Jan 12 (TM) All Island Private Pharmacy Owners Association (ALPPOA) has requested the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) to reconsider its decision not to renew the licences of 2,500 private pharmacies that risk suspension for failing to meet the requirement of employing a full-time licensed pharmacist. ALPPOA Spokesperson Sidath Suranga said that of the 4,802 private pharmacies operating in the country, 2,254 have already received renewed licenses. more..

Jan 12 (DM) SL’s postal service has recorded a remarkable turnaround in 2025, surpassing revenue targets set by the Treasury and signalling a major revival after years of stagnation. Postmaster General Ruwan Sathkumara said the Dept of Posts generated Rs. 13.1 billion last year, exceeding the revenue target assigned for 2025. He highlighted that the past year also saw wide-ranging reforms, including large-scale recruitments, confirmations of long-serving staff, infrastructure upgrades, more..

Jan 12 (AD) Restoration work of the Northern and Talaimannar railway lines was launched today (11). The official ceremony took place at the Maho Junction Railway Station with the participation of Minister of Transport Bimal Rathnayake and the High Commissioner of India in Sri Lanka, Santosh Jha. Railway lines were severely damaged following the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah. Restoration activities will take place with the US$ 5 million grant assistance from the govt of India, more..

Jan 12 (Island) Speaker Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne has frustrated an attempt by Chairman of the CoPF Dr. Harsha de Silva, MP, to intervene to settle the continuing dispute over the appointment of a new Auditor General. Dr. De Silva said he had recently written to all members of the Constitutional Council (CC) drawing their attention to the urgent need to address the issue at hand. AG’s position remains vacant since 8 Dec, 2025. AG W.P.C. Wickremanayake retired in April more..

Jan 12 (AD) Although there is a need for educational reforms in schools, the process in which the present administration is carrying them out is not acceptable, Senior Professor Venerable Pathegama Gnanissara Thero noted. Ven. Gnanissara Thero made these remarks while delivering the keynote address at the book launch of a biography written about Venerable Daramitipola Ratnasara Thero. The Gnanissara Thero further emphasized that it is impossible to develop the country while destroying more..

Jan 12 (NW) Jana Balawegaya MP Prasad Siriwardena has been summoned by the CID to give a statement over a comment he made on a television programme. Siriwardena said he has been asked to appear at the CID at 10:00 a.m. on Monday (12) to provide a statement regarding remarks he made on Hiru TV’s Salakuna programme about new education reforms. “I like to tell the people about the state of the government they elected. This has become a puppet govt,” he said. more..

Jan 12 (AD) Chairman of the National Movement for the Protection of the Nation, Venerable Elle Gunawansa Thero, has called for a Cabinet reshuffle by removing PM Harini Amarasuriya from the post of Minister of Education. This request has been made through a memorandum addressed to Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake. In the memorandum, Thero points out that the arbitrary education reforms proposed to be implemented under the leadership of the Prime Minister indicate that the country, its people, more..

Jan 12 (DM) Twenty companies including from countries such as China, India, the United States and Japan have responded to SL’s invitation for Expression of Interest (EOI) to develop and expand the Sapugaskanda oil refinery. Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), invited EOI from reputed and experienced financiers or investors to submit an EOI for the development and expansion of the Sapugaskanda Oil refining complex. The project aims to significantly enhance SL’s domestic petroleum refining capacity more..

Jan 12 (DM) Import of vehicles, largely reflecting the release of pent-up demand at a scale much higher than expected, exerted pressure last year on Sri Lanka’s external sector that faced significant challenges amidst elevated global uncertainties, arising from shifts in global trade policies and heightened geopolitical tensions, according to the Central Bank. The Central Bank said this was also fuelled by the false speculation on the reinstatement of restrictions. more..

Jan 12 (AD) The remaining subjects of the 2025 GCE Advanced Level (A/L) examination, which were postponed due to the disaster situation in the country, are scheduled to commence today (12). The examination will be conducted from today to January 20, the Commissioner General of Examinations, Indika Liyanage has announced. The examinations will be held at 2,086 examination centers across the island, with 325 coordination centers and 32 regional centers established. more..

Jan 12 (Island) The inaugural SL Fintech Summit 2025 concluded with industry leaders and regulators establishing two critical national priorities: a bold target to reduce physical cash usage and a push for consolidated regulatory oversight. In a key decision, participants set a clear three-year goal to lower the ratio of cash in circulation to GDP from 4.5% to 3.5%. The strategy will focus on digitizing high-cash sectors like transport, utilities, and SME payments, while expanding more..

