Oct 13 (SO) As the UN and member states prepare for the final round of negotiations on the Global Plastics Treaty in November, UN environment head expects the treaty to seek to prevent nurdle spills from maritime disasters such as the Xpress Pearl. The first global treaty of its kind to address worldwide plastic pollution, the treaty’s final negotiations are due in Busan, South Korea. Speaking of the role the treaty could play in a situation similar to the Xpress Pearl disaster, more..

Oct 13 (Xinhua) In an office drawer of Chinese scientist Wei Yuansong lies a thank-you letter written in Sinhalese and signed off by an entire SL village. The letter, having passed through many hands and franked in various locations, tells shared memories of a decade-long fight against a killer kidney disease that had plagued the locals for years due to a lack of safe drinking water. "We express our heartfelt gratitude to Professor Wei for providing us with safe and tasty drinking water," more..

Oct 13 (TM) CEB is gearing up to reduce electricity tariffs further as it continues to operate profitably. A senior CEB official revealed that the board was now earning profits from electricity generation and intended to pass those benefits on to consumers. “We are earning profits now, so we will pass that profit to the public,” the official said. CEB has significantly reduced its reliance on costly diesel power, using its diesel plants only more..

Oct 13 (ST) The SL Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) under the Labour Ministry headed by Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya, is determined to weed out the agency’s alleged corruption and malpractices. SLBFE’s new Chairman, Koshala Wickremesinghe said on Thursday that he will fulfil the mandate of the current government and vowed to eradicate the corruption, malpractices and bring transparency, and accountability to SLBFE to provide relief to the migrant workers. more..

Oct 13 (TM) National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) will issue prices for four new healthcare products, following a recent court decision that adjusted an interim injunction affecting pricing regulations. NMRA Chairman Dr. Ananda Wijewickrama said that while the injunction was still in place, the change now allowed the authority to set prices for these new products. He explained that the pricing process involved checking external reference prices in the country of manufacture more..

Oct 13 (SO) For the first time Weligama Bay Marriott Resort & Spa hosted ‘Road to Give 2024’ CSR initiative on October 10 to raise much-needed funds for the SOS Children’s Village in Galle. As a part of this initiative the Weligama Bay Marriott Resort hosted a Beach Walk and a Zumba session (by NICO Zumba in Colombo) in the morning to create awareness about the SOS Children’s Village among the community. The General Manager-Weligama Bay Marriott Resort & Spa, Piyush Tyagi more..

Oct 13 (SO) The construction industry in SL is poised to post a 10-14% growth in 2024 if the IMF program continues unhindered, CEO, Director General of the Chamber of Construction Industry of SL (CCISL) opined at the BuildSL Exhibition launch held in Colombo last Friday. Wijeratne said the industry went through a bad patch and recorded a negative growth during the last four years – from 2020 until the end of 2023. The silver lining is that from the beginning of this year, more..

Oct 13 (CI) West Indies and Sri Lanka have long had an affinity of sorts for each other - particularly the latter during its cricketing infancy, when the mighty West Indian juggernaut was for most fans their second team. It also helped that they were fellow island nations - or in the case of the West Indies, a nation of islands. And in the lead up to West Indies' first white-ball tour of SL since 2020, these parallels have only grown stronger. more..

Oct 13 (Island) John Keells Group is set to open doors to Cinnamon Life at City of Dreams Sri Lanka, on Oct 15, 2024. Developed at an investment of over USD 1.2 billion by the John Keells Group, this is the largest and most ambitious private investment in the country which will redefine our tourism landscape, catering to a diverse clientele creating South Asia’s most dynamic destination for business, leisure, and entertainment. “Cinnamon Life at City of Dreams SL will encompass 687 luxurious rooms, more..

Oct 13 (SO) Match-fixing in cricket in SL entered yet another phase when for the first time a serving official, none other than the team’s main player selector Upul Tharanga was ordered to be arrested by the High Court of Matale that added to a list of rampant cheating for financial returns in the sport. Tharanga wore the SL cap representing the country in 31 Test matches, 235 ODI games and 26 T20 matches and the arrest warrant was issued against him after he failed to appear in court more..

