Feb 12 (DM) Applicants can obtain their light-vehicle driving licences within three hours after submitting the applications with the medical report at the one-day service counter, State Minister of Transport, Dilum Amunugama said. "They need not waste their time at Werahera. The Department of Motor Traffic, Werahera branch (DMT) will keep the applicant informed about the progress of their applications until the licences are handed over," he said. Earlier, the department had introduced more..

Feb 12 (Island) Election Commission (EC) has approved a request from those supporting Sajith Premadasa to rename Ape Jathika Peramuna as Samagi Jana Balavegaya, and make MP Ranjith Maddumabandara its General Secretary. The Premadasa faction wants to contest the upcoming general election from Samagi Jana Balavegaya. Commissioner General of Elections Commission, Saman Sri Rathnayake in a letter more..

Feb 12 (DM) University administrations, the so-called students’ unions in universities and the law enforcement authorities must be ashamed for their failure in stopping ragging in State universities and higher education institutions. The latest incident has been reported from the Kilinochchi campus of the Jaffna University where female students are said to have been sexually harassed in the guise of ragging. It has been alleged that seniors had forced some junior students to engage in acts of sexual more..

Feb 12 (DM) When one makes a comparison between the regime’s struggles to defeat two of the biggest rebel uprisings the names of JVP founder Rohana Wijeweera and Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the present president of SL, surface quite naturally. Wijeweera’s struggle was to defeat the UNP led regime and to drive away the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) and for that purpose he eventually made his cadres take to arms. There is JVP literature which appeared in newspapers more..

Feb 12 (ST) False information on social media has led to the death of a youth who drank the juice made by blending the leaves of a poisonous plant that has no known ayurvedic benefit. His life had hung in the balance for six days at Gampaha District Hospital, a coroner’s inquiry had been told. Former sailor Ishan Perera, 33 from Moragoda, Gampaha, a physical fitness enthusiast had been known to use herbs as well. more..

Feb 12 (CI) Kusal Perera's innings, the winner of the ESPNcricinfo award for the best Test batting performance of 2019, was one of the greatest of all time, not just of 2019. Going into this match, Perera had an average of 28.58. It was not an unfair representation of his career. That he was a player with a very high ceiling was well understood, but as was the case with several Sri Lanka batsmen, that extraordinary talent had not materialised more..

Feb 12 (DM) Chinese Ambassador to SL, Cheng Xueyuan reiterated that the Chinese Govt and its embassy in SL had taken all possible measures to curtail the spread of coronavirus while accusing some of the western media outlets of spreading false claims without factual grounds. “Confidence is more important than gold. China has always proved itself in defeating any difficulty and it will not be an exception this time around,” more..

Feb 12 (AD) Sri Lanka reported 103 fatalities due to electrocution in the year 2019 up from 89 fatalities reported in 2018, the electrocution report 2019 released by the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL), the electricity sector regulator, revealed. The southern province reported the highest number of fatalities due to electrocution in 2019 while western province reported the lowest. more..

Feb 12 (SN) Russia could build a nuclear power plant in SL someday, considering the growing energy demand in the country, Russian Ambassador to Colombo Yury Materiy has said. Since the SL govt favours pollution-free energy and aims at gradually replacing coal and oil with gas and alternative energy sources, the use of nuclear energy is possible only in a long-term perspective, while relevant effort is already made, more..

Feb 12 (EN) SL firms could cut chemical usage and costs by 40% and save on water and energy use if they follow best practices, a UN Industrial Development Organization specialist said. “With better management of chemicals, companies can save 40% on their chemicals,” UNIDO India Regional Office Representative Rene van Berkel said. “By doing that, they have associated co-benefits of 25-30% of energy savings more..

Feb 12 (BN) The govt of Sri Lanka is considering ways of recovering damages, including claiming compensation from Airbus SE, after the European planemaker admitted to bribing executives to win aircraft orders. “The reputational damage was huge, enormous,” Vipula Gunatilleka, CEO of state-run SriLankan Airlines Ltd., said at the Singapore Airshow on Wednesday. “That’s why our govt is looking at certain remedial action.” more..

Feb 12 (DM) The UNP faction led by Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa legalized its alliance under the name, Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), widening the existing split in the UNP ahead of the general elections. Mr. Premadasa-led faction and its alliance partners acquired the rights to the political party known as, Ape Jathika Peramuna (AJP) before renaming it as the Samagi Jana Balawegaya with more..

Feb 12 (AD) The Attorney General has directed the Acting IGP to submit the copies of recordings of 12 telephone conversations between UNP Parliamentarian Ranjan Ramanayake and Justice Gihan Pilapitiya, the AG’s Coordinating Officer said. The Attorney General yesterday (11) expressed his displeasure to the Acting IGP over the response in dealing with the AG’s advice and directives on Justice Gihan Pilapitiya. more..

Feb 12 (CT) Since the mastermind of the Easter Sunday terror attacks on 21 April 2019 and National Thawheed Jama'ath (NTJ) Leader, Zahran Hashim supported certain politicians connected to the Good Governance Govt in 2015, they may also have supported him in return, alleged Rashid Akbar, brother of Rashid Mohamed Ibrahim, a suspect in the Mawanella incident where Buddha statues destroyed in 2018. more..

