Prize for drama.The international prize is awarded each year to writers of fiction, non-fiction, poetry and drama for their body of work. Writers are nominated secretly and cannot apply. Shakthi won the award for his ambitious, multigenerational plays exploring Sri Lankan Tamil migrant experiences, including his debut Counting and Cracking. more..

Apr 10 (Island) SL could face extended drought conditions through September if an El Niño event develops during the upcoming southwest monsoon season, Dept of Meteorology warned. Additional Director General Ajith Wijemanna stressed the need for proactive water management to mitigate potential shortages. He cautioned that both drinking water supplies and irrigation systems would need to be carefully managed in the months ahead, particularly if rainfall levels decline. more..

Apr 10 (FT) Planters’ Association of Ceylon (PA), the apex body of SL’s plantation industry expressed growing concern over rising prices and limited availability of fertiliser amid the escalation of the crisis in the Middle East. PA said that with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, shipping traffic through the region is reported to have dropped by 90%. Given that an estimated one-third of global trade in raw materials for more..

Apr 10 (ST) Clearing trees for beautification and safety, creating open spaces for pathways and erecting billboards have contributed to an increase in the heat in urban and suburban areas of SL. Colombo and most prominent cities have become areas which radiate more heat as the concrete buildings bake in the sun, subjecting urban wildlife to extreme heat. The heatwave has also driven the wildlife in parks and savanna forests to extremes; therefore, the natural behaviour of animals more..

Apr 10 (AD) Passengers travelling ahead of the Sinhala and Tamil New Year holidays are informed that additional bus services have been deployed from the Makumbura Multimodal Centre (MMC) in Kottawa. Accordingly, transport services will operate daily from 5.00 a.m. to 10.00 p.m. from April 08 to 13. Passengers can also obtain bus schedule information by calling 0112-034474 prior to arriving at the MMC. National Transport Commission (NTC) Makumbura Bus Terminal’s more..

Apr 10 (FT) Vidullanka PLC has announced the acquisition of a 100% equity stake in Bhoruka Power Lanka Ltd, which owns and operates the 4.5 MW Gurugoda mini hydro power plant situated in Aranayake. This latest addition serves as the company’s 12th mini hydro project, bringing the company’s portfolio to a total of 26 power projects. This strategic acquisition is one of the company’s numerous investments in expanding and diversifying its energy services. more..

Apr 10 (NF) Dept of Railways has announced that train services on the Northern Railway Line between Colombo Fort and Kankesanturai (KKS) will resume starting today. Officials confirmed that the extensive reconstruction work on the railway track following cyclone DItwah has been successfully completed. The line had previously sustained severe damage due Cyclone Ditwah. For the convenience of passengers, seat reservation facilities have been made available from Mount Lavinia to KKS more..

Apr 10 (NW) The cost of preparing a traditional kevili table for the Sinhala and Tamil New Year has increased by 7% in 2026 compared to 2025, according to an analysis published by Verité Research. Study found that the cost has risen 2.5 times compared to 2019, before the pandemic and economic crisis. Prices increased for six out of the eight items typically included in a kevili table, with nearly 80% of the 2026 rise driven by more..

Apr 10 (Xinhua) SL police recently repatriated 125 individuals suspected of involvement in telecom fraud, who had been apprehended during earlier crackdown operations, to China, Chinese Ministry of Public Security (MPS) said. These suspects were repatriated on March 29 with the support of the Chinese Embassy in SL and Chinese police. The joint operation was a result of deepened international law enforcement cooperation between Chinese and SL police to intensify crackdown more..

Apr 10 (Island) As SL continues to recover from the recent cyclone and widespread flooding, a meaningful example of corporate purpose in action has taken shape through the Back to School Project 2026. Delivered in partnership with the Rotary Club of Colombo Port City, the initiative was funded by The Sixty Three Foundation via Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd., and supported on the ground by Fairfirst Insurance, which coordinated implementation on behalf of its parent more..

Apr 10 (ST) A shortage of Keeri Samba and complaints of prices exceeding Rs 350 a kg have emerged ahead of the biggest cultural festival this month. As a solution to the shortage of Samba and Keeri Samba, Food Policy and Security Committee has focused on importing alternative rice varieties. Since Keeri Samba is cultivated only in SL, it is not possible to import it. Cabinet approval was recently granted to more..

Apr 10 (FT) Sri Lanka’s tourism sector has seen a sharp slowdown in early April as escalating conflict in the Middle East disrupted global air travel, although overall arrivals for the year remain marginally positive. Tourist arrivals fell 22% year-on-year (YoY) to 39,627 in the first eight days of April, down from 50,542 in the same period last year. Average daily arrivals also dropped to 4,953, compared to 6,318 a year earlier, highlighting the scale of the disruption to inbound travel. more..

Apr 10 (DN) Governor of the CB Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe on Wednesday informed the Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) that an initial investigation into the fraud that has taken place at the National Development in this regard is currently underway. He further assured that the Central Bank will report back to the Committee at the earliest possible opportunity once the necessary information has been gathered. Dr. Weerasinghe said so when the Committee which met on Wednesday more..

