Mar 4 (DM) Information has been received regarding a Muslim extremist group operating in the Eastern Province, Minister Nalinda Jayatissa revealed. Addressing the media, he said that police intelligence and security forces are on a mission to uncover more details about the extremist group. The Prez also provided certain information about this incident in Parliament, the Minster said. Security forces remain on high alert regarding the activities of this extremist group, he said. more..

Mar 4 (AD) The Ambassador of Japan to SL, Akio Isomata along with his team, has paid a courtesy call on Justice W.M.N.P. Iddawala, Chairman of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC), today, at the CIABOC office in Colombo. The meeting, which began at 11 a.m. centered on discussing the ongoing and future cooperation between the Japanese government and Sri Lanka’s anti-corruption efforts, media unit of CIABOC said. more..

Mar 5 (DM) Sri Lanka lost a total of nine elephants during the first two months of 2025 as a result of elephant-train collisions. These statistics were issued to this paper by the Department of Wildlife Conservation. But records indicate that over 60 elephants succumbed to injuries caused by electrocution, hakka patas and gunshots. In February this year, seven elephants succumbed to injuries as a result of a collision with the Colombo-Batticaloa train Meenagaya. more..

Mar 5 (DM) The controversy sparked by Asoka Handagama’s biopic Rani, about the lives of Richard De Zoysa and his mother Dr. Manorani Saravanamuttu, is so one-sided that I feel duty-bound to make the following comments. I hate getting embroiled in controversies. They consume much-needed energy wasted in arguments which go nowhere. But, as someone who knew Richard and Dr. Manorani well enough to visit them at their home during 1984-86, I need to say the following, more..

Mar 5 (TM) The death of seven elephants after the Batticaloa-Colombo train Meenagaya collided with a herd of elephants crossing the railway track from the Kaudulla National Park has led to renewed interest in solving the longstanding saga of Human-Elephant Conflict (HEC). Train collisions involving elephants are not new to SL; just last year, a train carrying thousands of gallons of fuel hit a herd of wild elephants in Minneriya, more..

Mar 5 (DM) More than two decades ago, we were kicking around ideas on what would be the most attractive e-govt (e-gov) services we could introduce through the new World Bank funded e-Sri Lanka Programme. Someone suggested paying taxes electronically, but it did not tick the box of generating support for more e-gov services. Who likes paying taxes? And it was hard to do in those pre-smartphone days. One of the first services being offered under current digitalisation initiative more..

Mar 5 (CT) Marcus Tullius Cicero, Roman scholar and statesman, said “A budget should be balance, the Treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled and the assistance for foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome became bankrupt.” We do not know whether Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake has read Cicero’s advice before presenting his maiden budget of the country for the year 2025. more..

Mar 5 (SO) On March 2, 2018, a personal dispute between a man and a group of youths in SL’s central hills escalated into a week of communal violence. H.G. Kumarasinghe, a 41- year-old lorry driver, succumbed to injuries following an altercation with a group of four young men. Believing them to be Muslims, organised mobs launched widespread attacks, setting fire to Muslim homes, mosques and businesses across the Kandy more..

Mar 5 (TM) The 1930s Admiralty oil tank farm built in Trincomalee has long been the source of national pride, shame, trade union action, and much political posturing. The fact is that SL didn’t move strategically to exploit the colonial-era energy infrastructure and let it fall into disuse over decades. The oil tank farm became an Indo-Lanka concern following the controversial Indo-Lanka Accord of 1987 and remains a football kicked from one govt to the other, with little real investment and more..

Mar 5 (ST) Those who read the works of Lewis Carroll in their younger days and even in maturity would remember the entertaining book Alice in Wonderland and all related to it through some narrative poetry. But, if then, the simple words of a walrus to the carpenter during a beachside walk could evoke mirth and joy as they talked of many things, today’s millions find their satisfaction—and indeed their titillation—in a more muscular, bloodletting, and vicious culture even if more..

Mar 5 (Island) The political health of any govt, however powerful it may be, is in peril when doctors and nurses down tools, for the healthcare system is a cornerstone of social stability. The GMOA threatened a strike in protest against what it calls allowance cuts, but put it off until 21 March, when the final vote on the 2025 Budget is scheduled to be taken. Has the govt promised any committee-stage changes to the budget to accommodate the doctors’ demands? The public sector salaries are more..

Mar 5 (Island) Interview with Dhara Wijayatilake, Chairperson, The Office for Reparations, on disbursements from the Easter Attack Victim Fund. Q: How did the Office for Reparations set about making compensation payments to victims of the Easter Attack? A: We don’t like to call these grants compensation because you can never really compensate victims in such tragic circumstances. We refer to these grants as monetary relief and in the context of the concept of reparations, more..

