Oct 2 (Island) SL’s oceans are eight times larger than its landmass—yet the nation continues to overlook its greatest asset. Graham Marshall, President of the Wildlife and Nature Protection Society (WNPS), is urging policymakers and corporates to treat marine conservation with the same seriousness as terrestrial conservation. Speaking to The Island Financial Review recently after an exclusive screening of Ocean with Sir David Attenborough—hosted by Spa Ceylon at more..

Oct 2 (DM) Sri Lanka Rugby has now entered a phase where it will definitely be banned come October 19 if no election of office bearers takes place and the sport’s affairs not governed under a new Constitution in keeping with World Rugby requirements. World Rugby, which gave SL more than a year’s grace period from time to time to sought out its affairs and internal squabbles, has given SL the final warning in a letter addressed to the National Olympic Committee. more..

Oct 2 (TM) The research conducted by the UN Women organisation on gender equality in Sri Lanka, which investigation focused primarily on areas such as women’s economic empowerment, their leadership in governance and decision-making, and peace and security, and the prevention of violence against women and girls, identified that there has been a regression in gender equality in Sri Lanka in the global context. more..

Oct 2 (DM) CMA Sri Lanka SME Development Committee comprises members from Professional Bodies, Commercial Banks, Chambers of Commerce & Industry and Industry Experts who have been meeting since April 2020 to find solutions and support the SME sector. CMA SL’s Budget Proposals made for the development of the MSME sector that would generate employment to around 100,000 unemployed persons are given below. We are very happy to seeing the launch of more..

Oct 2 (FT) SL this week wooed Japanese investors to be part of the proposed neutral AI Data Centre to be set up for the benefit of South Asian countries. The plans were shared and invitation was extended by Chief Presidential Adviser Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya at a business and investment promotion forum in Tokyo presided by Prez Anura Kumara Disanayake. He said that the neutral AI Data Centre will be a virtual Special Economic Zone offering data sovereignty for countries using it more..

Oct 2 (FT) The tourism industry recorded its highest-ever September arrivals this year, driven largely by Indian visitors, boosting optimism for a strong winter season despite concerns over falling short of the ambitious 2025 target. As per the latest data released by the SLTDA, 158,971 tourists arrived in Sept 2025, surpassing the previous record of 149,087 in 2018 and marking a 30.2% year-on-year (YoY) rise in arrivals. more..

Oct 2 (DN) SL’s Women’s World Cup campaign opened with a match against India, which India won by 59 runs through the DLS method in Guwahati on Tuesday. However, Chamari Athapaththu’s team is optimistic about building on the positives from their bowling and batting as they move forward in this tournament. “There were positives in both our bowling and batting, and we executed most of our plans, but we also made a few mistakes, We dropped some catches, especially during more..

Oct 2 (TM) Two ex-SL, CR and FC and Royal backrow forwards, namely former captain Pavithra Fernando and Lasitha Gunarathne are set to vie for the Presidency of Sri Lanka rugby (SLR) at its AGM which is set to be held on Wednesday (8). But, with the majority of members of Pavithra Fernando’s team being elected uncontested, the former SL skipper may have already stolen the thunder of Lasitha Gunarathne, who is set to battle his junior opponent for the high stakes post next week. more..

Oct 2 (ST) The Nations Trust Bank (NTB) on Wednesday acquired the retail banking business of HSBC Sri Lanka, the biggest-ever merger and acquisition in the local financial sector, in a deal worth Rs. 18 billion but HSBC branches will continue as usual under the transaction is completed in the next six months. “The status quo will remain at all seven branches of HSBC but when the transaction is completed, an HSBC branch on a Friday will be rebranded as a NTB branch on Monday. more..

Oct 2 (ST) Asia Cup didn’t reveal anything new. One day, SL are thrilling. The next, they are fragile. Against India in the last game, with no pressure and nothing at stake, they played with freedom, only to fall short again. The batting is brittle, the middle order unreliable, selections unsettled. It has been the same story over the years. The real question is not how they lost in Dubai, but how they plan to stop repeating the same mistakes at next year’s T20 World Cup. more..

