අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය

සමස්ත ලංකා ශාසනාරක්ෂක මණ්ඩලයේ දැනට පවතින ගැටලු විසඳීමට කටයුතු කරන්නැයි අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහතා ඊයේ (10) පස්වරුවේ අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය ලේකම්තුමා සහ බුද්ධශාසන ආගමික හා සංස්කෘතික කටයුතු අමාත්‍යාංශයේ ලේකම්තුමා ඇතුළු නිලධාරීන්ට උපදෙස් දුන්නේය.

අරලියගහ මන්දිරයේ දී පැවැති සමස්ත ලංකා ශාසනාරක්ෂක මණ්ඩලයේ සාකච්ඡාවේ දී ඉදිරිපත්වූ කරුණු සැළකිල්ලට ගනිමින් අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමා මෙම උපදෙස් ලබා දුන්නේය.

නාගදීප රජමහා විහාරස්ථානය පූජා භූමියක් බවට පත්කිරීමේ සන්නස් පත්‍රය ප්‍රදානය කිරීමේ උත්සවය එළැඹෙන මාර්තු මාසයේ පැවැත්වීමට ද අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමාගේ ප්‍රධානත්වයෙන් රැස්වූ මෙම සාකච්ඡාවේ දී තීරණය කෙරිණි.

දහම්පාසල් කොඩි දිනය,දහම් පාසල් දින ජාතික උත්සවය සහ දහම් පාසල් සිසු නිපුණතා ජාතික උත්සවය පැවැත්වීම සම්බන්ධයෙන් ද මෙහි දී අවධානය යොමු විය.

දහම් පාසල් පොත් බෙදා දීමේ ප්‍රවාහන කටයුතු සඳහා දිස්ත්‍රික් ලේකම්වරුන්ගේ සහය ලබා ගන්නැයි අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමා මෙහි දී දැනුම් දුන්නේය.

සිවුපස ආධාර ලබා දීමේ වැඩසටහන තමන් ජනාධිපතිවරයා ලෙස කටයුතු කරමින් සිටිය දී ආරම්භ කළ වැඩසටහනක් බව සිහිපත් කළ අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමා, දුෂ්කරතා තිබෙන විහාරස්ථානවල ස්වාමීන්වහන්සේලා වෙනුවෙන් එම වැඩපිළිවෙල අඛණ්ඩව ක්‍රියාත්මක විය යුතු බව පැවසීය.

උතුරු හා නැගෙනහිර පළාත්වල පූජා භූමි හා පුරාවිද්‍යා ස්ථානවල දැනට පවතින ගැටලු නිරාකරණය කරමින් ඒවායේ ඇති ශිලා ලේඛන අනාගත පරපුර වෙනුවෙන් සංරක්ෂණය කළ යුතු බවද අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමා මෙහි දී අවධාරණය කළේය.

සමස්ත ලංකා ශාසනාරක්ෂක මණ්ඩලය නියෝජනය කරමින් පූජ්‍ය මහාචාර්ය තුඹුල්ලේ සීලක්ඛන්ධ නායක ස්වාමීන්වහන්සේ, පූජ්‍ය මුගුණුවෙල අනුරුද්ධ නායක ස්වාමීන්වහන්සේ, පූජ්‍ය මැදගම ධම්මානන්ද ස්වාමීන්වහන්සේ, පූජ්‍ය මැදගමුවේ විජයමෛත්‍රී අනුනායක ස්වාමීන්වහන්සේ ඇතුළු මහා සංඝරත්නය මෙහි වැඩම කළහ.

මෙම අවස්ථාවට අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය ලේකම් අනුර දිසානායක, බුද්ධශාසන ආගමික හා සංස්කෘතික කටයුතු අමාත්‍යාංශයේ ලේකම් මහාචාර්ය කපිල ගුණවර්ධන මහත්වරු ඇතුළු අමාත්‍යාංශ කිහිපයක ලේකම්වරු, අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය අතිරේක ලේකම් නිශාන්ත වීරසිංහ මහතා සහ රාජ්‍ය ආයතන රැසක ප්‍රධානීහු එක්ව සිටියහ.

By R.M. Samanmalee Swarnalatha Courtesy Eurasiareview

Sri Lankan government’s badly planned organic farming policy that has banned the use of chemical fertilizer in farms has upset farmers in this rice-growing heartland and a political stronghold of the ruling coalition. The policy has also drawn criticism from agricultural experts, who warn that Sri Lanka’s food security is at stake.

Chairman of Minneriya Integrated Farmer Organization, Anil Gunawardhna argues that the government organic fertilizer program is an utter failure because it was announced without any proper program and work plan to achieve its aims.

The government’s original plan was to achieve this organic cultivation in ten years time.  However, without any discussion with farmers they banned the import of chemical fertilizer,” he complains.

Writing in The Sunday Times in May last year just after the government banned chemical fertilizer imports, agricultural scientist Saman Dharmakeethi criticized the decision predicting that it would cause loss of forests and a food crisis. 

In his election campaign in 2019 under the theme of ‘ Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour’  President Gotabaya Rajapakse, clearly mentioned that building up a community of citizens who are healthy and productive, we need to develop the habit of consuming food with no contamination with harmful chemicals”. In order to guarantee the peoples’ right to such safe food, the entire Sri Lankan agriculture will be promoted to use organic fertilizers within ten years, the election policy platform said.https://googleads.g.doubleclick.net/pagead/ads?client=ca-pub-7107515782730935&output=html&h=280&slotname=8800050277&adk=1815670793&adf=4170075671&pi=t.ma~as.8800050277&w=336&lmt=1644611173&psa=1&format=336×280&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.eurasiareview.com%2F11022022-sri-lanka-governments-badly-planned-organic-farming-policy-upsets-rice-farmers%2F&flash=0&wgl=1&uach=WyJXaW5kb3dzIiwiMTQuMC4wIiwieDg2IiwiIiwiOTguMC40NzU4LjgyIixbXSxudWxsLG51bGwsIjY0IixbWyIgTm90IEE7QnJhbmQiLCI5OS4wLjAuMCJdLFsiQ2hyb21pdW0iLCI5OC4wLjQ3NTguODIiXSxbIkdvb2dsZSBDaHJvbWUiLCI5OC4wLjQ3NTguODIiXV1d&dt=1644622260645&bpp=1&bdt=2339&idt=100&shv=r20220209&mjsv=m202202070101&ptt=9&saldr=aa&abxe=1&cookie=ID%3D491c2db089893330-22801faedece003c%3AT%3D1641084031%3ART%3D1641084031%3AS%3DALNI_MbcH5XVOp3A-2a1zAvcMfC7fIWd4g&prev_fmts=0x0%2C336x280&nras=1&correlator=7634018995415&frm=20&pv=1&ga_vid=44937498.1641084070&ga_sid=1644622261&ga_hid=703749957&ga_fc=1&u_tz=0&u_his=2&u_h=1080&u_w=1920&u_ah=1032&u_aw=1920&u_cd=24&u_sd=1&dmc=8&adx=397&ady=1603&biw=1903&bih=929&scr_x=0&scr_y=0&eid=42531397%2C31064806%2C21065724%2C21067496&oid=2&pvsid=546248655667300&pem=614&tmod=26331352&uas=0&nvt=1&ref=https%3A%2F%2Fc.newsnow.co.uk%2F&eae=0&fc=1920&brdim=0%2C0%2C0%2C0%2C1920%2C0%2C1920%2C1032%2C1920%2C929&vis=1&rsz=%7C%7CeEbr%7C&abl=CS&pfx=0&cms=2&fu=0&bc=31&ifi=3&uci=a!3&btvi=2&fsb=1&xpc=2kkYlPYBXi&p=https%3A//www.eurasiareview.com&dtd=105

When President Rajapakse banned the importation of chemical fertilizers and pesticides in April 2021, he cited health concerns. The ban on its importation was imposed through an Extraordinary Gazette Notification on May 6^th last year, following the Cabinet endorsement of the plan under the theme of  Creating a Green Socio-economy with Sustainable Solutions for Climate Change”.  The document admitted that the use of chemical fertilizers has led to better harvests but has also contaminated lakes, canals and groundwater.

For more than two decades a mysterious kidney disease has been spreading among farmers in the mainly rice-growing areas, which has baffled both hydrologists and medical experts. It is suspected that the overuse of chemicals in farming may be the cause.

Weaning Away From Green Revolution” Technology

With many vested interests at work, the government is learning a bitter lesson that it is not easy to wean away farmers from the use of chemicals in farming. It needs careful planning and closer consultations with farmers.

The agricultural production system in Sri Lanka consists of two traditional and well-defined components. One is the plantation section, established during the colonial period, consisting of large units, and producing perennial crops such as coffee, tea, rubber, and coconut mainly for export. The other is the smallholder sector comprised of small farms, which produce most of the country’s rice, vegetables, legumes, tubers, spices, and fruits.

While, fertilizers and pesticides have long been used for the production of plantation crops in Sri Lanka, until several decades ago, most of the smallholder operations were farmed with little or no input of agricultural chemicals. Wide use of chemical fertilizer was introduced to the country during the so-called ‘green revolution’ in the decades 1960-70 along with high-yielding” seeds.

Costly Fertilizer Imports and Subsidy

In 2020, Sri Lanka imported (both state and private sector) foreign fertilizers worth  $259 million, representing 1.6 percent of the country’s total imports by value according to Central Bank statistics. Sources indicate that the 2021 import bill could potentially total in the range of $300-$400 million given current international prices. By limiting and/or banning costly foreign exchange draining fertilizer and agrochemical imports, the Sri Lankan government aims to generate significant import cost savings.

But, Professor Buddhi Marambe, a former Dean of Agriculture Faculty at the University of Peradeniya in recent newspaper articles has warned that an overnight shift to organic fertilizer could lead to crop declines that in turn cause huge food shortages within months. We have spoken based on science. Without going for evidence-based decisions, nothing will go right,” he argues, refuting claims by the government that they are being manipulated. Food security is national security,” he stresses, adding, we must have sustainable policies to ensure food security because there is no point relying on food imports from outside”. 

