Sep 23 (FT) We are on a fourth wave, riding quite high in fact unfortunately, and in another lockdown. Some speak of economic haemorrhage stemming from the lockdown. The State is crying out for revenue. One corporate head has mentioned that the prosperity of corporates and the nation is intertwined and that as the only rote to achieve sustainable growth. Meanwhile, headlines in the financial press only speak of corporate wellness and those wellness statements have been more..

Sep 23 (DM) The peak of the Delta variant is now over in SL and the number of deaths and infected patients have reduced but health authorities yesterday warned that another peak could be expected in the coming weeks or months with severe mutations existing in other countries. Prof Suneth Agampodisaid that while public mobility had severely reduced due to the ongoing quarantine curfew, the results were being seen with the number of deaths and patients in the country more..

Sep 23 (DN) Justice Minister Ali Sabry, PC said in Parliament yesterday that while the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) was established in 1979 and there is a provision in the PTA to appoint an Advisory Board in order to advise the Defence Minister with regard to somebody who had been detained under the PTA on whether to continue such detention under that law, no Govt over the past 40 years had appointed such an Advisory Committee. However, he said that Prez Rajapaksa as more..

Sep 23 (FT) The recent announcement by Apple and Facebook that they are postponing the return to office till Jan 2022 has strengthened the narrative around hybrid and remote work. Some digital-first companies have declared their intent to never go back to office full-time. Whichever way this goes, the reality is that leading remotely has and will continue to be the norm in the future. Professionals across industries have developed coping mechanisms around on-boarding, connecting with more..

Sep 23 (TM) ITAK MP M.A. Sumanthiran praised President Gotabaya Rajapaksa yesterday over his invitation to the Tamil Diaspora for discussion and congratulated him on his efforts. Speaking in Parliament, Sumanthiran said they welcomed the President’s stance. “However, on 16 July, the President invited the TNA for discussions and at the last minute he put it off, may be due to an emergency. more..

Sep 23 (Island) Chief Opposition Whip Kandy District SJB MP Lakshman Kiriella said yesterday that the country was saddled with a govt that took action to keep the bars and liquor shops open and wanted Parliament closed, citing COVID-19 pandemic as the reason. At the commencement of business of the day, in Parliament, the Chief Opposition whip said that a motion was to be submitted by the govt preventing Parliament from sitting on Thursday and Friday this week. more..

Sep 23 (AD) Lady Ridgeway Children’s Hospital has requested parents to register their children aged between 12 and 19 years suffering from disabilities or chronic illness to schedule a date and time for COVID-19 vaccinations. Rolling out Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines for the children with co-morbidities who belong to the aforementioned age group is all set to commence at the Lady Ridgeway Hospital tomorrow. The parents are required to produce all the medical records of the child when bringing them more..

Sep 23 (EN) Joining forces with the ruling SLPP has destroyed the govt’s coalition partner SLFP and the leaders of the latter cannot absolve themselves of the misdeeds of the govt, former president Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga said. The current SLFP leadership must resign from their positions and hand the party over to a younger crop of leaders who actually care about the party, Kumaratunga said in a Facebook post more..

Sep 23 (AD) General Secretary of Tamil National People’s Front (TNFP), MP Selvarasa Gajendran and two others have been arrested in Jaffna for violating quarantine regulations. Police said they were arrested for violating quarantine laws by holding a commemoration event in remembrance of Thileepan, a political wing leader of the LTTE who died while on hunger strike. It has been reported that the MP had also argued with the police officers who had arrived at the location of the event. more..

Sep 23 (EN) China’s Xiamen King Long United Automotive Industry Co. Ltd has signed a preliminary deal which can pave the way to a bus assembly plant in SL, Hambantota International Port Group which is running a port and industrial zone said. Xiamen King Long United Automotive Industry Co., Ltd., set up in 1988 makes large and medium sized buses, coaches and vans and now exports to 140 countries. HIPG’s investment promotion team headed by Justin Zhang, General Manager, more..

Sep 23 (EN) Sri Lanka must ease restrictions gradually, as lifting the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown in one go could result in a resurgent of cases, a health official warned. Deputy Health Services Director Dr Hemantha Herath told reporters on Thursday (23) that expert recommendation is a staggered lifting of the lockdown. “It should be done step by step. We can take one step and see what problems may arise, and then take more..

Sep 23 (MFA) Foreign Minister Prof. Peiris briefed the Indian Foreign Minister on the situation with regard to the Covid-19 pandemic and the successful measures being implemented by the Govt of SL to control the spread of the virus. Minister Peiris further briefed the Foreign Minister about the pragmatic and tangible action taken by the government to resolve residual matters after the end of the conflict in May 2009, citing the fact that the Foreign Ministry, Defence Ministry and Justice Ministry more..

