Oct 5 (DM) Claiming that the NPP is finalising its nomination lists at district level for the upcoming General Election, NPP General Secretary Dr. Nihal Abeysinghe said NPP is preparing a mechanism to avoid competition for preferential votes among the NPP contenders. He said that however, the NPP will not intervene in any way in the elected members to Parliament and that NPP will make sure that all members elected by the people through preferential votes will enter Parliament. more..

Oct 5 (ST) Funding for the upcoming parliamentary elections is not an issue and the Election Commission (EC) is already engaged in initial preparations for the poll, a senior election official said. Funding is only one aspect of the large election process, Election Commissioner General Saman Sri Ratnayake said. Preparations for the handing over of nominations for the elections scheduled for November 14 are already underway, he said. “It is the Treasury that controls release of funds. more..

Oct 5 (Reuters) SL's $12.5 billion bondholder debt rework has received support from bilateral creditors and the IMF, finance ministry said on Friday, a huge boost to the island nation's fragile economy. SL defaulted on its foreign debt for the first time ever in May 2022, engulfed in a severe crisis and buckling under its high debt burden and dwindling foreign exchange reserves. Last month, it reached a draft deal with creditors to more..

Oct 5 (SO) Senior journalist Sunanda Deshapriya said that it is hoped that prompt investigations will begin under Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake regarding the killings and disappearances of journalists, which had been the subject of much controversy in SL. He said the current Govt had made promises in this regard before taking office. Deshapriya said that the disappearance of Prageeth Ekneligoda, the murder of Lasantha Wickramatunga, the mysterious death of Wasim Thajudeen more..

Oct 5 (DM) The tourist arrivals to Sri Lanka surpassed the total for all of 2023 in the first week of October, a positive sign for the country’s recovering tourism sector. The provisional data from the SL Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) showed that by Sept 30, 2024, the arrivals had reached 1,484,808 visitors, close to surpassing last year’s total of 1,487,303. SL Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) attributed the achievement of surpassing the 2023 levels to strategic initiatives, more..

Oct 5 (NW) The road adjoining Temple Trees, extending from Kollupitiya Mosque to the Rotunda Roundabout has been reopened to the public today (04) after a prolonged closure due to security concerns. The road, which had been inaccessible for an extended period, was reopened following a review of the current security situation by the new Govt. This decision is expected to ease traffic flow in the surrounding areas and provide greater convenience to the public. more..

Oct 5 (DN) Himsara Navodya from the Navy excelled with a spectacular second-round knockout against Army’s N.B.A.S.N. Kumara in the Featherweight (57kg) category in the quarter-finals of the 82nd Layton Cup Boxing Championship, organized by the Boxing Association of Sri Lanka (BASL), held at the Royal MAS Arena. Navodya had narrowly missed victory at the Intermediates meet in July, but this time he made no mistakes. After losing the first round, he fired back with more..

Oct 5 (TM) A group representing the political sector and civil organisations yesterday (3) engaged in a peaceful protest in front of the PM's office in Colombo, urging PM and Minister of Women, Child, and Youth Affairs, Dr. Harini Amarasuriya to investigate and initiate legal action against the defamatory campaigns allegedly being carried out through social media platforms against female politicians including former Prez more..

Oct 5 (FT) Colombo stock market closed the week on the up with the benchmark ASPI crossing the 12,000 points-mark as investors reverted to buying mode. After two days of dips due to profit taking, ASPI gained by 1% or 123.50 points to close at 12,053 and the active S&P SL20 gained by 1.7%. During the week, ASPI and S&P SL 20 gained 2.4% and 3.9% respectively. Turnover yesterday was Rs. 2.8 billion involving 71.4 million shares, whilst the daily average for the week was Rs. 2.52 b. more..

Oct 5 (FT) Qatar-SL Business Council (QSBC) signed a MoU with the National Chamber of Exporters (NCE) of SL with the aim of fostering stronger business ties and enhancing trade and investment opportunities between Qatar and SL. At the launching ceremony of the QSBC, SL Ambassador to Qatar Mohamed Mafaz Mohideen emphasised the importance of signing MoUs and fostering mutual agreements between business chambers and associations in both more..

