May 6 (CT) Minister Bimal Rathnayake announced a new initiative to curb and potentially prevent bribery and corruption taking place at the Department of Motor Traffic office, which includes the installation of several CCTV cameras in all DMT premises, while promoting a culture of zero tolerance towards bribery and other unethical conduct. During the announcement, he likened the long-entrenched practices of corruption to a cancer that needs to be eradicated. more..

May 6 (TM) Given Sri Lanka’s history, few occurrences alarm or shock the public. However, the murder of a 19-year-old yesterday morning seems to have touched a nerve, with many, asking a question that has been on the lips of Sri Lankans for decades: When will the gun violence stop? Although the citizenry has been seeking an answer for this question for over 50 years, no govt up-to-date has been able to effectively address the issue. Gun crime is a universal problem, more..

May 6 (TM) CEB is facing an increasingly dire financial crisis, with mounting losses and a delayed tariff revision proposal that has set the stage for an intense clash with the PUCSL. Sources suggest that the failure to submit timely tariff proposals is exacerbating an already precarious situation, as the utility’s cash flow continues to decline. CEB Chairman Dr. Tilak Siyambalapitiya confirmed that the board was yet to submit more..

May 6 (DM) Colombo’s working class— 50% of the city’s population—are central to its economy and vibrant culture, but have historically been marginal to Colombo’s development agenda. Following the end of the war, however, they came into sharp focus. The Urban Regeneration Programme (URP) classified 53% of Colombo’s population as living in ‘underserved settlements’ – a term strategically deployed to deliberately misrepresent working-class neighbourhoods as off-grid. more..

May 6 (CT) Vietnam has risen from the ashes of war to become one of Asia’s most dynamic and resilient economies. Meanwhile, SL, despite similar beginnings, continues to face economic stagnation, fiscal distress, and developmental setbacks. The contrasting outcomes of these two nations—both of which experienced protracted conflicts, colonial rule, and periods of political turbulence—offer vital insights into ingredients of sustainable post-conflict recovery & long-term economic success. more..

May 6 (SO) Ragging has long been a deeply rooted issue in SL's higher education system. While often dismissed as harmless pranks or initiation rituals, it has frequently escalated into serious psychological and physical abuse, leaving a dark and painful legacy across universities in the country. Charith Dayaratne, a 2nd-year student at the Faculty of Tech. & Eng., Uni of Sabaragamuwa, appears to be its latest victim. more..

May 6 (GV) On May 6 SL will hold local govt elections for 339 councils, engaging over 17 million voters. Elections come at a pivotal moment for the NPP, which has seen a surge in support but now faces growing scrutiny over its governance and internal coherence. A key issue for voters is whether to prioritise party allegiance or the personal integrity of candidates. While the NPP campaigns on an anti-corruption, anti-waste platform, critics point to its internal contradictions, alleged compromises, more..

May 6 (Island) Elections to 339 local govt (LG) institutions are set to take place today––at long last. The terms of the local councils, which were last elected in 2018, lapsed in 2022, but the then SLPP govt extended them by one year. In 2023, Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe derailed the LG polls by refusing to allocate funds. A legal battle resulted in Supreme Court ordering, last year, that LG elections be held soon. As many as 75,589 candidates are vying for 8,287 seats in local councils; more..

May 6 (DM) Ragging in universities seems to have claimed another innocent life, that of 23-year-old undergraduate Charith Dilshan, a second-year student of the Dept of Engineering Technology at the Sabaragamuwa Uni. He allegedly committed suicide at his home in Gampola on April 29 due to ragging by the senior students of the university, according to his fellow students. Accordingly, four senior students have been arrested by the CID while a three-member committee has been appointed more..

May 6 (Island) The local govt elections, long delayed and much anticipated, are shaping up to be a landmark political event. These elections were originally due in 2023, but were postponed by the previous govt of Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe. The govt of the day even defied a SC ruling mandating that elections be held without delay. They may have feared a defeat would erode that govt’s already weak legitimacy, with the Prez having assumed office through a parliamentary vote more..

May 6 (FT) Charith Dilshan (23) from Ihalagama, Gampola had his primary education at Gampola Buddhist College. After passing his O/Ls he had pursued A/Ls at the Peradeniya Central College, upon which he was selected to Technology Faculty of Sabaragamuwa University. Dilshan had been interested in pursuing a career in the IT field and had even developed his own graphics venture by the name Charith Graphics. more..

May 6 (GV) Local Govt elections scheduled for May 6 give Sri Lankans the opportunity to once again take control of running their own affairs and restore democratic governance at the grassroots level. The vote, which should have taken place in 2022 and comes after many legal and political delays, will elect 8,711 representatives to 339 local authorities across the country. An estimated 17.3 million citizens are eligible to vote. The 2025 LG election will cost around Rs.11 billion for logistics, security, more..

