Apr 30 (Island) SLPP National List MP Gevindu Cumaratunga has asked whether moving of the Supreme Court to seek equal treatment to all members of the EPF influenced the govt’s decision to increase the interest paid to members from 9% to 13% for 2023. MP Cumaratunga said that though he felt the govt could have granted even a better interest rate, the decision was genuinely appreciated. The MP noted that more..

Apr 30 (CT) Medical and Civil Rights Professional Association of Doctors (MCPA) urged the President to appoint a powerful Presidential Commission to look into health corruption before the Prez Election. MCPA President, Dr. Chamal Sanjeewa, lashing out, said it was high time that those like the former CEO of the National Drug Regulatory Authority (NDRA), and the Board of Directors were brought before the law. Dr. Sanjeewa alleged that the public had lost trust in the Health Ministry more..

Apr 30 (CT) Animal welfare activists have welcomed a move taken by Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe to stop an elephant race in Maradana recently. “We learnt from elephant lovers that a New Year festival, where Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe is to be Chief Guest, was planning an elephant race with 12 captive elephants. We confirmed it with billboards fixed in Maradana and our team lodged a complaint against this at the Maradana Police Station,” Director, RARE, Panchali Panapitiya explained. more..

Apr 30 (Island) Dissident SLPP MP Dr. Nalaka Godahewa says in spite of several investigations, in some instances supported by foreign experts, govt hasn’t been able to convince the Catholic Church, as well as some other concerned parties, as to the origins of National Thowheed Jamaat (NTJ) terror plot. Therefore, the urgent need to address the concerns and grievances of those who had been affected by the Easter Sunday more..

Apr 30 (EN) A majority of the SLFP will join President Ranil Wickremesinghe in a broad alliance in support of his development agenda, State Minister of Foreign Affairs Tharaka Balasuriya said. Speaking to reporters, Balasuriya said members of the SLFP including Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva come on board the president’s ongoing development agenda. “This is not a programme built on fairy tales. It president is following an agenda that is sustainable in the long term. more..

Apr 30 (AD) Gampaha High Court the Trial-at-Bar has deferred delivering the verdict in the case against a Brigadier and three soldiers of the Sri Lanka Army over the shooting to death of three persons and injuring several others during a protest by villagers demanding clean drinking water at Rathupaswala, Gampaha. The court was scheduled to deliver its verdict today, however when the case was taken up the Trial-at-Bar announced that the verdict will be delivered on May 17, 2024. more..

Apr 30 (FT) As elections approach, the two Muslim parties, SLMC the senior and its breakaway junior ACMC, are on a bargain hunt looking for profitable deals with any of the national parties so that they could coalesce. This is not something new but had been the history of these ethno-religious adjuncts right from their inception. In fact, SLMC’s founding leader Ashraf’s whole strategy was to capture Muslim votes en bloc to bargain for privileges with competing national parties. more..

Apr 30 (FT) Out of all the Lankan politicians, the most baffling case for me is Ranil Wickremesinghe. I mean, what leadership theory can explain his behaviour? What management theory can predict his actions? How can the same man ruin his party beyond repair and still become the president of a country? Who would even believe this stuff? It simply doesn’t add up, which makes it an interesting topic for research. Let’s try to analyse this anomaly, this outlier. Well, for starters, Ranil is one tough more..

Apr 30 (DM) Despite the public being heaped with tax burdens and a soaring cost of living, MPs, along with public servants in the executive category, are set to get concessionary vehicle permits soon. As many as 102 MPs out of the total 225 in the House had placed their signatures by yesterday on a letter submitted to Speaker Mahinda Yapa asking for permits to import vehicles under duty-free conditions. more..

Apr 30 (AD) The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) seized 86 kg of suspected heroin worth INR 6.02 billion from a Pakistani boat, which was on its way to Sri Lanka via Tamil Nadu, off the Porbandar coast in Gujarat and arrested 14 crew members on Sunday. The drugs were seized during a joint ICG operation with the Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) and the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) during which the Indian side opened fire injuring one of the crew members. According to an official release, more..

Apr 30 (DN) Airport & Aviation Services SL Private Ltd announced that a project worth Rs. 852 million to upgrade the departure baggage makeup facility has been awarded to one of the leading professional and ISO-certified baggage service providers in Sri Lanka, MSN Engineering (Pvt) Limited. The project is implemented in line with the company’s program to enhance the infrastructural facilities at BIA continuously to facilitate the growing passenger volume at its main gateway. more..

