Aug 5 (FT) National Sales Average (NSA) of tea increased in July on both a month-on-month and year-on-year basis, according to Forbes and Walker Research. Tea auction prices strengthened in July, with the national sales average rising above Rs. 1,176 per kilogram, supported by improved prices for High and Low Grown teas despite continued weakness in the Medium Grown category. The national tea sales average for July 2026 increased to Rs. 1,176.10 ($ 3.50) per kilogram more..

Aug 5 (ST) Northern Chamber of Industries (NCI) is organising the Northern Int'l Trade Exhibition (NITE2026) on Aug 28-30 at the Thiruvalluvar Jaffna Cultural Centre. The event is being held during the annual Nallur Festival, SL’s premier Hindu festival, approaches which is being held from Aug 16 to Sept 12, taking advantage of a great influx of people at the festival where daily attendance is estimated between 60,000 on ordinary days and 200,000 on the main festival days. more..

Aug 5 (FT) The motor vehicle industry generated Rs.896.4 billion in Customs revenue while more than 327,000 new vehicles were registered during the first six months of 2026, underscoring the sector’s contribution to Govt revenue and signs of market recovery, according to the CCC’s Motor Vehicle Industry Report 2025/26. The report, released after a six-year hiatus following SL’s suspension of motor vehicle imports, more..

Aug 5 (ST) Batting in Twenty20 cricket has transformed over the past decade, but South Africa’s Reeza Hendricks continues to prove that solid technique and strong fundamentals remain the cornerstone of consistency. While the modern game demands innovation, Hendricks believes that the basics of the sport have never changed. “Even though the game has evolved, the basics remain the same. Obviously, depending on the situation and conditions, you have to adapt accordingly and more..

Aug 5 (Island) Emerging javelin thrower Themiya Thabrew heads to the World Athletics Under-20 Championships carrying expectations similar to those that surrounded Rumesh Tharanga four years ago as the global showpiece gets underway at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon, USA, on Wednesday. Commonwealth Games 2026 gold medallist Tharanga travelled to the 2022 World Under-20 Championships in Cali ranked among the top 40 in the age category at the time. more..

Aug 5 (Island) SJB and Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa yesterday told Parliament that a constitutional amendment seeking to extend the retirement age of Supreme Court judges would require people’s approval at a referendum. He cited a 2022 Supreme Court determination which, he said, held that such a change would adversely affect the independence of the judiciary. Making a special statement under Standing Order 27/2, more..

Aug 5 (DM) Sri Lanka’s tariff reforms could leave a bitter aftertaste for the local confectionery industry, with manufacturers warning that cheaper finished imports and heavily taxed production inputs are a recipe for an uneven playing field. A senior industry source, speaking exclusively to Mirror Business on condition of anonymity, said the sector fully supports the govt’s tariff modernisation drive and commitments under the IMF-backed reform programme. more..

Aug 5 (TM) SL netball team head coach Somitha de Alwis is nonplussed as to why the Netball Federation of SL (NFSL) is insisting on the retention of an injury-plagued 18-year-old schoolgirl in the tour squad to Hong Kong, shortly. Sri Lanka is due to leave Colombo on today for the 14th Asian Netball Championships taking place from 8-15 August, with the winners and runners-up of the tournament set to book their berths at the Netball World Cup in Sydney, Australia next year. more..

Aug 8 (TM) SL’s Export Development Board (EDB) officials recently engaged with Bogala Graphit’s management to discuss the way forward and the barriers in the graphite industry, as part of this initiative of intensifying efforts to unlock the country’s graphite potential, a statement made by the EDB said. The initiative is closely aligned with the National Export Development Plan (NEDP), which has identified minerals and mineral-based products as one of SL's thrust export sectors. more..

Aug 8 (Island) In 2024, Sri Lanka’s customs records show the country exported a modest US$ 41 million worth of goods to Thailand, cinnamon, coconut products, rubber, and assorted manufactured goods, ranked 47th among SL’s export destinations. It is a small, unremarkable trading relationship by any measure. Except that when researchers at Global Financial Integrity (GFI), a Washington-based think tank that tracks illicit financial flows, applied their standard mirror trade methodology, more..