Rice Farmers’ Grievances

Some rural farmers have already decided not to cultivate Sri Lanka’s staple rice in the ongoing ‘Maha’ or next ‘Yala’ cultivation seasons, because of the government’s failure to supply necessary fertilizers. Farmers here are deeply unhappy at the sudden banning of the import of chemical fertilizer. They mainly cultivate paddy, low country vegetables, cereals, grains, and onions. However, in this ‘Maha’ season, they could not use chemical fertilizer, If the government promised to supply the required organic fertilizer, farmers say they didn’t receive it at the correct time.

Rice farmers have thus used different fertilizer that is normally used for tea, cinnamon, and coconut. They say this season’s rice harvest is very disappointing with resulting low incomes.

Piyarathna, Chairman, Eksath Sulu Farmer Organization, representing farmers from Dehiyannewela, Divilunkadawala ,Viharagama, Medirigiriya areas told IDN that there are 142 farmers in their farmer organization and they cultivate more than 190 acres using minor irrigation  water. Our farmers normally harvest 100- 120 bushel (2500-3000 kg) per acre using chemical fertilizer. However, this time farmers can’t expect such harvest due to improper fertilizer usage” he says, adding, farming is now a business enterprise, (and) farmers cultivate not only for (their)consumption”.

Paddy plants take around 3–6 months to grow from seeds to mature plants, depending on the variety and environmental conditions. They undergo three general growth phases: vegetative, reproductive, and ripening. Our farmers cultivate two groups: the short-duration varieties which mature in 105–120 days and the long-duration varieties which mature in 150 days”, he explained.  They (farmers) use hybrid seed and not traditional varieties. These hybrids varieties need quality fertilizer to increase the harvest. By using organic fertilizer farmers can’t expect high yield”.

 Piyarathna says that farmers in the Polonnaruwa area have complained that the compost they have received is of inferior quality with most of the purchased compost having debris, seeds and stones.

Kapila Ariyawasnsa, a 38 year old farmer from the Ekamuthu Bedum Ela Farmer Organization in Mahaweli river irrigation System B told IDN that he cultivate 8 acres of low land  both in Yala and Maha seasons – mainly paddy – and there are also 206 rice farmers belonging to his organization. He thinks that the proposed organic fertilizer program is not practical in their area.

There are not enough resources to make compost in our village. Greenery vegetables can be cultivated using compost, not paddy,” he argues, because  there is no traditional varieties and only have all hybrid seeds (and) these hybrid seeds need required fertilizer for bumper harvest”. Further, he said that he had to spend Rs 23000 (USD 115) to purchase Yuria in black market.

Ariyawasnsa, predicts that the rural economy will collapse after the coming rice harvest. Farmers won’t have the yield this time, they would get only 30 per cent of the harvest” he predicts.  Most of the people in Mahaweli area depend on agriculture”. He added that not only Mahaweli B zone, but most farmers in the Polonnaruwa District, would face bad harvests due to the government’s organic fertilizer program. The current government’s policy (has been based on) unplanned policy decisions” he laments.

Farmer’s Expectation

There is also growing interest among farmers for producing organically-grown food products and they understand the export potential for it. Some farm production units have already experienced considerable success in such ventures. Organic food production and marketing could be greatly expanded in Sri Lanka. But, research is needed to develop organic farming systems and practices that are efficient, productive, and profitable. This is the criticism the government is facing at the moment.

M.G. Dayawathi Chairman of Kalukele People’s company said that banning of chemical fertilizer has affected their company’s microfinance system too. We have given more than 52 lakhs (5.2 million) of cultivation loans to 75 farmers for this Maha season. Unfortunately, farmers would not make the expected income and they are not in position to repay loans” she told IDN Moreover, farmers mortgage their gold and their vehicles to purchase chemical fertilizer in the black market. They are trapped in a loan cycle.  Government cannot expect livelihood improvement (among farmers) with this kind of unplanned program”. 

By Uditha Jayasinghe and Devjyot Ghoshal Courtesy Fxempire

COLOMBO (Reuters) – Sri Lanka’s foreign exchange reserves are plummeting, essential imports are stalling and opposition leaders and some experts warn that time is running out to avoid a sovereign default that would further upend the economy.

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But Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa is focused on helping the domestic economy shake off the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic before he seeks assistance from the likes of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), a close aide said.

We should not be in a hurry to run here and there without sorting out local issues,” said Milinda Rajapaksha, who works closely with the finance minister and is an additional director general in the media ministry.

It could take up to four to five months to fix issues like local supply chains and restart businesses, which alongside a pickup in tourism and remittances – both major foreign exchange earners – would help stabilise the economy, Rajapaksha said.

You have to look at the external debt crisis separately,” he told Reuters. That’s what we are going to do. Are we going to look at a package like the IMF? Are we going to work with our neighbours and supporters for more swaps and loans?”

Sri Lanka’s foreign exchange reserves are down to $2.36 billion, according to data from the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) released earlier this week.

In a note on Monday, Citi Research said that confidence in the Sri Lankan government’s external repayment position remains weak and foreign exchange reserves were declining faster than expected.

Sri Lanka has outstanding sovereign bonds amounting to $12.55 billion, with $1 billion of the bonds maturing in July, according to the CBSL. This year, the island’s government has to repay debt of around $4 billion.

We stick to our base-case scenario that international bonds will need to be restructured by July,” Citi Research said.

On Wednesday, the CBSL said there was currently no need for discussions on debt restructuring as the government would be able to ensure the settlement of its sovereign debt without any interruption or default.”

The government and the CBSL are committed to honour all forthcoming debt obligations,” the central bank said in a statement.

‘VERY DANGEROUS LEVEL’

The lack of dollars is already holding up goods from coming into the import-dependent country of 22 million people, which typically spends about $1.6 billion every month for imports of fuel, essential food and medicine.

In Sri Lanka’s main port of Colombo, thousands of containers packed with essentials like rice and sugar have been stuck for weeks because importers are unable to get hold of foreign exchange.

On the streets of Colombo, prices of everything from milk powder and fuel to auto spares and mobile phones are rising.

Headline inflation rose to 14.2%, the highest in more than a decade, with food inflation hitting 25% in January, according to government data.

Sri Lanka is left with usable foreign exchange reserves of around $800 million, which could be exhausted in a matter of weeks, said Murtaza Jafferjee, Managing Director of stock broker JB Securities.

The amount of reserves basically have come down significantly to a very, very dangerous level,” he said.

To meet the shortfall, Sri Lanka’s government has sought help from India with a $1 billion credit line. It is also in talks with Pakistan and Australia for two credit lines of $200 million each for imports of rice, cement, grains and medicine.

In January, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa sought debt relief from China and assistance to pay for imports. Sri Lanka imports about $3.5 billion worth of goods from China every year.

POLITICAL FUTURE

The government, led by the influential Rajapaksa family, faces a choice between moving immediately to restructure its debt or continuing to scrape by even as it hits ordinary Sri Lankans, said Nishan de Mel, Executive Director of Verité Research think-tank.

So, it is really a question of how much pain the society can bear and how much pain the government is willing to inflict before it changes the path,” he said. It is not a path that looks to be sustainable.”

The IMF on Thursday said the Sri Lankan government had not initiated talks for financial support.

Of course, we stand ready to discuss options if requested and we continue to closely monitor economic and policy developments,” IMF spokesman Gerry Rice said in an online briefing.

For finance minister and veteran lawmaker Rajapaksa, the decision to go to the IMF or another external agency will also depend on political considerations, his aide Rajapaksha said.

The powerful politician is the younger brother of the president and of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, and took over the finance portfolio in July, 2021 as the economic crisis gathered steam.

His political future is on the line,” Rajapaksha said, referring to the finance minister. And his political party’s future is on the line.”

(Reporting by Uditha Jayasinghe and Devjyot Ghoshal; Editing by Mike Collett-White)

By Ajith Siriwardana and Yohan Perera Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Sajith Premadasa

The main Opposition Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) together with its economic experts are currently in the process of formulating a solution to the present economic crisis and are discussing with local and international experts on restructuring Sri Lanka’s debt, the Leader of Opposition Sajith Premadasa told Parliament yesterday.
We are proud to say that the SJB through its economic experts, including MPs Harsha de Silva, Kabir Hashim and Eran Wickramaratne, who have walked the talk, is currently formulating a plan to resolve the economic crisis and are talking to local and international experts to restructure Sri Lanka’s debt with the participation of international political and monetary institutions,” Premadasa said.
Of course we shall oppose any move to bring in more hardships on people of this country who are already in dire straits because of the current corrupt administration,” he added.
The Opposition Leader called for unity among all parties to overcome the current crisis. 

My fellow countrymen, it is time for everyone to unite. We have to unite for a purpose, we have to unite to put a pause to the current deteriorating situation of the economy.  You cannot solve the economic crisis by holding seminars or publishing booklets. We have to convert our policies into action,” he stressed.

Courtesy Ceylon Today

Indian movie superstar Gagan Malik entered the monkhood at a temple in Bangkok yesterday (10).

Malik was ordained at Wat Thatthong and will spend the next 15 days as a monk.

“One of the most important moments of life is going to come tomorrow [Thursday]. Becoming a monk for 15 days in Wat Thatthong (Royal Monastery) Bangkok,” the Bollywood actor said in a Facebook message on Wednesday.

“All other friends and fans can bless me.”

He said in another post on Tuesday that he wanted to learn Dhamma and to promote the religion in India.

“Time to learn Dhamma. Time to understand Impermanence. Time to gain knowledge. Time to roll the wheel of Dhama in India,” he wrote.

Malik is one of the most popular actors in India.

He has fans in many Asian countries, including Thailand.

One of the Malik’s best-known roles was as Prince Siddhartha in the movie Sri Siddhartha Gautama in 2013, which depicted the life of the Lord Buddha.

The movie soundtrack was dubbed in several languages, including Thai, and won several awards, including the best actor and best movie at the UN Vesak Buddhist Film Festival in Hanoi in 2014.

(Bangkok Post)

Courtesy Adaderana

The island-wide strike action launched by 18 trade unions in the health sector, including those affiliated with nursing, supplementary and paramedical services, is continuing for the fifth consecutive day today despite the enjoining order issued by the court. 

The Government Nursing Officers’ Association said they are yet to receive the enjoining order in writing.

