Feb 19 (TM) Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC) has outlined the current status of Sri Lanka’s elephant population and the ongoing efforts to mitigate the escalating human-elephant conflict (HEC), as recent weeks have seen a surge in fatalities on both sides. DWC Director General (DG) Ranjan Marasinghe revealed that the Dept has set a 5-year timeline to conduct a comprehensive elephant census. more..

Feb 19 (FT) Fcode Labs, a global product innovation and engineering company, has made a strategic investment in Bunamo, a Europe-based coffee-centric startup building a digital platform for coffee enthusiasts. Alongside the investment, Fcode Labs partnered with Bunamo to design and engineer a scalable product that brings together home baristas, professional roasters, and coffee brands in one connected experience. Through the collaboration, Fcode Labs worked closely with Bunamo’s more..

Feb 19 (Island) Ambassador of Switzerland to SL Dr. Siri Walt paid a courtesy call on PM Dr. Harini Amarasuriya on the 17th of Feb at the Temple Trees. Welcoming the Ambassador of Switzerland to SL the PM briefed the Ambassador on her recent visit to Davos to participate in the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting noting that the series of high-level bilateral meetings held on the sidelines of the Forum, along with two important industry visits provided valuable insights for SL’s economic more..

Feb 19 (FT) SL’s construction sector has entered a period of cost stabilisation, with Colombo maintaining one of the most competitive construction cost positions in the Asian region, according to the latest Ceylon Institute of Builders (CIOB) SL Construction Cost Report 2025 – Colombo, prepared by VFORM Consultants. Annual report provides updated benchmarks across six major building categories and confirms that Colombo ranks among the lowest-cost construction markets in Asia, more..

Feb 19 (DN) SL’s electricity sector is undergoing a critical transformation, as the country seeks to balance affordability, reliability and sustainability while accelerating its transition towards renewable energy. With ambitious green energy targets, ongoing restructuring of the CEB and continuing debates over tariffs and coal procurement, the sector remains at the centre of national policy discussions. Deputy Minister of Power Arkam Ilyas spoke candidly about the Govt’s reform agenda, more..

Feb 19 (TM) Over 85,000 individuals categorised as poor and extremely poor under the Aswesuma welfare benefits scheme stand to lose their Aswesuma benefits due to the failure to update their information on time for the annual review. Welfare Benefits Board Chairman Nimal Kotawalagedara said the process to update information on Aswesuma beneficiaries started on 20 Nov 2025, but so far, 56,547 beneficiaries in poor category more..

Feb 19 (FT) TWC Capital Ltd, the corporate financial advisory arm of TWC Holdings, acted as the exclusive buy-side financial adviser to CBL Group on its acquisition of PT Tri Jaya Tangguh Indonesia (TJT), a large-scale coconut processing facility in Indonesia, with an investment exceeding $ 25 million. This transaction marks TWC Capital’s third cross-border mergers and acquisitions advisory mandate in the past two years, reinforcing its growing reputation for executing complex more..

Feb 19 (DM) The recent decision by the Bar Association of SL (BASL) to stage a nationwide boycott of court proceedings following the tragic murder of Attorney-at-Law Buddhika Mallawarachchi and his wife has reignited a crucial debate: Do lawyers have the right to hold the justice system hostage to express their grievances, no matter how legitimate those grievances might be? The question took a sharply ironic turn at a BASL press conference in Colombo, where a journalist more..

Feb 19 (Island) Parliament has earned notoriety for Dorothy Dixers or pre-arranged questions that the ruling party backbenchers ask ministers to help highlight the govt’s achievements and tear the Opposition to shreds. This practice is not peculiar to SL, but here the situation has manifestly got out of hand. NPP MPs are always given ample time to ask free-kick questions, which are legion, but the govt frontbenchers invariably obstruct the Opposition members who throw curveballs more..

Feb 19 (DN) Sri Lanka’s coastline is generally where fishing villages have long shaped their own rhythms of life. One element of that life is maadel, the beach seine, that once stood as both livelihood and ritual. It was more than a method of catching fish. It was choreography. At the call of Hoyiya, hoyiya, odi helei heleyiya, two lines of men would grip either end of a net cast into the sea and begin the slow, muscular work of hauling it ashore. Their voices kept time. So did the waves. more..