Mar 5 (ST) Dept of Govt Printing website, which publishes gazettes, bills, acts, and notices, has been down since Dec 31 last year when it was hacked. Now under construction, website lets visitors see certain govt documents but doesn’t have a search function, making it difficult for citizens to engage with govt activities. Govt Printer said that a new website and firewall system is being procured to prevent future attacks. more..

Mar 5 (FT) Global Tech Meetup: SL Edition, which focused on raising awareness about artificial intelligence (AI), was recently held at the Hilton Colombo. Meetup was jointly organised by Tech London Advocates (TLA) and Global Tech Advocates (GTA) – SL Group, in collaboration with the Asian FinTech Academy (AFTA) and the SL Chapter of the Global Academy of Finance & Management (GAFM), based in Colorado, USA. FinTech Association of SL (FASL) also served as a supporting org. more..

Mar 5 (FT) 2024 gave birth to the IMRA Awards for Excellence where Muslim women were recognised for the first time in SL for their phenomenal efforts in excelling in their professions. A brainchild of Fathima Aziz who felt that there was a need to recognise these women and made known in the community was her vision. Partnering with renowned likeminded collaborators’ she was convinced also that despite it being a challenging task, she made sure that these women in the different fields of life more..

Mar 5 (FT) People’s Bank, yesterday announced its financial results for the year ended 31 Dec, 2024 reporting total consolidated operating income of Rs. 145.1 billion and post-tax profit of Rs. 28.8 billion, reflecting a growth of 49.9% and 152.7%, respectively. This included the benefit stemming from ISB restructuring which was fairly modest relative to peers. Consolidated net interest income rose to Rs. 122.9 billion during the year from Rs. 67.8 billion in the same period 2023 more..

Mar 5 (FT) The Colombo stock market continued its downward run yesterday moving to negative territory year to date for the first time this year. The ASPI declined by 1.84% or 297 points turning its year to date performance to a negative 0.47%. The active S&P SL20 shifted to negative territory on Monday and fell 1.6% further yesterday increasing the negative return to 2.33%. Turnover however improved from Rs. 1.5 billion on Monday to Rs. 2.4 billion yesterday involving 77.2 million shares. more..

Mar 5 (TM) Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious, and Cultural Affairs stated that plans are drafted to appoint boards of trustees instead of single individuals to oversee major devalayas, and that amendments to the Buddhist Temporalities Ordinance (Vihara Devalagam Act) may also be considered to facilitate this process. A devalaya is a shrine or temple in SL that is dedicated to a deity. A total of 37 devalayas are coming more..

Mar 5 (Island) S. Thomas’ have made a huge gamble in dropping left-arm spinner Abheeth Paranawidana for a promising young batsman (fresher) for the 146th Battle of the Blues Big Match which starts at the SSC ground on Thursday. The school from Mount Lavinia have announced their playing eleven leaving out Paranawidana who is their second highest wicket taker of the season. S. Thomas’ relied heavily on their left-arm spinners Paranawidana & Aaron de Silva for wickets more..

Mar 5 (EN) SL has completed a restructure of loans from China Development Bank and has started repayments, IMF program documents showed. SL had started technical exchanges with China Development Bank in person in Colombo in May 2023 and in Beijing in Oct 2023. An agreement in principle was reached with CDB in Nov 2024 and was assessed by the IMF staff as being consistent with debt sustainability. Official Creditor Committee has also assessed loans as being consistent more..

Mar 5 (CT) Deputy Minister Prof. Anil Jayantha Fernando, stated that all citizens, including individuals and businesses, are required to pay taxes. He emphasised that it was unfair to focus solely on the taxes imposed on individuals within the digital sector. He explained that the 15% tax rate on digital service exports had been introduced after careful consideration of the sector and stressed that it had always been applied fairly. more..

Mar 5 (CB) Harshitha Samarawickrama played a steady knock of 66 not out butrain had the final sayas the first ODI between Sri Lanka and New Zealand was abandoned after 36.4 overs, with SL at 147 for 5. After being sent in to bat by Suzie Bates, SL lost captain Chamari Athapaththu early to Bree Illing before a 45-run stand between Vishmi Gunaratne and Samarawickrama steadied them. But once Gunaratne was sent back by Jess Kerr in the 19th over, SL slipped from 70/1 to 94/4. more..

Mar 5 (NW) The Collective for Senior Citizens held a press conference, calling on the govt to reinstate the 15% interest rate on fixed deposits of up to Rs. 1.5 million for senior citizens. The group said the govt has failed to honor its pre-election promise, leaving elderly citizens struggling to cover basic living expenses, including healthcare costs. Speakers at the event criticized the govt’s tax policies, saying they place a significant financial burden on ordinary citizens while large corporations more..

