Sep 14 (DM) Sri Lanka’s Covid-19 response has been reeking with gaffes, procrastination and miscalculations which effectively saw its initial modest success degenerating into a runaway pandemic. But in one crucial area, the country got it right: Vaccination. Sri Lanka has now vaccinated more people as a percentage of the population than the US. Around 62.6% of Sri Lankans are now fully or partially vaccinated, including 49% who have received both jabs. more..

Sep 14 (CT) Wildlife and environmental conservationists have persistently spoken against illegal capture and trade of wild elephants due to a multiple reasons, including that of the trauma caused to both the illegally captured animal and to its parent, together with the cruelty faced by these animals. The recent Regulations issued by way of an Extraordinary Gazette Notification, by the State Minister of more..

Sep 14 (DM) Many Sri Lankans grumble that their small and powerless country is singled out for trenchant criticism at the UNHRC while bigger and more powerful countries with worse records go scot-free. But the truth is that powerful Western countries also get pulled up. For example, in the follow-up reports to be presented at the 48th. Session of the UN Human Rights Council, which began on Monday, the Special Rapporteur on the Promotion of Truth, Justice, Reparation and Guarantees of more..

Sep 14 (DM) Amidst issues cropped up due to the COVID-19 pandemic such as the drastic drop in export revenue and collapse of the tourism industry, govt is struggling to maintain the smooth supply of essential items to the general public and to contain soaring prices. Milk powder shortage that emerged a few weeks ago is still to be sorted out; there are fears about continuous cooking gas supply, following the recent shortage and the demands by some suppliers to increase the prices. more..

Sep 14 (ST) Sunil is no more. Who is Sunil, one may ask? And, what more can you write about a musician, entertainer, friend, father and grandfather who was known to millions of fans simply as Sunil and was Sunil Aiya to younger musicians and entertainers. Sunil Perera, who passed away on Monday morning after suffering complications from COVID-19, was the funnyman of SL music with his recent musical adventures laced with political more..

Sep 14 (Island) Social media, if properly used, can be a boon to a country, but in the hands of troublemakers bent on disseminating fake news, they could be as harmful, if not dangerous, as cut-throat razors wielded by mad monkeys. Unfortunately, some Sri Lankans tend to fall for baseless claims published on the Internet, hook, line, and sinker. Reports that some SL youth are wary of being inoculated against Covid-19 owing to false claims being circulated on social media more..

Sep 14 (ST) A few days back, I received an email with a couple of pictures attached. At first glance it was clear this was a concocted news item supposedly from the BBC. It had the BBC’s signature masthead. In almost six decades in journalism, I am quite used to receiving false and even unverifiable information. But this so-called news item was not only blatantly false but its content was truly distasteful and disturbing. It left a foul taste in the mouth. more..

Sep 14 (ST) An Emergency declared to curb a food mafia, or further strengthen militarisation and authoritarianism? Those were the arguments made by govt and opposition MPs respectively as Parliament this week debated Prez Rajapaksa’s Aug 30 Proclamation of Emergency Regulations declared with regard to supply of essential food items. Emergency Regulations gazetted under the Public Security Ordinance were debated in Parliament on Tuesday (6) as it needed to be presented more..

Sep 14 (SLN) A special operation conducted by the Navy in Irukkulampiddi, Mannar, led to the seizure of a stock of about 72542 sea cucumbers being transported by illegal means. The operation also made way to nab 02 suspects in connection to this unlawful act. The apprehension was made by SL Naval Ship (SLNS) Gajaba in the North Central Naval Command this morning (12) in Irukkulampiddi area, after intercepting a cab which was transporting a haul which included 72542 sea cucumbers, more..

Sep 14 (ST) As SL prepares for the World Cup qualifiers in Zimbabwe later this year, SL women’s cricket team captain Chamari Atapattu believes, SL could finish among the top three teams in the tournament. The ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2021 will be held in Zimbabwe from Nov 21 to Dec 5. The 10-team tournament decides three qualifiers for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2022 to be held in NZ from Mar 4 to Apr 3, more..

