Feb 4 (Island) The Constitutional Council stands out as one of Sri Lanka’s most important governance mechanisms particularly at a time when even long‑established democracies are struggling with the dangers of executive overreach. Sri Lanka’s attempt to balance democratic mandate with independent oversight places it within a small but important group of constitutional arrangements that seek to protect the integrity of key state institutions without paralysing elected governments. more..

Feb 4 (TM) 78 years after the declaration of Independence, SL needs to confront an uncomfortable but necessary question. What does independence really mean today? For decades, Independence Day has been marked with parades, speeches, and familiar rhetoric about freedom from colonial rule. That history matters and should never be dismissed. Struggle against colonial domination shaped the modern SL State & restored a sense of dignity to a people long governed by others. more..

Feb 4 (CT) The Govt has launched one of the most ambitious education reform programmes in decades. The new system, starting from Grade I, promises student-centred learning, lighter school bags, digital support, creativity, vocational awareness, and reduced exam pressure. Officials describe it as a historic turning point — a move away from rote memorisation towards practical and joyful learning. Children are expected to learn more..

Feb 4 (CT) Every year, Independence Day arrives with flags, speeches, and carefully rehearsed performances of patriotism, inviting us to celebrate freedom as if it were a settled fact. The familiar story of a nation that shook off colonial rule, reclaimed its destiny, and stood tall among the free is heard. Yet, beneath the pageantry, an uncomfortable question continues to linger, refusing to be silenced. How free are we, really? Political independence, won in 1948, was an important rupture, more..

Feb 4 (DM) As SL marks its 78th Independence Day today, the extraordinary story of Herbert Rayner Freeman demonstrates how genuine leadership can transcend race, religion, and nationality. The year was 1931. In Ceylon’s North-Central Province, where 94% of the population was Sinhala-Buddhist, an extraordinary political drama unfolded. When results for the first State Council elections were announced on June 15, 1931: The British citizen defeated the prominent Sinhala Buddhist more..

Feb 4 (DN) 78 years after SL formally ended British colonial rule, Independence Day remains a marker of sovereignty—but not necessarily of consensus. For some, 4 Feb represents progress, political renewal, and the promise of stability. For others, it is a reminder of unfulfilled guarantees: equality, dignity, and genuine self-determination. To mark Independence Day this year, we spoke to five Sri Lankans from different walks of life about more..

Feb 4 (DM) As SL celebrates the 78th anniversary of independence today, you might already have read a full complement of post-mortem reports on what has happened since then. In general, they might fit into one of the following categories. The first school of thought would critique SL’s failure, economically, socially and politically. By ‘failure,’ they mean the outright, near-universal failure, not the challenges and setbacks that every new state would have confronted in its ascent. more..

Feb 4 (DM) SL marks 78 years of independence today. On February 4, 1948, the country stepped out of nearly four and a half centuries of colonial rule under the Portuguese, Dutch, and British. For generations that followed, Independence Day has been celebrated with parades, speeches, and patriotic pride. Yet, as we stand nearly eight decades later, a difficult question continues to linger - are we truly independent today? Political independence was achieved in 1948, but more..

Feb 3 (AD) The Cabinet has granted approval to the Renewable Energy Resources Development Plan 2025-2030, with the objectives of fulfilling 70% of the national electricity demand from renewable energy resources by the year 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by the year 2050, in accordance with the National Policy on Renewable Energy. SL Sustainable Energy Authority Act No. 35 of 2007 mandates the preparation of aforementioned plan as well, according to Cabinet Spokesman. more..

Feb 3 (AD) PM Harini Amarasuriya stated that none of the modules introduced for Grade 6 under the new education reforms have been withdrawn. She noted that the govt plans to implement these reforms starting next year. “Only the modules for the first term of Grade 6 have been printed. None of them have been rejected or removed. We propose to implement the Grade 6 reforms in 2027. These modules will be utilized when implementation begins. No decision has been taken at this more..

Feb 3 (AD) A special discussion on SL’s Third Mutual Evaluation in relation to international standards on Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) was held this morning at the Presidential Secretariat under the patronage of Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake. Prez emphasized that before demonstrating integrity to external entities, govt must first take responsibility for its own actions more..