Oct 5 (ST) The Sept 21 election was one for history books vis a vis SL presidential election for several reasons but mainly for going to a second preference count, something that has not happened since the first election to elect a prez was held in 1982. In the lead up to the poll, Election Dept officials anticipating that no candidate would secure 50%+ 1 to win the election in the first count urged voters to mark a second preference. more..

Oct 5 (DN) Sri Lanka Women’s Cricket team will meet defending champions Australia today in their T20 World Cup fixture at Sharjah Stadium at 3:30 PM (Sri Lanka time). After a disappointing loss to Pakistan in their first game, Sri Lanka’s batters are under pressure to deliver a stronger performance against a powerful Australian side. Skipper Chamari Athapaththu and her team must regroup and play fearlessly, as Australia remain favourites to win the title for the seventh time. more..

Oct 5 (TM) SL sits very close to one of the largest economies in the world, and besides India having been quite an influence on SL from ancient times, the island nation is also vulnerable to any geopolitical decisions taken by India. When Indian PM Narendra Modi rolled out his 3.0 strategy, SL may not have focused too much on the implications of that plan on SL – but, maybe we should. Returning to Kaleidoscope this week is the Executive Director of the Centre for Law more..

Oct 5 (FT) The Commercial Bank of Ceylon has been ranked second in the prestigious LMD 100 for 2023-24, moving up five places in the ranking the magazine calls Sri Lanka’s Roll of Corporate Honour. With this latest LMD ranking, Commercial Bank has not only retained its status as the highest-ranked bank in the LMD 100, but has also overtaken some of the country’s biggest diversified business groups in terms of turnover, on which LMD’s primary ranking is based. more..

Oct 5 (DN) SL’s Men’s Sevens Rugby team powered into the quarterfinals of the Asia Rugby Emirates Sevens Tournament in Nepal with an unbeaten streak, securing dominant victories over Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kazakhstan in three thrilling matches yesterday. SL crushed Saudi Arabia with a 52-0 win. Janindu Dilshan kickstarted the scoring with an early try, while conversions from Srinath Sooriyabandara and Tharinda Ratwatte added to the lead. Shahid Zumri, Heshan Jansen, more..

Oct 5 (ST) Road to presidency by Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the country’s ninth executive prez, has not been a bed of roses, unlike his predecessors. Humble beginnings and the hardships were many. “Once the custodian of a Buddhist temple asked me to release him to be ordained. He was then 12 years old. I did not agree,” recalls his mother, D.M. Seelawathi. Years later, her son Anura could not attend his father’s funeral. more..

Oct 5 (Island) One of the subjects Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake is responsible for is agriculture. On the other hand, subjects such as food security and health that are related and dependent on agriculture come under the purview of PM Harini Amarasuriya. Consequently, the production and distribution of agricultural products have a bearing on access to food at affordable prices to ensure not only food security but also on poverty and malnutrition. more..

Oct 5 (TM) Johann Peries made history as the second Sri Lankan to summit Mt. Everest, but his quest for greatness didn’t end there. Where most climbers might consider Everest the pinnacle of their careers, Johann decided to take on an even more ambitious challenge – the Seven Summits. This extraordinary undertaking involves climbing the highest peaks on each continent, a feat achieved by only a select few around the world. In this candid interview, Johann opened up about his more..

Oct 5 (Island) The police top brass is reported to have held a meeting recently to discuss the progress of high-profile criminal investigations. Among the other issues taken up at the discussion attended by Secretary to the Ministry of Public Security Ravi Seneviratne, Acting IGP Priyantha Weerasuriya and other high-ranking officers from the CID, etc, were the probes that had been either delayed or derailed, we are told. Such discussions usually take place when govets change; more..

Oct 5 (CT) Guess what! Including the immediate predecessor Ranil Wickremesinghe, there are five former Presidents in the country. Of them, Chandrika Kumaratunga and Wickremesinghe have officially retired from electoral politics. Mahinda Rajapaksa may decide to stay away owing to health and the poor performance of son Namal in the Parliamentary Elections – even the latter is said to be toying with the idea of a National List seat for self (like Wikcremesinghe five years back?), more..