Apr 30 (DM) Police Dept urged people not to give money to those begging from them in vehicles stuck at traffic lights within the Colombo city limits. Senior DIG Traffic Administration and Road Safety, Indika Hapugoda, mentioned that police officers from the 45 police divisions and 607 police stations have been instructed, through a circular signed by senior officers, to remove beggars causing disturbances to vehicular traffic. more..

Apr 30 (FT) Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe on Sunday hailed Dilmah for giving a new beginning for Ceylon Cinnamon as one of SL’s iconic tea brands made a strategic diversification to add value and market perhaps the country’s best of spices with far reaching health benefits and a culinary wonder. Dilmah is launching what it calls the finest Ceylon cinnamon of premium grade sourced from its plantations in Kahawatte to global and local markets. Prez Wickremesinghe was the Chief Guest at more..

Apr 30 (TM) As the saga to unravel the person or persons behind the horrific crash, at Fox Hill Supercross 2024 on 21 April continues, it has been revealed that the Ministry of Sports is yet to launch a serious probe of its own, to the calamity to date. The crash, the biggest in the annals of the country’s motor racing sphere, at Diyatalawa, claimed the lives of seven individuals, including an eight-year-old girl. This was after a car veered off the track and ploughed into spectators, more..

Apr 30 (DM) Former Prez Chandrika Kumaratunga said Prez Ranil Wickremesinghe invited her on several occasions to take up a position and support the govt. Ms Kumaratunga said that she refused the invitation, claiming that she could not take up any position until thieves were there in politics. She said she was invited to take up the chairmanship of the SLFP and that she refused it too. “I don't like to do politics with current politicians. I will not take up any key position in the party. more..

Apr 30 (FT) SL Bar Association of SL (BASL) has unanimously decided to decline the invitation extended by the SJB to serve as a mediator and coordinator in the planned debate between SJB leader Sajith Premadasa and NPP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake. The decision to decline the invitation was made during a general meeting of the association held recently. On 26 April, in a letter to BASL SJB MP Nalin Bandara invited it to act as an independent party to coordinate more..

Apr 30 (DM) The decision to not hold the annual SMMT International Automotive Summit in Sri Lanka for 2025 was influenced by the prevalence of beggar menace at traffic lights in Colombo, SL Automobile Association Secretary Devapriya Hettiarachchi said. Speaking to the media, he said that SL hosted the Asia Pacific Region II meeting associated with the SMMT International Automotive Summit conference more..

Apr 30 (EN) Sri Lanka has seen some improvements in night time economic activities, but more steps need to taken to attract tourists, State Tourism Minister Diana Gamage said. Gamage, since became the State Tourism Minister, has promoting night time economic activities to create more options for foreign visitors into the island nation. “Well I think so far I have achieved when it comes to the night time tourism,” Gamage told reporters at a media briefing on Monday in Colombo. more..

Apr 30 (DM) NPP yesterday accepted the official invitation for the political debate to be held by the Daily Mirror and Lankadeepa, with the three main presidential candidates while the SJB leader Sajith Premadasa is yet to confirm his participation. The Daily Mirror invitation was accepted by NPP General Secretary Tilvin Silva, who said that NPP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake is ready for the debate and will attend. Daily Mirror handed over the official invitation to Opposition leader's office more..

Apr 30 (AD) The Immigration and Emigration Dept officers at the BIA in Katunayake have apprehended two women over their alleged involvement in an attempt to send a SL teenage boy to London using forged documents. One of the suspected women had attempted to take the teenager with her to London on Friday (26), using forged documents bearing the details of a SL mother currently residing in UK along with her son. The teenager in question has been identified as a 17-year-old boy, more..

Apr 30 (FT) CHEC Port City Colombo Ltd, entered into a partnership with SL Export Development Board (EDB) in a move towards attracting export-oriented businesses to Port City Colombo. The partnership will allow Port City Colombo and the EDB to seamlessly work in collaboration to promote the Colombo Port City Special Economic Zone as an attractive commercial destination for export-oriented businesses. A MoU was signed between the two parties to this effect at a special ceremony more..