Feb 3 (AD) Court of Appeal today issued a writ order annulling the decision of the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court to issue summons directing former Prez Maithripala Sirisena to appear before the court in relation to a private complaint filed regarding criminal negligence for failing to prevent the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks. A 5-judge bench of the Court of Appeal delivered this order while delivering the decision on a writ petition filed by former Prez Maithripala Sirisena, more..

Feb 3 (CI) Eshan Malinga will miss SL's third T20I against England on Tuesday with a dislocated shoulder, SLC has announced. ESPNcricinfo also understands that the 24-year-old quick had been named in SL's World Cup squad - which is yet to be publicly announced by SLC - but now that is also in jeopardy following the freak injury in Sunday's T20I defeat to England in Pallekele. The incident occurred in the eighth over of England's chase as Malinga bowled first ball following resumption of play more..

Feb 3 (CT) The first section of the Central Expressway (E04), from Kadawatha to Mirigama, was progressing steadily with funds facilitated by the RDA, although uncertainty persisted over Chinese loan financing, Ceylon Today learned. The delay was allegedly attributed to SL’s failure to finalise and submit a revised loan facility request to Chinese lenders. Project, which resumed in Sept 2015 following the restoration of more..

Feb 3 (EN) The global precious metals market experienced a seismic shift on Friday, characterized by what analysts are calling the Great Reset of 2026. Following a parabolic rally in January that saw gold and silver hit all-time highs, the market suffered a historic flash crash on Friday (30), followed by extreme volatility on Monday (2). On Friday, gold and silver witnessed their steepest single-day declines in decades. Silver, in particular, suffered its worst rout since 1980, more..

Feb 3 (DM) A businessman alleged to have sexually abused 36 children below the age of 18 has been arrested by the Bureau for the Prevention of Abuse of Children and Women, police said. Suspect, a resident of Peradeniya, was arrested following a complaint lodged by a person from Kandy. During examinations of digital devices in his possession, police uncovered material relating to the abuse of 36 underage children. Investigations revealed that the suspect, with assistance of several others, more..

Feb 3 (CI) Oman began their final preparations for the men's T20 World Cup 2026 with a win over Sri Lanka A in their first warm-up game in Colombo on Tuesday. The bowlers put on a disciplined display to restrict Sri Lanka A to 145 for 9 before the veteran Aamir Kaleem's 80 off 47 saw them complete the chase with two overs to spare. Dulnith Sigera gave SL A a good start after they won the toss, but left-arm quick Shah Faisal struck in the third over to remove Sineth Jayawardena. more..

Feb 3 (EN) Sri Lanka has set up a Tax Policy Analysis Unit (TPAU) under the Department of Fiscal Policy in its Ministry of Finance, in keeping with the IMF recommendations. The core functions of TPAU include revenue analysis; economic and distributional analysis of tax policies; evaluation of tax expenditures; engagement with key stakeholders; and analysis and support on international taxation and regional and international tax cooperation, ministry said in a statement. more..

Feb 3 (NW) Minister of Justice and National Integration, Harshana Nanayakkara, told Parliament today that the proposed Bills to repeal the Rent Act and to introduce the Protection of Occupants law will not cause harm to individuals or businesses engaged in renting out houses. Addressing concerns raised over the proposed legislation, Minister said both Bills were prepared by a panel of experts and followed due legal and more..

Feb 3 (DM) Hajj operators have alleged that nearly Rs. 110 million, collected additionally from operators for Mina tent facilities during the 2025 Hajj pilgrimage, has yet to be refunded, more than a year after the funds became due for repayment. According to the operators, 3,500 Sri Lankan pilgrims participated in the 2025 Hajj. An additional charge of 362 Saudi Riyals per pilgrim was collected from operators specifically to provide enhanced facilities at the Mina tents. more..

Feb 3 (CT) Services at 164 hospital wards and units across the country have been disrupted due to the trade union action launched yesterday, Govt Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) said. According to the GMOA, the disruption has occurred after specialist doctors decided to provide specialist services only at the hospitals to which they are officially attached, and to withdraw from covering duties at hospitals without resident specialists. As a result, peripheral hospitals have been the most affected. more..