Sep 14 (Island) Ivermectin is a drug that has been increasingly occupying medical attention, following its possible role in the treatment and prevention of SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19). A news item in the The Sunday Times of 05.09.2021 says, Ivermectin divides doctors while NMRA gives waiver to import drug to stop black market sales. Ivermectin was discovered in 1975 and had come into medical use by 1981. It is an antiparasitic drug that has antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties. more..

Sep 14 (CI) Sri Lanka's batting order has one more chance this series. In both matches so far, they appeared barely competent - they were unable to hit enough boundaries, frequently struggled to rotate the strike, and often found the opposition's spinners difficult to negotiate. On tracks they are supposed to be familiar with, Sri Lanka have batted as if they are the visiting team. Across the two matches, they have not managed a single top-flight T20 innings between the lot of them. more..

Sep 14 (FT) Sri Lanka Tourism Chief Kimarli Fernando said yesterday the country needed to take advantage of the successful vaccination program whilst relaxing guidelines in line with global best practices to revive the COVID-hit tourism industry. “SL tourism has always been responsible. Our health protocols have been the most stringent. However, the protocols globally have changed and we need to be aware. more..

Sep 14 (FT) The Esufally family yesterday picked up a stake held by the exiting foreign investors in a deal worth Rs. 720 million. Overall, Hemas Holdings saw 10.7 million of its share change hands via 375 trades for Rs. 772 million. The seller was LF Ruffer Pacific and Emerging Markets Fund which held 10 million shares or 1.68% as of 30 June. Four Esufally brothers collectively own a 61% stake in Hemas. The four – Husein Esufally, Abbas Esufally, Imtiaz Esufally and Murtaza Esufally – bought more..

Sep 14 (MFA) Colombo Plan Staff College (CPSC) in Manila, the training arm of the Colombo Plan headquartered in SL, for the first time in history, has appointed a Sri Lankan, Prof. Dharmasri Wickramasinghe, as its 12th Director General. He assumed the post on 01 Sept 2021. Prof. Wickramasinghe, an accomplished and award-winning educator, brings with him his stellar experience in the field of technical and vocational training and education which he has acquired more..

Sep 14 (FT) The country’s trade deficit in July has tripled to $ 607 million from a year earlier due to imports rising 32% to $ 1.7 billion and despite exports hitting a record $ 1 billion. July marked the fifth consecutive month of the widening of the trade deficit. The cumulative deficit in the trade account from January to July 2021 also widened to $ 4.92 billion from $ 3.47 billion in the corresponding period of 2020. more..

Sep 14 (Island) How to keep training uninterrupted amidst the Covid-19 pandemic to succeed at international events is the biggest problem the track and field athletes need to find answers to in the sport’s centenary year in 2022 as Sri Lanka Athletics announced a busy 2022 Competition calendar inclusive of three major international competitions yesterday. Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and World Championships are the major international competitions that more..

Sep 14 (Island) Over 90% of workers at apparel factories were vaccinated with one dose by Sept 9 while over 70% of the workforce received both doses, Joint Apparel Association Forum (JAAF) said last week with regard to its member companies. “At the current pace of vaccinations, we anticipate that the entire workforce will have received both doses by the end of Sept 2021,” they said. JAAF member companies are also ensuring that companies involved in the supply chain, and more..

Sep 14 (FT) COVID-19 detections in Sri Lanka rose to 488,482 with 2,560 persons testing positive for COVID-19 yesterday. The patients detected yesterday were from the New Year cluster and 9,712 PCR tests were carried out yesterday. 12,285 PCR tests and 3,218 rapid antigen tests were carried out on Sunday. Sunday’s COVID-19 detections include 2,614 persons from the New Year cluster, 27 persons from the Prisons cluster more..