Apr 10 (FT) Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Co-operative Development Ministry is set to award the largest lottery prize in SL’s history today, with a jackpot of Rs. 629.8 million under the Jayamalle Kapruka Lottery. The winning prize was drawn on 19 Feb 2026, marking a record pay-out for the country’s lottery sector. The official cheque presentation is scheduled to take place at the Development Lottery Board auditorium under the patronage of Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe. more..

Apr 10 (ST) SriLankan Airlines is currently navigating a pivotal era of restructuring and growth amidst a leadership crisis. Following the resignation of Chairman Sarath Ganegoda on March 31, the company is now under the interim guidance of a Treasury official. Mr. Ganegoda and another director Rohan Goonetilleke stepped down from the board without any reasons attributed to the move. Both were appointed after NPP’s Anura Kumara Dissanayake was elected Prez in late 2024. more..

Apr 10 (FT) The CoPF has raised concerns over what it described as, significant lapses in corporate governance, at National Development Bank (NDB), alongside supervisory gaps within the Central Bank of (CBSL) and delays in the disclosure of material information in relation to the alleged Rs. 13.2 billion fraud. Committee said such shortcomings were unacceptable and directed that immediate corrective measures more..

Apr 10 (Island) Coal-fired power generation remains a central component of SL’s energy mix, with the Lakvijaya (Norochcholai) Power Plant contributing a substantial share of national electricity production. Recent concerns regarding the importation and use of low-quality coal have raised critical questions about environmental emissions and associated public health risks. This article synthesizes global epidemiological evidence on coal-related pollution and evaluates its relevance to the SL context, more..

Apr 10 (SO) After six decades of neglect, the Pettah Central Bus Terminal is set to reopen on April 8 with state-of-the-art facilities, ending years of inconvenience for the 75,000 passengers who use the hub daily. Opened in 1964 on a three-acre site, the terminal had long suffered from leaking roofs, muddy access roads, and poorly maintained sanitation systems. Commuters boarding nearly 2,000 buses daily endured unsafe and unsanitary conditions—until now. more..

Apr 10 (DN) The impasse over the Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20 percent of the world’s oil flows, has triggered a debate over our over-reliance on fossil fuels. We consume around 100 million barrels of oil and gas per day for transport, power generation, cooking and many other tasks. The world will indeed grind to a halt – literally – if the oil runs out tomorrow. As the Hormuz impasse led to a rapid price increase of all petrochemical products, Govts & consumers are scrambling to answer more..

Apr 10 (Island) A motion of no confidence against Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody is scheduled to be taken up in Parliament, today. JVP-NPP govt, which came to power promising to eliminate bribery and corruption and cleanse Parliament, finds itself in an unenviable position. It assured the public that its members would be above suspicion, but it is now in the dock over a corrupt deal. It has chosen to defend Minister Jayakody indicted of corruption & allegedly involved in a corrupt coal procurement deal. more..

Apr 10 (TM) For SL’s small-scale exporters and local manufacturers, long regarded as the backbone of the economy, 2026 was expected to mark a period of recovery and relative stability following years of economic strain. Instead, the sector now finds itself navigating a renewed wave of uncertainty following the Middle Eastern war and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which triggered an energy crisis, with little time to recover more..

Apr 10 (ST) Jawatta Road is a familiar road to many who used to live or work or travel in the heart of Colombo. About 2 km long Jawatta Road connects Bauddhaloka Mawatha in Colombo 7 and Thimbirigasyaya Road in Colombo 5. Halfway along Jawatta Road, you arrive at a junction that tells an interesting story. On one side of the road stands Lanka Salusala, – a govt-owned business. Directly opposite, you find a private enterprise – the sales outlet of CIC Holdings. more..

Apr 10 (DM) It is said that truth is the first casualty of war. But when men lacking integrity lead the world, truth becomes a casualty even in peace. Deception shrouds the 14‑day truce announced early Wednesday, just hours before the deadline US President Donald Trump imposed with a genocidal warning: “A whole civilisation will die tonight” unless Iran agrees to a deal to end the war and lift the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. Having been deceived twice, Iran does not trust more..

Apr 10 (CT) Four months after Cyclone Ditwah tore through SL’s central highlands, the visible signs of destruction are gradually fading. Roads have been cleared, schools have resumed, and estate work has cautiously restarted. Yet, beneath this appearance of recovery, a far more troubling reality persists. In the quiet, mist-covered plantations, a cry continues to echo—not for those who perished, but for those who survived. more..

Apr 10 (CT) In view of the ongoing economic crisis, compounded by external shocks arising from the Middle East conflict, the govt headed by Prez has introduced a comprehensive Rs. 100 billion relief package aimed at cushioning the impact on households, producers, and key economic sectors. This three-month emergency spending plan represents a significant and targeted policy intervention designed to balance urgent social protection needs with the imperatives more..

Apr 10 (DM) Finally, Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake himself admitted that inferior quality coal had been supplied for power generation. Simultaneously, Auditor General reports that the procurement process is scarred with some grey areas. Come what may, it has once again cast a spotlight on the vulnerabilities within SL’s energy sector. While the Prez clarified that the tender procedure had not been violated, the admission that coal of substandard quality had reached more..