Oct 16 (NW) Govt has launched a new official website to provide accurate information and address public inquiries regarding SL’s proposed education reforms. Reform Information & Enquiry Service (RIES) website, https://edureformfact.moe.gov.lk, was officially launched with the participation of PM Harini Amarasuriya. The launch took place during a programme held at Temple Trees yesterday more..

Oct 16 (EN) A delegation from Kurdistan Iraq visiting SL have discussed expanding trade beyond tea to other sectors. Team, who were in the country to participate in the SL Economic & Investment Summit 2026, expressed interest in exploring further business and investment opportunities, chamber said. “Discussions covered expanding trade beyond tea, SL’s traditional export to Iraq, with potential in food and beverages, agriculture, food manufacturing for export, higher education and tourism.” more..

Oct 16 (AD) US has announced a US$17 million grant to improve SL’s Maritime Single Window and Port Community System, aimed at strengthening digital infrastructure for maritime documentation, regulatory procedures and information exchange among port stakeholders. The announcement was made by U.S. Ambassador to SL Eric Stern Meyer during a visit to the Port of Colombo this morning, where he met with senior management of the SLPA, including Chair Dr. Parakrama Dissanayake. more..

Oct 16 (AD) Colombo Magistrate’s Court has granted bail to former First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa, who was in remand custody over allegations of misappropriating funds from the Siriliya Saviya account. Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama issued the order after considering submissions made by Additional Solicitor General Dileepa Peiris, who appeared on behalf of the Bribery Commission, and the attorneys more..

Oct 16 (NW) A free eye clinic and spectacles distribution programme for visually impaired persons from low-income families was held at the Kelaniya Divisional Secretariat premises today, under the patronage of Minister of Rural Development, Social Security Upali Pannila. The programme forms part of a nationwide initiative to provide free eye examinations and spectacles to 22,500 visually impaired persons aged over 40 from low-income families during 2026. more..

Oct 16 (NW) TV Derana has strongly defended its 360 programme presenter Kalindu Karunaratne over allegations raised by Deputy Minister Chathuranga Abeysinghe’s Office concerning an allegedly AI-generated photograph displayed by former Minister Wimal Weerawansa, maintaining that the presenter had appropriately questioned the claims during the live broadcast. In a letter dated Oct 15, Derana TV News director Yuwaraj Athukorala rejected the allegations and said more..

Oct 16 (FT) Ceylon Chamber of Commerce last week launched the SL–Vietnam Business Council, seeking to give fresh institutional momentum to bilateral trade, investment and tourism ties at a time when political and diplomatic relations between the two countries are gaining strength, though the commercial exchanges remain below their potential. The new council, the 22nd bilateral business council established under the Ceylon Chamber, has attracted 30 inaugural members, more..

Oct 16 (DM) Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) senior politician Lakshman Kiriella, who has come under fire over remarks he made during a meeting with the Mahanayake Thera of the Malwathu Chapter, said today that his criticism was directed at the Govt and not at minority communities. Kiriella was reported to have said that the Govt was attempting to win the support of minority communities through its handling of the case involving Venerable Galabodaatte Gnanasara Thera. more..

Oct 16 (TM) The shortage of nursing officers in 32 divisional hospitals in Jaffna District is affecting the provision of healthcare services, with a call being made to recruit more nurses from Northern Province to address the issue. Informed source in the Provincial health services said that some hospitals have very few nursing officers, with patients admitted following accidents or snake bites sometimes facing a situation where more..

Oct 16 (NW) Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe said that Lanka Sathosa accumulated a total loss of Rs. 22,000 million by the end of 2024. “When we took over in 2024, at the end of 2024, the loss of Lanka Sathosa was Rs. 22,000 million,” Minister stated, detailing the govt’s intervention to address short term debt obligations. “Our govt came and zeroed the Rs. 5,300 million overdraft that existed. Lanka Sathosa was paying Rs.30 to 40 million a month in interest Rs. 480 million a year. more..

Oct 16 (NW) Minister of Environment Dr. Dammika Patabedige conducted an emergency inspection visit to review the current health condition of the ailing elephant Kavantissa and formalize ongoing medical treatment protocols. During the visit, Minister focused on the elephant’s health status and the treatment plan jointly formulated by experts from the Dept of Wildlife Conservation, Dept of National Zoological Gardens and professors from Peradeniya Faculty of Veterinary Medicine. more..

