Category: Local News

TN Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Sunday urged Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to accord highest priority to the release of 54 Tamil Nadu fishermen and their 34 boats from the Sri Lankan custody.

Former Eastern Province Chief Minister Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias Pillayan was arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department short while ago when he arrived at the CID office in Colombo this evening to give a statement, police media said.

Leader of Opposition and Tamil National Alliance leader R. Sampanthan has called for the involvement of the Tamil Nadu government to settle the issue of alleged poaching by fishermen from India, especially Tamil Nadu, in the territorial waters of Sri Lanka.

Governor of the Central Bank, Arjuna Mahendran, yesterday assured all Sri Lankan expatriates that their savings would not be taxed if they decided to remit their savings here.

Sri Lanka’s vehicle imports will drop by at least 90 percent after the government changes the way it calculates the value of certain motor vehicles, officials said on Friday.

Sri Lanka will continue to pursue a friendly policy towards China and promote all kinds of cooperation between the two countries, Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has said.

The retirement age should be increased to 65 years, Foreign Affairs Deputy Minister Dr. Harsha de Silva said while speaking at the National Pensioners’ Day Symposium at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institution.

Nine-year-old Arunraj and his younger sister Rakshana are excited about their journey on Thursday. For the first time in their lives, they would be travelling by an airplane and both want to have a window seat.

The US on Thursday announced an additional $1.745 million for demining in Sri Lanka’s former war theatre. US ambassador Atul Keshap conveyed this to minister D.M. Swaminathan, saying the funding would be for international and domestic partners and the National Mine Action Committee.

The Sri Lankan government has begun “informal discussions” with the Tamil National Alliance and other parties on a political solution to the ethnic conflict, according to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

The government is contemplating a new law to regulate social media, particularly in a bid to curb posting of sexual images and defamatory material.

Through the Gazette notification No. 1933/16 pertaining to imposing Customs duties, the government has announced new Customs duties on Japanese motor vehicles like Toyota and others imported to Sri Lanka.

2015 Grade 5 scholarship exam results have been released. The results could be obtained via www.doenets.lk or www.results.exams.gov.lk, the Examinations Chief said.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe pledged aid to Sri Lanka on Tuesday in a meeting with his counterpart, Ranil Wickremsinghe, and reiterated a promise to help Sri Lanka bolster its maritime security and to provide patrol ships.

Chief Opposition Whip Anura Kumara Dissanayake yesterday in Parliament questioned the measures taken by the government with regard to the Coca Cola Company for allegedly polluting the Kelani river. Dissanayake was raising a question under Standing Order 23(2).

Central Provincial Minister Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon says that his father former Minister Janaka Bandara Tennakoon has been arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).