Sep 14 (FT) Steps will be taken to stop the import of chilies by the year 2024, Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage said. He also said that there are plans to cultivate chilies in 3,000 new acres island wide. The Minister made this observation while inspecting the successful 100-acre organic chili plantation at Galabadawatta – Nawalapitiya. Directing the youth of the plantation areas towards cultivation, the organic chili cultivation is being carried out on 100 acres of uncultivated lands more..

Sep 14 (CT) Salt Collective (Pvt) Ltd., a French hospitality development venture, will invest almost US$ 4 million to set up a 16-room boutique hotel in Ahungalla in the Southern Coast of SL. The project is scheduled to be opened for business in Dec 2022. The agreement was signed by Sanjaya Mohottala, Chairman of the Board of Investment of SL and Cyril Jacob, Chairman of Salt Collective (Pvt) Ltd. Sanjaya Mohottala, Chairman BOI SL said that “We are delighted to welcome Salt Collective more..

Sep 14 (TM) Pointing out that the current number of daily Covid-19 infections is two or three times higher than the number of daily Covid-19 infections reported during the previous occasions that the country was reopened after a lockdown, the Health Ministry has said that the current situation is not 100% suitable for reopening the country. Dr. Hemantha Herath said that it is not possible to be 100% satisfied with current more..

Sep 14 (FT) PickMe recently partnered with LankaQR to facilitate direct payments. LankaQR (LQR) is a common Quick Response (QR) code standard adopted by financial institutions in Sri Lanka to facilitate fast, secure and low-cost digital payments to any merchant, especially small and medium enterprises. It enables customers to pay merchants directly from their bank accounts (CASA), and credit and debit cards, using a LankaQR compliant mobile payment app. more..

Sep 14 (DM) Central Bank has given instructions to licensed finance and leasing companies to extend the relief afforded to their pandemic-affected borrowers through the end of Sept, as the most recent round of relief expired on Aug 31. In a circular issued last week, the Central Bank asked all non-bank finance companies to extend the deferment of recovery of capital, interest or both of existing credit facilities of borrowers who enjoy the deferment, under previous instructions issued in June. more..

Sep 14 (FT) SJB MP Eran Wickramaratne yesterday responded to comments by Nivard Cabraal published yesterday alongside the former’s opinion on the latter’s upcoming appointment as Governor of the Central Bank. Eran emphasised that the integrity of the country as well as CBSL must be protected by ensuring that a fit and proper person was appointed as the Governor, and more..

Sep 14 (FT) KCI Metro Link Korea Company Ltd. and the GBK Consortium Ltd. of the Republic of Korea have signed a MoU to conduct a feasibility study in order to construct an LRT line from Negombo to Colombo via BIA of Colombo as well as a mixed development project. MoU was signed between KCI Metro Link Korea Company Ltd. President Dr. Parimalam Rajo Isa Michael and GBK Consortium Ltd. CEO Dr. Byung Chun Shin last week in the presence of Ambassador of SL more..

Sep 14 (Island) Ever since April 2021, SL’s agriculture and plantation sectors have been beset by needless difficulties as a result of an announcement, seemingly made on a whim, that Sri Lanka would switch to completely organic agriculture – effective immediately. In doing so, the Govt has jarringly halted all progress on efforts to develop these critical sectors, pushing the entire nation back many steps in the decision to ban import and use of all agro-chemicals and inorganic fertilizer. more..

Sep 14 (CT) Deputy Solicitor General (DSG) Dileepa Peiris yesterday informed Colombo Chief Magistrate Buddhika Sri Ragala that big-time pharmaceutical drugs racketeers could be behind the recent incident where the computer database of the NMRA had been deleted. He said this when the case against the CEO of Epic Lanka Technologies Ltd, Harindra Kalpage, was taken up for hearing before Colombo Chief Magistrate. more..

