Sep 21 (TM) SL is grappling with a significant cyber security crisis following a ransomware attack that has targeted critical Govt institutions, shedding light on the nation’s digital vulnerabilities and prompting experts to call for immediate and comprehensive cyber security reforms. Govt domains recently fell victim to a ransomware attack, a form of cybercrime where malicious actors encrypt sensitive data and demand payment for more..

Sep 21 (GV) Since August this year, ten districts in SL have witnessed severe drought conditions due to the lack of seasonal rainfall. The cultivation of around 50,000 farmers has been affected due to a lack of irrigation water in reservoirs. According to the National Disaster Relief Service Centre (NDRSC), nearly 150,000 people across 10 districts lack safe drinking water. Despite a revival of the South West monsoon, several districts are recording normal to below average rainfall. more..

Sep 21 (TM) In a fiery speech delivered in Parliament, MP Harsha de Silva, Chair of the COPF, passionately criticized the SL govt’s latest move—the introduction of the online safety bill. MP Harsha minced no words, calling it an archaic and draconian piece of legislation that violates fundamental principles and represents a significant overreach by the govt. His critique underscores the potential damage this bill could inflict on both investment prospects and freedom of expression in SL. more..

Sep 21 (TM) The much-anticipated election of the Football Federation of SL (FFSL) is all set to be held on 29 Sept. While former President Umar Jaswar has teamed up with Dr. Manil Fernando and Ranjith Rodrigo, the other presidential candidate is newcomer and Prez of the Anuradhapura League Dakshitha Sumathipala. The Daily Morning Sports met with Sumathipala to speak about his plans. more..

Sep 21 (DM) In a world of international relations defined by power rivalries and shifting alliances, Sri Lanka stands resolute in its pursuit of non-interference in its foreign relations and taking a neutral approach. Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe’s recent statements in New York at the Ocean Nations: The 3rd Annual Indo-Pacific Islands Dialogue on the sidelines of the UNGA, shed light on his foreign policy stance and commitment to safeguarding SL’s interests above all else. more..

Sep 21 (TM) Every year, following the onset of monsoon rains, SL’s road network becomes a highway to hell for motorists and pedestrians alike. An example of such occurred on Tuesday, when a road in Gothatuwa caved in, while submerged in water, creating a deadly trap which nearly cost the lives of a father and daughter who rode into the submerged cavity and narrowly escaped drowning. While SL has been facing an economic crisis, with state expenditure being reduced over more..

Sep 20 (AD) Foreign Affairs Minister, Ali Sabry has deposited the Instrument of Accession to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) on September 19, 2023, at a high-level ceremony held at the UN Headquarters in New York. Accordingly, Sri Lanka is now the 69th state party to the Treaty. Depositing the legal document on Sri Lanka’s accession to the TPNW took place on the sidelines of the ongoing 78th session of the UN General Assembly. more..

Sep 20 (EN) SL’s enactment of anti-corruption legislation is getting delayed because the Anti-Corruption Commission is currently grappling with the task of recruiting staff with formal training, Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe told USAID Administrator Samantha Power. “Given this circumstance, it is anticipated that it will require an additional year to realize the anticipated outcomes of the anti-corruption law adoption, making the timeline for achievement approximately 2 years,” more..

Sep 20 (TM) The Ministry of Agriculture has requested the farming community to commence the cultivation of paddy by using rainwater, as the Meteorology Dept has warned of a severe drought in the 2024 Yala cultivation season. During a meeting with a group of farmers, Agriculture Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said that the Dept had warned of a severe drought situation in the 2024 Yala season, and that farmers should therefore be prepared for such. more..

Sep 20 (DM) Disciplinary action has been taken against some state officers who have been found to be responsible for not taking action to prevent the Easter Sunday bomb attacks in line with the govt’s decision to implement the recommendations by the Prez Commission of Inquiry which probed the mayhem, Minister of Public Security Tiran Alles told Parliament today. “I will also look into how certain video clips on Zharan who led the suicide attacks on April 21, 2019, have been leaked,” more..

Sep 20 (TM) Heads of media organisations have stated that not being able to obtain accurate information expeditiously from govt institutions is a major obstacle in bringing accurate news to the people. They pointed out that even the “good” development programmes by the Govt have failed to reach the people, especially because certain press secretaries have not done the coordination in a proper way. They claimed thus while addressing the Sectoral Oversight Committee on more..

