Jun 5 (TM) SL’s 2027 and future budgets are to adhere to the 13% primary expenditure limit, whereby roughly 9% is to be allocated for recurrent expenses and 4% for capital expenditure, Treasury Deputy Secretary A K Seneviratne said recently (3). “When we look at the IMF programme, which is to end next year, it is within this programme that we have also allocated expenditure for the 2026 Budget,” Seneviratne said, speaking in a recording released by Ministry of Finance media unit. more..

Jun 5 (TM) The Dept of Meteorology has cautioned that the climate phenomenon known as El Niño is likely to develop in the coming months, bringing with it reduced rainfall and the possibility of drought conditions, particularly during July and August. More concerning is the warning that its effects could persist until Feb 2027, with a significant chance the phenomenon may strengthen towards the end of the year. For a country that remains heavily dependent on rainfall for agriculture, drinking water, more..

Jun 5 (Island) Sri Lanka has one of the most educated female populations in South Asia, yet only about one in three women participates in the labour force, making female workforce participation among the lowest in the region and leaving a significant source of economic growth untapped. That paradox took centre stage at a knowledge forum organised by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Colombo on June 3, more..

Jun 5 (Island) For more than a century, SL society has lived with a quiet contradiction at the heart of its religious life. On the one hand, the Buddhist monk is revered as the embodiment of moral discipline, selfrestraint, and renunciation. On the other, the modern monk has become a public figure, political actor, administrator, media personality, and in some cases power broker whose influence extends far beyond the temple. This contradiction has been tolerated, even celebrated, for decades. more..

Jun 5 (FT) Under normal climatic conditions, trade winds push warm surface waters across the Pacific Ocean towards Asia and Australia. During an El Niño event, these winds weaken, allowing warm water to shift eastward towards South America, disrupting normal atmospheric circulation and monsoon rainfall patterns. El Niño is the warm phase of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO), while La Niña represents its cooler phase. El Niño develops when sea surface temperatures in more..

Jun 5 (DN) The Earth is changing before our very eyes – with a noticeable increase in freak weather events such as wildfires, floods and droughts. We have not been very kind to Earth ever since the Industrial Revolution began, burning coal and other fossil fuels at an alarming rate. The noxious Greenhouse Gases emitted in this process have led to Global Warming, with 2025 already recorded as the hottest year in recent memory. For years, scientists have said that limiting more..

Jun 5 (Island) Opposition’s propaganda mill is in overdrive, manufacturing various stories about a split in the JVP-NPP govt. Mighty govts collapse not because their political enemies regain lost ground and turn the tables on them. They fall largely because the arrogance of power blinds their leaders to reality while their members dare not speak truth to power. Govt members sing hosannas to their leaders and even defend the latter’s wrongdoing, committing collective political hara-kiri in the process. more..

Jun 5 (DN) Seventeen months into the NPP administration, the political discourse is increasingly dominated by a dual narrative: the govt’s economic and social milestones versus the opposition’s persistent rhetoric of an impending ouster. NPP MP Chandana Wijeyasinghe dissects the administration’s strategic trajectory. He clarifies the state’s fiscal interventions to stabilize the banking sector, the institutional blueprint for more..

Jun 5 (DN) Last week the country was in deep shock with regard to a murder from the Eastern Province. A 14-year-old boy had allegedly become involved in the death of his 11-year-old sister. The boy had asked the sister for the mobile phone to watch Tik Tok videos. The boy got angry when the sister refused and resorted to violence. According to news the father had found the girl’s body inside the water tank. Some news reports claim she was strangled by her brother and then thrown into the tank, more..

Jun 5 (GV) Every monsoon season in Sri Lanka now arrives with a familiar sequence of events. Heavy rainfall triggers floods and landslides. Hazard warnings are issued. Disaster response teams mobilise. Relief packages are distributed. Temporary shelters open. Roads are cleared and damaged infrastructure is gradually restored. These systems matter and Sri Lanka has, over time, developed significant institutional capacity around disaster coordination and emergency response. more..

Jun 5 (TM) This question is asked not to start a narrow professional debate but as a matter of public concern. It is a question that every citizen might sense while walking through our streets, town centres, neighbourhoods, and expanding urban edges, even if they rarely put it into words. We experience the city every day, yet, we rarely stop to ask: who is actually shaping it? This question matters because the way that more..