Apr 30 (TM) Since there is no transparency in the scheme of providing fully electric vehicle licenses to Sri Lankans working abroad and there appears to be many issues pertaining to the matter, the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Dr. Harsha de Silva instructed that a full analysis be carried out jointly by the Ministry of Finance, the Central Bank of SL (CBSL), more..

Apr 30 (FT) State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe expressed confidence in exceeding the $ 5 billion mark by year-end, driven by the strong growth in the tourism sector. “As of 25 April, the number of tourist arrivals to SL surpassed 757,000, contributing significantly to the increase in foreign reserves. It is now capable of exceeding $ 5 billion by the end of the year,” he said at the National Development Pride Conference of the Development Lottery Board yesterday. more..

Apr 30 (ST) A total of 43 indictments have so far been sent out against 93 accused in relation to the Easter Sunday attack, Attorney General’s Dept noted. The main case on the attack is the Trial-at-Bar where 25 accused have been indicted and the trial is in progress. The Trial-at-Bar is headed by High Court Judge Damith Thotawatta and 78 witnesses have so far given evidence. With regard to senior officers facing allegations over failure to prevent the attacks, more..

Apr 30 (FT) Central Bank envisages exports in 2024 to increase by 8.4% to $ 12.9 billion in the aftermath of a decline in 2023. The projection of $ 12.9 billion worth of exports is indicated in the CBSL’s Annual Economic Review of 2023 released last week. Last year exports were down by 9% to $ 11.9 billion from $ 13.1 billion in 2022. Imports are expected to recover to $ 20 billion this year from $ 16.8 billion last year, more..

Apr 30 (FT) As part of the 30th anniversary celebrations this April, Samson Rubber Products Ltd, (SRP) has organised a grand series of events. On 27 April, SRP hosted a traditional Pirith chanting ceremony and a special event to honour its long-standing employees, reflecting SRP’s deep rooted cultural values and commitment to its workforce. The evening will conclude with a spectacular fireworks display, lighting up the skies of Galle in celebration of three decades of success. more..

Apr 30 (Island) In March 2020, SL govt believed that the massive mandate Prez Gotabaya Rajapaksa had received gave it a licence to get out of the cycle of UNHRC resolutions by unilaterally opting out of the process. It announced that it would no longer consider itself bound to implement the resolution in force at that time. It stated its position was “backed by a people’s mandate and is in the interest of SL and its people, instead of opting to continue with a framework driven externally more..

Apr 30 (DN) Sri Lanka ‘A’ team led by Sahan Arachchige is ready to play second Unofficial ODI against Afghanistan ‘A ‘ led by Ikram Alikhil at the Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium Hambantota today. After winning the first ODI on Sunday SL A team came to the game with more confidence but the way Afghans battled until the end SL ‘A’ can’t take lightly this game. Both side batters dominated the first game and Afghan fast bowlers are better than SL pacemen. more..

Apr 30 (DM) As per the recently issued gazette notification, the income tax payments can only be made using three methods. The methods are by depositing cash, depositing pay order or bank draft or by the use of Online Tax Payment Platform (OTPP). While previously tax payments may have been made by cheque, the recent gazette notification does not identify payments via this avenue as an accepted method. Accordingly, the income tax payments, including payment more..

Apr 30 (DN) The much-awaited Asia Rugby Division 1 Championship 2024 will commence, today heralding the beginning of the Asia Rugby season with Sri Lanka making a notable return to action. The tournament promises riveting matches as SL hosts Qatar, Kazakhstan, and India at the Racecourse Stadium in Colombo. The opening ceremony will commence today at 4 PM. In the curtain raiser, Qatar will face off against more..

Apr 30 (CT) Sri Lanka thrashed Scotland by 10 wickets in their second match of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Qualifier 2024 played on Sunday (28) at Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi. Sri Lanka won the toss and opted to field. The decision reaped rich rewards as Scotland’s batters failed to create momentum from the start of their innings. After losing opener Darcey Carter for a duck in the opening over, Scotland kept losing wickets at regular intervals. more..

Apr 30 (ST) Five years after the Easter Sunday attack, Parliament held yet another debate on the matter. This was the third such debate on the subject and for the most part, it followed the pattern of the debates that preceded it, with various parties and individual MPs hurling accusations at each other as to who was ultimately to blame for the tragedy. The 3-day adjournment debate on the attack was moved by the Opposition on Wednesday; with MPs blasting the Govt for what they claimed more..