Sep 23 (Island) Speaking during a zoom meeting with party’s youth members, on party reinforcement projects, alongside its 75th anniversary programmes on Tuesday, the UNP deputy leader said: “Officials of the National Plant Quarantine Services, coming under the Department of Agriculture, have detected harmful residues, including Erwinia bacteria, of which some species are plant pathogens which destroy crops, in sample tested from organic fertiliser brought from China. more..

Sep 23 (TM) Amidst a national discourse on the merits and demerits of the private ownership of elephants, Minister C.B. Rathnayake yesterday said that there are 108 elephants that are privately owned in Sri Lanka. “There are only around 210 tame elephants in the country, 102 of whom are held under the National Zoological Gardens Department while the remaining 108 elephants are privately owned,” more..

Sep 23 (IANS) TN fisheries dept officials said that the SL Navy personnel hurled glass bottles and stones at the Indian fishermen. SL Navy personnel came in 10 patrol boats and they damaged the fishing boats, it was alleged. Officials said that fishing nets in 40 boats were also damaged in the alleged attack by the SL navy personnel. Fishermen association leader N. Devadass said, "This is highly deplorable and a situation has reached wherein the fishermen from the TN coast are not able to more..

Sep 23 (AD) Individuals who visited stores to buy alcohol have been subjected to random Rapid Antigen tests in Mirigama, yesterday. Meanwhile, journalists inquired Dr. Hemantha Herath on the decision to allow liquor stores to operate while bookstores remain closed. Dr. Hemantha Herath, Media Spokesperson for the Ministry of Health responded, “We can’t clearly show a connection between the bookstore and the bar. We can’t comment at this point because there is more..

Sep 23 (CT) Those who are suffering from an inferiority complex after fraudulently obtaining wealth, are trying to maintain elephants to cover up their inferiority complex, JVP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake alleged in Parliament yesterday. “These people have amassed massive wealth in fraudulent ways such as misusing tenders. In the past, people who were from noble families had elephants as a symbol of their more..

Sep 23 (AD) Minister of Justice has appointed former High Court Judge Kusala Sarojani Weerawardane to conduct an independent inquiry into the recent incidents at the Welikada & Anuradhapura prisons. Former State Minister of Prisons Management and Prisoners’ Rehabilitation Affairs Lohan Ratwatte made headlines last week following his riotous behaviour at the Welikada and A'pura Prisons while under the influence of alcohol. In the wake of the accusation, more..

Sep 23 (CT) Govt’s non-demand-pull inflationary face value money printing (FVMP) debt increased by 0.29% (Rs 4,572 million) to a new record high of Rs 1,607,398.46 million (Rs 1.6074 trillion) yesterday. GoSL’s highest to the 17th highest FVMP debt has been registered in the 17 consecutive market days to yesterday, though not necessarily in a particular order. The highest, Rs 1.6074 trillion was recorded yesterday, second highest Rs 1.6071 trillion was recorded on Friday 17 Sept, more..

Sep 23 (TM) With the United Nations General Assembly ongoing in New York, the Committee for Protecting the Rights of Prisoners (CPRP) yesterday (22) has written to the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres urging him to pay attention to the needs of prisoners in Sri Lanka. “A total of 78%-82% of those admitted to prisons between 2015-2019 were suspects who were remand prisoners. more..

Sep 23 (TM) Samagi Jana Bala Wegaya (SJB) MP Manusha Nanayakkara has filed a Fundamental Rights petition before the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka, against the appointment of former State Minister of Money and Capital Markets and State Enterprise Reforms Ajith Nivard Cabraal as the Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL). In the petition, Nanayakkara has highlighted several allegations made against Cabraal, including the high profile case of Imaad Shah Zuberi. more..

Sep 23 (AD) The total number people who fell victim to COVID-19 infection in Sri Lanka moved up as 72 more fatalities were confirmed by the Director-General of Health Services on Wednesday (22). The new development has pushed the official death toll from the virus outbreak in SL to 12,448. As per the data released by Dept of Govt Information, the latest victims include 42 males and 30 females. As many as 60 deaths were reported among the elderly people aged above 60 years. more..

Sep 23 (CT) Secretary-General of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Yousef Al-Othaimeen reiterated the positive outcomes of integration among communities with the preservation of identity during a meeting with Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris, on the eve (21) of the high-level segment of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, in New York. Professor Peiris in return said Sri Lanka is a country more..

Sep 23 (CT) Cabinet has approved declaring the second week of March in each Yala Season and the third week of September in each Maha Season as Empty Plastic and Glass Packaging Collection Week, beginning in 2022. It was also agreed to carry out the suggested programme with the aid of agricultural officials and farmers’ organisations. Cabinet Spokesman Dullas Alahapperuma said this initiative was taken after finding that most agricultural packaging is made of more..

Sep 23 (DM) UN Resident Co-ordinator Hanaa Singer Hamdy extended her appreciation for the continual resounding efforts initiated by the Govt of SL through the Defence Ministry to cripple the illegal drug ring, which in turn reflects a positive impression on both Sri Lanka and on the entire region, the Defence Ministry said She conveyed these views during a cordial discussion with Defence Secretary Gen. Kamal Gunaratne (Retd) at the Defence HQ Complex, Sri J'pura, Kotte today. more..