Its chairman, Saman Ratnapriya said the executive committee of the association plans to convene a meeting immediately after receiving the enjoining order and discuss the future course of action.

Last evening, the District Court of Colombo issued two enjoining orders against the Government Nursing Officers’ Association and its chairman Saman Ratnapriya calling for the immediate suspension of their trade union action.

The enjoining orders were issued after taking into account a request made by the Attorney General. He had filed action against the said union and its chairman, seeking an enjoining order from the court to immediately suspend the trade union action of the said association.

The Attorney General also appraised the court of the current deplorable conditions at hospitals due to patient care has been gravely affected.

Nearly 65,000 health workers have joined this indefinite strike action which commenced at 7.00 a.m. Monday (Feb. 07).

The trade union action is based on multiple demands including transforming health professional services into closed services, increasing the special duty allowance to Rs. 10,000, eliminating parallel salary anomalies caused by eliminating only teacher salary anomalies, the establishment of a ‘Health Administration Service’ representing all health professionals and the delays in providing solutions to problems that have arisen for health professionals.

Courtesy Adaderana

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa today (February 11) declared the Vavuniya Campus, affiliated to the Jaffna University, as a state university named ‘Vavuniya University’.

Accordingly, the institution will be considered the 17th state university in Sri Lanka.

The Faculty of Applied Sciences, the Faculty of Business and the English Language Unit affiliated to the University of Jaffna were established in 1997 as the Vavuniya Campus.

The students and the lecturers have been requesting for a long time to upgrade the Vavuniya Campus to a National University. Taking this into consideration, the government developed the University of Vavuniya as a smart university with modern facilities including lecture halls, faculty buildings and playgrounds under the Higher Education Development Programme in line with the National Policy Framework ‘Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour’, the President’s Media Division (PMD) said.

The PMD statement added that President Rajapaksa was accorded a warm welcome by the residents of the area gathered at the Vavuniya University hostel grounds. He has engaged in a cordial discussion with the residents and inquired about the issues pertaining to the area.

The Head of State unveiled the plaque marking the upgrading of the Vavuniya Campus into a National University and handed over the University’s Centre for Information Technology and the Centre for Coexistence to students.

The President, expressing his views with the students of the Faculty of Information Technology, said that if one could convey the gained knowledge to his or her own region, it would be of great service to their village and the country.

Addressing the gathering, President Rajapaksa said the government hopes to create intellectuals who are resilient to future social changes, through education. 

For a country to be empowered, its education system should be strengthened. Pointing out that this is a productive investment, the President said that the government has given priority to uplifting national education.

At present, the number of students admitted annually to universities has increased. The President assured that steps would be taken to gradually raise the number of students admitted to universities by fulfilling other needs and facilities including university hostels.

The President commended the expeditious steps taken by the university system to reform the curriculum to suit the social needs by imparting knowledge on English language and information technology to the students studying in the arts stream.

While pointing out that the need of the hour is to identify the areas with the highest job demand in the world and to produce educated people, the President added that it is the responsibility of a government to provide facilities for all the students who have passed A/L examination to continue education up to the university degree level.

The President invited all university students to join in building national co-existence in the hearts of their friends, at the dormitory, at the lecture room, at the stadium and in the dining room.

He noted that the bonds made at the University are strong and that such strong relationships will be of great help in the development of the country.

Ministers Dinesh Gunawardena, Douglas Devananda, Governor of the Northern Province Jeevan Theagarajah, MPs Kader Masthan, Kulasingham Thileepan, Secretary to the Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs Prof. Kapila Gunawardena, Chairman of the University Grants Commission Senior Professor Sampath Amaratunga, other professors, lecturers and undergraduates were present at the inauguration ceremony.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Health Ministry says that another 1,259 persons have tested positive for Covid-19 today, as the daily count of new cases continues to rise in the country.

This brings the tally of Covid-19 cases registered in the country thus far to 624,545. 

According to official figures, 594,348 positive cases have recovered.

Following the new development, the number of virus-infected people who are undergoing treatment moved to 14,474. Meanwhile, the death toll stands at 15,723.

The Director-General of Health Services has confirmed 31 new coronavirus-related fatalities for February 10, moving the death toll in the country from the virus to 15,754.

This includes 18 males and 13 females, according to the Department of Government Information.

Five of the deceased were in the age group of 30-59 years. The remaining 26 victims were aged 60 years and above.

Courtesy Adaderana

The chairman and the transport manager of Co-operative Wholesale Establishment (CWE) have been interdicted with immediate effect.

The decree was made by Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardene until the conclusion of disciplinary inquiries against the duo.

Source: Hindustan Times

Indian Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Sri Lankan high commissioner Milinda Moragoda on Friday discussed the finalisation of a USD 1 billion line of credit to be provided by India to the island nation to purchase essential items to tide over an economic crisis.

Moragoda met Sitharaman and conveyed Sri Lanka’s appreciation for the support provided so far by India. He thanked her for the personal interest she has taken in supporting Sri Lanka at this critical time”, according to a statement from the Sri Lankan High Commission in New Delhi.

The high commissioner also followed up with minister Sitharaman on the early finalisation of the $1-billion line of credit to purchase essential items, which is part of the four-pillar bilateral economic cooperation concept,” the statement said.

As part of the four-pillar package decided during Sri Lankan finance minister Basil Rajapaksa’s visit to New Delhi last year, the Indian side has so far provided a USD 500-million line of credit for purchasing fuel and a currency swap of USD 400 million under the Saarc facility. The Indian side has also deferred the payment of USD 515 million that was due to the Asian Clearing Union.

Garvin Karunaratne

I refer to Jamila Husain’s article

Rising number of Government (SLPP) MPs resort to using filth in parliament
in your esteemed columns.

I was beside Prime Minister Dudley Senanayake at a meeting, possibly at Tolangamuwa Central. The Prime Minister was presiding and I think it was a meeting organized by the rural development society. 

The speaker from the rural development society was speaking and used the word: aru. The PrimeMinister turned to me  “What is the meaning of Aru. I replied that it was a derogatory manner of referring to a person. The Prime Minister kept on listening, when the speaker used the word MU. “GA what does that word Mu mean?. “It is also a derogatory manner of referring to a person.” I replied. “Stop him speaking at once “ordered the Prime Minister. He was angry.  I got up, snatched the microphone away from the speaker and pushed him  out of the stage.  I was about to get back to my seat beside the Prime Minister when he ordered me. “Apologise to the people for the use of sauch foul language at this meeting” .

I grabbed the microphone and said  that the Prime Minister ordered me to apologise for  the use of that foul language at this public meeting.

What of today?

Garvin Karunaratne

ජයන්ත හේරත්

නිදහස් අධ්යාපනය යනු  අධ්යාපනය සෑම කෙනෙකුටම ලබා ගැනීමේ ඇති අයිතියයි, නිදහසයි.

රජයක යුතුකම විය යුත්තේ ඒ අයිතිය තහවුරු කිරීමයි. ඒ සඳහා අවශ්ය පහසුකම් සැපයීමයි.

අවුරුදු 2500ට පෙරත් අධ්‍යාපන ගාස්තු තිබුනේය. දිසාපාමොක් අහිංසක ගෙන් අද්යාපනයට ගාස්තුව අයකළේය. මිනිස්සු 1000 මරා ඇට මාලයක් පිදීමෙන්ය. මිනී මස් රාත්තල් ලක්ශයක්ය්.

පුද්ගලික මුදලට, හෝ රජය මුදල් යොදා හෝ scholarship ශිෂ්‍යත්ව දී හෝ මුදල් අය නොකර හෝ ණයට හෝ අධ්යාපනය දීමට ඇති පහසුකම් වැඩි දියුණු කිරීම රටේ අනාගත  දියුණුවට බොහෝ උපකාරී වේ.

රජය සහ පුද්ගලික අංශය හමුදාව ඇතුව හෝ නැතුව මෙම පුන්ය කටයුත්තට සහභාගී විය යුතුය. ආණ්ඩුව පලවන උසස් අධ්යාපන යුද්ධය ජය ගත්තේ හමුදාව සමගය.

1965 Dudley මහතාගේ ආණ්ඩුව සහල්  රාත්තල් දෙකක් නොමිළේ සුමානයකට කූපන් පොතකට සලාක ක්රමයට දුන්නේය. ඇති තරම් කන්න තව සහල් වෙළඳ පොලේත් තිබුනි, ගන්න වැඩි මිලට, සල්ලි තියෙන අයට, කන බොන අයට. කුස ගින්න නිවීමට ආහාර අත්යාවශ්යය. ජනතාවට ආහාර සැපයීම ආණ්ඩුවේ වගකීමකි

අධ්යාපනය කියන්නේ මොලයට අවශ්ය ආහාරයයි .  ඒ ආහාර ඇති තරම් ලබා ගැනීමට වෙලඳ පොලේ අධ්යාපනය තිබිය යුතුමයි. පුරවැසියන්ගේ මොලය නිරාහාරව සාගින්නේ තැබීම රජයේ යුතුකමක් නොවේ. හැකියාව තිබියදී නොදීම බරපතල වරදකි. නොදෙන්නයි කීමද බරපතල වරදකි. මිනිසුන්ගේ මූලික අයිතිවාසිකම් වලට පහර දීමකි.

සෑම මට්ටමකම අධ්යාපනය  මිලදී ගැනීම පසුගිය අවුරුදු 50 තුලම ලංකාවේ ජයට සිදු කෙරුනි. තවමත් නොකඩවා සිදු කෙරී ගෙනයමින් පවතී. ඉදිරියටත්  කෙරෙනු ඇත. පස් වන පන්තියේ  ශිෂ්යත්ව, සාමාන්ය පෙළ විභාග, උසස් පෙළ විභාග වලින් සමත් වීමට බොහෝ සිසුන් අධ්යාපනය  මිලදී ගනී.

ශ්රී ලංකාවේ ඊනියා නිදහස් අධ්යාපනය නොමිලේ ලැබෙන්නේ සිසුන් අතලොස්සකට පමණකි. සෑම විශ්ව විද්යාල සිසුවෙකුටම අවම වශයෙන් ඇමරිකානු ඩොලර් 80,000 කට සමාන ශිෂ්යත්වයක් ලැබෙන බව අමතක නොකළ යුතුය..

