Foreign newspaper spills the beans: Myanmar-Sri Lanka rice deal smells of corruption

Focusing on the current plight of the paddy industry in Sri Lanka which runs back to 2600 years ago is a timely requirement. History bears.....

Dollar crisis driven import issues to hamper Yala season

Farmers had high hopes to cultivate during the Yala season, but their hopes have begun to shatter. Presently farmers....

Spotlight on Bibile Bittersweet responses for sugar producing project

Two hundred years have passed since the Uva - Wellassa uprising to free the country from the British colonials. The British left the country, but to this day the struggle to save the land from foreigners remains the same, locals of Uva-Wellassa say.

Spotlight on illegal sand mining in Kuchchaveli

Red Rocks beach, a great creation of mother nature, is on the brink of destruction because of the haphazard extraction of ilmenite on the beach; a task carried out by Lanka Mineral Sands Ltd. Obtaining Ilmenite by mining is legal, but that should not be carried out by destroying ecosystems, archaeologically valuable sites and natural beaches; which attr

Dambulla sacred area Jugglery in the name of development

Most local politicians are namesake Buddhists and the story about to unfold will provide evidence of that. Plans to build sacred cities began when Ceylon was under British rule. The Pilgrimages....

Rumble in the CEB Focus shifts from investigation to appointing GM

In an attempt to defend the members of the Ceylon Electricity Board Engineers Union who are accused of recent power sabotage in the country the Secretary Ministry of Power is alleged to have instructed the IGP to suspend the ongoing i

Land racket in Dambulla: Transferring Devalagama lands causes stir

Selling lands acquired illegally using fake deeds has become a practice in the country and Dambulla is infamous for such illegal....

New Diamond and X-press Pearl incidents: Underhand deals spoiling compensation claims

Seeking compensation for the environmental damage caused by the fire-stricken vessels has become almost unthinkable due.....

Spotlight on looming food crisis

According to agriculture experts, Sri Lanka is facing a food crisis and the food related shortage will be felt more in March.

Shaky deals and misdeeds in the fuel industry

The price of fuel was increased to reduce usage, but a new problem has emerged. Drivers claim that fuel available these days burns faster and the maximum speeds of vehicles have decreased and vehicles are subject to defects. Several drivers said they suspect several vehicles went up in flames in different areas due to poor quality fuel. “We are not sure whether the Governm

Wildlife officials land in trouble for opposing trench project

Authorities are yet to find a permanent solution to the Human-Elephant Conflict (HEC) and wild elephant raids. Some people who were assigned with the task to find solutions suggested to name wild elephants as forest elephants.

Did absence of regulator send gas industry up in flames?

The failure of respective governments since 2012 to grant legal status to the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka to regulate....

Spotlight on SMEs: Footwear industry buckles under dollar crisis

Entrepreneurs of the Small and Medium Scale Enterprise Sector blamed an officer of the Presidential Secretariat for attempting....

Wasgamuwa unsettled by treasure hunting, harassment activities

The ancient palace of King Parakramabahu and the surrounding historical sites with an archaeological value in Wasgamuwa Reserve are at present dominated by treasure hunters. R

Traders millers rule the roost in rice mafia

The Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) issuing a gazette on September 2 announced that a maximum retail price for rice would.....

Political interference at Sathosa comes under the spotlight

According to documents this newspaper is in possession of applications have been called in February this year to recruit a Deputy General Manager (Marketing), Manager HR Administration, Assistant Manager (Legal) and Assistant Manager (Engineering) for Lanka Sa

Food donations meant for inmates Apeksha Hospital officials serve themselves!

Administration blunders at Apeksha Hospital, Maharagama (formerly known as Cancer Hospital) have brought a negative impact to its day-to-day work, it is alleged.

Sri Lanka faces looming crude oil crisis

Several parties pointed out recently that the country’s crude oil reserves were sufficient only till December and this would lead.....

Focus on Laggala Gem mining big shots bigger than the law

The truth is now being uncovered regarding an illegal mining racket in state lands under the Moragahakanda - Kalu Ganga Development Project (MKDP) which is a Mahaveli project in the Matale district. Influential politicians in the Government, Opposition party MPs, higher state officials and doctors are engaged in locating state lands containing gems in the area. Some of them operate mines with licenses and some obtain one license and misuse it to

Bittersweet memories of a ‘City that never slept’

At the heart of Eastern Province lies a now abandoned ghost town punctuated with towering structures, uninhabited housing, dilapidated buildings,

Spotlight on agriculture; Contaminated fertilizer tailor-made for Sri Lanka

Minister of Agriculture Mahindananda Aluthgamage said in Parliament recently that compost, bio-liquid fertilizer and potassium fertilizer would be provided prior to cultivation during the Mah

Spotlight on Attorney General’s Department and Public Service Commission

Certain acts by the Attorney General’s Department and the Public Service Commission during the past few months to promote certain officers of the department bypassing the Scheme of Recruitment has given rise to grave concerns of conflict of interest.

GOVT’S FERTILIZER DEAL A HIGH-RISK ADVENTURE?

The much controversial fertilizer tender, that was offered to China without analyzing samples to check its compliance with the standards published by the Sri Lanka Standard Institution, has been suspended due to the continuous failures in proving the samples are free of microorganism.

Spotlight on Somawathiya Reserve Merrymaking trespassers see the blues!

Revelations about groups trespassing reserves amidst the Covid-19 pandemic were reported from Polonnaruwa recently. They have reportedly trespassed Somawathiya Reserve and the Flood Plains National Park. Wildlife officers recently nabbed seven people, including the former UNP MP of Polonnaruwa District Sidney Jayarathna, who were fishin

Battle between preserving history and people's health

The construction of a jogging track on the breakwater of the Parakrama Samudraya has been a controversial topic for some time.

Waiver of registration questioned: Import of covid related drugs, products shrouded in controversy

The National Medicines Regulatory Authority- the independent authority that regulates medicine and medical devices in the country.....

Spotlight on Meegahapallama Commercial farmers demand bridge

Around 350 - 400 families live in Paranigama W.27/A Grama Niladhari Division in Ampara district. More than 350 acres of cultivation lands....

Rumble in the Sri Lankan gas market

Following the ‘manmade’ gas shortage in the country there is public opinion to say that this was allegedly manipulated by the Ministry of Trade....

New hospital short-staffed COVID priority cripples Polonnaruwa Kidney Hospital

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and former President Maithripala Sirisena inaugurated the China – Sri Lanka Friendship National Hospital of Nephrology on May 11.

Kumbuk felling racket despite rumblings of annoyance

Kumbuk is a tree found in the dry zone which lives up to 300 years. The tree has the ability to purify water by reclaiming saline.