Sep 20 (TM) The Ceylon Principals' Union (CPU) has filed a complaint with the Human Rights Commission of SL (HRCSL) regarding the alleged appointment and transfer of principals in the North Western Province (NWP) based on the wishes of various politicians, without following the procedure adopted by the North Western Provincial Council (PC) in 2010. CPU General Secretary Piyasiri Fernando claimed that more than 1,200 schools in the North Western Province more..

Sep 20 (AD) The Govt Medical Officers” Association (GMOA) has raised concerns over the recent number of deaths that have taken place at the General Hospital in Badulla, noting that out of the 1,883 postmortems conducted over the last year, 770 persons were found to have died of heart attacks. Speaking on the matter, GMOA Deputy Secretary Dr. Palitha Rajapaksha attributed the high number of deaths caused by heart attacks to the absence of an angiogram machine. more..

Sep 20 (CI) SL have announced a young squad for the 2023 Asian Games - essentially a SL A side - with Sahan Arachchige set to lead the 15-member squad. Among those with international caps, Ashen Bandara tops the list with 11 white-ball games under his belt. Nuwanidu Fernando and Nuwan Thushara have played four games each, while Arachchige has played two ODIs. A majority of the team have however appeared in the LPL, so fans may not be completely unfamiliar with some of these names, more..

Sep 20 (DM) SL's present cricket team is more talented than the 1996 World Cup winning squad, former cricketer Arjuna Ranatunga said. "With the exception of Aravinda de Silva, the cricket team we have today is more talented than the 1996 squad," he said, adding that the present administration of the sport has misled young and talented cricketers. "I had several questions with the Asia Cup," Ranatunga said raising concerns as to why the Asian Cricket Council awarded USD 50,000 more..

Sep 20 (DM) The request by police for a restraining order preventing the commemoration of LTTE cadre 'Thileepan' was rejected by the Vavuniya magistrate’s court. He was to be commemorated today (20) for the 36th year. Vaviniya police moved that the commemoration of 'Thileepan' which included a demonstration along with a motorcade to Vavuniya town today was liable to result in a breach of peace. The court rejected the request of the police and held that anyone more..

Sep 20 (AD) Extremely limited resources have been allocated to the success of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement on climate change albeit the adoption in 2015, Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe told SDG Summit 2023 in New York. The two-day high-level political forum on sustainable development came to an end on Tuesday. The world leaders adopted a Political Declaration which left them with a ‘to-do list’ to turn words into action more..

Sep 20 (EN) Iranian leader Dr. Seyyed Ebrahim Raisi has accepted an invitation by his SL counterpart Ranil Wickremesinghe to visit the South Asian island nation in the near future, President’s media unit said. Wickremesinghe met Raisi on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. “The two leaders engaged in cordial discussions and Dr. Raisi accepted Prez Wickremesinghe’s invitation to visit Sri Lanka in the near future,” more..

Sep 20 (EN) Shares closed up, with interest in an acquisition from Softlogic. ASPI was up 0.23% or 25.83 points to 11,274.33, while the S&P SL20 was up 0.16% or 5.16 points to 3,172.81. “Though volumes were thin, the market did bounce back to a high of three days. There still is some uncertainty among investors waiting on clarity from the govt on IMF review and the upcoming budget,” an analyst said. Gainers were Commercial Bank, Ceylon Beverage Holdings and Sampath Bank. more..

Sep 20 (DM) In the recent past, SL has witnessed a worrying increase in various forms of criminal activities such as shootings, killings in broad daylight and theft, robbery, and drug-related offenses, raising concerns among citizens and authorities alike. The recent tragic killing of a six-year-old girl in Colombo has sent shockwaves through the community and ignited a strong public outcry. The girl was killed and her father was injured more..

Sep 20 (AD) Dasun Shanaka will remain as the Captain of the SL ODI squad for the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, sources confirmed to Ada Derana. Accordingly, it has been confirmed that despite recent claims made on social media platforms, no changes will be made to the captaincy before the tournament. There had been widespread speculation, especially on social media, about the skipper stepping down from the captaincy in the aftermath of SL’s humiliating 10-wicket defeat more..