Jun 5 (ST) Travelling by train or road to Jaffna, you pass through miles and miles of arid land from Vavuniya onwards – once no man’s land during the ethnic conflict. The land extent is equivalent to building three-to-five port cities which would have been a noble investment, rather than the structure in Colombo that required tonnes of sand and stone, a land-filled sea and environmental concerns raised at its inception. That has changed today and everyone is rooting for the Port City to make it work. more..

Jun 5 (DM) Sri Lanka’s economic recovery, once hailed as a remarkable turnaround after the unprecedented crisis of 2022, appears to be entering a challenging phase again. The latest assessment by the IMF indicates that economic growth is expected to slow to around three percent this year. While growth remains positive, the warning is significant because it signals that the easy gains from stabilisation have largely been exhausted. IMF has also reiterated another key message: more..

Jun 4 (NW) The new 5‑storey maternity and surgical ward complex of the Monaragala District General Hospital was vested in the public today under the patronage of Minister Nalinda Jayatissa, marking a major step in strengthening healthcare services for the people of Uva Wellassa. Built at a cost of over Rs. 857 million, the complex includes maternity wards on the ground and first floors, women’s surgical wards on the second and third floors, and plans for four modern operating theatres more..

Jun 4 (EN) Sri Lanka is faced with threats in the maritime security landscape evolving faster than the capacity of its institutions tasked with responding to them, researcher at a Colombo-based think tank has said. Shayan Peris, Research/Programme Officer of the Regional Centre for Strategic Studies (RCSS) has drawn attention to the widening capability-action gap confronting SL. While SL is responsible for securing an EEZ of approx 517,000 km² besides ensuring maritime domain awareness, more..

Jun 4 (DN) The govt will begin a phased programme to electrify and modernise SL’s suburban railway network from 2027, Deputy Minister Dr Prasanna Gunasena has said. The plan follows instructions given by the President and is focused on two main areas: restoring existing railway infrastructure and developing an electrified commuter rail system. Ministry said the first priority will be to repair damaged railway tracks more..

Jun 4 (DM) In dealing with the fallout of the Middle East crisis, the govt urgently needs to reduce diesel consumption by another 500 tonnes a day, but no specific measure has been agreed upon yet, a Minister said yesterday. Sri Lanka, like many other countries, is grappling with the rising fuel prices. Energy Minister Aruna Karunatilake told Daily Mirror that daily diesel consumption had averaged at around 4200 tonnes after the distribution was rationalized under a QR code system. more..

Jun 4 (FT) SL is set to commission battery energy storage capacity across 16 substation sites nationwide, marking the country’s largest energy storage program to date. The initiative represents a significant step in strengthening the national grid and supporting the country’s transition toward a cleaner and more resilient energy system. Each Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) is designed to store 40MWh of energy during daytime hours and discharge up to 10MW to the national grid more..

Jun 4 (DM) During submissions before court, President’s Counsel Shavindra Fernando, appearing for former State Intelligence Service Director Suresh Sallay, contended that based on the findings contained in the reports of the five consultant psychiatrists who examined the suspect, the court should consider granting appropriate relief under the provisions of the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). Counsel submitted that, more..

Jun 4 (DM) Deputy Minister Eranga Gunasekara said that 31 canals have been renovated and maintained under a joint government programme aimed at flood control and improving irrigation, with the project scheduled to be completed before October this year. He made these remarks during a field inspection on June 3 to assess the progress of maintenance work on several tanks and drainage canals in the Kolonnawa constituency in the Colombo District and the Kelaniya PS area more..

Jun 4 (DM) A 24-year-old resident of Udayanagar in Kilinochchi has been arrested for allegedly uploading videos containing songs that glorify the banned LTTE, Police said. According to investigations carried out by the Jaffna Divisional Criminal Investigation Bureau, the suspect had performed several songs during a musical event held in Navakkuli, Chavakachcheri on May 31. Police alleged that the suspect later edited four of the songs and uploaded them to his TikTok more..

Jun 4 (TM) National Agrarian Unity (NAU) accused the Govt of continuing to import rice from foreign countries instead of utilising local paddy stocks stored with the Paddy Marketing Board (PMB), a move that, they allege, has brought paddy purchases from farmers to a standstill. NAU’s Prez Anuradha Tennakoon said that pvt buyers are no longer purchasing from small-scale farmers, and that paddy is being sold at extremely low prices while govt has also stopped buying. more..

