Category: Local News

Sri Lanka’s Deputy Minister of Defence, Major General Aruna Jayasekara (Retd), highlighted the national importance of the “Ratama Ekata” programme and praised the Navy for continuing the initiative despite its heavy involvement in rescue and relief work during the recent national disaster emergency.

The Colombo High Court has issued a warrant for the arrest of former Minister Wimal Weerawansa and ordered that he be produced before court after he failed to appear in a case filed by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) over allegations of unlawfully acquiring assets worth more than Rs. 75 million.

A retired Navy medical assistant was arrested yesterday (January 13), on allegations of demanding a Rs. 300,000 bribe to arrange the admission of a child to Grade One at Visakha Vidyalaya in Colombo for the 2026 school year.

The 13th Defence Services Games 2024/2025 concluded successfully with a colourful closing ceremony at the Army Cantonment in Panagoda on 12 January 2026, where the Sri Lanka Army emerged overall champions and the Sri Lanka Air Force finished as runners-up.

Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Education says steps will be taken to swiftly recruit 23,344 graduates to the teaching service, following recent Cabinet approval, with two competitive examinations to be held for the recruitment process.

Teachers’ trade unions have agreed on the need for new education reforms and said the Grade 6 curriculum should be revised, during a meeting with Sri Lanka President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya held today (January 13) at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo.

Sri Lanka President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said the country will not use disasters or crises as excuses to abandon national development plans, stressing that Sri Lanka will rise again and rebuild better than before.

Sri Lanka has opened Rs. 95 billion in concessional loans at around 5 percent interest to support entrepreneurs and industrial development, the Deputy Minister of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development, Chathuranga Abeysinghe, announced today (January 13).

The Cabinet of Ministers of Sri Lanka has decided to postpone the proposed education reforms for Grade 6 students until 2027 due to the need to review the English language module, Cabinet Spokesman Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa said today (January 13).

The United States has announced an additional 2 million US dollars in humanitarian assistance for communities affected by Cyclone Ditwah, raising total US support for disaster response in Sri Lanka to 4 million US dollars, the U.S. Embassy in Sri Lanka said today (January 13).

A group of representatives from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is scheduled to arrive in Sri Lanka on January 22, 2026, according to Sri Lanka’s Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. Anil Jayantha Fernando.

A Beat Forest Officer serving at the Hulannuge Beat Forest Office was arrested after allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs. 30,000 and a bottle of arrack to avoid legal action against a resident accused of cultivating land belonging to the Nelumwewayaya reserve.

Veteran Sri Lankan journalist and defence analyst Iqbal Athas passed away this morning (January 13) at the age of 81 after a brief illness.

U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung called on Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake yesterday (January 12) to bid farewell, ahead of her departure from Sri Lanka on January 16, 2026, marking the conclusion of her tenure as the United States’ top diplomat in Colombo from 2022 to 2026.

The main suspect in the sword attack on a woman in the Borella Police Division on November 14, 2025, which caused serious injuries, was arrested on the evening of January 12, 2026 in Thalahena, Malabe, along with a T56 firearm, ammunition, and a live hand grenade.

Sri Lanka Police has appointed an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) to conduct further investigations into the death of a 27 year old man following a police shooting in the Welikanda area, while confirming that the firearm used in the incident has been taken into police custody.