Feb 3 (NW) Former Justice Minister Ali Sabry PC has warned that the proposed Protection of Occupants Bill, 2025, though well-intentioned, could have serious legal and economic consequences if enacted in its current form. In a detailed statement, Sabry said that while preventing harassment and unlawful eviction is a legitimate public objective, draft law risks undermining Sri Lanka’s rental market and harming tenants themselves. more..

Feb 3 (NW) Marking a generational shift in Tamil politics, the ITAK has appointed 35-year-old Batticaloa MP Shanakiyan Rasamanickam as its new parliamentary group leader, replacing veteran Jaffna legislator Sivagnanam Shritharan following internal disagreements over party principles and accountability. The decision follows Shritharan’s refusal to step down from the Constitutional Council despite opposition within ITAK over his backing of senior military officers, more..

Feb 3 (AD) Cabinet has granted approval for a proposal to sign a MoU between Sri Lanka and Finland with the objective of establishing a Political Consultation Mechanism to further strengthen bilateral relations. Official diplomatic relations between SL and Finland were established in 1954, and the 72nd anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two countries will be commemorated this year. Over the years, the relationship between both countries, which is strengthened by more..

Feb 3 (AD) Court of Appeal today issued a writ order annulling the decision of the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court to issue summons directing former Prez Maithripala Sirisena to appear before the court in relation to a private complaint filed regarding criminal negligence for failing to prevent the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks. A 5-judge bench of the Court of Appeal delivered this order while delivering the decision on a writ petition filed by former Prez Maithripala Sirisena, more..

Feb 3 (DM) The govt is holding discussions on allowing vehicle imports for high-ranking govt officials who have received vehicle permits on their retirement, Deputy Minister Nishantha Jayaweera said today. He told Parliament that 1,900 permits have been issued so far under the scheme introduced for granting motor vehicle permits to high-ranking govt officials on a concessional basis upon their retirement. Responding to a question raised by MP Dayasiri Jayasekara, Dy Minister said more..

Feb 3 (AD) A group of School Development Officers, who were engaged in a fast-unto-death protest near the Presidential Secretariat, ended their protest campaign following the meeting with Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake. Protest campaign was temporarily called off after nine days following satisfactory discussions with the Prez. Protest, which initially began as a Satyagraha on Jan 26, was escalated to a fast-unto-death more..

Feb 3 (AD) Attorney-at-Law Rajeev Amarasuriya has been re-elected, uncontested, for a further term as President of the Bar Association of SL (BASL) for 2026/2027. He will formally be inducted at the 52nd BASL Convocation scheduled for 28 March 2026, according to the BASL. Former BASL Treasurer Nalin De Silva was also elected uncontested as the new Secretary of the BASL for 2026/2027 and will take over from incumbent Secretary Chathura Galhena, who completes his two-year term, more..

Feb 3 (CT) US Embassy in SL announced that it had temporarily scaled back regular updates on its official Facebook page following a lapse in appropriations in the US, which resulted in a partial shutdown of the federal govt. Embassy said it would continue to share only urgent safety and security information until full operations were restored. All routine updates would remain suspended during this period. The embassy clarified that, despite the funding lapse, scheduled passport & visa more..

Feb 3 (AD) Constitutional Council (CC) today unanimously approved the appointment of Senior Deputy Auditor General Samudika Jayaratne to the position of Auditor General of SL. CC convened at 12 noon today at the Parliament Complex chaired by the Speaker Jagath Wickramaratne. It was reported that the Council considered the names recommended by the Prez for the position of AG during the meeting. more..

Feb 3 (AD) SLPP MP Namal Rajapaksa has left the CID a short while ago after recording a statement for over four hours. MP arrived at the CID today following a summons to provide a statement regarding his alleged connections with underworld kingpin Kehelbaddara Padme. It is reported that Namal Rajapaksa had previously been summoned to appear before CID; however, as he was abroad at the time, he requested a rescheduled date, resulting in issuance of today’s summons. more..

Feb 3 (AD) Former First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa has left the FCID a short while ago after recording a statement for over four hours. She was summoned to provide a statement regarding alleged financial irregularities in the Siriliya funds. She had previously been summoned on 27 Jan 2026 to appear before the FCID to record a statement. Accordingly, through her attorney, she had informed the police that she is unable to attend on that day and requested a two-week extension. more..