Jun 4 (TM) The organisers of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) Season Six in official partnership with the IPG Group, who serve as the event rights holder for the tournament presented a cheque for Rs 1.3 million to the SL Netball Federation (SLNF) recently. The cheque to this effect was handed over to the Chairperson of the SLNF Vajira Netticumara by Chief Organiser of the LPL Anil Mohan who is also the CEO of the IPG Group during the LPL Player Draft held at Cinnamon Life on Monday. more..

Jun 4 (TM) Sports Minister Sunil Kumara Gamage says that currently no time frame has been given to the Transformation Committee controlling SLC for the amendment of its Constitution, while paving the way for new elections. “At the moment, I am having a constant dialogue with the Transformation Committee officials,” he said. It was held to apprise the press of the 50th National Sports Festival to be held later more..

Jun 4 (NW) SL’s javelin star Rumesh Tharanga has climbed into the top five of the Men’s Javelin Throw World Rankings, marking a historic achievement for the country. Recent outstanding performances in international competitions have propelled him two places higher, securing 5th place with an Average Performance Score of 1,287. On Monday, Tharanga won silver at the Rabat Diamond League in Morocco with a throw of 85.97 metres, a feat that contributed significantly to his rise in the rankings. more..

Jun 4 (NW) Colombo High Court Lawyers’ Association has raised concern over the govt’s reported proposal to extend the retirement age of judges of the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, warning that such a move would undermine constitutional guarantees, stall judicial careers, and erode public trust in the independence of the judiciary. In a letter addressed to Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the lawyers stressed that the Constitution clearly fixes retirement ages at more..

Jun 4 (DM) Around one in every five SL children under the age of five is affected by malnutrition, Health Ministry Secretary Dr. Anil Jasinghe said. He cited data released for National Nutrition Month 2025, which showed that 10.1% of children under five are stunted, 8.6% are wasted, 16.1% are underweight and 0.57% are overweight. He said Sri Lanka has not made sufficient progress in improving nutrition levels since independence and more..

Jun 4 (SLN) In an effort to safeguard the nation’s marine resources, the SL Navy conducted a series of coordinated operations across island waters from 16 to 31 May 26. These operations resulted in the apprehension of 44 individuals and seizure of 8 dinghies, 2 canoes and 4 tractors utilized for illegal fishing activities. The operations spanned the beach stretches and sea areas of Pachchankerni, Sober Island, Polmalkuda, Kinniya, Sudaikuda, Ottamawadi, Alampil, Puduwakattu more..

Jun 4 (NW) Four warehouses belonging to a leading food importer in Nugegoda were sealed by the CAA on Wednesday, following a sudden raid that uncovered serious violations of consumer protection laws. The warehouses, located on Pagoda Road, were supplying bulk food products to hotels and markets across the island. Investigations revealed that the stock included dairy items such as cheese and butter, chocolate and cocoa powder, canned fruits and vegetables, pasta, meat products, more..

Jun 4 (AD) Authorities have initiated key steps under a national programme aimed at transforming the country into a digital economy by fully digitising the state service and enhancing the technological skills of govt officials. A special discussion on the initiative was held under the leadership of Deputy Minister of Digital Economy Eranga Weeraratne and Deputy Minister of PCs and LG Ruwan Senarath. The programme identifies several core objectives, including improving efficiency more..

Jun 4 (AD) Following the 3-day visit to SL, the Executive Board delegation of the UNICEF has met with the PM Harini Amarasuriya today at the Temple Trees premises. Welcoming the delegation, Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya expressed her appreciation for UNICEF's continued support to Sri Lanka, particularly in advancing the rights and well-being of children. She has also commended UNICEF's timely assistance and recovery efforts extended in response to Cyclone Ditwah, more..

Jun 4 (AD) The death toll from the massive fire that broke out yesterday at the Senehase Kedella Elders’ Home in Anguruwatota has now risen to 12 people, police stated. Another six individuals sustained serious injuries in the incident have been admitted to hospital A magistrate's inquiry into the incident was conducted this morning when Horana Magistrate Lakmini Vidanagamage visited the site. The burned bodies were removed more..