June 27 (NW) US Embassy in Colombo has cautioned that foreign nationals who travel to the US on tourist visas with the intent of giving birth to obtain citizenship for their child may be denied future visas. The Embassy stated that such travelers often rely on US govt medical assistance, passing costs onto American taxpayers. US consular officers will deny tourist visas if they believe the primary travel purpose is childbirth for citizenship benefits, which is not permitted under visa regulations. more..

June 27 (PMD) Prez Anura Kumara Disanayake met with former President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr. Thabo Mbeki, this afternoon (26) at the Presidential Secretariat. Mr. Mbeki, who is on his first visit to Sri Lanka, expressed his appreciation for the opportunity to visit the country, stating that he has long followed Sri Lanka’s efforts toward national unity and reconciliation with keen interest. He noted that he was pleased to visit Sri Lanka at this significant moment. more..

June 27 (Island) The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) has added several uniquely SL words to its June 2025 update, OED.com has said.Among the new entries is asweddumise, meaning to prepare land for paddy cultivation—a word with roots in Sinhala, long used in SL agriculture and land reform discourse. First documented in 1857, it was re-evaluated and finally added after decades of lobbying by local academics. more..

June 27 (TM) Ministry of Labour stated that any business, including garment factories, facing issues such as financial difficulties, is welcome to directly discuss their concerns with the Ministry so that necessary interventions can be made through the relevant institutions. Speaking about the recent closure of the Next Manufacturing Limited garment factory in the Katunayake FTZ, Deputy Minister Mahinda Jayasinghe said that Govt had not been approached by the company beforehand. more..

June 27 (AD) The SLMC has decided to nominate Abdul Wazeeth to fill the vacancy created in Parliament following the resignation of Mohamed Sali Naleem in March. The decision is expected to be conveyed to Parliament shortly, according to SLMC sources. SLMC National List MP Mohamed Sali Naleem resigned from his position on March 14, in order to contest the 2025 Local Govt Election for the Eravur Urban Council. Naleem was sworn in as a member of the Tenth Parliament more..

June 27 (DN) Forty-eight students from Polgolla Devapala Vidyalaya in Kurunegala were admitted to the Kurunegala Teaching Hospital after falling ill from consuming what is suspected to be a toffee (candy) purchased from a nearby shop. The affected students are reportedly from Grades 6, 7 and 8 of the school. The incident occurred during the school’s lunch break yesterday, when the students ate the candy bought from a store located in front of the school premises. more..

June 27 (FT) The Women Technopreneurs Forum of SLASSCOM made headlines once again with the thrilling conclusion of two landmark initiatives — Hack Like a Girl 2.0 and Fast Forward 4.0, both of which are redefining Sri Lanka’s innovation landscape by empowering the next generation of female tech founders. At the grand finale of Fast Forward 4.0, five remarkable startups emerged as winners: Meribel, Ivena (Littoral), Ceylon Speechi, Electriquote, and Innosync. more..

June 27 (Island) In a major top-level reshuffle, 32 senior police officers—including nine Deputy Inspectors General (DIGs)—have been transferred with immediate effect, following approval from the National Police Commission. The reassignments, described as part of an administrative overhaul, affect 16 Senior Superintendents of Police (SSPs), two Superintendents of Police (SPs), and more..

June 27 (FT) Cinnamon Life has officially redefined the culinary landscape of Sri Lanka, clinching an extraordinary 56 medals at the prestigious Chefs Guild of Lanka Culinary Art Competition 2025, the highest medal tally in the country’s history. The resounding win includes a remarkable 23 Gold, 17 Silver, and 16 Bronze medals, firmly establishing Cinnamon Life as the new gold standard in hospitality. In an unprecedented feat, the Cinnamon Life team was also awarded more..

June 27 (FT) The Cabinet of Ministers approved implementing two key projects under the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM) for the 2025-2027 grant cycles. “The upcoming grant cycle aligns with the objectives of the National Strategic Plan for Tuberculosis Control and the 2023–2027 National Strategic Plan for eradicating HIV/AIDS,” Health Minister Nalinda Jayatissa said. Global Fund has agreed to allocate $ 2.97 million for the Tuberculosis component more..