May 6 (GV) Women in Sri Lanka shun participating in politics for numerous reasons including hostility, harassment, threats, intimidation, violence and personal attacks on all fronts. While women consist 52 percent of the country’s population and 56 percent of the total voters, their representation in parliament is a meagre 5.8 percent consisting of 12 women out of 225 MPs. In the 2024 presidential election, there was not a single woman candidate among the 38 candidates. more..

May 6 (FT) Browns Investments (BIL), investment arm of the LOLC Group, announced a significant expansion of its plantation portfolio with the acquisition of FLMC Plantations (FLMC). The acquisition was completed yesterday through a Share Sale and Purchase Agreement with Damro Manufacturing and Piyestra Furniture, for a total consideration of Rs. 4.8 billion. FLMC Plantations serves as the holding company and managing agent for Pussellawa Plantations (PPL) and more..

May 6 (DN) John Keells Group Transportation Sector marks 19 years of impactful collaboration with Dept of Transport Management & Logistics Engineering (TM&LE) at the Uni of Moratuwa, reinforcing its long-standing commitment to human capital development in SL’s transportation and logistics industries. Initiated in 2006, this strategic partnership goes beyond financial assistance—it is a comprehensive initiative designed to empower and equip the next generation of industry leaders more..

May 6 (FT) Marking a significant shift in SL’s journey towards a greener and more inclusive financial system, Central Bank yesterday unveiled the Sustainable Finance Roadmap 2.0 for 2025-2029, an ambitious update to its 2019 framework. This second iteration reflects the financial sector’s strengthened commitment to building economic resilience amid escalating climate risks and social challenges. With a sharper focus on more..

May 6 (Island) Badulla District NDF MP Chamara Sampath Dassanayake and former Minister Mervyn Silva have been further remanded pending investigations in separate cases. Former State Minister Prasanna Ranaweera, also wanted in connection with the investigation pertaining to ex-lawmaker Mervyn Silva, is at large. Silva was arrested and remanded for allegedly selling over six acres of state-owned land in Kiribathgoda to a private party on forged documents. more..

May 6 (CT) National Catholic Mass Communications Director, Fr. Jude Krishantha Fernando said that SL’s Archbishop of Colombo, Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith was also eligible to vote at the Conclave. Fr. Fernando fielding questions said, that not only was Cardinal Ranjith eligible to vote at the Conclave to be held tomorrow but, that he was also papabile. 2025 conclave would be the largest in the Catholic Church’s history as the late Pontiff’s appointments reshape the College of Cardinals more..

May 6 (TM) Claiming that repeated remarks by certain IMF representatives on how electricity tariffs should be set are an insult to independent regulator, PUCSL, Electricity Consumers' Association (ECA) stated that it would formally notify the IMF headquarters about this in writing. IMF's SL Mission Chief Evan Papageorgiou said recently that SL should restore cost-recovery electricity pricing as soon as possible to more..

May 6 (FT) National Chamber of Commerce of SL, in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment & Tourism, successfully hosted an exclusive networking session for the local corporate and business community on Friday (2), at the National Chamber Auditorium. The session was graced by eight newly appointed SL Ambassadors and High Commissioners designated to strategic diplomatic postings in Cuba, India, Japan, Pakistan, South Africa, UN (New York), UAE and UK. more..

May 6 (DN) We played positive cricket in the last two games against Soth Africa and India which guided us to get back to back victories at this tri Nation ODI series said SL women’s team skipper Chamari Athpaththu. Skipper further added the youngsters led from the front and played their best cricket at the moment . Chamari herself was not in best form as a batter during these matches but young Harshitha Samarawickrama, Kasvisha Dilhari came back with good form with the bat against SA more..

May 6 (NW) A high-level diplomatic delegation from the European Union, led by Ambassador Carmen Moreno, met with Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa at his office in Colombo for wide-ranging discussions. EU delegation included Charles Whiteley, Head of ASIAPAC.6 Division of the European External Action Service; Lars Bredal, Deputy Head of Delegation; Guido Dolara and Bartos Otachel, Policy Officers of European Commission; Galija Agiseva, Representative more..

May 6 (FT) The highly anticipated Bring Out the Leader in You Leadership Skills Bootcamp, organised by the SLASSCOM Women Technopreneurs Forum in partnership with SLASSCOM Academy, is back by popular demand. Led by award-winning global leadership expert Senela Jayasuriya, this transformative two-day event focusing on key areas like self-confidence, imposter syndrome, executive presence, communication, conflict resolution, emotional intelligence, more..

May 6 (EN) US buyers are awaiting more clarity on the 44% Trump tariff before taking any decision to shift out of SL, top exporters said, though there is pressure to cut prices after a reduced 10% tax went into effect. Some of the products made in SL including are labour intensive and it was not easy to quickly shift them to the US as Prez Donald Trump wanted to, exporters said. Rubber products for example were for medical & industrial use. more..

