Sep 3 (FT) Deputy Minister Anil Jayantha Fernando rejected claims that Govt debt had increased by over Rs. 190 billion, insisting official data instead showed a continued decline in the debt stock. In a video statement released by the Finance Ministry, he criticised recent media reports which, citing CB data, claimed a significant increase in Govt debt, arguing that the reports neither clearly explained the basis of the calculation nor accurately reflected the official figures. more..

Sep 3 (FT) National Biotechnology Industry Association (NBIA) successfully conducted its first Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 20 August 2026 at the SL Institute of Biotechnology (SLIBTEC), marking an important milestone in the establishment and development of SL’s biotechnology industry association. AGM brought together members and key stakeholders from SL’s biotechnology and related sectors to review the Association’s activities and progress since its establishment and more..

Sep 3 (FT) 23rd edition of ProFood ProPack and AgBiz 2026, SL’s leading exhibition for the food processing, packaging and agriculture sectors, concluded successfully at the BMICH, attracting nearly 30,000 visitors and bringing together industry stakeholders from across Sri Lanka and overseas. Held from 21 Aug, the three day exhibition provided a comprehensive platform for businesses, entrepreneurs, industry professionals and consumers to discover new products and technologies, more..

Sep 3 (FT) World Bank is supporting to transform Colombo into a destination in its own right and attract higher-spending visitors who currently spend only a fraction of their trip in the capital. World Bank Lead Private Sector Specialist – South Asia Region, Finance, Competitiveness and Innovation Global Practice Natasha Kapil said the Bank’s analysis had identified a significant untapped opportunity in Colombo, despite the city having the country’s more..

Sep 3 (Island) Sri Lanka has reached an important constitutional moment. The proposed 22nd Amendment has moved beyond political debate and into the constitutional process through which its validity will be examined. That development should change the character of the national discussion. That is understandable in a politically contested environment. But Sri Lanka should now resist reducing a question of constitutional design to a contest over political positions. The deeper issue concerns more..

Sep 3 (Island) The price of a kilo of wheat flour has recently been increased by Rs. 17, and All Ceylon Bakery Owners’ Association has lost no time in jacking up the price of a 450g loaf of bread by Rs. 10. Loaves of bread weighing 450g are as rare as hen’s teeth in this country. But supposing the average weight of a loaf of bread is 450g, as claimed by bakers, and an equal amount of wheat flour is used to produce it, the actual cost increase resulting from the wheat flour price hike would be more..

Sep 3 (FT) The Daily FT article of August 2026, Sri Lanka economy ‘a racket’: Economists, laid out a stark picture. Advocata Institute Chairman Murtaza Jafferjee described an economy shaped for roughly one thousand people. Moreover, Verite Research Executive Director Dr. Nishan de Mel goes on to note how a few individuals benefit enormously while the majority see little return. This echoed my own writing in Dec 2025 to Daily FT called, Big business must reform now, more..

Sep 3 (TM) For years, SL has recorded among the highest rates of human-elephant conflict mortality in the world. Each year, over 300 wild elephants and upwards of a hundred human lives are lost to this relentless war of attrition. Beyond the immediate human anguish and the economic destruction of homesteads and crops, the conflict represents a failure of governance. Nowhere is this crisis more starkly visible than along the country's railway tracks in the North Central, Eastern, and Northern provinces, more..

Sep 3 (TM) The community-based corrections system is helping keep thousands of people convicted of minor offences out of prison, easing pressure on an overcrowded prison system and allowing offenders to continue living with their families, and to engage in their day-to-day functions such as education and employment. Commissioner of the Community Based Corrections Dept, Dilan Gunarathne spoke about how the system works, the types of offenders more..

Sep 3 (ST) On Aug 26, a catastrophic glacier collapse and subsequent landslide triggered unprecedented flash floods and mud slides along the Nepal-China (Tibet) border, killing hundreds of people and leaving hundreds missing. Climate catastrophes as such are becoming frequent now. Every monsoon season in Nepal, the fragile slopes of the Himalayas remind us how precarious life can be when nature turns violent. Torrential rains loosen the soil, triggering landslides that bury villages in minutes, more..

Sep 3 (GV) A recent panel discussion on Investment Law and Environmental Protection: Some Lessons for Sri Lanka at took me back to a question that has remained central to my research over the past few years: what happens when law attempts to protect nature while continuing to conceptualise nature as an object of human use? With the advent of the new SL’s National Mineral Policy 2026 and the broader discussions on mineral mining, this question has acquired renewed relevance. more..