Oct 13 (CI) Georgia Plimmer's 53 off 44 and an all-round show from Amelia Kerr secured a eight-wicket win over Sri Lanka in Sharjah, though the margin of victory was not enough to move New Zealand up to second; they remain third in Group A behind second-placed India on net run rate. For SL, it's a fourth defeat in four despite this being their best showing of the tournament with the bat; they finish bottom of the group. more..

Oct 13 (Island) Dambulla has become more than just a town in SL; it’s now an icon in the nation’s cricketing landscape. As the T20 International series against the West Indies unfolds with two of its three matches set on holidays, cricket enthusiasts have every reason to journey to this historic town. Known for its ancient cave temples and the nearby marvel of Sigiriya, Dambulla is a blend of cultural richness and sporting passion—a setting that makes it the perfect cricketing destination. more..

Oct 13 (TM) Sri Lanka’s former cricket Captain Arjuna Ranatunga, who reportedly backed the presidential aspirations of former Opposition and SJB Leader Sajith Premadasa ahead of the 21 September Presidential Poll, has opted to stay clear of party politics for the foreseeable future, informed sources have said. It is learnt that due to this reason, the country’s 1996 World Cup-winning skipper had decided against contesting next month’s Parliamentary Elections from the SJB ticket, more..

Oct 13 (SO) Sri Lanka defeated the Maldives 3-0 to claim the fifth place in the six-nation CAVA Under-20 Men’s Volleyball Championship, organised by the Sri Lanka Volleyball Federation and concluded yesterday at the Sugathadasa Indoor Stadium in Colombo. SL team dominated all three sets, winning 25-12, 25-20, and 25-20 in the match for fifth and sixth place. The tournament, which lasted seven days, featured a round-robin stage where each of the six teams played five matches. more..

Oct 13 (Island) The wrath of a nation can be a fearful thing. In 2022 we saw its evolution and culmination in our own Aragalaya, which sent the then president, a so called battle hardened war veteran and warrior-statesman, first in to exile and then to precipitate retirement. We saw it again, just a couple of weeks ago, in the election of Sri Lanka’s ninth executive president, a villager from deeply rural Tambuttegama, the son of a surveyor’s assistant. That he was the first student more..

Oct 13 (TM) It has been five years since the harrowing events of 21 April 2019, when a coordinated series of bombings struck churches and hotels across SL on Easter Sunday. The tragedy, orchestrated by the Islamist extremist group NTJ, claimed 269 lives and left over 500 injured, shaking the country to its core. For the families of those who perished and for survivors who carry both physical and emotional scars, more..

Oct 13 (SO) Just like when he batted for his team, Sanath Jayasuriya checkmated his employer Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and forced the think-tanks living on borrowed time to have him as their official head coach after showing them results on the board bringing to an end the hunt for a foreign expert to motivate the current crop of players. Unable to enlist a foreign coach for multiple reasons, SLC was forced to give in to the stop-gap incumbent coach Jayasuriya and more..

Oct 13 (Island) The fact that many politicians who have overstayed their welcome on the national scene will not be running for parliament at the November election was reported even before nominations closed at noon on Friday as this comment is being written. Obviously that was certainly not due to any altruism on their part. The results of the Sept. 21 prez election made that crystal clear. For example, if Namal Rajapaksa’s pathetic tally island-wide at the presidential contest is duplicated by more..

Oct 13 (ST) With the closure of nominations for the General Election (GE) on Friday, all parties (and more than 200 Independent Groups) will be gearing up for a short but gruelling campaign, ahead of the Nov 14 election. This comes hot on the heels of the Prez Election (PE), which was won by NPP candidate Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake. Even though there is a perception that SL’s Executive Presidency is all-powerful, the Legislature still has many aspects of governance such as more..

Oct 13 (ST) My dear Sajith, I wrote to you last about two months ago but I thought I should write to you again now even though you must be busy, preparing for your second national election within a few weeks. This must be that time when you must keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you. Some say you have improved from five years ago to the extent that you are not hiding away in Yala, counting the spots of leopards. Others argue that the more you change, more..

Oct 13 (ST) Hardly had the nominations for the parliamentary elections been handed over, political parties began planning on how they would be part of a future govt. Some of the smaller parties, contesting with the major parties, have approached the NPP led by Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake and told him that they were ready to extend support to a future govt. The parties that approached the NPP hierarchy have been more..