Feb 12 (CT) What might appear to be superficially logical about former Justice C.V. Wigneswaran calling his shots very openly by entering into an MoU with other Tamil political parties to form a new political alliance was the fruition of an idea that entered his mind when he had to call it quits with the ITAKled TNA. And ultimately we had the Tamil People's National Front established between Wigneswaran and the others in the alliance including EPRLF, Eelam Tamil Self Rule Party & TNA, more..

Feb 12 (FT) An insightful writer I follow had written that the corruption revealed in the Airbus case, technically described as a deferred prosecution agreement, is intrinsic to capitalism or to the market system. The implication is that it may not be intrinsic to not-capitalism, usually described as socialism. But all one has to do is to read Kautilya’s Arthashasthra, from 321-298 BC, to understand that corruption transcends the market system. Within our memory, major aircraft purchases more..

Feb 12 (AD) A special investigation unit will be established to investigate complaints pertaining to the institutions belonging to the Ministry of Industrial Export and Investment Promotion, Tourism and Civil Aviation. Minister Prasanna Ranatunga directed the Secretary of the Ministry to take prompt action on the matter. Currently, eight institutions are under the Ministry of Industrial Export and Investment Promotion, Tourism and Civil Aviation. Accordingly, the Airports and Aviation Services, more..

Feb 12 (EN) Govt intends to attract upmarket tourists and provide higher quality service for better rates to achieve the target of USD 10Bn annual earnings from the industry by 2025, minister Keheliya Rambukwella said. He went on to say that the industry should seek a balance of the upmarket traveller and the budget tourists so that there will be a bigger number of travellers arriving in SL. However, experts have questioned SL’s capacity interms of infrastructure to deal with more..

Feb 12 (DM) It is precautionary for people to avoid unnecessary exposure to the sunlight and to drink plenty of fluids on frequent basis due to the comparative increase in temperature in the country, NBRO Senior Scientist Sarath Premasiri said. He urged to prevent human body from being exposed to the sun and asked to stay under a shade, whenever possible. “Overexposure to the sun might lead to complexities on certain people and more..

Feb 12 (EN) Cargills (Ceylon) Plc, which operates SL’s largest supermarket chain, said profits for the December quarter grew 77.7% to 553.5 million rupees on rising consumer sentiment. Interim financials of Cargills, a unit of the Page family’s CT Holdings Plc, showed the group posting 2.15 rupees in earnings per share. The Cargills share closed trading on Tuesday at 195 rupees. For the nine months to December, the group earned 6.48 rupees per share on profits of 1.7 b rupees, up 8%. more..

Feb 12 (AD) MP Ranjan Ramanayake who is currently under remand custody has been produced before the Nugegoda Magistrate’s Court over charges of interfering with the judiciary. Ramanayake was brought to the court by officials of the Department of Prisons a short while ago, stated Ada Derana reporter. MP Ramanayake was arrested over the offenses committed in terms of Article 111C (2) of the Constitution, for interference with the functions of judges. more..

Feb 12 (DM) A proposal to construct a playground in the Kadolkele mangrove of the Negombo lagoon had been withdrawn following the strong stand taken by the Gampaha District Forest Officer Devani Jayathilaka at meeting chaired by the Fisheries and Inland Fisheries Industry State Minister Sanath Nishantha Perera on Monday (10). A video containing the footage of the discussion where some residents of the area are more..

Feb 12 (NR) Court today determined that it cannot release former Chief of Defence Staff Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne and Laksiri Amarasinghe from the case pertaining to the abduction and disappearance of 11 youth in 2008. The duo is charged with aiding and abetting former Lieutenant Commander, Chandana Hettiarachchi, who is a suspect in the youth abduction case, to flee the country and abscond from the law. Colombo Fort Magistrate Ranga Dissanayake today more..

Feb 12 (SLN) In compliance with the 72nd Independence Day a general amnesty period was declared for tri-forces absentees. Accordingly, 773 Navy absentees who left the Navy without following proper procedures have reported back to the naval bases. To coincide with the 72nd Independence Day, a week-long general amnesty period commencing from 05th February was declared for tri-forces absentees to receive a discharge or to rejoin and continue their national service to the country. more..

Feb 12 (Island) After months of dry weather causing severe hardships to the people in some parts of the country, the Dept of Meteorology yesterday gave the welcome news that showery and windy conditions were now expected in most parts of the country within the next couple of days. It said showers were expected in the Eastern, Central and Uva provinces and in Hambantota, Polonnaruwa and Mullaitivu districts. more..

Feb 12 (CT) The Ambassador of Netherlands, Tanja Gonggrijp, paid a courtesy call on SLMC leader Rauff Hakeem, at his residence yesterday. Discussions centred on broader sociopolitical developments and issues concerning Muslims. Hakeem briefed her of the coalition initiatives being forged among minor and minority political parties and civil society groups in the wake of the election. He also informed her about his personal initiative to champion a Muslim MPs caucus more..

