By Garvin Karunaratne  It is sad that the UNHRC has now forgotten why such a council was ever established.  This is clear when the Commissioner of UNHRC has called upon member States  to  refer  the situation in Sri Lanka to the International Criminal Court(ICC) and  ‘actively pursue extra territorial or universal jurisdiction and persecute international crimes committed by all […]

by Garvin Karunaratne Sky rocketing prices of vegetables and fruit has happened to be the order of the day. Once we did have a method to control inflation by ensuring that traders cannot keep a fat margin. That was the system built up by Sri Lankan administrators RH Basset and BLW Fernando Commissioners of the […]

By Garvin Karunaratne former G.A.Matara President Gotabhaya deserves a bouquet for his new programme Waari Saubhagya which commenced today(6/2), with the restoration of Mahameegasweva in the Palugasweva area of the Anuradhapura District. The restoration of the tanks in NuwaraKalaviya is an urgent need and it is a great feat to restore the tanks, the life […]

By Garvin Karunaratne, PhD Michigan States University   Introduction  The Central Bank Governor’s statement:  The New Economic Model deviates from notorious Structural Adjustment “(Sunday Times: 20/12/2020) marks a watershed in the economic policies of Sri Lanka.  He has added that ” Sri Lanka will move away from an import oriented market economy towards a production-oriented strategy”.  It is also stated that working within […]

Garvin Karunaratne, PhD in Non-Formal Education & Agricultural Economics, Michigan State University Formerly of the SLAS- Government Agent, Matara in 1971-1973.  A Country that is saddled with a massive unsustainable foreign debt- as much as $ 56 billion, the servicing of which requires some $ 4 billion annually, where the outlay required for imports far outweighs […]

By Garvin Karunaratne   Two decades ago, Motoring up Altamont Pass in California I gazed at thousands of Wind Turbines. It was the Californian Wind churning power for the USA.I could hardly believe my eyes.Once five centuries ago,It was the  Wind that took Vas Co de Gama across the Cape of Good Hope,But not in […]

By Garvin Karunaratne, former G.A. Matara  Our Minister for Power is over the moon with the opening of the Mannar 100MW Wind Farm today(8/12/20) by no less a person than our Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.   This Wind Farm as well as the Puttlam Wind Power  Plant which a is already open prove to the […]

by Garvin Karunaratne Former GA Matara May I hope that the incoming Budget includes funding for a major new Programme of Poverty Alleviation, cum creating Production and also obviating imports. Such a development programme implemented all over our Motherland will bring about  definite results in terms of creating employment, production- both agriculture, animal husbandry and […]

By Garvin Karunaratne, former G.A. Matara President Trump is reported to be trying all sorts of methods not to concede defeat.  The more he tries his pranks, the more does our Prime Minister’s image gets boosted.   Let us see what Prime Minister Mahinda did: Sri Lanka: President Mahinda Rajapakse concedes defeat in election  Wasantha […]

Garvin Karunaratne former G.A.Matara Some are aghast at the news trickling in that Basil Rajapaksa is to be anointed with a Ministerial position.   But when one thinks of things actually done, Basil Rajapaksa stands out.  It was no other than Basil that created a political party from scratch when both Chandrika and Maithripala were holding […]

By Garvin Karunaratne, former G.A. Matara It was a great sight to see Paper roll out of Valachenai once again. Thanks to our President and his team, including Minister Weerawamsa, officials of he Paper Mill and the Armed Forces that contributed  to Mother Lanka to bring back Valachenai to life. Two years ago I had […]

By Garvin  Karunaratne, PhD. Michigan State University  The Millennium Challenge  Corporation Compact has come up with an easy, novel method of poverty alleviation. It requires the identification and separation of a mass of  land, the  creation of a cadastral map of land parcels and a complete inventory of State land…improve the valuation of State and […]

Garvin Karunaratne former Government Agent, Matara Buses, coaches, lorries and vans  can easily be built in Sri Lanka  using local timber. There are good carpenters who are experts at the job . When I was a young boy in the Forties I lived near the South Western Bus Co in Ratmalana and have seen coaches been built […]

By Garvin Karunaratne The Hon President may please  consider getting the Army to establish the Marketing Department of the Fifties and thereby enable vegetable availability as well as controlling inflation. It can be later developed to be a major department. The total outlay can be recouped including the cost of establishing a Cannery within the […]

Garvin Karunaratne  On the eve of erecting Nelson Mandela’s statue one must reflect the true Nelson Mandela. In this connection a Paper written by me long ago would provide useful evidence..

