University authorities yesterday agreed to admit as many as 1000 students under the technical stream to be introduced for Advance Level studies from this year onwards, a Minister said yesterday. The decision was taken after a three-day workshop...

Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) leader Minister Douglas Devananda, an advocate of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, yesterday said the delegating of land and police powers to the provincial councils should be held back for the time being...

The general strike fixed for tomorrow would be turned into an all-out strike if the need arose, the United National Party (UNP) led Vipakshaye Virodhaya (VV) said yesterday. UNP Assistant Leader and Member of Parliament Joseph Michael Perera told a...

A 78-year-old woman was killed when she was allegedly hit by a double-cab on the Wattegama Road in Nawayalatenne, Katugastota on Saturday, while attempting to cross the road.

Matale Judicial Medical Officer Ajitha Jayasena, who oversaw the medical examinations of the remains dug up from the mass burial ground in the area, has been transferred to Kurunegala. He is expected to assume duties in Kurunegala today.

It would be an insult to the war heroes who sacrificed their lives for their motherland if we gave into international pressure and held Provincial Council (PC) election in the North, Technology and Atomic Energy Minister

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), the main constituent party in the ruling coalition yesterday described the general strike planned by the opposition parties against

Along with Executive Presidency and preferential voting

Former Colombo Deputy Mayor Azath Salley who shot to fame as a result of his arrest, yesterday said President Mahinda Rajapaksa was the ideal person to bring about proper peace and reconciliation.

Issuing a statement regarding the protests against the recent electricity tariff hikes, the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) observed these protests were a matter of public importance and the parties concerned should act within the framework of the...

A woman was killed yesterday morning when she was run over by a SLTB bus travelling towards Hatton from Nawalapitiya in the Ambagamuwa area. The victim was J. Yogeswari (35) from an estate in Ambagamuwa. The driver of the bus had been taken into...

The Free Trade Zone Workers Union (FTZWU) claimed that trade union workers were a lot that were severely affected by the recent electricity tariff hike as the owners of boarding houses where the zone workers lived have increased monthly fees to Rs 1000...

The case filed against six policemen including the SSP of Mount Lavinia by the prime suspect of the Kaldemulle triple murder incident is to be taken up in the open Court today (20). The suspect Madura Manaranga de Silva who had been accused of killing...

The Teacher-Principal Trade Unions Joint Committee yesterday alleged that some provincial education authorities had brought forward the ‘sil campaign’ which was to be held in schools from May 23 to May 21. Ceylon Teacher Services Union (CTSU)...

So many others are concerned as well They have to; our big brother no! Massivewatersupply projectawardedtoChina Looking forward to see how this will work out! Hmmm something to think about; wonder what India has to say Chinese technology everywhere...

Two persons in Welimada were taken into custody on Saturday by the Welimada Police for allegedly possessing a mobile phone and a VCD with obscene pictures, the Welimada Police said. During a search operation conducted by the Police officers they found...

It is because of them we can live peacefully amidst all the economic difficulties They should be honoured and looked after well Benefits should be given to the families of war heroes who made the supreme sacrifice to the motherland and steps should be...

Oh my God!!! - Ajith Most of these bus drivers do not have any knowledge about traffic rules and sign boards I actually thought that they know how to slow down the bus and park it right in front of the halt Two innocent lives lost due to some reckless...

Some trade unions of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) yesterday warned of a sinister move by the authorities to impose unannounced power cuts during the general strike on Tuesday and put the blame on them. CEB United Trade Union Front Coordinating...

A student of Mihintale Maha Vidyalaya won the first place for his invention at the competition held in Phoenix, Arizona of the United States where innovative creations were selected from among a number of international inventions. The 18-year-old...

The female hospital employee from Badulla who had left her two children in the care of her neighbours to report for duty at the Colombo National Hospital, will soon be given a transfer to her home town considering the circumstances, Health Ministry...

The historic Coffee Fountain constructed by British coffee planters is under restoration, monitored by the Kandy Municipal Council and the Department of Cultural Affairs. A private bank had earlier indicated its willingness to fund the restoration of...

The Democratic Left Front (DLF) led by Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara has decided not to participate in the general strike organised by the opposition parties tomorrow. Minister Nanayakkara in a statement yesterday said though he respected the right of...

The massive sum of Rs. 2.4 billion to be spent for the import of super luxury Rolls Royce and BMW vehicles for the Commonwealth Heads of State Conference in September this year would result in more and more burdens for the people, UNP Hambantota...