Aug 8 (ST) High-level discussions with health authorities this week with regard to the vaccine – QDENGA or TAK-003 – against dengue were very positive. High-level discussions with health authorities this week with regard to the vaccine – QDENGA or TAK-003 – against dengue were very positive, the Sunday Times learns. Top officials from Takeda Pharmaceuticals, headed by Dr Eduardo Bittencourt de Gomensoro, met with Minister more..

Aug 8 (ST) LAUGFS Supermarkets is expanding its retail presence with a focus on integrated convenience formats and localised community supported by strategically placing stores in suburban areas. “We will be setting up 100 supermarkets within a short time,” Dr. W.K.H. Wegapitiya said. The company will be deploying flagship LAUGFS Super large outlets alongside compact LAUGFS SuperMart convenience stores tailored for quick top-up shopping, he said. more..

Aug 5 (CT) To chart the trajectory of modern SL governance is to witness a democracy fundamentally haunted by its own antiquity. For decades, a complicit political class has labored under the illusion that rewriting state texts could tame the ghost of authoritarianism. Yet, despite the modern veneer of parliamentary debate, SL cannot boast about centuries of decentralized power. Right throughout her history, she was ruled by a monarch. That ancient power dynamic has not only more..

Aug 8 (Island) Power makes govts impervious to reason and even drives them to amend the Constitution to achieve their political objectives. Unsurprisingly, the JVP-NPP government is in an indecent hurry to extend the retirement ages of judges. A draft constitutional amendment aimed at achieving that end received Cabinet approval yesterday. However, govt’s determined efforts to secure the passage of the questionable constitutional amendment without holding more..

Aug 5 (TM) Barely days after the country was shaken by the deadly unrest that claimed dozens of lives during the Negombo Prison clashes, Mahara Prison erupted in violence. Allegations of preferential treatment for certain inmates, simmering tensions inside overcrowded cells, injuries to prison officers, and accusations traded between officials and rights groups have dominated the headlines. Against this backdrop, the Govt’s decision to fast-track legislation allowing suspects and, more..

Aug 5 (CT) Provincial Councils are currently functioning without elected representatives of the people and are being administered solely by govt officials, a situation former Election Commission Chairman Mahinda Deshapriya described as unacceptable, saying it undermines citizens’ democratic rights and the very purpose of devolution. Calling for long-delayed PC Elections to be held without further delay, more..

Aug 5 (ST) The other day I attended a bana and dana in memory of a dear departed mother. There were a substantial number of Sri Lankans of varied professions and vocations present. It seemed to me that some of them were rather edgy or fidgety, if I might say so, like politicians waiting to break into their daily rhetorical prose or even worse. Hardly had the seven monks ended their preaching and departed when the fidgety visitors moved their chairs into convenient circles & very soon broke into more..

Aug 5 (DM) It no longer arrives as a distant warning. Climate change is here, it is relentless, and it is unforgiving. Across South Asia, from the flooded plains of Bangladesh to the heat-scorched regions of India and Pakistan, the signs are unmistakable. Yet, govts continue to react to disasters rather than prepare for them. Nowhere is this more evident than in SL. For years, scientists and environmentalists have sounded the alarm. Rising temperatures, erratic rainfall, prolonged droughts and more..

Aug 5 (SO) Govt’s decision to award contracts this year for the long-awaited Phase 1 of the Ruwanpura Expressway Project marks more than the revival of a stalled infrastructure project. It comes as part of a broader drive to modernise the country’s transport sector and use strategic infrastructure investment to support economic growth, improve connectivity and enhance the quality of public transport. more..

Aug 5 (DM) The opposition to the govt’s proposal to increase the retirement ages of higher appellate court judges reveals a bitter irony of Sri Lankan politics. It is a classic case of how even well-meaning policies could be politicised to extreme ends–– or, worse still, the same seemingly well-intentioned measures could be nothing more than haphazard choices of political expediency and guile. The Cabinet last week approved extending the retirement age of all judges by two years. more..

Aug 5 (DM) Effective communication is the invisible backbone of national security. Without it, even the most accurate intelligence becomes useless, and coordinated action collapses into confusion. SL has repeatedly paid a heavy price for this gap. Time and again, critical information has been available, yet the absence of timely dissemination, confirmed receipt, swift response, structured feedback, and mutual trust between sender and recipient has turned preventable threats into national tragedies. more..