June 27 (FT) Despite global uncertainties, SL’s export sector continues to show strong recovery and resilience, with total exports in the first five months of 2025 reaching over $ 6.93 billion, registering a 7.14% growth compared to the same period last year. The latest figures, released by the SL Export Development Board (EDB), underscore a steady upward trajectory in both merchandise and services exports, more..

June 27 (CI) SL are only two wickets down but are 43 runs ahead at the SSC. Another 150-ish runs will help them dominate the match, says Kusal Mendis. He is yet to bat, and in fact three further wickets likely have to fall before he is required to. But having kept wickets for 79.3 overs, and having played plenty of his cricket at the SSC, Mendis has some idea of how the pitch is behaving. The plan, he said, is to go big in the second innings, and put as little pressure on their batting in the second dig more..

June 27 (ST) The President of the National Olympic Committee of SL (NOC), Suresh Subramaniam, emphasised the importance of adopting and maintaining a comprehensive, ethical and transparent administrative structure, whilst vouching for his newly appointed team that replaced six vacated positions. Subramaniam also revealed that the NOC, which was placed under a temporary fund seizure by the Int'l Olympic Committee (IOC) & Olympic Confederation of Asia (OCA), more..

June 27 (Island) Sri Lanka’s highest ranked track and field athlete Rumesh Tharanga will have a bussy schedule ahead as he has been entered for three international events including the Neeraj Chopra Classic 2025 during the next two months. Tharanga, who is currenly ranked 20th in the world in the men’s javelin throw will compete in the Neeraj Chopra Classic 2025, on July 5, at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru. The event was originally scheduled for May 24. more..

June 27 (ST) After three races of the ongoing Euroformula Open Championship 2025, SL racing sensation Yevan Ranasinghe David leads the Drivers’ Championship standing with 163 points, a clear 18-point lead from South Korea and Team Motopark teammate Michael Shin, who sits at second with 145 points. After the season opener at the Algarve International Circuit in Portimão, Portugal, Yevan continued his heroics at the Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium and more..

June 27 (FT) Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC) elected Krishan Balendra as its new Chairperson at the 186th AGM held yesterday. Balendra, who is the Chairperson of John Keells Holdings, succeeds Ernst & Young SL Country Managing Partner and Senior Economic Adviser to the Prez Duminda Hulangamuwa. Balendra’s deceased father Ken also served as Chairman of CCC previously (1998-2000). more..

June 27 (Island) A need for a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Japan was proposed by the SL exporters around 2010. At that time, SL’s Dept of Commerce, the main govt agency responsible for the trade negotiations, also strongly favoured negotiating an FTA with Japan for a number of reasons. By then, much of our export growth had come from two advanced economies; EU and US, which together accounted for more than half of our exports. In those markets, after the end of the quota more..

June 27 (GV) 200+: Beyond the Struggle is an exhibition amplifying the voice of the Malaiyaha Tamil community through their own images and stories. Organised by the CPA in collaboration with grassroots organisations Suya Shakthi and Uva Shakthi, the exhibition at the Lionel Wendt Art Gallery is the culmination of a multi-year effort to transform how society perceives the Malaiyaha Tamil population – descendants of Indian Tamil workers brought to SL during British colonial period more..

June 27 (Island) The Colombo Port is reportedly experiencing delays again. An association of container truck operators has blamed this sorry state of affairs on the non-implementation of key recommendations made by a Cabinet sub-committee; it has said a block of land allocated for cargo clearance operations remains unutilised. Why the govt did not take follow-up action to ensure the implementation of its recommendations is the question. It is believed that port delays, more..

June 27 (ST) Ironically, the trio and I were on one page on Thursday morning: concern for helpless people in West Asia affected by the war in Gaza, Iran and Israel (with Israel firing the first shots at Tehran). This morning, Aldoris, the choon-paan karaya, came down the lane incessantly playing his tuk-tuk’s signature tune to be greeted with a set of frowning faces. "Aldoris, oya saddey adu-karanna (Aldoris, reduce the sound),” urged Serapina, “Aeih (Why),” he asked, surprised. more..