Oct 16 (TM) NMRA is awaiting a post-vaccination monitoring plan from the company responsible for importing the dengue vaccine before the next steps can be taken towards its use in SL, NMRA Chairperson Dr Ananda Wijewickrama said. He said the NMRA had decided to grant registration to the vaccine on a one-to-one basis, following which the commercial interest surrounding the matter had subsided. more..

Oct 16 (TM) National Building Research Institute (NBRI) has launched an investigation into the collapse of part of an earth embankment near the Kadigamuwa area for the second time of this month, which sent soil onto the railway track and disrupted train services. NBRI warned that slopes destabilised by Cyclone Ditwah could become active again during rainfall, potentially leading to similar incidents in the future. The investigation will focus on identifying possible long-term solutions to more..

Oct 16 (NW) CID has informed the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court of a large-scale financial scam involving a fraudulent mobile application designed to resemble the official SriLankan Airlines app. The CID told Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama that fraudsters had used the airline’s branding and logo to promote a fake application offering a 50% return on airline ticket purchases. According to investigators, users were initially charged Rs. 250 to register on application. more..

Oct 16 (FT) The streets of Colombo are echoing with the cries of the working class agitating for fairer taxes. The Jana Aragala Movement and the Frontline Socialist Party staged a protest march in Colombo on 3 October, demanding the removal of unfair tax policies and relief from the rising cost of living. The National Power (NPP) Govt must not treat this as just a minor political disturbance. It must treat it as the desperate gasp of ordinary people for economic survival. more..

Oct 16 (FT) After reading my previous article, “What Produces Economic Growth — and What Does Economic Growth Produce?”, my friend Pali sent me this message: “Chandre. In your next article, can you outline what we should do about these paradoxes of ‘growth’?” I agreed. But only after starting this piece did, I realise what Pali meant by his diplomatic language: “Buddy, being constructive is not as easy as being critical.” In my previous article, I presented six numbers: more..

Oct 16 (TM) Justice for the Robe, National Pledge Offering and Freedom March, organised under the leadership of the Buddhist clergy calling for the release of Ven. Galagodaaththe Gnanasara Thera, reached the vicinity of the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo yesterday, where representatives of the clergy met the Presidential Secretary to discuss the matter. Presidential Secretary Dr Nandika Sanath more..

Oct 16 (TM) When extreme weather destroys crops, damages infrastructure and disrupts supply chains, the consequences travel far beyond the farm. They reach food prices, family nutrition, rural incomes and public finances. Cyclone Ditwah exposed this vulnerability with painful clarity. With El Niño expected to bring further climatic pressures, Sri Lanka faces a critical choice: continue paying heavily after disasters, or invest in protecting livelihoods and production before hazard more..

Oct 16 (DM) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism has sought public assistance to identify a deceased woman believed to be a SL national who reportedly lived in Lebanon for more than 42 years. According to a public notice issued by the Ministry, the woman was reportedly known by the name Rani Sri Lanki. The Ministry has urged anyone with information that could help establish her identity or trace her family members and known contacts to come forward. more..

Oct 16 (FT) IMF yesterday urged SL to stay focused on completing the ongoing EFF program, which has two reviews still to run. The comments come amid persistent debate over Sri Lanka’s IMF engagement beyond March 2027, when the EFF program ends. Fund said Sri Lanka’s fiscal performance had outshone that of its peers, and left the decision on any follow-on arrangement to the Govt. “Let me step back for a second more..

Oct 16 (TG) A Batticaloa civil society group has accused Sri Lankan police at Kokkuvil station of complicity in the illicit liquor trade in Thiraimadu, after a separate police unit carried out raids in the area that the local station had failed to make. Anthony Sil Rajkumar, media spokesperson for the Batticaloa Organisation Against Corruption, Fraud and Drugs, told a press conference in Palaimeenmadu on Sunday that the sale of illicit liquor, known locally as kasippu, had continued in Thiraimadu for more..

Oct 16 (NW) Protesters demanding the release of Ven. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thera have moved to the opposite side of the road outside the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo following a request by police. The protesters, including Buddhist monks who marched from Kandy to Colombo, have vacated the area directly outside the Presidential Secretariat and are now occupying the pavement on the opposite side of Galle Road. The road has been reopened to traffic, while protest continues more..