The Northern Provincial Council should be vested with a mainstream political party in order to safe guard the sovereignty of the nation, Minister of Construction Wimal Weerawansa said yesterday (19). Minister Weerawansa, who was speaking at a state...

Thailand had pledged its assistance for the development of Sri Lanka’s fisheries industry. Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives Yukol Limlamthong had offered his country’s support when Minister of Fisheries Dr....

The Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) had launched an operation to arrest traders who sell inferior quality cosmetic products to consumers. A spokesman from the Ministry of Cooperatives and Internal Trade said that the CAA had been directed to carry...

Cloudy skies, scattered showers and fairly strong winds should be expected in the coming days as the country was experiencing the South West Monsoon, the Department of Meteorology had warned yesterday (19). A spokesman from the department told Daily...

Three houses had been damaged in Galporuyaya, Orubendiwewa in Mahiyangana after wild elephant’s attacked the village on Saturday night and proceeded to eat the paddy that had been stocked in stores there, villagers said. These villagers have been...

A student and another youth who had allegedly run a printing press for forging currency notes had been arrested along with three notes of 2000 rupee denomination by the Kosgoda police on Saturday (18). They have been arrested in the Gurukanda area in...

A lorry transporting a stock of fertilizer from Colombo to Mahiyangana had plunged into the Mahaweli Canal located along the Pelwehera - Dambulla Road causing a few of the bags of fertilizer to fall into the canal and get washed away. The lorry was...

The All Ceylon Union of English Teachers (ACUET) had requested President Mahinda Rajapaksa to consider the possibility of revising the proposed electricity tariff scheme as the tariff reduction announced by him at the May Day rally of the UPFA was not...

Jana Setha Peramuna which had been supporting the government since its very inception announced that it would support the general strike that was due to take place on Tuesday (21). Jana Setha Peramuna Leader, Venerable Battaramulle Seelaratna Thera,...

The Sri Lankan missions in Riyadh and Jeddah are currently working 24 hours a day, including weekends, to sort out the paperwork of over 10,000 workers by July 3, the end of the three-month grace period provided for expatriate workers to rectify their...

An analytical report issued by the Government Analyst regarding a questionable bottle of soda found at a retail shop in the Slave Island area, stated that the GA was able to find a contaminated ingredient from the soda bottle which is unfit for human...

In a tragic incident, two brothers aged 22 and 18 drowned in a stream in Pallama yesterday when they had gone for a bath with their family members.. The two victims identified as Adisha Udayanga (22) and Nipuna Rasanga (18) died in a stream near the...

Ambassador Ravinatha Aryasinha, Sri Lanka's Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva, emphasized of, "strong political will is needed to finalize the process of considering, revising, and ultimately endorsing the draft Right to Development criteria...

Hundreds of tea smallholders in the Balapitiya area staged a protest campaign in front of the Balapitiya Randobe Sangaraja Viharaya on Galle Road urging the authorities to remove barriers preventing them from selling their products. About one thousand...

Two persons, whose modus operandi was to snatch gold chains from women’s necks while riding on a motor cycle, had been arrested in the Dankotuwa area. They had been in possession of a hand grenade when they were apprehended by the Unsolved Crimes Unit...

Sixty one Bangladeshi nationals including a woman who were detained in the Boossa Camp were deported from the country by Mihin Lanka flight MJ 502 yesterday, the Regional and Visa Immigration and Emigration Controller M.N. Ranasinghe. They were taken...

A 14-year-old girl believed to be mentally handicapped has been hacked to death by a neighbour in the Polonnaruwa area, police said yesterday. The victim identified as Atapattu Mudiyanselage Gunathilake Maduka Hansarani had been living at Mahasen...

It was Georg Simmel, a German sociologist, who distinguished between what he termed the Dyad and the Triad, in order to explain how social relationships can become complex when human groups become larger. Dyad is a human pair and the two persons...

Amidst confusion, controversy and conflicting reports on the toxic chemicals in milk powder imported from New Zealand, Agriculture Minister Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena has disclosed that a toxic chemical has been found in imported white sugar. The...

Anews item reveals [Daily Mirror 13.05.13] that “a great religious ceremony was held at the historic Jaya Sri Maha Bodhiya on Saturday where millions of flowers were offered along with ornaments made of gold and silver and gem studded objects”....

I find it hard to understand why the Central Transport Board (CTB) does not implement a system to inform its commuters the times the buses will commence their journey from each starting point. If this information is displayed at the relevant places for...