Aug 4 (NF) Attorney General has filed indictments against former Minister Duminda Dissanayake before the Colombo High Court. The indictments have been filed in connection with the discovery of a gold-plated T-56 assault rifle at the Havelock City luxury apartment complex. Former Minister was arrested on May 23 last year in connection with investigations into the incident and was subsequently remanded after being produced before the Mount Lavinia Magistrate’s Court. more..

Aug 4 (NW) Cabinet has approved a proposal by the Minister of Labour to draft amendments to the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) Act No. 15 of 1958, aimed at strengthening social security for private and semi‑govt sector employees who are not entitled to pensions. EPF Act, introduced in 1958, is administered under the Commissioner General of Labour, with the Monetary Board of the CB serving as custodian of the Fund. While provisions of the Act have been revised periodically, more..

Aug 4 (EN) Cabinet has approved publishing the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution Bill and the Judicature (Amendment) Bill in the govt gazette to raise the retirement age of all judges by two years. Minister Nalinda Jayatissa said the proposals received constitutional clearance from the AG after initial approval on July 27. Bills will subsequently be tabled in Parliament for approval. Jayatissa denied claims that constitutional more..

Aug 4 (GN) India's Test squad arrived in SL on Tuesday ahead of a two-match series in the 2025-27 ICC World Test Championship cycle. The team landed at BIA at 3:50pm local time with officials from SLC on hand to welcome the visitors. The opening Test will be held at the Galle Cricket Stadium from August 15 to 19. As part of their preparations, India will play a three-day warm-up match at the NCC Grounds in Colombo from Aug 7, instead of the 4-day fixture that had originally been planned. more..

Aug 4 (DM) Cabinet has approved a proposal to expedite the drafting of legislation to introduce house arrest as a legal alternative to remand and imprisonment for eligible suspects and convicted offenders in a bid to ease overcrowding in prisons. The proposal, submitted by the Minister of Justice, seeks to instruct the Legal Draftsman to finalise the bill by incorporating additional provisions identified following a review of the draft legislation. The initiative stems from an earlier policy decision more..

Aug 4 (TM) Sri Lanka Cricket’s (SLC) Transformation Committee had made an ex-gratia payment to four of the five-member former Selection Committee headed by Pramodya Wickramasinghe, having looked at it from ‘a humane perspective’ over their abrupt removal last May. This was confirmed on Sunday by the Secretary of the Transformation Committee Prakash Schaffter. He stated that it was both a fabrication and misnomer to refer to more..

Aug 4 (TM) The number of Sri Lankans departing for overseas employment has increased by 4.84% in July 2026 compared to June, according to the SLBFE. A total of 25,622 Sri Lankans left for foreign employment in July, marking the highest monthly figure recorded so far this year. In comparison, 24,440 workers departed for overseas jobs in June. The Bureau attributed the growing interest in overseas employment to agreements signed by the govt with Israel, South Korea & Japan. more..

Aug 4 (NF) The Attorney General informed the Court of Appeal today that he objects to a series of intervening petitions seeking permission to participate in the case filed by former State Intelligence Service Director Suresh Salley, who has requested an order declaring his detention under detention orders in connection with the Easter Sunday terror attacks unlawful. Twelve intervening petitions filed by several parties, including Venerable Bengamuwe Nalaka Thera and more..

Aug 4 (NW) Parliament is set to take up for approval the Motor Vehicles (Inspection) Order No. 3 of 2026, introduced to strengthen road safety following a series of serious accidents linked to structural weaknesses in passenger vehicles. According to the govt, recent investigations by motor vehicle inspectors revealed that mechanical and structural defects in vehicles had contributed to many of the accidents. In response, authorities identified the need to establish a formal procedure for more..

Aug 4 (NW) All govt schools in the Kandy and Nuwara Eliya districts will reopen tomorrow, Central Province Director of Education announced today. Schools were closed yesterday due to adverse weather conditions and continuous heavy rainfall, which had raised safety concerns for students and teachers. The closure was ordered under the instructions of the Secretary to the Central Provincial Ministry of Education, with the primary aim of ensuring the safety of schoolchildren & staff. more..