Oct 16 (TM) India’s Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has busted a transnational smuggling network that allegedly imported 7,311 metric tonnes of Pakistan-origin rock salt through Sri Lanka using forged trade documents to conceal its origin. Four people have been arrested in connection with the operation, which uncovered 295 containers of industrial and Himalayan rock salt valued at approximately Rs 104.5 million in SL currency, according to a statement issued by more..

Oct 16 (NW) Illegal Assets Investigation Division of the SL Police has issued freezing orders on cash and property worth approximately Rs. 85 million, suspected to have been acquired through drug trafficking. The assets include a two-story house valued at more than Rs. 70 million in Jaffna, and Rs. 15 million in cash. The investigation stems from the arrest of five suspects by STF officers in Jaffna on Aug 31, 2023, after they were found in possession of Rs. 15 million in cash. more..

Oct 16 (NW) Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa has condemned the police action against Buddhist monks protesting outside the Presidential Secretariat, urging Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake to personally intervene and address their demands. In a statement, Premadasa said the monks, who had marched from Kandy to Colombo, were engaged in a peaceful protest near the Presidential Secretariat. He said he had received reports that police had dismantled a temporary structure erected to more..

Oct 16 (DN) SL Women’s U-19 team, led by Chamudi Praboda, will take on Bangladesh in the Tri-Nation Women’s Under-19 T20 final today (16) at Iqbal Stadium in Faisalabad, Pakistan, aiming to cap an impressive campaign with the title. Sri Lanka head into the final in excellent form, having won five of their six league matches to finish at the top of the points table. Bangladesh recorded three victories against Pakistan but lost all three of their league encounters with Sri Lanka, more..

Oct 16 (TM) The COPF was told the Govt had spent Rs 9.7 billion to establish the Colombo Port City (CPC) project, and COPF Chairperson Dr Harsha de Silva stressed that it was the taxpayers who had borne a significant cost and the State needed to receive a return on its investment. CPC Economic Commission said the Govt had spent Rs 9.7 billion on the project. CPCEC Chairperson Harsha Amarasekera said that more..

Oct 16 (Island) The Under 18 boys’ shot put meet record will be under severe threat today, when the most talked-about thrower of the last All Island Schools Games Athletics Championships takes to the field on the opening day at Diyagama. Mayon Rajasinghe, now competing for his third school in four years, has shown steady progress this season and appears to be peaking at the right time to attempt another record-breaking performance on the junior circuit. more..

Oct 16 (FT) Indian life sciences group Zydus Lifesciences Ltd., and Sri Lanka’s Sunshine Holdings PLC are partnering to invest over $ 20 million in a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Horana, in a move aimed at expanding local medicine production and reducing reliance on imports. The proposed joint venture, Zydus Sunshine Lifesciences Ltd, signed an agreement with the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka (BOI) to establish the facility within the BOI zone in Horana. more..

Oct 16 (Island) SJB has accused the NPP govt of trying to create an environment conducive for the re-appointment of Kumara Jayakody who resigned on 17 April 2026 over a coal scam perpetrated in 2025. Colombo District MP S.M. Marikkar alleged that Jayakody’s successor Anura Karunathilaka was spearheading the efforts at the behest of Prez Dissanayake. Marikkar said that NPP was busy propagating a lie that the losses more..

Oct 16 (ST) Welimada area potato growers are complaining of low prices for their produce and high costs of inputs. They claim that they spend about Rs 220 to produce a kilogram of potato, but the market price is only around Rs 180. During the season they had paid between Rs 35,000 and Rs 38,000 for a kilo of seed potatoes. Most growers are in the Welimada, Boralanda, Vidurapola, Bogahakumbara, Uva Paranagama & Bandarawela areas. A grower from Boralanda, R.M. Gunapala, said more..

Oct 16 (FT) The Court of Appeal has dismissed an appeal by a Buddhist monk convicted of sexually abusing a novice monk. The court upheld his conviction and sentences of 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment for grave sexual abuse. Court of Appeal Justices Amal Ranaraja and Dr. Sumudu Premachandra held that the trial judge was entitled to rely on the child victim’s evidence, having found it credible and trustworthy. The bench said the victim had given a detailed and consistent account. more..