Mar 24 (DM) Cabinet of Ministers in principle has green lighted the divestiture of seven state-owned enterprises (SOEs). They are SriLanka Airlines including Sri Lanka Catering, Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT), Sri Lanka Insurances Corporation (SLIC), Canwill Holdings Ltd. (Grand Hyatt Colombo), Hotel Developers Lanka Ltd. (Hilton Colombo), Litro Gas Lanka Ltd. Including Litro Gas Terminal Ltd & Lanka Hospitals Corp. more..

Mar 24 (TM) Sri Lanka is looking for a debt reduction of approximately $ 17 billion between the 2023-2027 period as the country is looking to close an external financing gap of $ 25.1 billion, IMF said. According to the IMF staff’s baseline scenario, $ 16.9 billion in debt reduction is required during the 2023-27 period, including the arrears accumulated amounting to $ 2.8 billion in 2022, for SL to close the external financing gap of $ 25.1 billion. SL has been in arrears to external private creditors since more..

Mar 24 (FT) Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa together with other leaders of the opposition met with foreign diplomats representing 12 countries for a special meeting in Colombo on Wednesday. The meeting was held with the aim of briefing the diplomats on the current situation in SL. The need to protect the country’s democracy and constitution as well as the conduct of LG elections were discussed at length during the meeting. Premadasa during the meeting requested int'l community to support more..

Mar 24 (FT) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe sought support from the media to ensure SL gets its 17th support program worth $ 2.9 billion from the IMF right. Addressing editors of print and electronic media, Wickremesinghe said that lack of support and misinformation by media was among reasons why previous 16 programs with the IMF didn’t succeed. “Why have we not completed it? Because it came under political influence. more..

Mar 24 (DM) Fertilizer companies today agreed to reduce the price of a 50kg bag of urea fertilizer by Rs. 7,000 in the market. Decision was taken following a discussion with Minister Mahinda Amaraweera and the representatives of several companies that import fertilizers to SL. During the meeting, minister requested the representatives to reduce the price of fertilizers sold by these private companies, especially since the govt is supplying urea to farmers at Rs. 10,000 following more..

Mar 24 (CT) There will be an acute shortage of nurses in State hospitals soon, as around 200 nursing graduates and those who were interviewed for nursing training in 2019 are still idling at home, while the Health Ministry had done nothing about recruiting them, All Ceylon Nurses Union (ACNU) Secretary, S.B. Mediwatte warned. Mediwatte said 3,500 persons, who had completed their GCE A/L examination, had been interviewed in 2019 to be recruited for training in nursing in 2020. more..

Mar 24 (ENS) After a long battle, fisherman Christober Singam from Thangachimadam recovered his mechanised boat from SL with the support of both the state and central govts. District Collector Johny Tom Varghese said that on Nov 5, 2022, fisherman Christober Singam was arrested by the SL Navy besides seizing his mechanised boat with the number IND TN10MM445. After inquiry, he was released by the SL court on Dec 13, 2022. However, his mechanised boat was still under more..

Mar 24 (FT) The Colombo stock market persisted with its negative run yesterday dipping sharply despite the IMF boost for Sri Lanka. The active S&P SL20 declined by 1.6% and the benchmark ASPI was down by 1.4%. Since Friday’s closing, the ASPI has lost 275 points of nearly 3% and S&P SL20 by 118 points or 4%. Boosted crossings, turnover, however, rose to a 12-day high of Rs. 3.4 billion involving 164.3 million shares. Market also saw net foreign outflow yesterday. more..

Mar 24 (TM) Chairman of the Sectoral Oversight Committee (SOC) on National Security, Dr. Sarath Weerasekera MP said that special attention should be paid to a number of matters in the context of national security including the proposed Central Bank of SL (CBSL) Bill and religious extremism including in the latter case unregistered madrasa schools and foreign preachers and lecturers. He stated thus when more..

Mar 24 (Island) Trade Minister Nalin Fernando said that eggs had not been supplied to Parliament canteen for the past two weeks. Responding to a question raised by Anuradhapura District SJB MP Rohana Bandara in parliament yesterday, the minister said that eight out of ten boutiques that used to sell eggs had now stopped selling eggs as there were no stocks in the market. Minister Fernando said the first batch of eggs imported from India had arrived at the Colombo Port. more..