Jan 12 (FT) The country’s tourism industry has begun 2026 on an optimistic note, with arrivals in the first four days of January surpassing 33,000, reflecting steady momentum at the start of the New Year. The country welcomed 33,076 tourists from 1 to 4 January, marking a 3% year-on-year (YoY) increase compared to the 25,620 arrivals registered during the same period in 2025. The growth was driven largely by increased arrivals from India, which emerged as the leading source market. more..

Jan 12 (Island) As SL quick Dushmantha Chameera turned 34 on Sunday in Dambulla, the team management’s birthday wish was simple and singular: that he stays off the injured list for the next few months. You can teach a cover drive, coach the forward defence, or even fine-tune a leg-spinner’s wrong’un. But raw pace? That’s God-given. You either have it or you don’t. SL have produced a fair few quicks who can crank it up close to Chameera’s speeds, but what separates the Negombo-born speedster more..

Jan 12 (ST) More than 2,000 CEB employees, many of them mid-career professionals, have opted for a Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS) and yesterday complained to the Energy Minister that the management is “forcibly retaining” them in service by denying them permission to leave immediately. Meanwhile, Power Sector Reforms Secretariat (PSRS) Director General Pubudu Niroshan Hedigallage has submitted his resignation effective Jan 15, 2026, leaving what these employees say more..

Jan 12 (ST) SL’s draft National Electricity & Tariff Policy has generated intense debate, particularly following discussions at the Parliamentary Oversight Committee. Some in the industry say the policy is hurried or disconnected from broader energy objectives while others say the pressing issue is not policy direction, but the economic, legal, planning, and delivery assumptions underpinning implementation. This is pushing renewable energy investors to leave the country and invest elsewhere or close shop entirely. more..

Jan 12 (FT) Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) said it has identified those primarily responsible for the abnormal Wealth Trust Securities Ltd, prices on 7 January. “There may be other parties involved as well. We have summoned and questioned several individuals, reviewed records, and launched a full investigation,” SEC OIC Tushara Jayaratne said. “CSE took immediate corrective action. From 8 Jan onwards, investors can no longer place market orders on a security’s first trading day. more..

Jan 12 (FT) Sri Lanka has emerged from its economic crisis with valuations that are difficult to ignore and assets that are priced well below their long-term potential, creating what Hosking Partners Founding Partner Django Davidson described as a very compelling opportunity for patient investors. Hosking Partners is the largest foreign investor in SL’s capital market which built its portfolio during SL’s worst economic crisis, prompting Davidson at the outset more..

Jan 12 (FT) Total private sector borrowings in Nov 2025 peaked to Rs. 262.6 billion, the highest monthly figure yet for 2025, before the devastating Cyclone Ditwah hit the island. Oct 2025 was the second highest at Rs. 246.10 billion, followed by Rs. 236 billion in September, and Rs. 227 billion in August. Domestic banking sector credit to the private sector in November amounted to Rs. 262.6 billion, taking the outstanding private sector debt stock to Rs. 10 trillion, up 26% from a year ago, more..

Jan 12 (FT) Opposition MP Faiszer Musthapha warned Parliament that amendments to the Colombo Port City Economic Commission Act could create systemic risk, weaken banking regulation, and destabilise the domestic economy if left unchanged. Speaking during the debate on the Colombo Port City Economic Commission (Amendment) Bill, Musthapha said the proposed changes to offshore banking provisions marked a sharp departure from the existing regulatory framework under the Banking Act. more..

Jan 12 (FT) SL’s fragmented banking sector is limiting returns on capital (RoC) and constraining the growth of credit relative to the size of the economy, according to Hosking Partners Founding Partner Django Davidson. Speaking at a presentation on The Capital Cycle Way hosted with CT Smith Securities, Davidson said the large number of banks operating in the system has created structural inefficiencies, raising costs and diluting shareholder outcomes without materially improving access to long-term finance. more..

Jan 12 (FT) Non-debt options such as grant mobilisation and revenue enhancement measures such as time-bound solidarity taxes are critical to financing SL’s record Rs. 500 billion supplementary allocation for Cyclone Ditwah recovery, as additional borrowing will tighten already-constrained fiscal space, Verité Research said. In its report Rs. 500 billion Supplementary Allocation for Cyclone Ditwah Recovery Narrows Fiscal Space, Verité notes: “There are several non-debt options that more..