May 6 (FT) The CIABOC has reported a sharp rise in complaints, disclosing that 1,267 complaints were received during the first three months of 2025, underscoring the deep-rooted challenge of public sector corruption in Sri Lanka. According to the latest update, 24 targeted raids were conducted across the country between January and March, resulting in the arrest of 20 suspects, including several public officials entrusted with key administrative and law enforcement roles. more..

May 6 (TM) Ministry of Defence (MoD) is planning to release a majority of lands under the control of security forces during the internal conflict period and return them to their original owners over the course of this year. Prez and Defence Minister Anura Kumara Dissanayake recently announced plans to release lands occupied by the security forces during the internal conflict and return them to their rightful owners. When queried about a timeline for the release of such lands, more..

May 6 (Island) Kuliyapitiya Magistrate ordered a uni lecturer accused of secretly installing a hidden camera in a staff restroom be remanded until May 15. 34-year-old suspect, a lecturer attached to Dept of Food Technology and Nutrition at Wayamba Uni, was produced before court by the Pannala Police. Lecturer had allegedly installed a sophisticated miniature camera with Wi-Fi connectivity beneath a washbasin in a restroom used by nine staff members, including seven women. more..

May 6 (Island) Police have launched an investigation to arrest a man for attempting to abduct a schoolgirl near a leading girls’ school in Colombo. The public has been urged to provide any information regarding the suspect by contacting 011-2695411. As per the complaint, the incident took place last Friday (2). A mother was placing her daughter in the rear seat of her car when an unknown man suddenly jumped into the vehicle and threatened her, demanding that she drive off immediately. more..

May 6 (ST) State-run SL Foreign Employment Agency (SLFEA) has temporarily stopped buying airline tickets from the private sector for workers travelling to Israel and South Korea after travel agents questioned the agency’s irregular procurement methods that flouted govt tender procedure. The agency is now awaiting instructions from National Procurement Commission (NPC) on how to deal with specific challenge more..

May 6 (DM) The Colombo Magistrate's Court ordered that the gold items believed to have belonged to the LTTE and discovered in camps, illegal banks and buildings in the N&E Provinces during the humanitarian operation, be handed over to the National Gem and Jewellery Authority for analysis and report. This directive was issued by Colombo Chief Magistrate Thanuja Lakmali, following a request by Deputy Solicitor General Suharshi Herath on behalf of the CID. more..

May 6 (FT) In a bold move aimed at curbing tax evasion and tightening compliance with import and export laws, the Sri Lanka Customs Department announced yesterday it will begin publishing the names of institutions and individuals found guilty of Customs violations and tax frauds on its official website, www.customs.gov.lk. The new transparency initiative is intended to discourage tax evasion, motivate compliance and serve as a deterrent against repeated violations. more..

May 6 (AD) The 2025 Local Govt Elections officially commenced at 7:00 a.m. today (6), marking a significant milestone in the country’s democratic process following a seven-year hiatus. Elections are being conducted for 339 out of the 341 local govt bodies across the island. Polling will not take place for the Kalmunai Municipal Council due to an ongoing court case, while the elections for the Elpitiya PS have already been concluded. more..

May 7 (DM) For those of us who held reservations about the NPP govt, one of the greatest concerns was that the 2024 election, which swept to power, could well be the last free and fair election in the country. That is not an unfounded fear, as the experience in many countries, where political fundamentalists or the militant left had won national power, has almost uniformly revealed. That brings forth the less-talked-about question. Many observers described the election as the more..

May 7 (DM) On 6 May (yesterday), fellow citizens of this emerald isle of ours wended their way to polling stations in villages and towns of our country. We all went to cast that all-important vote of ours to elect persons who would rule our local bodies, ranging from town councils to municipalities. As happened during our presidential election and at the parliamentary elections, most of us would perhaps have voted for the Malimava. It’s not that you and I believe comrade Dissanayake and more..

May 7 (TM) While the economic crisis has aggravated the strain felt by ordinary Sri Lankans, stagnating incomes coupled with increasing living costs are signalling a growing concern at the heart of SL’s economic recovery. DCS has revealed that an individual requires a minimum of Rs. 16,318 per month (as of Feb) to meet their basic needs. Further, the highest cost of meeting basic needs was recorded at Rs 17,599 in Colombo District more..

May 7 (DM) The price tag for a brand new 1200 cc car caught my eye–Rs. 9.9 million. Cool, outrageous and whopping? You can choose your adjective. As if offering an apology for the price, the seller says you can drive it away for a monthly payment of Rs. 76,000/=. That sounds a lot better, but add to that income tax, servicing and fuel, and the owner will be spending Rs. 100,000 a month or more for his or her new car. There are very few people in that income bracket, and they already have good cars. more..