ශ්රී ලංකාවේ නිදහස් අධ්යාපන ක්රමය බොහෝ කලකට පෙර අවසන් වූයේ සිසුන් අ.පො.ස. සාමාන්ය පෙළ සඳහා පෞද්ගලික උපකාරක පන්ති සඳහා tuition masterඅමතර ඉගැන්වීමවලට  ගාස්තු ගෙවීම ආරම්භ කිරීමත් සමඟ ය. වසර ගණනාවක් තිස්සේ ශ්රී ලංකාව ගාස්තුවක් ගෙවා උපාධියක් හෝ වෘත්තීය සුදුසුකමක් ලබා ගැනීමට අවස්ථාව ලබා දී තිබේ. දශක දෙකකට ආසන්න කාලයක් තිස්සේ රජයේ පාලිත ලාභ ඉපැයීමේ උපාධිධාරී ආයතනයක් වන මැලබේ කාර්මික විශ්ව විද්යාල ආයතනය පරිගණක විද්යා උපාධි ලබා දෙන්නේ එක් වාරයකට රුපියල් 50,000 කට වැඩි ගාස්තුවකට ය. දශක ගණනාවක් තිස්සේ විවෘත විශ්ව විද්යාලය ගාස්තුවක් සඳහා උපාධි ලබා දී ඇත, නීති විද්යාලය ගාස්තුවක් සඳහා උපාධි ලබා දී ඇත, ගණකාධිකාරිවරුන්ට ගාස්තුවක් සඳහා ICMA සුදුසුකම් ලැබෙන අතර ලන්ඩන් 1 වන කොටස සහ 2 වන කොටස ලබා ගැනීමෙන් කෙනෙකුට ඉංජිනේරුවෙකු විය හැකිය. ගාස්තු සඳහා විභාග. රුසියාවේ මාස හයක පුහුණුවෙන් පසු සහකාර වෛද්යවරයෙකුට වෛද්යවරයෙකුට සමාන වෘත්තීය සුදුසුකමක් ලැබේ. මෙම සියලු අවස්ථාවන් ශ්රී ලංකාවෙන් ලබා ගත හැකි නමුත් ඉතා සුළු පරිමාණයකින් ලබා ගත හැකිය. මිනිසුන්ට ඔවුන්ගේ ජීවිත කාලය තුළ ඔවුන්ගේ වෘත්තීන්හි ඉහළම ස්ථානයට පැමිණීමට උපකාර කිරීම සඳහා වඩා විශාල පරිමාණයෙන් තවත් විකල්ප තිබිය යුතුය. එක් විභාගයක ප්රතිපලයකින් හෝ අ.පො.ස. උසස් පෙළ අනුව පුද්ගලයෙකුගේ අනාගතය වයස අවුරුදු 16 දී තීරණය නොකළ යුතුය.

අධ්යාපනය  නොමිළේ සැමට සදහටම දිය නොහැකිය. නොමිලේ අධ්යාපනයක් ලැබීමෙන් පසු රටට පඩි රහිතව ජීවිත කාලය තුලම වැඩ කල යුතු ක්රමයක්ද නොතිබිය යුතුය. එවන් කොන්දේසි තිබුනා නම් කිසිවකු කවදාවත් මිලක් නොගෙවා ඉගෙන ගන්නේ නැත.

බඩට අවශ්ය ආහාර සියල්ලටම කඩේ මුදලාලිට සල්ලි ගෙවා අපි ගන්නවා වගේ මොලයට අවශ්ය ආහාර ද සල්ලි ගෙවා ලබා ගත හැකි විය යුතුය.

ව්‍යාපෘතිය ක්‍රියාත්මක කිරීම වේගවත්, ඇතිධාවනකාරී, විශාල වශයෙන් සමාන්තර සහ පැතුරුණුඅන්දමට (parallel  හා distributed) විය  යුතුය.

ජාතික සංවිධායක ජනක ප්‍රසාද් සමස්ත ලංකා වායුසමන ශිල්පී සංගමය

සමස්ත ලංකා වායු සමන ශිල්පී සංගමයේ මහ සභාව සහ වැඩමුළුව 2022. 02. 07 දින මොරටුව ‘ශ්‍රී ලංකා ජර්මානු කාර්මික අභ්‍යාස ආයතනයේදී පැවැත්විනි. ලංකාවේ සියලුම දිස්ත්‍රික් නියෝජනය කරමින් වායු සමන ක්ෂේත්‍රයේ ව්‍යාපාර ලියාපදිංචියක් හිමි ව්‍යවසායකයෝ ඊට සහභාගි වූහ.
රට පුරා විසිරී සිටින සියලුම වායු සමන ව්‍යවසායකයන් එකම සංවිධානයකට ගොනු කිරීම, ඉහළ ගුණාත්මක හා විශ්වසනීය සේවාවක් ලබාදීම සඳහා ක්ෂේත්‍රයේ ගුණාත්මකභාවය ඉහළ නැංවීම, වෘත්තීයභාවය ඉහළ නැංවීම, වායු සමන ක්ෂේත්‍රයේ ව්‍යවසායකයන් මුහුණ දෙන ගැටලුවලට සාමූහිකව විසඳුම් සොයා ගැනීම, දැනුම – අත්දැකීම් හා හැකියාවන් හුවමාරු කර ගැනීම, නව නිපැයුම් දිරිමත් කිරීම ‘සමස්ත ලංකා වායුසමන ශිල්පී සංගමය’ පිහිටුවීමේ අරමුණ බව එහි ලේකම් අධිකාරී මහතා ප්‍රකාශ කළේය. නුදුරේදීම පළාත් මට්ටමින් හා දිස්ත්‍රික් මට්ටමින් සංගමයේ ශාඛා පිහිටුවන බව ප්‍රකාශ කළ ලේකම් අධිකාරි මහතා ඊට සියලු දෙනා සාමූහිකව උනන්දු විය යුතු බවද අවධාරණය කළේය.
සංගමයේ සභාපති මිතිල ජයවර්ධන මහතාට හදිසි අසනීප තත්වයක් හේතුවෙන් මහසභාවාරයට පැමිණීමට නොහැකි විය. උප සභාපති සංජීව තිලකරත්න මහතා විසින් සභාවේ කටයුතු මෙහෙයවනු ලැබීය. භාණ්ඩාගාරික රොෂාන් ලියනගේ මහතා භාණ්ඩාගාරික වාර්තාව ඉදිරිපත් කළේය. උප ලේකම් ගාමිණී කුලරත්න මහතා ජාතික සංවිධායක ජනක ප්‍රසාද් මහතා ඇතුළු විධායක සභිකයෝ සියලු දෙනා ඊට සහභාගි වූහ.
ලංකා ජර්මානු කාර්මික අභ්‍යාස ආයතනයේ ජ්‍යෙෂ්ඨ උපදේශක පියසිරි උදයකුමාර, ජාතික ආධුනිකත්ව සහ පුහුණු කිරීමේ අධිකාරියේ සහකාර අධ්‍යක්ෂ (අලෙවිකරණ හා වෘත්තීය මාර්ගෝපදේශ) එම්.එල්. ප්‍රියන්ත යන මහත්වරු වායුසමන ක්ෂේත්‍රයේ ව්‍යවසායකයන්ට ඉතා වැදගත් හරවත් දේශන දෙකක් සිදු කළහ.
ජාතික ගීය වාදනය කිරීමෙන් හා සාම්ප්‍රදායික පොල්තෙල් පහන දැල්වීමෙන් ‘සමස්ත ලංකා වායුසමන ශිල්පී සංගමයේ’ මහ සභාවේ කටයුතු ආරම්භ කෙරුණු අතර පැමිණ සිටි සියලුම ව්‍යාපාර නාමයක් හිමි ව්‍යවසායකයන්ට සංගමයේ සාමාජික සහතික පත් එහි විධායක සභිකයන්ගේ අතින් ප්‍රදානය කිරීමද සිදු විය. පැමිණ සිටි සියලුම ව්‍යවසායකයන්ට වෙන වෙනම තමන්ගේ අදහස්, යෝජනා, ගැටලු ඉදිරිපත් කිරීමට අවස්ථාවක් සලසා තිබීමද විශේෂත්වයක් විය. එහිදී බොහෝ දෙනකු නව යෝජනා, අදහස් මෙන්ම රැකියාව කරගෙන යාමේදී මුහුණ දීමට සිදුවන ගැටලු ඉදිරිපත් කළ අතර ඒවාට සාමූහිකව විසඳුම් සපයා ගැනීම පිළිබඳවද මහසභාවේ අවධානය යොමු විය.
සමස්ත ලංකා වායුසමන ශිල්පී සංගමය ඉදිරියේදී රට පුරා විවිධ වැඩසටහන් රාශියක් පැවැත්වීමට සංවිධානය කොට තිබේ.

By P.K.Balachandran/SAM Courtesy NewsIn.Asia

Colombo, February 10: India and Sri Lanka had been at odds for most of the 20 th.Century. The question of the economic and political rights of the people of Indian origin troubled both pre-independence and post-independence governments in the two countries. Then, there was the dispute over Katchchativu island. From 1983, for about 30 years, the question of the political rights of the Sri Lankan Tamils bedevilled India-Lanka relations.

But now, there is a noticeable change in the ground situation that augurs well for a stable relationship between the two countries.

Questions relating to the Indian Origin Tamils’ status have been settled with the grant of Sri Lankan citizenship to them. The Kachchativu issue is a thing of the past after the demise of the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J.Jayalalithaa. And with the elimination of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 2009, the Sri Lankan Tamil political question has also receded into the background at least as far as India-Lanka relations are concerned.

However, a new factor, the intrusion of China into the economy of Sri Lanka through its massive Belt and Road projects in 2010, raised the hackles of the Indian government. New Delhi saw these infrastructural projects, especially the ports, as having a strategic/military dimension that could, in course of time, pose a security threat to India. China’s acquisition of the strategically located Hambantota port on a 99-year lease only underscored the fear, which was fed further by the notion that China is deliberately pushing Sri Lanka into a debt trap to acquire real estate of strategic value.