Oct 5 (CT) When she joined her colleagues and took to the streets carrying placards with the slogan ‘6 per cent of GDP for education’ a little over a decade ago, Dr. Harini Nireka Amarasuriya would probably not have thought that journey would take her to the heights of becoming the second citizen of SL. Yet, her activism and conscious decision to join active politics, a field many women dread due to its vindictive nature, more..

Oct 5 (CT) Anura Kumara Dissanayake, candidate of the JVP and NPP front, has been elected as Prez of SL in the election held on Sept 24. His election is a proof that the Aragalaya, the spontaneous mass protests in May 2022 was no flash in the pan. Anura’s campaign focused on the youth, who had rallied together during Aragalaya protests and successfully converted them into votes. However, Anura does not seem to have understood the younger generations’ discontent against more..

Oct 5 (DM) Water is one of man’s primary needs of humans. Water is a key factor in agriculture as well as for consumption. Throughout history, from the times of ancient kings to future leaders, reservoirs and dams were built to meet the need for water. At present, the Irrigation Department of Sri Lanka and the Mahaweli Authority of Sri Lanka ensure the supply of essential water. Accordingly, water is provided for agriculture, which is one of the country’s basic needs. more..

Oct 5 (DM) SL’s newly elected ninth Executive Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake (AKD) continues to be the focus of this column. In the first part of this article published last week, the early years of Anura’s eventful life were delved into in some detail. In this week’s second part, AKD’s steady rise as a political leader within the JVP will be related to some extent. As stated in this column last week, JVP’s second insurgency was more..

Oct 5 (DM) Our country is struggling to get out of a situation of bankruptcy. President Dissanayake is even today in discussion with a high-level delegation of the IMF. According to media reports Dissanayake has doubled down on his acceptance of the agreement. He has however informed the delegation of the need to help the poorer sections of the community by lowering particular taxes. The IMF too, earlier spoke of the need to set up a safety net to protect the poor. more..

Oct 5 (DM) The UNP leaders alleged that what they called the unfair conditions laid down by the SJB resulted in the breakdown of the talks between the two parties. SJB has demanded that Ranil Wickremesinghe resigns as the leader of the UNP, the general secretary post of the proposed alliance be awarded to the SJB, the coalition contest under SJB’s symbol, the telephone and those politicians of the SLPP who joined the UNP prior to the Prez election be excluded from the alliance more..

Oct 4 (PMD) The Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in SL Azusa Kubota, met with the Secretary to the Prez, Dr. Nandika Kumanayake, for discussions on UNDP’s ongoing projects in the country and future collaboration between the UNDP and the SL govt, yesterday at the Presidential Secretariat. During the meeting, Kubota expressed the organization’s eagerness to continue the UNDP projects in SL and supporting SL’s development initiatives. more..

Oct 4 (TM) Ministry of Transport and Highways has announced that the construction of the port access elevated highway is scheduled to be completed by December. Approximately 90% of the construction work has already been completed. This project, which began in Sept 2019 with financial assistance from the ADB, has an estimated total cost of $300 million. The 5.3 km long, four-lane elevated highway will connect the Ingurukade Junction to the New Kelani Bridge and extend more..

Oct 4 (DM) A special meeting was held at the Police Headquarters to review the progress of several high-profile investigations concerning crimes, fraud and other controversial cases in Sri Lanka. The meeting, chaired by newly appointed Secretary to the Ministry of Public Security, Ravi Seneviratne focused on examining ongoing and stalled investigations. Acting IGP Priyantha Weerasooriya, senior police officials and officers from CID attended the meeting. more..

Oct 4 (EN) Sri Lanka will go ahead with a restructure of international sovereign bonds, with final confirmation having come from both the International Monetary Fund and the Official Creditor Committee. Sri Lanka said the IMF had earlier gave informal confirmation that the sovereign bond agreement in principle (AIP) with the local option was in line with the debt sustainability parameters. “Following the Prez Elections held in SL on 21st Sept and the appointment of the new govt more..

Oct 4 (AD) The IMF team visiting the island says it will continue its close engagement with SL’s economic team to set a date for the third review of the IMF-supported program. “We are encouraged by the authorities’ commitment to continue the reform efforts,” the global lender’s Director for the Asia Pacific Department, said in a statement at the end of the visit to SL. He further stated that the IMF remains a steadfast partner in supporting Sri Lanka and its people and more..