Feb 12 (NR) Colombo High Court today decided to hear the case filed by the Bribery Commission against Minister Wimal Weerawansa on the 7th of Sept. The order was issued by High Court Judge Pradeep Hettiarachchi. Court also issued summons for the 2nd and 3rd witnesses in the case to appear before court on the date of the hearing. Minister Wimal Weerawansa however was not present in Court today. Representing the Minister in Court, President’s Counsel Jayantha Weerasinghe more..

Feb 12 (SB) Bids for international media rights and a media production contract for Sri Lanka Cricket properties for the 2020-23 period are due next Thursday (20). The cricket board is understood to be selling two packages of media rights – one for television and radio and another for digital platforms. Both packages, and the production contract, cover the same content – national team cricket matches taking place in Sri Lanka. more..

Feb 12 (AD) Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CaFFE) yesterday urged the Commission of Elections to expand postal voting to cover private-sector workers. Writing to the Commission, CaFFE Executive Director, Manas Makeen stated that people’s interest in voting at general, provincial and local council elections is less, compared to Presidential Election. “Therefore people employed at essential services in the private sector are not that interested in returning home to vote. more..

Feb 12 (Island) The prevailing drought had affected some parts of the country a drinking water scarcity with brackish water entering the freshwater system, a marine scientist said. He said that if the drought worsened the national water supply might be adversely affected. MEPA General Manager Dr. Terney Pradeep Kumara said that other than drought, river sand mining, climate change, sea level rise/high tide were the other major factors of the intrusion of brackish water. more..

Feb 12 (AD) The spread of extremist ideas cannot be controlled due to the use of social media, according to the Leader of Jamaat-e-Islami organization Moulavi Rashid Hajjul Akbar. The moulavi expressed these views at the PCoI probing the Easter Sunday attacks. He was grilled for nearly 6 hours when he appeared before the Commission, yesterday. Moulavi Rashid Hajjul Akbar is the brother of Moulavi Ibrahim, more..

Feb 12 (CT) The PAFFREL submitting a letter to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has requested to implement a system where no leeway could be left for Parliamentarians to misappropriate public funds. They expressed hope that during the tenure of Prez Rajapaksa, he would discourage MPs from importing luxury vehicles and wantonly misusing public funds. They requested the President to formulate a procedure wherein the precise amount that should be spent for the purchase of more..

Feb 12 (AD) The Chairman of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE), MP Sunil Handunnetti has stated that SriLankan Airlines will be summoned before the Committee on the 19th of this month in order to discuss the contemporary issue with regard to the Airbus deal. In addition, the Foreign Employment Bureau is scheduled to be summoned before the COPE on the 18th and Sri Lanka Cricket is scheduled to be summoned on the 20th, says the Dept of Communication of the Parliament. more..

Feb 12 (DM) The JHU, SLMC and TPA today said they would join the new alliance formed by Sajith Premadasa to contest the General Elections. JHU General Secretary MP Champika Ranawaka, SLMC Leader MP Rauff Hakeem, and TPA Leader Mano Ganesan said in a joint statement that they had decided to join the new alliance as they felt that a broad alliance was needed to defeat the present Govt which more..

Feb 12 (EN) SL can achieve more than half of the renewable energy target for 2030 by using windmills to generate electricity, a Moratuwa Uni Prof. said. “The target for 20% renewable energy is possible with available resources ” Professor in Mechanical Engineering, Mahinsasa Narayana said. He said out of the targeted energy percentage, 15% can be generated through wind power. “Northern province and the up-country areas are the places we can use to build wind farms” more..

Feb 12 (Hindu) The double taxation avoidance agreement between India and Sri Lanka was amended on Wednesday. “Union Cabinet, chaired by PM Narendra Modi, has approved the Signing and Ratification of the Protocol amending the Agreement between India and Sri Lanka for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income,” an official press note said. The amendment was made to the India-SL Double Taxation Avoidance more..

Feb 12 (DM) The newly-formed Samagi Janatha Balawegaya (SJB) led by Leader of Opposition Sajith Premadasa urged UNP to lend elephant symbol to contest the general election if it does not want the alliance to contest under a new symbol. SJB General Secretary Ranjith Madduma Bandara said UNP General Secretary Akila Viraj Kariyawasam on behalf of the UNP should lend the elephant symbol to the new alliance if the grand old party more..

Feb 13 (CT) The new govt is planning to expand university education to cater to those who qualify but cannot get admission to existing universities. The higher education minister has said that currently about 30,000 gain entry to universities while another 20000 follow courses provided by foreign higher education institutions. Another 2000 who gain entry to local universities give up studies due to ragging (Daily News 16.01.2020). Though the new initiative by the govt should be applauded, more..

Feb 13 (CT) There were many readers and interpreters of the 2019 presidential election result: some were jubilant, others lamented heavily. All strived to provide the most meaningful analysis of the post-election situation that for many, especially the losers, was a nightmare that couldn’t be explained under a consistent principle. Although I don’t agree, many from both camps almost unanimously agreed that the good governance (GG) govt’s reconciliation outlook was a major more..