The Mahinda Rajapaksa government which brought China into the picture, believed that its ouster in the 2015 elections was an India-engineered plot. The successor government of President Mithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, were, at the outset, friendly to India. It signed many MoUs signalling a policy of being open to Indian investments also. But many of the MoUs were soon shelved and forgotten, creating disillusionment in New Delhi. The next government headed by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, paid lip service to the commitment to give India a level playing field vis-à-vis China, but in fact, took away the Eastern Container Terminal project from India and asked India to execute the Western Container Terminal project, from scratch, at double the cost. India had no option but to accept the offer. The other MoUs signed in 2017 remained in the shelf.

However, despite these discouraging developments, the Narendra Modi government did not disengage or take a hard stand on Sri Lanka. It went in for a cooperative approach based on Modi’s oft-repeated ‘mantra’ that India will only execute those projects sought by Sri Lanka and will execute them at a pace with which Sri Lanka is comfortable.

New Delhi corrected its decades-long pro-Tamil tilt and began to address the concerns and sentiments of the Sinhala-Buddhist majority. Promotion of Indo-Lankan Buddhist ties was emphasized like never before. The primordial cultural and religious ties with India were emphasized along with a periodic demonstration of humanitarian concern which India has for Sri Lanka as part of its Neighbourhood First Policy.” New Delhi has frequently demonstrated its claim to be the First Responder” whenever there was a natural disaster in Sri Lanka.

On Chinese investments, the fear psychosis appears to be receding as Sri Lanka has repeatedly stated that it needs Chinese investments for infrastructural development which had been stalled by 30 years of non-development thanks to the war. To assuage India’s anxieties, Sri Lanka has been repeatedly assuring India that it will not do anything that jeopardizes India’s security.

Only recently, Colombo called off a Chinese renewable energy project on three islands in North Lanka that are close to India. The Chinese are miffed, but Colombo stood by its decision not to give the project to the Chinese. It is likely that Colombo will continue to respect New Delhi’s security concerns vis-à-vis North Sri Lanka which is largely Tamil with cultural and emotional links with India.

While there is no movement in regard to many MoUs signed in 2017, there has been significant forward movement vis-à-vis the Trincomalee Oil tanks, a long-standing issue with Sri Lankan governments. On January 6, this year, Sri Lanka and India signed a fresh agreement on the 99 giant oil tanks to supersede the controversial one signed in 2003. The 2003 agreement had given all the tanks to India for 35 years. Through the new agreement, 85 of the 99 tanks will be under the control of Sri Lanka, either directly or indirectly, the latter being through a joint venture with India in which Sri Lanka will have a 51% share. India will manage only 14 tanks.

This is a major Indian concession to Sri Lanka which should warm the cockles of Sri Lankans’ hearts. Referring to this deal at his meeting with the Indian Foreign Minister S.Jaishankar on February 7, Sri Lankan Foreign Minister G.L.Peiris said that the oil tank agreement signals a closer integration between two countries, resulting in substantial benefits; a win-win situation for both.” The deal lays the ground for the implementation of the already envisaged renewable energy sectors.

Peiris and Jaishankar also discussed potential Indian investments in priority sectors such as pharmaceuticals, food processing and manufacturing. The two Ministers agreed on the early finalization of several agreements and MoUs in the areas of defence, culture and education, that are pending.  

Peiris appreciated the financial assistance to the tune of US$ 2.4 billion that India has extended to Sri Lanka at this critical juncture when Sri Lanka is facing an economic and forex drought. He then went on to state that the relationship between India and Sri Lanka has evolved from a transactional relationship into a strategic partnership.” Peiris stated that it is increasingly recognized by the people of Sri Lanka that India is a true friend whom Sri Lanka can rely on at all times.”

India’s generous help during the COVID pandemic and also its US$ 1.5 billion aid to overcome the ongoing forex crisis, and Sri Lanka’s fulsome appreciation of them, indicate that the two countries have found common ground and that the fears of the past have begun to recede.

Both India and Sri Lanka are aware of their respective compulsions and national developmental and security imperatives, and both are prepared to take these into account in formulating their policies.

However, two issues which will continue to bedevil bilateral ties are the Sri Lankan Tamil demand for devolution of power and the issue of poaching of Tamil Nadu fishermen in North Sri Lankan waters. In regard to the Sri Lankan Tamils’ demand for a federal structure, New Delhi can do little because the demand will never be conceded by Colombo and India has no leverage to force anything of this sort on Colombo, especially when India is itself not a federation in the true sense of the term. India’s advice to the Tamil parties has been that even as they agitate for their aspirations, they should unitedly fight to get the existing devolution system under the 13 th. Constitutional Amendment fully implemented. They should also concentrate on economic development, an area in which India can help without alienating Colombo.

On the issue of poaching, the two countries have agreed to urgently activate the dispute solving mechanisms. With mid-sea clashes taking place now, Colombo is worried. Peiris said that the situation has reached a flashpoint. The situation should worry India too partly because the impoverished fishermen of North Lanka could become anti-India, and also go into the waiting arms of China which is eyeing the North Lankan fisheries sector for its investments. Two Chinese aided projects are already functioning and more may be on the cards. The ball is now in India’s court. How India will play it, remains to be seen.

Courtesy Adaderana

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday challenged the main opposition for an immediate election to show the government’s strength, a challenge which was accepted by the Samagi Jana Balawegaya today.

Prime Minister Rajapaksa challenged the Opposition to a battle in an election and to see if they could defeat the government.

He said that they won’t make decisions thinking of the impending elections. 

If we had made decision thinking of impending elections, there would not have been Norochcholai coal-fired power station, Hambantota port and the Colombo Port City and even the war victory,” the Prime Minister said. 

Meanwhile, SJB MP S. M. Marikar said Premier Rajapaksa at the SLPP rally in Anurhapura challenged us to face an election. We are ready for it and we urge the government to hold the local government election immediately. Let’s see which way the people will go,” 

He said the SJB will also hold a rally at Salgado Stadium in Anurhapura to challenge SLPP.

උපුටා ගැන්ම  හිරු පුවත්

කාබනික පොහොර යොදා සිදු කළ මෙවර මහ කන්නයේ අස්වැන්න සැලකිය යුතු ප්‍රමාණයකින් අඩු වී ඇතැ යි බොහෝ ප්‍රදේශවල ගොවීන් පවසනවා.

ඇතැම් ප්‍රදේශවල ගොවීන් පෙන්වා දෙන්නේ, රජයෙන් ප්‍රමාණවත් තරම් කාබනික පොහොර ද නො ලැබුණු බවයි.

මෙවර මහ කන්නය යටතේ කාබනික පොහොර යොදා ගනිමින් ගාල්ල දිස්ත්‍රික්කයේ ප්‍රදේශ කිහිපයක ගොවීන් වී වගාව සිදු කර තිබුණා.

කෙසේ වෙතත් අක්මීමන, වලහන්දූව, යග්ගන, තොටගොඩ ආදී ප්‍රදේශවල ගොවීන් පෙන්වා දෙන්නේ, සිය වගාවන් අසාර්ථක වී ඇති බවයි.

Courtesy Adaderana

A delegation headed by the Deputy Director-General for Administration & Financial Affairs of the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) Nedhal A. Al-Olayan visited Sri Lanka recently to sign a loan agreement to construct and equip the Medical Faculty at the University of Moratuwa.

The visiting delegation which included Deputy Director for Operations for East, South Asian & Pacific countries Yousef Al-Bader called on Foreign Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris and the Minister of Education Dinesh Gunawardena.

The loan agreement was signed by Secretary to the Treasury and Ministry of Finance of Sri Lanka S.R. Attygalle and Deputy Director-General Nedhal A. Al-Olayan on February 02 at the Finance Ministry in Colombo, in the presence of the Minister of Finance Basil Rajapaksa.

Following the signing ceremony, the delegation also had a brief discussion with the Finance Minister.

During the courtesy call, Foreign Minister Peiris, while recalling the mutually beneficial partnership between Sri Lanka and Kuwait, expressed his gratitude to Kuwait for granting financial support to one of the most prioritized projects in construction and equipping the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Moratuwa.

The Foreign Minister spoke of other important areas of the health sector such as nursing and healthcare support and worker training facilities for the youth in Sri Lanka in order to meet the job demands in Kuwait and other Gulf countries.

Deputy Director-General Nedhal A. Al-Olayan assured Kuwait’s support for prioritised development projects in Sri Lanka and to further advance bilateral engagements between the two countries in the spirit of friendship.

Ambassador of the State of Kuwait to Sri Lanka Khalaf Bu Dhhair and senior officials of the Department of External Resources were present at the signing ceremony while senior officials of the Foreign Ministry were present at the meeting with the Foreign Minister.

Courtesy Adaderana

The District Court of Colombo has issued two enjoining orders against the Government Nursing Officers’ Association and its chairman Saman Ratnapriya calling for the immediate suspension of their trade union action.

The enjoining orders were issued after taking into account a request made by the Attorney General.

He had filed action against the said union and its chairman, seeking an enjoining order from the court to immediately suspend the trade union action of the said association.

The Attorney General also appraised the court of the current deplorable conditions at hospitals due to patient care has been gravely affected.

Accordingly, District Court Judge of Colombo, Aruna Aluthge issued two enjoining orders, preventing the union from continuing the said trade union strike, which puts the lives of the patients at risk.

Additional Solicitor General, President’s Counsel Vikum De Abrew with State Counsels Chathura Gunatilake and Sehan Soyza appeared on behalf of the Attorney General.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Ministry of Health says that another 1,297 persons have tested positive for Covid-19 in the country today (10), as the daily count of fresh cases continues to rise.

This brings the tally of Covid-19 cases registered in the country thus far to 624,545 while presently approximately 14,847 patients infected with the virus are undergoing treatment island-wide.

The Director General of Health Services has confirmed another 31 coronavirus related deaths for February 09, pushing the death toll in the country due to the virus to 15,723.

The fatalities reported today includes 16 males and 15 females, according to the figures released by the Government Information Department. 

Five of the victims are between the ages 30-59 years while the remaining 26 are in the age group of 60 years and above. 

Meanwhile this also brings the Covid-19 deaths reported in the country within the last three days to over 100. Sri Lanka had confirmed 36 deaths for February 08 and 35 for February 07. 