Sep 23 (DM) Specialist doctors today urged the parents and adults not to be deceived by myths and superstitions and get the children vaccinated. The vaccination programme is carried out with the recommendations of the expert committees of the world and Sri Lanka, the specialists pointed out and said that successful results can be achieved through precise understanding & interest without undue fear. more..

Sep 23 (JT) Tokyo High Court on Wednesday ruled that Japanese immigration authorities' actions toward two Sri Lankan men were unconstitutional. The two men claim that they were deported without getting enough time to take legal action after being denied refugee status. The two had filed a lawsuit against the govt seeking a total of ¥10 million in compensation. Wednesday's ruling reversed a lower court decision that dismissed the claims. Presiding Judge Yutaka Hirata said that more..

Sep 23 (AD) It is the general opinion of the Parliamentary Select Committee on election reforms that the Provincial Council Elections should be held expeditiously, said the committee’s chairman and Leader of the House, Minister Dinesh Gunawardena. He also said that a request has already been made to obtain the recommendations of the Attorney General’s Department regarding the steps to be taken to hold the election expeditiously. He made these observations during yesterday’s more..

Sep 24 (DM) People are eagerly awaiting the day the country would be opened up for travelling sans restrictions. In this restricted environment we saw wine stores being opened up for business. A recent facebook post asked the question what could a country hope to achieve when it keeps wine stores opened and its libraries closed? The myriad of issues faced by health authorities and law enforcement officers in making people follow Covid related health guidelines is probably due to more..

Sep 24 (DM) Senior Lecturer in Soil Science at Uni of Peradeniya Dr.(Ms) Warsui Dandeniuya questions as to who is fooling whom in the import of Fertilizer claimed to be from seaweed. The authorities who are importing these fertilizers claim that they are prepared from seaweeds, but this claim is far from the truth; because seaweed cannot contain the claimed nitrogen levels of 10-15%. Dr. Dandeniya also says that the bacterial group Erwina has not been reported in seawater. more..

Sep 24 (DM) “The economy should grow steadily and sustainably. It should have a sound financial system, be resilient to shocks with inflation under control,” said Dr. Roshan Perera, Senior Research Fellow of the Advocata Institute during a recent webinar on building a framework for economic recovery in SL. Explaining that in the economical environment, there are internal and external imbalances to be found, more..

Sep 24 (Island) Can Parliament, as an institution, absolve itself of the responsibility for tainted political parties? The House did nothing when the TNA recognised the LTTE as the sole representative of the Tamil speaking people. Both Parliament and the Election Dept/Election Commission conveniently remained silent. Both institutions turned a blind eye when the TNA, on behalf of the LTTE, in blatant violation of the right to vote, ordered the Northern electorate to boycott the 2005 prez election more..

Sep 24 (CT) Prez Rajapaksa, complementing what he told UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres at UN Headquarters in New York on Sunday, renewed his pledge to obtain the support of our international partners and the United Nations in the nation building process when he addressed the UN General Assembly (UNGA) on Wednesday. Intertwining his speech with Sri Lanka’s 26-year LTTE terrorist war, followed by Bloody Easter Sunday, Rajapaksa, to quote excerpts said, more..

Sep 24 (SO) In light of the much discussed incident in SL where a couple appeared to have created obscene material in a public place, the Sunday Observer spoke to the former President of the Bar Association, Kalinga Indatissa, PC of the legal implications of the incident and the relevant laws related to obscenity, indecent behaviour and pornography. Indatissa added that it is not an offence for the mere possession more..

Sep 24 (TM) After Prez Rajapaksa’s unexpected statement that the Government is willing to hold talks with Tamil diaspora groups to build a domestic mechanism to address internal issues, on 22 Sept, the President, again, reiterated that the Govt is determined to do a great deal of work with the engagement of domestic actors. At the 76th UNGA in New York, USA, the President stated that fostering greater accountability, restorative justice, and meaningful reconciliation through more..

Sep 24 (ST) As the Maha paddy season gets into full swing in late September/early October, farmers are getting jittery with widespread reports that their fertiliser requirements cannot be met. While the govt banned the import of chemical fertiliser midway during the Yala season and said only imports of organic fertiliser and bio-pesticides and weedicides would be permitted, hurried efforts are underway now by various govt agencies to meet the fertiliser demand for the incoming season. more..

Sep 24 (TM) The Covid-19 pandemic is viewed by many as a global crisis that calls for collaborative efforts, who claim that nations need to stick with each other to put an end to the pandemic, and global vaccination is considered the best available solution to achieve it. However, not everyone shares the same opinion about vaccination, and some, who do not believe in the effectiveness and long-term results of vaccination and/or the manner in which vaccination is being conducted, beg to differ. more..