Mar 24 (TM) Minister Tiran Alles is waiting for Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe to provide him with detailed information on alleged incidents of certain Police stations having falsely reported drug-related cases. Claiming that certain Police stations are violating laws pertaining to the possession of narcotics, Dr. Rajapakshe said last week that reports by the Govt Analyst's Department have proven that certain drug related cases are being falsely reported to courts by certain Police stations. more..

Mar 24 (DM) The govt continues to show no accountability towards the policies introduced in 2022 to tackle the crisis faced by SL, Colombo-based think tank Verité Research said. A recent assessment conducted by Verité Research showed that 93% of policies introduced by the govt in 2022 pertaining to health, agriculture and power, have no record of implementation. “The results reveal the closed culture and lack of accountability present within govt,” Verité Research said. more..

Mar 24 (Island) Hardly a day passes without a labour dispute reported from the state sector. There are signs of public opinion turning against the warring trade unions that resort to strikes at the drop of a hat. The govt has sought to make the most of public ire to settle political scores with the trade unions that pose a threat to its interests. Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe has taken a swipe at the education sector trade unions that are perennially on the warpath. more..

Mar 24 (TM) Director (Media) of the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF), Group Captain Dushan Wijesinghe said that the decision taken to blacklist the retired Air Vice Marshal Sampath Thuyacontha by the SLAF was taken with the aim of maintaining the internal administrative affairs without any political interruption. He said that Thuyacontha cannot enter any of the SLAF camps and enjoy the facilities given by the SLAF. more..

Mar 24 (FT) The fast expanding IT industry is to hire more this year though there were mixed views on compensation strategies given internal and external challenges. The growth in the industry and recent trends were released yesterday by the SLASSCOM, the national chamber for the IT/BPM industry. As per the Compensation and Benefits Report for 2022, developed in collaboration with SLASSCOM’s HR Forum and PwC SL, the industry’s workforce has increased by 22% and it intends to hire more..

Mar 24 (ST) Incomplete projects that were abandoned due to the economic crisis’ adverse impact on the construction industry will be reviewed and steps will be taken to complete them, while finding ways to pay outstanding dues, the Construction Industry Revitalisation Committee has decided. The committee held another round of talks on Thursday. Govt last month appointed the committee headed by Sagala Ratnayake, senior advisor to the Prez on National Security, more..

Mar 24 (TM) A senior official of the CEB said yesterday (23) that the supply of all the pending electricity connections would be resumed as soon as possible, after the CEB receives the expected revenue from the recently increased electricity tariff. He said that it would take two or three months to get back to the level of normalcy that the public expects from the CEB. “At the moment, the CEB has received more..

Mar 24 (FT) A SL Gem & Jewellery Exhibition was held at The St. Regis Hotel in Shanghai between 22 and 23 March with the participation of Zam Gems, SL under the patronage of SL Consul General in Shanghai Anura Fernando. At the exhibition, SL gems including Blue Sapphires, Rubies, Alexandrite, and Cat’s-eye Chrysoberyl were displayed. In addition, a variety of jewellery including necklaces, rings, earrings, bracelets which were crafted using above mentioned SL gems and stones more..

Mar 24 (FT) Dipped Products PLC (DPL), a member of the Hayleys Group, recently commissioned an automated central warehouse facility at the Biyagama Export Processing Zone, to enhance its service delivery excellence to meet the critical global export demand. The state-of-the-art new warehouse facility will enable DPL to consolidate storage facilities across its Hanwella, Kottawa and Biyagama factories, by streamlining operations, reducing transportation and logistics costs, more..

Mar 24 (CI) Despite the eventual 2-0 scoreline in favour of the hosts, it's safe to say SL might have surprised a fair few folks that tuned into the Tests in Christchurch and Wellington - okay, maybe not so much the latter, but certainly over the course of that epic first Test. In that game, the visitors, in pursuit of an unlikely World Test Championship berth, ran the defending WTC champions as close as pretty much anyone could have imagined. And in the process garnered some well-deserved respect more..

Mar 24 (FT) The longest running marine exhibition in the Maldives Maldives Marine Expo 2023 was held 15 to 18 March at Hulhumalé in greater Male’ Area with 100 stalls reinforcing its status as the South Asia’s largest marine industry gathering. Leading SL boat building companies Solar Impulse under Sea Leisure Yachting Group and Chalana Boatyard participated in the Expo.During the event, an MOU was signed between the) President National Boating Association of Maldives (NBAM) more..