Senaka Weeraratna

Professor Chandrika N Wijeyaratne, Vice-Chancellor, University of Colombo unveiled a vintage photograph showing staff and students of the Colombo Law Faculty (1972), in the Board room of the current Faculty of Law, University of Colombo, today (Feb. 09, 2022), in the presence of the members of the Faculty of Law, and several invited Guests from the 1969 batch of the Colombo Law Faculty.  

Professor Chandrika N Wijeyaratne, Dr. Sampath Punchiheva ( Dean of the Faculty of Law), Dr. Wasantha Seneviratne(Head of Dept, Faculty of Law), Dr. Srilal Perera, Professor of Law (USA), Senaka Weeraratna ( Attorney at Law) and Ms. Chandana Jayaweera Bandara ( Attorney at Law) spoke at the meeting. 

A fuller account of the proceedings will be released in due course of time. Some of the photographs (4) taken of the unveiling are attached to this email. 

The speech made by Mr. Senaka Weeraratna, Attorney at Law, is appended below and attached, for your information. 

Unveiling of the Law Faculty Photograph

Madam Vice-Chancellor, Professor Chandrika N Wijeyaratne, Dean of the Faculty of Law, Dr. Sampath Punchiheva, Dr. Wasantha Seneviratne, Distinguished Members of the Law Faculty, Visiting Professor Srilal Perera, Ms. Chandana Jayaweera Bandara, Ladies, and Gentlemen.

It is indeed an honour for me to be present here today. I must thank the Dean, Dr. Sampath Punchiheva, and his colleague, Dr. Wasantha Seneviratne for extending a kind invitation to me.

We are gathered here today to unveil a photograph of the Law Faculty staff and students which was taken in 1972 to mark the 25^th anniversary of the founding of the Dept. of Law of the Faculty of Arts.

Simple as the function is, this photograph has archival value. It has a story to tell and will outlive all those who are seen in the photo, both teachers and students. It is the first-ever group photograph taken of the students and staff together. In that sense, it is a rare first.

Let me go back in time. The Dept. of Law was established in 1947 under the Faculty of Arts. The Faculty of Law was established in 1967, with Professor T. Nadaraja as the foundation Dean. My batch the ‘1969’ batch was the third batch after the Faculty was formed.  The numbers were small compared to today, fifty students were the size of my batch. Today the number of new entrants is over six times that size.  The walls of the faculty building when we entered in 1969 were more or less empty. There were no pictures of any kind, group or individual, giving an insight into the institutional history. Any info on the history of the Law Faculty or Law Dept. came only by word of mouth. Mostly inaccurate. We had a Newsletter called ‘Jura’, a brainchild of our batch which filled a long-felt need to stay connected through an exchange of news and views. The first Editor was A.P. Niles and the person who succeeded Niles as Editor was Sri Lal Perera, who is here with us today. He did a splendid job, in bringing out several editions of ‘Jura’.

It is only when 1972 dawned that we came to know via Dr. Mark Cooray that it was the year of the 25^th anniversary of the founding of the Dept. of Law. Mark Cooray was a doer, with a sense of direction and knowledge of the past. He organized on behalf of the Faculty staff a commemorative dinner at the Akase Kade, Ceylinco Bldg. Fort in January 1972. I attended that dinner with Mr. Ifthikar Hassim, a batchmate. The then Minister of Justice Mr. Felix R. Dias Bandaranaike was the Chief Guest. Mr. K. Shinya, a distinguished alumnus delivered a memorable speech. I was thrilled to meet both old and young lawyers (former students) then holding notable appointments in several sectors of employment.

We the students decided to do something different as our contribution to the commemoration activities. The Law Faculty Students’ Union decided to mark the event with a photograph of the entire Faculty. Something that has not been done before. We retained John & Co. an old photography studio in Kollupitiya for that purpose. Nihal Amaradasa of that firm, a former Cricket Captain of Nalanda College (in the mid-nineteen fifties) took the photograph in Sept. 1972. The location was the outdoor premises of the Colombo Campus. A handsome big sized photo with only the seated ones named in the picture was displayed prominently in the Faculty Staffroom. One day the picture disappeared from the staff room.   It had walked out, so it appeared. It was missing. I was then in Australia.

I returned to Sri Lanka in 2000. I realized the value of the photograph and the need for someone to take the initiative to get a replacement. Fortunately, I had with me in my possession a smaller version of this photograph which I had purchased from John & Co. in 1972. I approached Mrs. Mendis, the proprietor of Plate Studios in Kollupitiya, and asked her whether she could have it re-photographed and enlarged for the purpose of replacing the one that was missing. She agreed. Thereafter copies of the photo became available at Plate Studios for anyone interested in keeping a copy framed in their homes. A number of my 1969 group batchmates proceeded to do exactly just that.

Years passed by but there was no sign of movement in this matter. Furthermore, there was a missing factor. Only the names of the ones seated in the front row were set out and not the ones standing in the back rows, which constituted the bulk of the students. In the interest of completeness and to enable everyone in the photo to be identified by name we set about doing what was initially seen and decried as an impossible task. Finding names to fit the image. Many of them were scattered all around the globe. No one had their addresses or contact details. 

True to the Proverb ‘Where there’s a will there’s a way’ with great determination we set about gathering the names. We had to call people overseas and little by little the names started trickling in. Several offered help to track down others. Many months were taken until the work was completed. The framing took place thereafter.

Before I conclude I will give you a small hint of what more is in store. This photograph shows a section of the students who passed through the portals of the Faculty at a given period of time. Likewise, another medium in the form of a book of essays in honour of a distinguished alumnus is in print and expected to hit the shelves of Bookshops sometime in March. It has seminal articles on the Law Faculty, its history, its achievements, its teachers, and the students. It is a book that should be in the possession of every law faculty-student, past, and present.    

I wish to thank everyone who has made a contribution in whatever way to the success of replacing the missing photo with a new one with all the names of the subjects inscribed. I am particularly indebted to my former batchmate Ms. Chandana Jayaweera Bandara for her logistical support a practice she has gotten used to ever since she became the sheet anchor of law alumni get-togethers. This is a happy occasion. Thank you, Madam Vice – Chancellor for unveiling this memorable photograph.  Thank you, Dean, for making it a success.

Senaka Weeraratna

February 09, 2022

අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය

අන්තර්ජාතික රතුකුරුස සහ රතු අඩසඳ සම්මේලනයේ මහලේකම් ජගාන් චැපගන් (Jagan Chapagan) මහතා සහ එම දූත පිරිස ඊයේ (08) පස්වරුවේ අරලියගහ මන්දිරයේ දී අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මහින්ද රාජපක්ෂ මහතා හමුවූහ.

ලොව විශාලම මානුෂවාදී සංවිධානය වන අන්තර්ජාතික රතු කුරුස සහ රතු අඩසඳ සම්මේලනය රටවල් 192ක් පුරා විහිදී පවතියි.

කොවිඩ් වසංගතය ඇතුළු ඉතිහාසයේ ශ්‍රී ලාංකික ජනතාව මුහුණ දුන් සෑම ව්‍යසන අවස්ථාවකදීම ශ්‍රී ලංකා රතු කුරුස සංවිධානය ඔස්සේ තම ජනතාව වෙත ලබා දුන් මානුෂවාදී ආධාර උපකාර වෙනුවෙන් අන්තර්ජාතික රතුකුරුස සහ රතු අඩසඳ සම්මේලනයට සිය කෘතවේදීත්වය පිරිනමන බව අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමා මෙහි දී පැවසීය.

ලොව පුරා විසිරී සිටින සිය සාමාජික රටවල් අතර ශ්‍රී ලංකා රතු කුරුස සමාජය ඉතා ක්‍රියාශීලී සහ විනිවිදභාවයෙන් කටයුතු කරන ඉදිරියෙන්ම සිටින සාමාජිකයෙකු බව පෙන්වා දුන් අන්තර් ජාතික රතුකුරුස සහ රතු අඩසඳ සම්මේලනයේ මහලේකම් ජගාන් චැපගන් මහතා ඉදිරි සහන සේවා කටයුතුවලදී ද ඔවුන්ගේ ඉල්ලීම් වලට ප්‍රමුඛත්වයක් ලබාදී ශ්‍රී ලාංකීය ජනතාව වෙනුවෙන් ප්‍රතිලාභ ලබාදීමට බලාපොරොත්තුවන බවට විශ්වාසය පළ කළේය.

ජනතාවට සහන සැලසීම සඳහා ශ්‍රී ලංකා රතු කුරුස සමාජයේ සභාපති ජගත් අබේසිංහ මහතාගේ නායකත්වයෙන් ඉටු කරන කාර්ය භාරය වෙනුවෙන් රජයේ පූර්ණ සහයෝගය ලබාදෙන බව මෙහි දී අග්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමා අවධාරණය කළේය.

මෙම අවස්ථාවට මහ බැංකු අධිපති අජිත් නිවාඩ් කබ්රාල්, අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය ලේකම් අනුර දිසානායක, අන්තර්ජාතික රතුකුරුස හා රතු අඩසඳ සම්මේලනයේ ඉන්දීය කලාපීය ප්‍රධාන නියෝජිත උදය රෙජිමි, ශ්‍රී ලංකා රතු කුරුස සමාජයේ සභාපති  ජගත් අබේසිංහ, අධ්‍යක්ෂ ජනරාල් වෛද්‍ය මහේෂ් ගුණසේකර, නියෝජ්‍ය අධ්‍යක්ෂ ජනරාල් අරුණ ලේකම්ගේ මහත්වරු එක්ව සිටියහ.

 by Jamila Husain Courtesy NewsIn.Asia

Colombo, Feb 9 (DailyMirror) – A rising number of ruling SLPP Parliamentarians are now resorting to using filth in Sinhala such as ‘P ***** ‘ and ‘P ****** ‘ in Parliament to stifle the opposition from raising their voice against the burning issues in the country as well as to prevent them from highlighting the corruption within the government.

One such incident occurred once again yesterday when SLPP MP from the Puttalam District, Mayadunna Chinthaka had continuously used such bad language at TNA Parliamentarian Shanakiyan Rasamanickam when he was delivering his speech in Parliament.

Despite being told by some opposition MPS including Rasamanickam himself, to stop using those words as it brought disrespect to the House, it is alleged that Mayadunna had continued to stifle the TNA Parliamentarian by continuously using these words at him, which angered the opposition MPS.