Oct 2 (ST) Recent drug busts and arrests have uncovered not only the dealers but also unearthed details on underworld operations, links with security forces figures and police leading to the detection of large caches of weapons. The recent arrest of organised crime suspect Mandinu Padmasiri, also known as Kehelbaddara Padme, in Indonesia is yielding significant results for investigators. more..

Oct 2 (Island) Simmering discontent in universities erupted in a token strike on Tuesday. The Federation of University Teachers’ Associations (FUTA) staged protests in state universities across the country to pressure the government to redress their grievances and solve a host of longstanding problems plaguing the higher education sector. They have warned that they will be compelled to ratchet up their trade union action unless the govt agrees to grant their demands. more..

Oct 2 (Island) The Galle Dialogue, initiated in 2010, the year after SL brought what many pundits called an unwinnable war to a successful end, is the Navy’s annual flagship event, albeit entirely on land. The event, held over two days, is meant to underscore the importance of the role played by then Vice Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda’s Navy in eradicating a formidable and growing challenge that may have posed a threat to maritime security. This year’s conference was held on 24-25 Sept more..

Oct 2 (ST) Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the buzzword nowadays. So it was not surprising that at a recently-held conference in Colombo with mostly foreign participants from India and Indonesia, dealing with the challenges of AI on the green economy, food and cybersecurity, the word ‘AI’ was used once in every five words. Is this tool – which does many things that a mind does – a benefit, an asset or a danger to mankind? Here are two sides of the same coin that is AI. more..

Oct 2 (DM) Unwanted strife over Katchatheevu has come back to the forefront after many years. I will begin my brief outline of the history of Katchatheevu in the Palk Strait and the present-day situation. This strait connects the Bay of Bengal between the northern coast of SL and the southeastern coast of India. The Palk Strait was referred to by the Tamils as the Pakku Neeranai. The Palk Strait is named after Robert Palk, the Governor of the Madras Presidency (1755–1763) more..

Oct 2 (TM) SL’s long-delayed e-passport programme, a project intended to modernise the country’s travel documentation and strengthen border security, has once again been pushed back, with authorities now setting their sights on early 2026 for the official rollout. However, they are doing it without a targeted timeline. Dept of Immigration & Emigration says the delay stems primarily from procurement complexities & legal challenges, more..

Oct 2 (DM) Recent revelations regarding the murder of former Havelocks Sports Club rugby captain Wasim Thajudeen are both shocking and disturbing. With missing information and various attempts to hide evidence, people were forced to believe that it was a mere accident caused as a result of drunk driving, until former Prez Maithripala Sirisena assumed power by reminding voters that he would do justice to the murders of Sunday Leader Editor-in-Chief Lasantha Wickrematunga, more..

Oct 2 (DM) One year since the election of Prez Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the NPP is still on a political honeymoon. The disunited opposition offers little challenge, and whenever Sajith Premadasa opens his mouth, Sri Lankans are reminded of why the NPP is in power. It is probably still premature to assess the foreign policy acumen or lack thereof of the NPP govt. However, if you look back over the past 15 years or so, each of its predecessors had done much to damage, rather than manage, more..

Oct 2 (CT) A notebook and a cell phone is all that remained in a blood-stained car on Attidiya Road, Ratmalana on 8 Jan 2009. The critically injured person driving the vehicle was a high-profile SL journalist, politician, broadcaster, and human rights activist, Lasantha Manilal Wickrematunge. The late Editor-in-Chief of the Sunday Leader newspaper was attacked in broad daylight by assassins on motorcycles who forced Wickrematunge’s more..

Oct 2 (CT) When SL passed the Right to Information Act, No. 12 of 2016, it was hailed as a historic victory for citizens. For decades, journalists, activists and citizens had pressed for a legal tool that would allow them to hold power to account. Act was not merely another piece of legislation, but it rather symbolised a profound shift where the people, not the State, become the ultimate custodians of information, and that public institutions exist to serve, not to conceal. Nine years on, however, more..

Oct 2 (TM) There may be light at the end of the tunnel for those who have been calling for regulation into single-use plastics in Sri Lanka, with the Supreme Court being informed of a gazette notification expected next month, making it mandatory to charge a fee for plastic shopping bags, so they can no longer be given free of charge by traders. While this move will not be the end of Sri Lanka’s single-use plastics crisis, it certainly is a step in the right direction. more..