Sep 14 (DM) While SL is experiencing a rough patch with the COVID-19 pandemic and a crippled economy certain development projects are underway. One of them is the Development of Landscape Master Plan at the Colombo National Museum. This is a project by the Ministry of Buddhasasana and Cultural Affairs budgeted at Rs. 43 million and is expected to be completed by 2022 in two phases. However, certain area residents question whether this is a topmost priority for more..

Sep 14 (FT) COVID-19 vaccines were administered to 72,177 persons on Sunday, raising the number of persons who have received one dose of a vaccine to 13,497,826 and the number of persons who have received both doses to 10,579,220. 88.5% of the country’s population over the age of 30 has received both doses of a COVID-19 vaccine and 12.3% of the population between 20 and 29 years has received both vaccine doses. Of the population between 20 and 29 years, 35.8% have received more..

Sep 14 (TM) The Special Trial-At-Bar appointed by Chief Justice President’s Counsel (PC) Jayantha Jayasuriya at the request of Attorney General (AG) Sanjay Rajaratnam PC to hear 23,270 indictments against 25 suspects who are allegedly connected to the Easter Sunday terror attacks of 21 Apr 2019, yesterday issued summons to the said 25 accused to appear before the Trial-At-Bar on 24 Oct 2021. The Trial-At-Bar had ordered that more..

Sep 14 (TM) Rapid polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests should be implemented for travellers who arrive in SL, according to Health Ministry Communications Director, Dr. Hemantha Herath. He said that after a discussion with the Laboratory Services Deputy Director General, he was able to come to a conclusion in this regard. However, currently, rapid PCR tests are provided only for those who leave the country. Travellers who arrive in SL have to go through a PCR test in a hotel more..

Sep 14 (Island) The Govt Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) yesterday alleged that the functioning of the Army Hospital at Narahenpita had been disrupted by the sudden transfer of three civilian doctors without replacements. GMOA Secretary Dr. Senal Fernando said that the number of doctors attached to the military was not enough to efficiently run the Army Hospital. Thus, 38 civilian doctors had been attached to the hospital by the Ministry of Health, the GMOA Secretary said. more..

Sep 14 (DM) A State Minister along with a group of his friends, all who were under the influence of alcohol had reportedly entered the Welikada Prison by force to visit the prison and gallows. A prison source said that the state minister was even carrying a pistol and some of his friends who could hardly walk because they were intoxicated had verbally abused the prison officials for not allowing them to enter. more..

Sep 14 (FT) It is widely recognised that a country’s central bank should have the independence to conduct monetary policy, free of political influences, solely targeting its core objective – economic stability, more specifically price stability. Accordingly, central bank independence (CBI) has become a key prerequisite of monetary policymaking across the world over the last three decades. The inability of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) to enforce a coherent monetary policy framework more..

Sep 14 (FT) Central Bank of SL Governor Prof. W. D. Lakshman in a virtual media conference reported in the print media announced that he would resign from the post next week. He noted that Sri Lanka continues to be a developing nation because there are no underlying systems, processes and compliance structures in place and that no one can agree on a long-term policy. Further he noted: “If you take a look at what happened over the past two weeks, this also played a role in my decision. more..

Sep 14 (DM) The 100 percent cash deposit for importation of items such as computers and mobile phones should be reversed as they are essential for school Children, UNP Deputy Leader Ruwan Wijewardene said yesterday. Mr. Wijewardene who was speaking at a zoom meeting of UNP activists in line with the party’s 75th anniversary yesterday said, the govt should seriously think of reversing its policy of imposing a 100% cash deposit for these imports as it had affected the school children. more..

Sep 14 (AD) PM Mahinda Rajapaksa spoke yesterday at G20 Interfaith Forum in Bologna (Italy), centred on Time to Heal: Peace among Cultures, Understanding between Religions. Appointed in 2019 by his brother Gotabaya, Sri Lanka’s current president, the PM was criticised by Christian leaders for failing to highlight the real problems that affect religious coexistence in the country. While stressing that extremist ideology represents one of the most serious global challenges, more..