Jan 12 (CI) Dasun Shanaka clobbered 34 off 9 balls, Kusal Mendis, Kamil Mishara, Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka and Janith Liyanage all chimed in with quick runs, and Sri Lanka raced to 160 for 6 in 12 overs, but Pakistan still made them sweat. The match had been shortened to 12-overs-a-side after rain forced a delay of two hours and 20 minutes. A wet outfield also made bowling significantly more difficult, with both spinners and seamers struggling to grip the ball. more..

Jan 12 (Island) This summary document is based on an exemplary webinar conducted by the Bandaranaike Academy for Leadership & Public Policy. I participated in the session, which featured multiple speakers with exceptional knowledge and experience who discussed various aspects of incorporating artificial intelligence (AI) into the education system and other sectors. There was strong consensus that this issue must be addressed early, before the nation becomes vulnerable to external actors seeking more..

Jan 12 (Island) Corruption has eaten into the vitals of Sri Lanka’s power and energy sectors to such an extent that one wonders whether ‘C’ in the initialisms of the CEB and the CPC stands for Corrupt. Pressure is mounting on the govt to cancel a questionable coal tender which is causing staggering losses to the state. We reported on the coal scam at issue about three months ago, turning the spotlight on the fraudulent procurement of substandard coal. more..

Jan 12 (CT) The explicit support demonstrated by the Sinhalese Buddhist community in SL for Israel during the war in Gaza stands in stark contrast to the anti-Israeli mass rallies organized by leftist, liberal, and Muslim groups within the country. This persistent support for Israel, even as the state faces widespread international criticism for its military actions in Gaza, suggests the presence of a significant ideological motivation. In the Indian context, pro-Israeli sentiment is often more..

Jan 12 (TM) The Rebuilding Sri Lanka Fund, established following the devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah in late 2025, has now accumulated Rs. 5.7 billion, according to the fund’s Management Committee Convenor G.M.R.D. Aponsu. “The total amount in the Rebuilding SL Fund as of today is Rs. 5.7 billion,” Aponsu said, noting that the figure was updated daily through reports provided by officials responsible for managing the accounts. “This is not a static figure. more..

Jan 12 (TM) In several parts of SL’s hill country today, classrooms have stopped being places of learning and have become places of refuge. Desks are pushed aside, blackboards ignored, and families sleep on classroom floors while children wait at home for schools to reopen. This is not merely the aftermath of a natural disaster. It is the visible outcome of a deeper governance failure: the inability, or unwillingness, to move people permanently out of known danger even when the law, the data & the warnings are clear. more..

Jan 12 (CT) Cervical cancer remains one of the most serious threats to women’s health in SL, even though it is largely preventable. Current data show that around 1,200 new cases of cervical cancer are diagnosed each year in SL, and hundreds of women lose their lives to the disease annually despite the availability of vaccines and screening services that could drastically reduce this burden. Cervical cancer is caused primarily by the human papilloma virus (HPV), a sexually transmitted infection more..

Jan 12 (TM) SL is largely self-sufficient in terms of its national food requirements through domestic production. However, if SL is serious about ensuring the food security of the Nation in the coming decades, the State and the public need to address vulnerabilities of the domestic agricultural ecosystem and our consumption patterns. SL produces between 75-80% of its national food requirements, while being near self-sufficient in rice production. Domestic food production is something within the Govts' control, more..

Jan 12 (SO) NDF MP Faiszer Musthapha has pushed for several law reforms ranging from no-fault divorce to amendments in the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act (MMDA), judicial modernisation, and financial sector regulation. He discussed why SL’s family laws are outdated, and why political hesitation has stalled reform for decades. Q: You have proposed several legal reforms in the recent weeks. One of them is the introduction of no-fault divorce. more..

Jan 12 (ST) The debates during Parliament’s first sitting week for 2026 may have been about other topics, but it meant no difference as the roll-out of the NPP govt’s controversial new education reforms dominated proceedings. Controversy, which has been heightened by the recent discovery that the Grade 6 English Language module textbook contains a web address directing students to a gay chat website, has put the govt on the defensive just days before the reforms are officially introduced for students in Grades 1 and 6. more..

Jan 12 (DM) The dawn of 2026 marks a watershed moment in modern history. The traditional Pax Americana that defined the post-WWII era has fractured, replaced by a volatile landscape of unilateralism and aggressive protectionism. Under the leadership of President Donald Trump and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, a series of unprecedented diplomatic and military maneuvers has catalysed a global realignment. The central question now facing scholars and policymakers alike is no longer whether more..