Mar 24 (DN) Rumeshika Ratnayake, South Asian medal sprinter once again came to the fore when she won the women’s 100m event clocking 12.04 seconds while Chamod Yodasinghe finished first at the men’s 100m at the first selection trial of the Asian Games and senior and junior Asian athletic championship which was held at Mahinda Rajapaksa Stadium Diyagama. Two day trial was more successful while one junior more..

Mar 24 (FT) Abans Auto Ltd., this week announced the introduction of Yadea electric bikes to the Sri Lankan market. Yadea, the ultimate electric bike with high-quality components, combines advanced technology, stylish design, and affordability to offer a smooth and comfortable riding experience with zero emissions and fuel consumption while saving the environment. The Yadea T9 and E8S boast of a 2000W high-power motor and a range of 100-plus kilometres on a single charge. more..

Mar 24 (Island) CSE trading kicked off on a positive note yesterday but the momentum could not be sustained for long owing to investor worries that the govt is planning domestic debt restructuring involving the imposition of a wealth and heritage tax on citizens, market sources said. Amid those developments both indices moved downwards. The All -Share Price Index went down by 131 points and S and P SL-20 declined by 46.8 points. Turnover stood at Rs 3.4 billion with four crossings. more..

Mar 24 (CT) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe said anti-corruption laws, the best and strongest in the South Asia, to be precise, will be presented in Parliament in the near future. Prez, while tabling the agreement reached with the IMF for the EFF in Parliament on Wednesday, said the int'l community accepted that he crossed a Vine Bridge to save the country, not MP Namal Rajapaksa as claimed by many. He said with the grant of the EFF from the IMF, SL regains recognition in the int'l arena. more..

Mar 24 (TM) At a time when the Police force has remained a major topic of discussion for months in a row, although often in controversial contexts, the country is to get a new IGP or a service extension for incumbent IGP Chandana Wickramaratne. Even though uncorroborated sources have claimed that several famous senior Police officers, including SDIGs Deshabandu Tennakoon and Ajith Rohana, are in line for the position, there is no clarity as to who would be in the IGP position once more..

Mar 24 (TM) We note with dismay the attempts being made by the Prez and Minister of Finance, Ranil Wickremesinghe and some Govt Parliamentarians to intimidate the Judiciary on the false pretext that the Supreme Court (SC) has violated the privileges of MPs. This allegation has been made after the SC granted leave to proceed with a fundamental rights application filed against the withholding of funds for the purpose more..

Mar 24 (GV) We know this and we know that despite all of their expressed concerns and intentions that the policymakers have little thought of doing much to reverse this trend. Rather than bemoan this inactivity and do nothing more, conservation groups have been attempting to do what they can to reverse some of these trends and bring trees and natural habitat back to where they once were. This has only been possible with the financial generosity of corporate entities and individuals and more..

Mar 24 (CT) The increasing popularity of NPP with an uncompromising stand on system change, a demand originated from the aragalaya youth, seems to have sent jitters within the ruling coalition and their parliamentary opponents who are now united to destroy this colossus. One member from SJB had even called for a merger between his party and UNP-SLPP coalition just to defeat NPP at the polls. It is the threat of NPP sweeping the polls that also made Prez RW look for excuses to postpone more..

Mar 24 (TM) Although there is a fear in the society that the disease known as listeriosis could be spreading fast, verified information suggests that there is no risk of a listeriosis outbreak occurring in the country. Thus far, SL has reported only one or two cases. Various tests and probes conducted following those incidents have not revealed any other cases of listeriosis. Noting this, several medical experts of Health Ministry’s more..

Mar 24 (DM) A group of 84 individuals, civil rights activists, and intellectuals has issued a statement on the political development in the country recently. In particular, they had mentioned the delay in holding the Local Govt Elections, which they allege is interfering with the democratic process. They also charge that the President and certain members of the Legislature are trying to intimidate and interfere with the Independence of the Judiciary. The statement is as follows: more..

Mar 24 (DM) The teaching profession is slowly becoming a volatile ground. Teacher protests have continued for years; thus giving all signs that this is a profession where some individuals cannot find satisfaction that easily. When compared to other professions teaching has remained relatively unchanged in terms of the lifestyle teachers lead. Their salaries have remained unimpressive and it’s a matter of concern when one knows that there is no real method to appreciate teachers and more..