Sep 3 (TM) Sri Lanka’s cities and suburbs are becoming densely populated, with concrete structures, paved surfaces, and shrinking green spaces altering not only the appearance of urban areas but also their resistance to heat. As temperatures rise and extreme weather becomes a growing concern, questions remain as to whether the way modern Sri Lanka designs and constructs homes and cities is equipped to keep people cool and comfortable. more..

Sep 3 (FT) 92% of formal private sector employees in SL earn less than 100,000 rupees a month, according to EPF data. This startling revelation, made at a recent SL Korea Business Council panel discussion, should have caused a furore, with the Govt and the Opposition racing against each other to use this proof of extreme wage inequality as a politico-propaganda weapon. Should have, but didn’t; because for the Govt and for the Opposition, political life begins and ends with 22. more..

Sep 3 (DM) On 19 August, PM Harini Amarasuriya tabled in Parliament a proposed amendment to the Anti-Corruption Act No. 9 of 2023. Among its most serious changes is a restriction on how asset declarations may be used once accessed by the public. The proposed amendment criminalises speech, unravels a hard-won anti-corruption reform, and asks citizens to place almost complete trust in the authorities rather than in democratic scrutiny to curtail illicit enrichment. more..

Sep 2 (AD) According to the results of the 2026 Grade 5 Scholarship Examination, the highest marks in Sinhala medium was obtained by a student from the Kurunegala District with 193 marks. The Commissioner General of Examinations A.K.S. Indika Kumari Liyanage revealed this while speaking at a special media briefing this afternoon . Meanwhile, the highest score in Tamil medium, which stands at 188 marks, has been obtained by a student from the Jaffna District. more..

Sep 2 (AD) Supreme Court has today concluded the consideration of petitions filed in relation to the 22nd Amendment Bill to the Constitution, which was recently presented to the Parliament by the govt. Following the conclusion of the deliberations related to the petitions, the Supreme Court stated that its confidential determination on the constitutionality of the Bill will be conveyed to the Speaker of Parliament. A five-member Supreme Court bench, headed by Chief Justice Preethi Padman Surasena, more..

Sep 2 (FT) The Human Rights Watch said in a report released yesterday alleged that the SL Govt’s prosecution of past grave abuses has lagged, raising concerns for future progress. “United Nations officials and UN member countries at the Human Rights Council should call on the Govt led by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to show greater determination to address emblematic rights cases and cooperate with international accountability efforts,” HRW said. more..

Sep 2 (Island) The MoU relating to the project to provide technological solutions to prevent wild elephants from being hit by trains was signed yesterday at the President’s Media Centre, under the patronage of Secretary to the President Dr Nandika Sanath Kumanayake. Coordinated through the Clean Sri Lanka programme, the project is being implemented as a public-private partnership, with the Railway Department, the Department of Wildlife Conservation and more..

Sep 2 (NW) Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has hosted 160 students from the University of Kelaniya’s Mass Communication Department for an educational field visit designed to give them practical exposure to sports journalism and international media operations. According to the SLC, the students, accompanied by their academic staff, visited the RPICS in Colombo during the Sri Lanka vs. India Under‑19 Second Four‑Day Game. They conducted a field study on cricket reporting, more..

Sep 2 (DM) SL should regard five million tourists a year as the maximum the island can accommodate and focus future growth on generating greater value from visitors, Deputy Minister Prof. Ruwan Ranasinghe said, signalling a shift away from a volume-driven tourism strategy. “For an island of this size and type, I think five million tourists would be the maximum,” Ranasinghe said, citing SL’s small size, sensitive ecosystems and fragile cultural heritage. more..

Sep 2 (NW) The President of the Commonwealth Lawyers’ Association, Steven Thiru, observed proceedings at the Supreme Court yesterday as hearings began on petitions challenging the Govt’s proposed 22nd Amendment to the Constitution. Thiru’s participation follows his warning in July that Sri Lanka risks repeating Zimbabwe’s controversial judicial crisis if it proceeds with plans to extend the retirement age of sitting superior court judges without broad public consultation. more..