Feb 19 (SO) Mohanavathani works at a small hotel in Velanai, earning Rs. 1,500 a day. She did not take the job to build savings. She took it to repay the debts of her husband, Koneshwaran, a fisherman who committed suicide three months ago after struggling with mounting loans. The couple has 3 children. The youngest is in Grade 6. The two older children have taken up work to help repay the family’s debts. “My husband’s last loan was more..

Feb 19 (DM) A recent news item read that an Acting Registrar of Births and Deaths attached to the Alayadivembu Divisional Secretariat in Akkaraipattu was arrested for allegedly accepting Rs. 500 as a bribe to issue a birth certificate. Incidents of this nature reminds people that the system hasn’t really changed even after all these years. For some it maybe a laughable fact that a govt official even accept a Rs. 500 bribe. But accepting a bribe is an offense and therefore, more..

Feb 19 (CT) It should be made very clear from the start the suggested permanent commission or an office for review of the justice system is not one geared towards punishment of any of the offenders. Neither is it one where there would be direct powers to implement its own recommendations, where it makes such recommendations for improvements. The purpose of a permanent commission or something like ombudsman office with adequate powers to engage in a constant review of more..

Feb 19 (TM) More than 2,700 drivers were arrested for drug-related offences in January, according to the Police Traffic Management & Road Safety Division, marking a significant increase compared to the 427 arrests recorded during the entirety of 2025. Authorities state that the rise reflects intensified enforcement operations, expanded roadside inspections, and closer coordination with medical authorities. more..

Feb 19 (TM) SL’s housing conversation has taken a decisive turn. Faced with an escalating cost of living and a property market that appears increasingly detached from the realities of household income, the Housing and Construction Ministry has signalled its readiness to work with the Land Ministry and Urban Development authorities on regulatory reform. The proposal to install a pricing regulator reflects a growing anxiety that land and housing are drifting beyond the reach of ordinary citizens. more..

Feb 19 (CT) Indian Ocean region stands at a strategic crossroads. In an era marked by fractured geopolitics, rapid technological upheaval and the erosion of long-standing global norms, former Indian High Commissioner to SL and National Security Adviser Shivshankar Menon has delivered a stark message: the multilateral system can no longer be relied upon to resolve transnational threats or security challenges. If the established global order is faltering, nations of the Indian Ocean must more..

Feb 18 (CT) Colombo Additional Magistrate Oshada Migara Maharachchi, yesterday (17), ordered the release on bail of a Police Sergeant and a Police Constable who had been arrested by the Modara Divisional Criminal Investigation Unit in connection with the recent fatal shooting of a man by unidentified gunmen in Jinthupitiya, Modara. The two officers were produced in Court on allegations of dereliction of duty and bringing disrepute to the Police Department. more..

Feb 18 (TM) Sri Lanka is set to shine on one of South Asia’s most prestigious television platforms with the premiere of Jayaflava: Celebrating Sri Lanka, a six-part travel and food series airing on National Geographic South Asia. Premiering on 20 Feb at 8 PM, with a repeat broadcast every Sunday at 1 PM, the series will reach audiences across India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Maldives, placing SL’s story directly before one of the region’s most influential travel audiences. more..

Feb 18 (AD) Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake has met US Prez Donald Trump’s Special Representative for South and Central Asia and US Ambassador to India Sergio Gor in Delhi this morning. Prez Dissanayake is in New Delhi to attend the AI Impact Summit 2026, at the special invitation of Indian PM Narendra Modi. During the meeting, two factions discussed ways to expand US-SL economic cooperation, more..

Feb 18 (NW) The Sri Lankan High Commission in the United Kingdom has announced a temporary service disruption affecting the delivery of Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) approval notices issued by the Department of Immigration and Emigration in Sri Lanka. In a notice, the Consular Section of the High Commission in London said the disruption is due to unforeseen technical circumstances and is being addressed on priority by the relevant authorities in Sri Lanka. more..

Feb 18 (NW) Leader of the Opposition, Sajith Premadasa, met with the Rt. Hon. David Lammy, Deputy PM of the UK, at the Office of the Leader of the Opposition in Colombo for wide-ranging discussions on democratic governance, trade expansion, and bilateral humanitarian cooperation. Mr. Premadasa acknowledged reformulation of the Official Development Assistance (ODA), particularly in the areas of governance, the rule of law, climate justice, human rights, and poverty alleviation. more..