Sep 20 (DM) Lasith Malinga has backed Dasun Shanaka to continue as ODI skipper even as deliberations are ongoing if the all-rounder should retain the captaincy for the Cricket World Cup. "Dasun Shanaka took on the responsibility of captaining the SL cricket team during a difficult period for the players and fans, managing to bring stability and respectability to the national side with his calm and collected approach," Malinga shared through his social media channels. more..

Sep 20 (FT) Despite sitting on the periphery of the global supply chain nexus, Sri Lanka was not spared by the disruptions caused by COVID-19 restrictions and the Russian war in Ukraine. Ongoing rivalry between the US and China are going to change the phase of globalisation with the formation of new alignments. Despite being an advocate of fair practices in production and trading, industrial policies of the US are changing in favour of domestic producers and domestic production. more..

Sep 20 (FT) Last week data was released that the Sri Lankan economy has contracted by -3.1% in Quarter 2-2023, stacking up to the -11.5% decline in Quarter 1,2023 which means chances are that we will be at a -4.3% contraction as per that latest update of the World Bank. There have been reported job losses touching over half a million, and increasing poverty levels to an all-time high of 7 million people as per the study done by LirneAsia. Another study by Nielsen IQ revealed that more..

Sep 20 (FT) SL delegation led by Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe in New York on Monday engaged in high-level discussions with World Bank President Ajay Banga and officials. The discussion, on the sidelines of the Prez’s attendance at the UNGA, centred on a range of critical topics, including economic reforms, agriculture, tourism, and digitisation. Prez expressed gratitude for the vital financial support provided by WB more..

Sep 20 (FT) SLPP MP Uddika Premarathna speaking in Parliament for the first time after an attempt was made on his life by a shooter on Sunday, blamed the incident on the current political system in SL. “Instead of speculating about the potential culprits, my opinion is that I was targeted by the prevailing political system in the country,” he said. An unidentified gunman had opened fire on Premarathna’s vehicle at around 10.30 p.m. on Sunday opposite his residence more..

Sep 20 (Island) If SL cannot arrive at an agreement with the foreign bond holders to restructure the foreign currency debt owed to them by Sep 27, even World Bank aid given to SL to import fertilizer and medicine will cease, MP Champika Ranawaka said. “This month is crucial. We have to come to an agreement with our foreign creditors. If we can’t come to an agreement, we won’t receive the approval from the IMF to have access to funds from its Extended Fund Facility Programme. more..

Sep 20 (TM) Reliable sources state that it has been decided to remove Dasun Shanaka from the leadership of the SL cricket team. It is reported that the relevant cricket authorities have discussed this in depth yesterday, and it is said that the decision will be communicated to Dasun today. Accordingly, it is also reported that the new leadership of the team will be assigned to Kusal Mendis. With the massive defeat of SL more..

Sep 20 (FT) Emirates and SriLankan Airlines yesterday announced they have signed a reciprocal interline agreement to boost connectivity for passengers of both airlines. The partnership will enable access to new points on each other’s networks via Colombo and Dubai, utilising a single ticket and enjoying the convenience of baggage transfers. Tickets are now on sale for travel effective immediately as the interline partnership unlocks 15 regional destinations operated by more..

Sep 20 (AD) SJB has vowed to go to court over the new Anti-Terrorism Bill. SJB member Ashok Abeysinghe stressed that no matter how the relevant Bill is amended, the main opposition would still oppose it. He further added that although a gazette notification has been issued pertaining to the Bill, it is yet to be presented before the parliament following its most recent amendments. “Once it is presented before parliament, there is a period of 14 days for us to go before the SC more..

Sep 20 (FT) Hotels Association of SL (THASL) President M. Shanthikumar hailed the finality of the Minimum Room Rate (MRR) from 1 Oct and assured there will be no drop in business as claimed by some parties with vested interests. “We thank Prez Wickremesinghe, Minister Harin Fernando and the Govt for introducing the minimum rates effective 1 Oct 2023 for hotels in the City of Colombo. There will be no drop in business as claimed by some parties with vested interests, more..

Sep 20 (DM) An attempt to smuggle in a stock of foreign cigarettes worth over Rs.4.5 million by a couple returning from Dubai was thwarted by SL Customs officials at the BIA yesterday. Customs officials on suspicion checked the baggage of a middle-aged couple to find illegal cigarettes in them. The suspects had arrived in the country on Gulf Airline flight GF 144 from Dubai. The male suspect was reportedly a resident of Kalmunai, whilst the female was from Ganemulla. more..