Oct 13 (ST) Nominations for parliamentary elections next month concluded on Friday with a distinctly lower degree of public enthusiasm considering the clamour there was for a new set of legislators to replace the older lot. Some 160 MPs from the former Parliament are in the fray again. The mandate of the people was the battle cry of the then opposition, comprising the SJB and the JVP/NPP. Both kept demanding an election. Now, pitted against each other for parliamentary supremacy, more..

Oct 13 (CT) As SL embarks on a transformative journey under the inspiring leadership of Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake and the NPP, a powerful wave of optimism sweeps across the nation. Prez Dissanayake’s inaugural address painted a compelling vision for a cleaner political landscape, robust democratic rights, and a strategic response to the country’s most pressing challenges. Acknowledging the complexities ahead, he called for collaboration with the business community more..

Oct 13 (TM) Just weeks after concluding the Prez Election last month, SL is once again in election mode, this time to elect MPs at the Parliamentary Polls next month. Given that many members of the previous Parliament have opted to sit it out at the upcoming polls – which includes three former Presidents (Mahinda, Maithripala and Ranil) and many members of the Rajapaksa family – there is a high likelihood of there being many new more..

Oct 13 (TM) Exactly a month from today, Sri Lankans will once again be heading to the polling booths to complete project change that they started on 21 Sept with the election of SL’s first Left-leaning Executive Prez. Forced by dire economic circumstances leading to bankruptcy, the latest phase of project change, which the people of this country earnestly undertook back in April 2022 by gathering opposite the Presidential Secretariat at Galle Face, finally manifested more..

Oct 13 (CT) This election season has marked a turning point in SL politics, with several long-serving politicians deciding not to contest. While some have chosen to remain in advisory roles, others have left politics entirely to pursue new careers. Amid these shifts, there is a notable trend of seasoned political figures opting out of the race, some even stepping back from entering Parliament through the National List at the eleventh hour. At first glance, it seems promising that traditional political parties more..

Oct 12 (FT) Election Commission of SL has confirmed that 690 accepted political parties and independent groups will contest in the 22 electoral districts for the upcoming General Election, scheduled for 14 Nov. The announcement followed the conclusion of the nomination submission period, which ended at 12 p.m. yesterday. A total of 764 nomination papers were received, but 74 were rejected due to errors in submissions. more..

Oct 12 (EN) Sri Lanka’s remittances coming from its overseas expatriate workers gained 15.2% to $555.6 million in Sept 2024 compared to the same month last year, helped by more expatriates using the official banking channels. The total remittances also crossed $4.8 billion in the first nine months of 2024 through end September, the latest Central Bank data showed. The remittances in the first nine months gained 11.5% to $4.84 billion compared to $4.35 billion in the same period last year. more..

Oct 12 (FT) The Election Commission of Sri Lanka (ECSL) has disclosed that only 13 out of the 38 candidates (or 34%) who contested the 2024 Presidential Election have submitted their Election Expenditure Reports as of yesterday. This comes despite the new campaign finance laws, passed under the Regulation of Election Expenditure Bill in 2023, which mandate that all candidates submit their reports within 21 days of the election results being declared. more..

Oct 12 (CT) While noting that acquiring ministerial residences is not political revenge but returning those promptly is an absolute necessity once the Cabinet is dissolved, PM Dr. Harini Amarasuriya ordered officials to initiate legal action against those who are failing to do so. During a discussion with senior officials of the Ministry of Public Admin, Home Affairs, PCs and Local Govt, it was revealed that there are about 20 more..

Oct 12 (Island) The nomination period for the 2024 general election, which commenced on 4 Oct, officially concluded at noon on Friday. Commissioner General of Elections, Saman Sri Ratnayake, confirmed that nominations were received at the District Secretaries’ offices across 22 electoral districts. The upcoming election will see 225 MPs elected, 196 members chosen from the 22 districts and 29 appointed via the National List, based on the votes secured by each party or group. more..

Oct 12 (Island) The SJB had not included actress Damitha Abeyratne in its nominations list for the Ratnapura District because the district level leadership was of the opinion that the party needed to groom a female leader from the district itself, former SJB MP and Ratnapura leader, Hesha Vithanage told journalists on Friday. “Abeyratne is a great strength to the party at the national level. However, we felt that we need to promote a female leader from Ratnapura,” he said. more..