By Garvin Karunaratne,former G.A. Matara  My craze for motoring in the forsaken neglected Sinhala areas where poor unequipped buddhist monks struggle to guide  the people  following the dictat of Lord Buddha: Charita Bhikkae Charikan Mahajana Hitaya, Sukhaya” took me this time to Sandamal Eliya, five miles before one reaches Tanmtirimale.   The    Sandamal Eliya Temple is run by […]

Garvin Karunaratne former S:LAS, GA Matara I enclose below what I read in the Divayina issue of 17/9 කැනේඩියානු  මහ කොමසාරිස් අම්පාරේදී අප‍්‍රකට සාකච්ඡා කැනේඩියානු මහ කොමසාරිස් ඬේවිඞ් මැක්යිනොන් මහතා පසුගිය දිනවල අම්පාර සංචාරයක නිරත වුණා. පොතුවිල් ප‍්‍රදේශයේ සංචාරය කළ ඔහු පසුව ඉලංකෙයි තමිල් අරුසු කච්චි පක්ෂයේ අම්පාර දිස්ත‍්‍රික්කයට ජාතික ලැයිස්තුවෙන් පත්කළ කාලෙයි අරසන් මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයා […]

By Garvin Karunaratne  The Power fiasco is not over yet. Listening to the utterances by State Ministers over the Television it is clear that they  have been outsmarted.  Perhaps an old Paper of mine published sometime back will provide details for the State Ministers to arm themselves for the next bout.. 

By Garvin Karunaratne , former G.A.Matara The other day, locked down in Sri Lanka because of the Corona,  I ran out of the Starbucks Coffee I had brought with me. Being a coffee connoisseur,  the tastes of Island, Hariischandra and Wijeya Coffee did not satisfy me. I have yet to find Soul Coffee.  They are […]

By Garvin Karunaratne  former G.A. Matara In view of the attempts by our President to boost our agriculture, it may be worthwhile to ascertain what did happen to the excellent agricultural extension service we had in the Sixties- the effort of the combined Agriculture Department and Agrarian Services.  I enclose a chapter from my forthcoming […]

by Garvin Karunaratne In view of the current power shortage, I enclose the Conclusion of my book; Wind Power for Sri Lanka’s Energy Requirements(Godages).  The fact that Wind Power if harnessed in the manner that it has been harnessed in other countries like Spain, France and the USA, can provide the full requirements of power […]

By Garvin Karunaratne, Ph.D. On my second visit to Laya Waves I was struck with some new ideas. To get down to the hospitality track, the sleuths who have forgotten their guns for now and are on an entirely different – hospitality track; they are a marvel. The accommodation was spick and span., cleanliness perfect,  […]

By Garvin Karunaratne At the auspicious moment this morning on the ninth of August 2020, when our Prime Minister is being inaugurated it is my humble request that he considers the full development of the Hambantota District and a Youth Development Programme for special implementation. The Hambantota District has been a  district where I did […]

by Dr Garvin Karunaratne, once G.A. Matara In view of the landslide victory that is in the offing,  it is my humble request that you may please consider a poverty alleviation cum employment creation programme. I enclose my report on the Divisional Development Councils  Programme implemented during Premier Sirimavo  for kind perusal. It is my […]

By Garvin Karunaratne, former G.A. Matara  Let us try to get away from the rhetoric- the art of effective or persuasive speaking, often with an implication of insincerity or exaggeration”(Oxford Dictionary). Promises are many but it is quite evident that most promises cannot be easily fulfilled. President Gotabhaya’s promises are few but he has vowed […]

By Garvin Karunaratne, former G.A. Matara A few weeks ago our President – true to his military form, dared to haul the Central Bank over the coals. The Mandarins in the Central Bank have now hit back: Sri Lanka’s Central Bank had complied with government directions as permitted by available monetary law”, Central Bank officials […]

By Garvin Karunaratne,former G.A. Matara District Touring Northern California and Oregan now and  touring from Baltimore to Key West in Florida,  through Louisiana via Texas and Arizona to San Diego last Summer, I am passing through villages one after the other—each vibrant with life. There are Malls that have closed down due to the recession, but […]

By Garvin Karunaratne Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has made the difficult decision not to sell the Mattala Airport to India.  It is the right decision and he deserves to be congradulated.  I wrote about how the Mattala Airport and the Port of Hambantota have to be activated back in 2014. That Paper is annexed because […]

By Garvin Karunaratne, Ph.D. Michigan State University Our President Gotabhaya has cleared finance for banks  by ordering the Central Bank to relax. This has been done. Can the availability of finance by banks in itself bring about development- create production, create employment and achieve the goal of poverty alleviation. Import controls that  have been imposed to save […]

By Garvin Karunaratne I would like our authorities to give deep thought to the salient points I have raised in an earlier paper of mine.  Our country is deeply in debt today by blindingly following the IMF It is sad that our dons in econ, the real people that matter on this subject are silent. […]