Feb 18 (Island) Central Bank Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe recently told a breakfast meeting hosted by Sri Lanka-Germany Business Council of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce that there were no basis for concerns regarding external debt repayments from 2028. He said that such concerns were unwarranted, given the buffers established by the Govt and its commitment to meeting obligations. more..

Feb 18 (AD) A Quasi Judge attached to the Koralaipattu (Central) Quasi Court in Valaichchenai has been arrested on allegations of accepting a bribe of Rs. 5,000. The arrest was made yesterday, according to the CIABOC. The Commission stated that the arrest followed a complaint lodged by a resident of Oddamavadi. The complainant’s legally wedded wife had filed a maintenance case seeking child support payments. As the complainant had failed to make the required payments, more..

Feb 18 (CT) GMOA has criticised the failure to implement the annual transfer of doctors across the country. The association said that while nearly 7,000 annual transfers were scheduled, written transfer orders had been issued to only around 650 doctors—representing a mere 9% of the total. GMOA noted that the week designated for transfers by written order, announced under the supervision of the Director-General of Health Services & beginning on 2 Feb, had already passed without action. more..

Feb 18 (NW) Former Prez Chandrika Kumaratunga visited former Presidential Secretary Saman Ekanayake, who is currently remanded at Magazine Prison. Kumaratunga said she does not usually visit prisons but described Ekanayake as a good person and a skilled administrator. “We need a skilled administrative service to run the country,” she said. Kumaratunga alleged that targeting administrative officials who are not politically aligned with a particular party began during the govt of more..

Feb 18 (CT) SJB MP Harshana Rajakaruna told Parliament yesterday that there were moves underway to remove Parliament Secretary-General Kushani Rohanadeera from office. He said he would table documents relating to the matter in the House. MP alleged that the current Govt, having interfered with the Attorney General’s Dept and the Judiciary, had now turned its attention to Parliament. Addressing the chamber, Rajakaruna said, “Just as the Deputy Secretary-General of Parliament more..

Feb 18 (Island) JVP General Secretary Tilvin Silva yesterday maintained that the NPP govt was not under Indian pressure to hold the long delayed Provincial Council elections. Tilvin Silva said that neither the devolution nor terrorism issues had been discussed during his meeting with External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar and Deputy National Security Advisor Pavan Kapoor, in New Delhi. This was Tilvin Silva’s first visit to India. more..

Feb 18 (EN) Sri Lanka will host the inaugural meeting of the BIMSTEC Expert Committee on Public Finance and Monetary Policy in 2026, a govt statement said, as the regional bloc seeks closer coordination on macroeconomic stability. The proposal to establish the committee was first proposed by SL’s Foreign Minister in February 2024, on the sidelines of the 7th Indian Ocean Conference. The initiative aims to provide a platform for member states of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for more..

Feb 18 (DM) Health and Mass Media Ministry has allocated Rs. 1,500 million in this year’s budget to establish 250 new health and wellness centres islandwide. The initiative follows the successful implementation of a pilot project under which 42 centres were inaugurated in January across 21 districts during its second phase. An additional five centres were set up in 2025 under the first phase. The Kirinda Health and Wellness Centre in Kandy was declared the 43rd centre established more..

Feb 18 (AD) Former Deputy Secretary General of Parliament, Chaminda Kularatne, has filed a writ petition before the Court of Appeal, seeking to nullify the decision to interdict him from duty without a fair inquiry, a reporter said. The Speaker of Parliament, the Secretary General of Parliament, Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa, Leader of the House Bimal Rathnayake, and 14 others have been named as more..

Feb 18 (NW) In celebration of the holy month of Ramadan, 50 metric tons of dates donated by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to SL were officially handed over on Monday at the Saudi Embassy in Colombo. The handover was led by Saudi Ambassador to SL, Khalid bin Hamoud Al‑Qahtani. The donation, provided through the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief), was received by SL’s Deputy Minister of Religious and Cultural Affairs, Muneer Mulaffer. more..

Feb 18 (CT) Australia looked unstoppable at 100 in just 8.2 overs, dismantling SL’s bowling attack. The hosts had already lost Matheesha Pathirana to injury early in the match, Eashan Malinga before the series, and their strike bowler Wanindu Hasaranga after the opening game. Suddenly, the responsibility fell on Dushan Hemantha — a player who wasn’t even in SL’s initial T20 World Cup plans. When Hasaranga was rested ahead of the tournament, SL turned to Vijayakanth Viyaskanth more..