Mar 5 (ST) National Police Commission (NPC) has sought a meeting with the Attorney General to discuss the issues that have arisen over the transfer of OIC of police stations. The meeting is likely to take place in the coming week, a source with knowledge of the matter said. NPC has sought the meeting in the wake of Acting IGP Priyantha Weerasooriya getting an interpretation from the AGs Dept which he claimed said he has the power to handle the appointment of OICs, more..

Mar 5 (NW) Fishermen of Rameswaram on Tuesday ended their 8-day long strike, a day after Chief Minister M K Stalin hiked the financial aid to fishermen whose boats were impounded in SL and assistance for families of fishermen languishing in the island nation’s jail. The fishermen also called off their indefinite fast, which they had begun on March 1. Announcing the decision to media persons, fishermen leader and convenor V P Jesu Raja said the decision to call off the stir was taken at more..

Mar 5 (Island) Fuel distributors have agreed to the new commission formula introduced by the CPC, Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa announced. The new formula, which replaces the previous 3% commission payment for fuel sales, has been implemented following discussions between the CPC, fuel station owners, and members of the fuel distributors’ association. Minister emphasised that the agreement marks a crucial step forward in streamlining fuel distribution and more..

Mar 5 (SLN) A coordinated search operation mounted by the Sri Lanka Navy and Police STF has led to the recovery of about 174kg and 126g of Kerala cannabis from the beach vicinity of Vaththirayan in Kilinochchi, Jaffna on Tuesday. Navy remains ever vigilant, actively conducting operations to combat a wide range of nefarious activities in the beach and coastal areas of the island, according to the SL Navy. In continuation of these efforts, the search operation was conducted by Naval Deployment Veththalakerni more..

Mar 5 (FT) IMF Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka Peter Breuer yesterday highlighted the delicate balancing act the country faces, as it reopens vehicle imports, which will provide a boost to consumer spending and business activity, while also risking exacerbating the trade deficit. He stated that reopening the vehicle imports would increase demand for dollars, whilst stressing that the country’s reserves have improved significantly under the ongoing bailout program. more..

Mar 5 (DM) Labour Minister Anil Jayantha pledged to use EPF and ETF funds to bring in more benefits to the working people instead of unproductive investments that it had made in the past. “We have seen how EPF and ETF was invested in an unproductive manner in the past. However, we will bring in new laws to ensure that the working people get maximum benefit by putting these funds for more productive use,” the Minister said winding up the committee stage debate on the budget more..

Mar 5 (CT) Speaker Jagath Wickramaratne, yesterday, warned Opposition MPs Ramanathan Archchuna and Shanakiyan Rasamanickam sternly against disrupting Parliamentary proceedings by raising concerns on alleged extra-judicial killings in the North and East. “I will be compelled to remove both of you from the Chambers,” Speaker cautioned, as the two MPs became aggressive in their statements. Archchuna and Rasamanickam claimed that extrajudicial killings were taking place more..

Mar 5 (FT) GMOA yesterday called off its countrywide strike, originally scheduled for today, following discussions with Health Minister Nalinda Jayatissa. The association however stated that they postponed the planned trade union action till 21 March only to allow time for further negotiations with authorities. The dispute centres on reductions in doctors’ allowances outlined in the 2025 Budget, which the GMOA claims more..

Mar 5 (TM) The Cabinet has approved the restoration and development of 24 oil tanks at the Trincomalee upper tank farm complex. CPC will oversee a 3-year project aimed at completing the development of these oil tanks. The project will include conducting a feasibility study and carrying out the necessary work, according to Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa. Approvals from the relevant parties, including Road Development Authority, Railways Department, and more..

Mar 5 (PMD) In order to make policy decisions related to ensuring food security, Ministers K.D. Lalkantha and Wasantha Samarasinghe along with members of the Food Policy and Security Committee convened for the fourth time today (3) at the Parliament Complex. During the meeting, extensive discussions were held on ensuring the supply of essential food items at affordable prices without shortages during the upcoming Sinhala and Tamil New Year season. Additionally, measures more..

Mar 5 (FT) The IMF yesterday acknowledged the significant progress made by SL in recovering the economy, whilst insisting on maintaining momentum is critical to securing long-term stability. The assessment came as the IMF’s Executive Board completed the third review under the 48-month EFF, unlocking a $ 334 million tranche, bringing total disbursements to $ 1.34 billion under the $ 2.9 billion bailout program. more..

Mar 5 (FT) The CEB is an important piece in the NPP Govt’s restructure of State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) puzzle. Hitherto, CEB has been a monopoly controlling the supply of electrical energy to the Sri Lankan people, businesses and industry. Its operations have a profound impact on the lives of people, who pay to use electricity in their homes, as well as indirectly pay for most other goods and services they consume, which invariably use electricity as an input. more..