It was introduced as a result of the Indo-Lanka Accord. Now the IndoLanka Accord was in July 29, 1987 and the Accord was between J. R. Jayawardene and Rajiv Gandhi. The objectionable part of this Indo-Lanka Accord is in paragraph 1 (4) which says that:...

mended that there should be District Development Councils. There was a law but that failed and it was repealed. Then only this concept of Provincial Councils came up in 1987 (also by J.R. Jayawardene). Now the problem is that it was not as a result of...

Mother’s Day came and went, just another day in the calendar. Little bits of Colombo stirred, here and there, to celebrate – in hotels, homes and private occasions. But no organisation or institution, state-run or private, saw a need to organise a...

The background to the 13th Amendment is very important specially when everybody is talking about it now. I noticed that your newspaper also had carried out a survey. Fifty three per cent of the people have said 13th Amendment should be repealed. So...

I think it is correct. Now what happened was, if you take the Indo Lanka Accord introduced by J. R. Jayawardene at the time Mr. Lalith Athulathmudali who was controlling the defence forces was engaging in the Wadamarachchi Operation. So they were fast...

The whole concept of historical habitation also has gone off. Now again building up there should be a merger of these two provinces. So we have started a process that has reached a certain end. Now there is no war. Now there is no LTTE. So we should...

KARACHI, May 19, 2013 (AFP) - Gunmen have killed a Pakistani politician from Imran Khan's party in the southern port city of Karachi on the eve of a partial re-run of May 11 polls that were marked by more than 150 killings. Zohra Hussain, 59, vice...

NEW DELHI, May 18, 2013 (AFP) - India says all issues will be “on the table”, including a recent border spat and a festering trade imbalance, during Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's visit to the South Asian giant which started on Sunday. At the same time...

MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan, May 18, 2013 (AFP) - A Chinese man working on an energy project in Pakistan-administered Kashmir was being held Saturday after hundreds of protesters attacked his company offices over the alleged desecration of a Koran,...

NEW DELHI, May 18, 2013 (AFP) - Bollywood superstar Sanjay Dutt, who is in jail for arms possession, is being held in a cell built for militants where he cannot see daylight and wants to be transferred, a report said Saturday. Dutt, 53, surrendered on...

KABUL, May 18, 2013 (AFP) - The Afghan parliament on Saturday cut short a debate on a bill to protect women from violence after complaints from some traditionalist MPs that it was against Islamic teaching. The Elimination of Violence against Women...

BEIJING, May 19, 2013 (AFP) - Chinese authorities were Sunday investigating claims that unidentified North Koreans hijacked a Chinese fishing boat, kidnapping 16 sailors and demanding a ransom, local media and an official said. Armed North Koreans on...

KARACHI, May 19, 2013 (AFP) - Under tight security, Pakistani officials Sunday held a repeat election in a district of violence-plagued Karachi, despite the killing of a senior politician in the city the day before. Troops, police and paramilitary...

DHAKA, May 19, 2013 (AFP) - Bangladesh's top court on Sunday ordered police to prevent the owner of a garment factory that catered to top Western retailers from leaving the country, six months after 111 of his employees died in a fire. Delwar Hossain,...

BUENOS AIRES, 18 May 2013 (AFP) - Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said Saturday he welcomed a US-Russian peace initiative to end Syria's civil war but had no plans to resign, in an interview with an Argentine newspaper. “To resign would be to flee,”...

- An upmarket constituency of Pakistan's violence-plagued city of Karachi voted again under tight security on Sunday, a day after gunmen killed a senior politician from a reformist party in the district and a week after general elections. It was not...

BEIJING, May 18, 2013 (AFP) - Pakistan is set to become the fifth Asian country to use China's domestic satellite navigation system which was launched as a rival to the US global positioning system, a report said Saturday. The Beidou, or Compass,...

While Shelton Perera, the proprietor of the Wallside Restaurant and Bar was going through the books of his business, his wife Joy who found herself too busy to go shopping had once again collared two of her husband’s employees, Ooty an owl and Tommo, a...

The new findings at the prehistoric site of Kuragala could turn a new page in Sri Lankan archaeology. After learning that excavations to uncover the history of Kuragala rock shelter complex in the Balangoda area are being undertaken by a team under...

of that they have decided to shift the school to Maragus Handiya that’s 12 kilometres away. No-one likes it; nor do I. These modayas (fools) have forgotten the school is over 150 years old and has 5000 students. My two fellows go to this school. Mun...