Oct 1 (NW) The Australian Dept of Home Affairs has announced the revised Evidence Level update for countries and Education Providers concerning the Simplified Student Visa Framework (SSVF). Accordingly, the September 2025 Evidence Level update is based on Student visa outcome data from 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025. Australian Dept of Home Affairs announced that the revised Evidence Level update has taken place, effective for applications lodged on or after 30 Sept 2025. more..

Oct 1 (Island) Attempts are being made in some quarters to revive racism, and everything possible must be done to defeat them, Minister Ramalingam Chandrasegar has said. Chandrasegar was speaking yesterday morning at a ceremony to mark the reopening of Jaffna Special Economic Centre, in Mattuvil. Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe, Northern Province Governor N. Vethanayahan, and Members of Parliament K. Ilangkumar, S. Sri Bavanandarajah, and J. Rajeevan also attended the event. more..

Oct 1 (MB) In 2012, SL’s National Red List delivered a grim verdict on endemic Pini- Beraliya, the towering dipterocarp Doona ovalifolia (syn. Shorea ovalifolia) tree by categorizing it as extinct in the wild. For decades, the species was known mainly from a single cultivated specimen in the Royal Botanic Gardens in Peradeniya in central SL. That solitary tree, rising above the landscaped grounds, became a living relic of more..

Oct 1 (TM) Sri Lanka will soon develop a national quality infrastructure system that meets high int'l recognition standards, according to Minister of Science and Technology Dr. Chrishantha Abeysena. He made this announcement while attending the inaugural session of a two-day workshop on Regulatory Impact Assessment and the Strengthening and Development of National Quality Infrastructure Systems, organised by Ministry of Science & Technology in collaboration more..

Oct 1 (AD) A teacher at a prominent school in Monaragala has been injured and hospitalised following an assault by a student. The incident occurred this morning (October 1), and it has been reported that the injured teacher is currently receiving inpatient treatment at the Monaragala District General Hospital. According to reports, the Grade 11 student allegedly assaulted the teacher after being questioned about bringing a mobile phone to school. more..

Oct 1 (DM) Since 1991, Int'l Day of Older People has been observed on Oct 1 each year, worldwide. 2025 UN International Day of Older Persons is observed under the theme Older Persons Driving Local and Global Action: Our Aspirations, Our Well-Being and Our Rights. Therefore, the retirement age is an ideal topic to discuss in this context. By the introduction of the Minimum Retirement Age of Workers Act No. 28 of 2021, more..

Oct 1 (NW) The son of Anura Vidanagamage, alias Middeniya Kajja, has denied reports claiming that his father was the individual identified in a vehicle that pursued rugby player Wasim Thajudeen before he died in 2012. Police told the media yesterday that Middeniya Kajja was recognized by his widow in connection with the case. However, addressing the media, the underworld figure’s son revealed that during initial interrogations by the CID, his mother had denied that more..

Oct 1 (Island) The Collective of Organisations for the Protection of War Heroes and the SL Unitary State yesterday handed over a letter to the Switzerland Embassy in Colombo seeking an explanation as to why the LTTE rump and Tamil Diaspora are continuously allowed to promote and encourage separatism by organising LTTE activities in Geneva. The group lodged a strong protest against the public display of LTTE insignia and effigies of its leaders in Geneva, in proximity to the UN premises, more..

Oct 1 (Island) PM Dr. Harini Amarasuriya participated in the inaugural meeting of the SAARC Heritage Forum 2025 for promoting Regional Art, Culture, Heritage Sites, Museums, and Archives organized by the Cultural Center (SCC) with the support of the Govt of SL on Tuesday (Sep 30) at the National Museum, Colombo. The forum which commenced on 30th of Sept will conclude on 2nd Oct. SAARC Heritage Forum 2025 aims to bring together experts, professionals, and scholars more..

Oct 1 (WHO) SL is strengthening its influenza response by focusing on rapid testing, timely treatment, and maternal health integration. With WHO support, the country is developing the evidence base on the burden of influenza and the value of vaccination —advancing a holistic approach to protect vulnerable populations and improve pandemic preparedness. SL is taking a proactive approach to reduce hospitalizations and deaths from seasonal influenza by focusing on more..