The Daily Mirror learns that in recent months, complaints against the use of such filth especially by the SLPP MPS have been brought to the attention of the Chief Government Whip, Johnston Fernando, but Opposition MPS alleged that no action has been taken.

The matter has also been raised with the Speaker of Parliament.

Opposition MPS have alleged that the frustration of the government’s failures has led to an increase in the use of such filth in the House and when the matter has been raised with senior politicians in the government as well, they have been told to ‘ignore it’.

Yesterday’s incident too was brought to the attention of Johnston Fernando but opposition MPS fear that no action will be taken once again. (Jamila Husain)

Courtesy The News

Anil Kapoor left his fans stunned with his ageless charm

The much adored and evergreen Bollywood star Anil Kapoor left his fans stunned with his ageless charm as he enjoys some memorable moments exploring the beauty of Sri Lanka.

Anil Kapoor was spotted enjoying a ‘gala’ time by the gorgeous beach donning a gray T-shirt with black tracks.

The legendary star looked young as ever posing by the calm sea waves and the clear blue sky.

Not only this, but the star also helped himself to a game of snooker.

Taking to Instagram, the Malang star uploaded captivating glimpses from his tour.

It is still unsure who Anil Kapoor was vacationing with. 

Courtesy Adaderana

Sri Lanka is committed to honour all forthcoming debt obligations and the country is not on the brink of a sovereign default, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka reiterated on Wednesday (February 09).

In a statement, the Central Bank dismissed the recent media reports on an impending sovereign default as totally unsubstantiated”.

The attention of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) has been drawn to certain recent media reports which have claimed that Sri Lanka is at the verge of a sovereign default.”

The Central Bank said it regrets that these reports carry many obviously factual inaccuracies despite the availability of credible official data published by the CBSL according to international standards.

The statement noted that the local and international investor community and the public can rest assured the government and the Central Bank are committed to honour all upcoming debt obligations and thereby maintain Sri Lanka’s unblemished record of debt servicing. 

Sri Lanka successfully settled the USD 500 million International Sovereign Bond (ISB) that matured in January 2022 despite the adverse speculation in certain quarters that such settlement would not be possible,” the Central Bank explained.

In fact, with the repayment of ISBs totalling USD 2.5 billion from January 2020 onwards, the total outstanding ISBs have now reduced to USD 12.55 billion and will reduce to USD 11.55 billion by July 2022, broadly in line with the Government’s strategy to reduce ISB debt gradually to around 10% of GDP.”

Towards that objective, the government and the Central Bank have already taken necessary measures to secure alternative forex inflows via a number of bilateral and multilateral funding arrangements to meet the upcoming debt obligations, including the USD 1 billion ISB maturing in July 2022, the statement read further.

In that background, with the realisation of expected forex inflows and the resulting build-up of international reserves, the need for initiating discussions with investors on debt restructuring (as claimed by these media reports) does not arise, as the government would be able to ensure the settlement of its sovereign debt without any interruption or default.”

Accordingly, the Central Bank informed the public and the investor community not to be misled by such inaccurate stories, misleading opinions and deliberate misinterpretations spread by certain parties with vested interests who are fuelling speculation regarding Sri Lanka’s capacity to service its future debt obligations.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Director-General of Health Services has confirmed 36 new coronavirus-related fatalities for February 08, moving the death toll in the country from the virus to 15,692.

This includes 27 males and 09 females, according to the Department of Government Information.

Eight of the deceased were in the age group of 30-59 years. Three others were aged below 30 years and the remaining 25 victims were aged 60 years and above.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Ministry of Health says that another 1,263 persons have tested positive for the novel coronavirus today (February 09).

Sri Lanka’s tally of Covid-19 cases confirmed in the country thereby climbed to 623,248.

According to official figures, 593,602 positive cases have recovered.

Following the new development, the number of virus-infected people who are undergoing treatment moved to 13,954. Meanwhile, the death toll stands at 15,692.

This is the eleventh consecutive day Sri Lanka recorded more than 1,000 daily cases of Covid-19.

Courtesy Adaderana

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa today urged the people of Anuradhapura to place their trust in him and the government, as he pledged to increase the farmers’ income by 100%. 

It came during the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna’s first rally for the year, titled Public Rally 2022” which kicked off at the Salgado Stadium in Anuradhapura this evening.

When I did my first public rally for the presidential campaign here, I promised that fertilizer will be given free of charge and paddy will be given a certified price.”

The President vowed to increase the income of the farming community by 100%, with or without fertilizer.

Speaking further, he blamed those who were in power over the last five years for not doing anything for the agricultural sector. They are now trying to drag the country down by lying to the farmers with their illusions of the presidency.”

President Rajapaksa criticized the former administration for destroying the national security established in the country, as well as the intelligence agencies. It ended with the Easter Sunday bombing.”

The former government betrayed the country’s war heroes and they forfeited Sri Lanka’s sovereignty before the international community, he alleged, noting that his administration managed to rid all these things within the last two years after it came to power.

He appealed to the members of the public to join him and place their trust in him.

There are local and international forces trying to divide the government and sabotage the journey the country is currently on.”

Speaking on the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic that plagued the entire world, the President said, As a leader, and as a government, we have to face the new challenges. We have faced these challenges.”

He said many people have now resorted to strike actions due to the influence of various forces. I urge them to look at the people because your responsibility is not towards the government but towards the people.”

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, who also addressed the rally, called on the opposition to leave aside conspiracies and to battle the government on equal grounds.

Courtesy Adaderana

The European Union (EU) has strongly urged Sri Lanka to lift forthwith import restrictions that prevent many European products from entering the island nation’s market.

This was conveyed during the 24th meeting of the EU-Sri Lanka Joint Commission on February 08 in Brussels.

A joint statement issued by the EU and Sri Lanka said the meeting, which was held in a friendly and open atmosphere, reviewed bilateral relations and entailed an exchange of views and updates on a wide range of topics of bilateral interest – ranging from governance, reconciliation and human rights, to trade, development cooperation, climate change and environment, sectoral cooperation, security and counter-terrorism, and cooperation in multilateral fora.

The meeting provided an opportunity for updates on developments, relevant action and legislative initiatives in the EU and Sri Lanka.

The discussion focused on democracy, governance, rule of law, human rights, including the rights of minorities, women, children and labour rights, and freedom of expression and association.

During the meeting, the Joint Commission has taken stock of the conclusions of the Working Group on Trade and Economic Cooperation held virtually on January 26. The EU and Sri Lanka noted the significance of bilateral trade relations.

In this regard, the EU called for lifting of import restrictions. In response, Sri Lanka explained that temporary constraints were imposed on non-essential items, strictly as an interim measure, due to a foreign exchange shortfall resulting from the impact of the global pandemic. Sri Lanka noted that these measures are subject to continuous and progressive review.

Sri Lanka appreciated the valued contribution of the GSP+ regime to the country’s sustainable development. The EU acknowledged the constructive engagement by Sri Lankan stake-holders during the GSP+ monitoring mission in September 2021.

According to the joint statement, the two sides have reviewed Sri Lanka’s compliance with 27 International Conventions related to human rights, labour rights, protection of the environment and good governance covered by the GSP+ scheme.

Sri Lanka, reiterating its commitment to effective implementation of the 27 conventions, noted its adherence to the principle of non-discrimination, and the removal of any further impediments in the exercise of labour rights and fundamental freedoms. The EU then invited Sri Lanka to provide further updates on progress.

The Joint Commission also discussed the conclusions of the Working Group on Development Cooperation, which took place on 2 February 2022.

The Working Group reviewed all aspects of EU – Sri Lanka development cooperation, and discussed priorities of the EU Multi-Annual Indicative Programme (MIP) for 2021-2027.

They also discussed the interventions adopted in 2021, including the COVID-19 response package. The EU noted that the MIP, which focuses on Green Recovery and Inclusive and Peaceful Society, supports Sri Lanka’s development priorities, and is aligned with the external dimensions of the European Green Deal, and the EU Strategy for Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.

Appreciating the EU’s development cooperation, Sri Lanka reiterated the need for it to complement Sri Lanka’s national and developmental priorities.

The EU and Sri Lanka expressed their commitment to work together on joint priorities under the MIP.

In addition, Sri Lanka apprised on progress in reconciliation and in the independent institutions, notably the Office of Missing Persons (OMP), the Office for Reparations (OR), the Office for National Unity and Reconciliation (ONUR), and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka (HRCSL).

The EU strongly encouraged Sri Lanka to continue cooperation and engagement with the Human Rights Council and its mechanisms.

In this context, the EU underlined the importance of independence and effective functioning of the Independent Institutions.

The EU and Sri Lanka concurred on the importance of empowering civil society and giving it the necessary space to function in all its diversity. The EU reiterated its continued commitment to support Sri Lanka in justice reform and reconciliation.

Sri Lanka reiterated its objective to achieve measurable, tangible and verifiable results on the ground in meeting its commitments.

In this context, the EU welcomed the submission by the Government of Sri Lanka of amendments to the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA).  However, the EU noted that important elements had not been included in the Amendment Bill gazetted.

Sri Lanka took note of the views expressed by the EU to take further steps to make the PTA fully compliant with international norms.

In the interim, while taking note of the administrative steps taken in the form of directives issued by the Inspector General of Police, the EU urged Sri Lanka to continue reducing the use of the PTA, and to undertake further practical and administrative steps to release on bail those detained under the PTA without charges.

The EU and Sri Lanka agreed on the importance of continued cooperation in deterring and eliminating IUU fishing practices, and honouring commitments of the partnership.

Issues related to migration and readmission were also discussed.

The EU and Sri Lanka exchanged on ways to deepen cooperation in higher education and research and technical cooperation under the Erasmus+ programme, the Marie-Sklodowska-Curie programme, and the Horizon Europe framework programme. 

The EU welcomed Sri Lanka’s update on its Nationally Determined Contributions under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the country’s commitment to ambitious targets.

The EU looked forward to working closely with Sri Lanka, bilaterally and in multilateral fora, on climate action and environment protection. Both sides exchanged views on priorities ahead of the 27th UN Climate Change Conference (COP27).