June 27 (CT) In a chilling comparison that left the nation shaken, DIG Indika Hapugoda said that nearly 2,000 lives have already been lost on SL roads in just six months, from 1 Jan to 15 June 2025. Drawing a direct line between the annual toll of traffic-related deaths and the 28,000 fatalities recorded during SL’s three-decade civil war, Hapugoda warned: This is a very catastrophic situation. 1,133 fatal crashes were recorded more..

June 27 (CT) In Feb 2025, some workers who were preparing ground for the construction of a new crematorium at the Ariyalai Sindhubath burial ground – a public cemetery in Chemmani – stumbled upon human remains and thus, the Chemmani mass grave returned to the spotlight after years of dormancy. Following the orders of Jaffna Magistrate a fresh investigation and a supervised excavation was ordered which unearthed 19 human skeletal remains in total, including the remains of more..

June 27 (DM) People mostly remember Sri Lanka for its refreshing Ceylon tea, cinnamon and spices, cuisine or for its pristine beauty. But Sri Lanka is increasingly becoming a go-to destination for something more interesting -- world cinema. Today, many directors directing South Indian films for instance consider Sri Lanka as a potential film destination in the region and already several scenes in upcoming movies have been shot in some of Sri Lanka’s breathtaking locations. more..

June 27 (DM) Petroleum dealers of Lanka Indian Oil Company (LIOC) are up in arms against its management for the failure to raise the dealer commission that was pruned, despite gaining profits in billions of rupees annually. Following the new scheme implemented by CPC to withdraw the 3% dealer margin, paid over the past several years as and when the retail price was determined, LIOC too followed suit although other two contenders more..

June 27 (ST) A couple of weeks back I read a glowing tribute to Ceylon’s second post-independence prime minister whose birth anniversary was on June 9. I have been a great admirer of Dudley Senanayake just as writer Ilika Karunaratne had been all these years. Except of course our interests parted ways. So while Ilika Karunaratne recalls some of Dudley Senanayake’s past from his schools including his Cambridge days and the later era when he became PM more..

June 27 (TM) With the visit of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk to SL, the spotlight shifts back to the long-standing concerns and allegations about the island’s human rights track record. While Sri Lanka has some serious human rights-related issues to address and has failed to do so diligently through an effective domestic mechanism to-date, UN HR High Commissioner’s visit and the attention given to SL’s issues reeks of the duplicity in global order more..

June 26 (NW) John Keells Holdings (JKH) and Melco Resorts & Entertainment (MRE) proudly announces the grand opening of City of Dreams Sri Lanka on 2nd August 2025. This launch marks the completion of the final components of the project, including a world-class casino, the luxurious Nüwa hotel and a premium shopping mall. The milestone partnership, marks the debut of South Asia’s first fully- integrated resort and SL’s largest private sector investment in luxury lifestyle to date more..

June 26 (Island) UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has warned SL against falling into the impunity trap and urged the NPP govt to hold to account the perpetrators of the most severe crimes. He said so at a meeting in Colombo on Tuesday. Türk arrived in Colombo on Monday on a four-day visit. “In our complex and violent global landscape, there may be lessons for SL – and lessons that the world needs to learn from SL,” said Türk, as he tackled two main themes in his remarks. more..

June 26 (CT) Deputy Solicitor General (DSG) Suharshi Jayaweera yesterday informed Colombo Chief Magistrate Thanuja Lakmali that several detainees under the special attention of the CID had been suspiciously released from certain prisons under the guise of Presidential pardons granted for special holidays. She noted that although these individuals were not listed in the official Presidential pardon records, their names more..

June 26 (SM) The govt has recommended to import 40,000 MT of substitute rice to address the shortage of Keeri Samba in the local market. Following the notification by the Consumer Affairs Authority that sufficient stocks of Keeri Samba are not available, the Food Security and Cost of Living Committee, which met at the Presidential Secretariat yesterday made the above recommendation. Accordingly, around 5,000 MT of rice will be imported through state institutions while more..

June 26 (MW) The CIABOC today filed indictments against former Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella and five members of his family. The indictments were filed at the Colombo High Court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The Bribery Commission has filed 43 charges against Rambukwella, his wife, three daughters, and a son-in-law. The accused were recently remanded and later granted bail over investigations into their assets by the Bribery Commission. more..