Sep 2 (NW) PM Harini Amarasuriya brought Sri Lanka’s ancestral wisdom on sustainable food systems to the global stage in Bhutan, delivering the keynote address at the inaugural Global Conscious Food Systems Summit 2026. Held on Monday at Dungkar Dzong, the Summit was jointly hosted by the Royal Govt of Bhutan, the Conscious Food Systems Alliance (CoFSA) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), under the theme “Activating the Heart of Food Systems Transformation.” more..

Sep 2 (DM) Japan has donated seven low-floor buses to Sri Lanka to support the development of public transport services, under the ongoing development cooperation between the two countries. The buses, jointly donated by the Govt of Japan and the people of Yokohama, were officially handed over to the SL Govt today by Japanese Ambassador to SL Akio Isomata. The buses were handed over to Minister Bimal Ratnayake at the joint depot of the SL Transport Board and Lanka Metro Transit (Pvt) Ltd. more..

Sep 2 (TM) Sri Lanka is moving towards a care economy, with the Govt giving greater attention to social care through a 10-year national action plan under the supervision of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), Labour Minister and Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning Dr Anil Jayantha Fernando said, at the presentation of the National Action Plan on Social Care 2026-2035 on Monday (31 August). Speaking at the event, Fernando said: more..

Sep 2 (TM) Due to the international backlash that China had faced with its strategic statecraft investments in Sri Lanka more than a decade ago, there has been growing consus among its intelligentsia that the Government should focus on smaller investments, less involvement of its State-owned enterprises, and greater consideration for the industrial capacity of the host societies of Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) investments, more..

Sep 2 (NF) Sri Lanka Police say two investigative teams have been deployed to conduct further inquiries into the death of former Hambantota Mayor Eraj Fernando. The investigations are being carried out under the supervision of the SSP in charge of the Colombo South Division. The body of former Hambantota Mayor Eraj Fernando was discovered this (2) morning inside an apartment on the eighth floor of a residential complex in Thimbirigasyaya that belonged to him. more..

Sep 2 (NW) Venerable Battaramulle Seelarathana Thera, leader of the Janasetha Front, was assaulted this morning in the Weeragula area, it was reported. The assailant fled the scene following the attack. At the time, the Thera was at a temple in Warana, Attanagalla, where funeral arrangements of a devotee were being discussed. Reports indicate that arguments arose during the discussion, leading to the assault. The monk is currently receiving treatment at Gampaha Hospital. more..

Sep 2 (NW) Police have launched an investigation into a Rs. 60 million robbery at a travel agency in Thalawathugoda. Three masked men stormed the premises yesterday afternoon, threatening the owner and employees with sharp weapons. The gang arrived in a small white car, carried out the robbery, and fled in the same vehicle. Investigators said the suspects first assaulted one employee before seizing the cash and valuables. more..

Sep 2 (EN) US helped Sri Lanka detect a narcotrafficking network attempting to smuggle crystal methamphetamine through the island-nation to international markets. US Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) New Delhi Country Office and SL’s Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB) conducted the joint operation disrupting a Pakistan-based network. “Acting on intelligence developed by DEA’s Foreign Counterparts Unit Pakistan Anti-Narcotics Force Special Investigations Cell between August 14–29 more..

Sep 2 (FT) SL’s AI Academy has entered a strategic partnership with Berlin-based Tomorrow University of Applied Sciences to launch challenge-based AI degrees through an integrated work-study model that eliminates the gap between education and employment. The partnership will deliver two Tomorrow University-awarded qualifications: a BSc in Applied AI and an MBA in AI and Technological Transformation. Both degrees are offered through AI Academy’s local incubator structure, allowing more..

Sep 2 (AD) The results of the 2026 Grade 5 Scholarship Examination have been released online, the Commissioner General of Examinations announced. Accordingly, the results can be viewed on the department’s official website: www.doenets.lk This year’s Grade 5 Scholarship Exam was held on Aug 9 at 2,723 exam centres islandwide. A total of 294,089 students sat for the examination, comprising 220,366 candidates in the Sinhala medium and 73,723 candidates in the Tamil medium. more..

Sep 2 (NW) SL captain Chamari Athapaththu has made significant strides in the ICC Women’s T20I Player Rankings following her standout performance in the opening weekend of the Women’s Asia Cup in the UAE. Athapaththu’s unbeaten 25‑ball 48 and one for 10 in three overs against the UAE lifted her to career‑best rating points across all categories, 734 in batting, 552 in bowling, and 405 as an all‑rounder. She remains sixth in the batting rankings, climbs three places to 33rd in bowling, more..