The EU and Sri Lanka reviewed ongoing cooperation in the area of security and counter-terrorism. Sri Lanka appreciated the EU’s continued listing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as a terrorist organisation.

Both sides stressed the importance of adherence to international norms and standards in the fight against terrorism. They reiterated willingness to further enhance cooperation in Maritime Domain Awareness.

The EU and Sri Lanka highlighted their commitment to continue joint efforts in the promotion of a rules based international order and effective multilateralism. They also discussed regional developments, and cooperation in the Indian Ocean. The EU presented Global Gateway, the new EU plan for major investments in infrastructure development around the world, which was launched on 1 December 2021. The initiative was welcomed by Sri Lanka.

The EU and Sri Lanka agreed to convene the next Joint Commission meeting in Colombo in 2023. They also discussed the timeframe of the next Working Group meetings under the Joint Commission.

Courtesy Hiru News

Central Bank says with the realization of expected forex inflows and the build-up of international reserves, the need for initiating discussions with investors on debt restructuring as claimed by media reports does not arise.

The Sri Lankan Government would be able to ensure settlement of its sovereign debt without default.

Dr Sudath Gunasekara

The first question I ask the Minister in charge of the Electricity Board is as to why he skipped the CPC and went to the IOC for   such a large volume of fuel from a foreign Agency that will drains millions of Foreign Exchange? I know he will say the CPC refused my request?

Now that already the Government has been compelled to sign an agreement with the IOC to purchase all the fuel required by the CEB, I wonder whether this is the next step in handing over Trinco Oil Tank Farm A Marvel in the East’ (as one writer has described it) and the Trico Harbour, including 85 acres of land adjoining the second best natural harbour in the world and the best in the East,  to India, the much awaited Dream by India for more than the past 50 years.

 Dravida Munnetra Kasagam also once agitated to annex it, to India as their future Port of EELAM. In that backdrop now I suspect this this deal as a part of a subversive agenda on the part of India to get a tighter grip of this Island nations security and the economy to defeat all attempts by India’s arch rival China and USA currently in tow with India on Indo-Pacific Quadrilateral Program, (that could disappear at any moment the USA finds a better ally in the region than India or the Indian interests overtake those of the USA. A tighter legal hold on Trinco will be a geopolitical asset to India to control not only Sri Lanka but also the entire Indo pacific region from a strategic angle. India’s strength here might definitely paralyze the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and political independence of this Island nation, in view of it’s focal importance on the great East West naval route. It is in this backdrop and long- term security and economic concerns of this Island nation one has to look at both these deals and not from the point of view of short- term implied benefits.

To me both these agreements by the Sri Lankan government are extremely short-sighted political and economic bungles that lack political and strategic wisdom and maturity or far sightedness. It reminds me the story about chopping a goat’s neck to save the pot that we have learnt in grade 11 in the village school. I can understand the stands of the two respective Ministers, each driven by the urge to overdo the other arguing for his case. But surely what the others including the Defense and Trade Minister were doing. Well even if the whole Cabinet gave its nod why the Prime Minister, the senior elder statesman or the President the Head of the Cabinet and the State brought their concerns to these imminent serious long- term economic, security and geopolitical implications and asked the two Ministers to settle it among them as an internal issue by asking the Electricity Minister to first, settle the 97 million bills with the CPC. That would have settled the problem and the CPC would have then supplied the fuel required.

However now that the government has got caught in the   trap let us wait and see as to how they will come out of it. It is said that there are hundreds of Advisers to the Ministries, the Prime Minister and the President, led by a Chief Advisor. What the hell they had being doing when the government is getting trapped like this. Were they sleeping or just planting the stake to save their positions? In this scenario I think not only the Cabinet but also all these Royal Advisors are responsible to the nation for all the future repercussions that will befall the nation on account of these two disastrous Agreements.

As I see it as a layman, both these agreements are the clever manipulations of the Indian Kautilyan bureaucracy. They first signed the Trinco Oil Farm Agreement and put the first noose. Then they agreed to give US $ 500 Million swap as aid to help Sri Lanka to meet its Dollar crisis. But they were very careful to tie up that 500 m with the purchase of fuel from India too. Third the IOC agreed to provide fuel to CEB, which they refused at first, and set off the bills against that US$ 500 million swap. The money is Indian, fuel too is Indian, IOC Indian and finally the profit with interest for the loan as well as the fuel is back to the Indian coffers. See how nicely and cleverly they have manipulated it and how our entire Cabinet and the bureaucracy have been caught up in the Indian trap with all their pants down, with hardly any future chances of lifting them up? What a disgrace to the dignity and the wisdom of the entire Cabinet of the first country in Asia to get universal franchise that was once decorated with men and women of the calibre like DS, S.W.R.D. Kannangara, Sirima, NM, Philip. Colvin, T.B,Ilanagaratna,   Felix, JR and Lalith and Luxman Kadiragaama.

Why did the energy Ministry bypassed the CPC to purchase fuel from the IOC

Isn’t this surprising and shocking and extremely dangerous that the Energy Ministry has decided to bypass the CPC and has decided to purchase its fuel requirements from the IOC an Indian agency.  I can’t understand why the Cabinet has given its nod without studying the pros and cons of this deal,  including economic losses and geopolitical and strategic concerns to the country and its serious long-term implications down the Kautilyan line. Why can’t the Ministry of Energy buy this from CPC? So that the profit will accrue to this country, instead of it going to India and draining the total 500 m US$ credit facility given by India back to India with interest? Is there a deal behind this as well? Worth looking in to, by those interested and competent.  For India this is fishing in troubled waters and making hay while the sun is shining Because for them always ‘India is first” Here they have surpassed even Kautilya and perhaps borrowed the dictum Ends justify the means” from Machiavelli in attaining its political goals, though we cannot blame India for the follies of our politicians.

The Minister of Energy in my view should have,

1 First Settle the outstanding bills with the CPC Rs. 90 billion due to fuel already purchased

and

2 Thereafter buy the diesel and Petrol from the CPC. So that the profit from this deal will not go to India, but the CPC will get it. CPC being a giant State Corporation that plays a vital role in the process of economic development and the life of the people of this country, in my view, it is the inalienable duty of not only the Minister of Power and Energy but also of the whole Cabinet headed by the President, to Protect the CPC. The Minister Concerned in my view has betrayed not only the Minister in charge of CPC but also the whole country by resorting to purchase fuel from IOC. Had the fuel being purchased from the CPC, the CEB will also function with CPC fuel and CPC, a Sri Lankan Government’s business concern will also prosper and contribute to economic development at home instead of funding econ development of India, with the loan money take from them going back to India making a double payment to India by the Government of this country.. CEB purchasing fuel from CPC means it leads to development at home and profit for the country.  I wonder what has happened to the often-spoken collective responsibility of the Cabinet. If I were the Minister in charge of the CPC, I would have resigned forthwith in protest against this decision of the Cabinet. In fact this callous decision of betraying the interests of the country and those of the people warrants an open apology to the people of this country by the government for betraying the trust  they had kept in the present Government in Nov 2019 and May 2020.

If I were the Head of the State, I would have ordered the cancellation of the meaningless and mad Feb 4 wasteful celebrations (celebrations of an independence, the people of this country have never got up to date) along with it months old rehearsals etc and diverted that money to settle the CPC bills in time and made arrangements for regular supply of electricity to the people and rescued the CPC as well. Mr. President, therefore it is not yet too late even now to reverse this utterly treasonous Cabinet decision and retore the status quo, lest the Opposition brings a no confidence motion against the Government on this issue.

Does the Cabinet too want to close down the CPC and hand over the entire fuel distribution business to the IOC?

Does the Cabinet too want to close down the CPC and hand over the entire fuel distribution business to the IOC. The first mistake in this game was done by Ranil’s government in2002. Firstly, by handing over the distribution of fuel to IOC and Secondly, handing over the Trinco Oil Farm of 101 Tanks each with a capacity of 20,000 Metric Tons totaling to 1.2 Million MT. Mount Batton constructed these tanks in 1927 -32 to store all the needs to meet the requirements of whole of south East Asia. We never made use of these tanks after 1948.What an asset and a economic marvel for Sri Lanka.

Doesn’t this show that our Cabinet is more concerned about the IOC than the CPC and the well- being of Indians rather than Sri Lankans at Home. One should not get surprised if we hear next that they have decided to hand over the CPC as well, with all its assets to India. Next step in their march to vistas of prosperity will be handing over all 101 Tanks, the harbour and the 85 acres around it to India, perhaps on the advice of the Super High Commissioner Milinda Moragoda who had identified this Trinco Project as a Thrust Area’ item in is Policy Road Map” submitted to you before he left for Delhi under your compulsion as it was widely reported.?

Now that Trinco oil Farm and the Harbour and part of Hambantota, Colombo West Terminal and Kankasanture Airport and Declaration of the North and East as Traditional Homeland of South Indian Tamils, Tamil is made an Official Language all over Sri Lanka with Tamil only in the North and East, while even in India it is not, though they have 70 million Tamils in Tamilnadu alone and all illicit Tamils in Sri Lanka are given citizenship by JR/ Rajiv Accord it is only left  for Tamils to declare unilaterally EELAM on this soil. And call it Mother Ilanka” thereafter, leaving two options for the Sinhalese, that is either integrate with the Tamils and live in Ilanka as a minority in future or jump in to the Indiana Ocean as a Nation.?

The relevant News item on the Cabinet decision is given below.

ECONOMYNEXT 2.2 2022.

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka will buy 40,000 metric tonnes of diesel and 40,000 metric tonnes of petrol from the Indian Oil Corporation following discussions, a governments statement said.

 The Ministry of Energy has discussed with the Indian Oil Company to procure” the fuel, the statement said.

Indian Oil Corp has agreed to supply the fuel.

The cabinet of ministers had given the go-ahead to purchase the fuel.

The statement did not say whether a 500 million dollar credit line given by India to Sri Lanka to buy fuel will be used. (Colombo/Feb01/2022)”

Sri Lanka to purchase 40,000 Metric Tons of diesel from IOC

Tuesday, February 1, 2022 – 11:02

Local

The Cabinet of Ministers has approved to procure 40,000 metric tons of diesel and 40,000 metric tons of petrol from Indian Oil Company.