Parliament adjourned until December 3

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake adjourned the Sri Lankan Parliament until 9:30 a.m. on December 3.

President announces salary hike for Govt. employees in budget

A fair salary increase will be granted to all Government employees in the upcoming budget proposal, the President said in his policy statement during the 10th parliamentary session.

Smuggler arrested with 300 tarantulas strapped to his body

Police in Peru have arrested a man caught trying to leave the country with 320 tarantulas, 110 centipedes and nine bullet ants strapped to his body.

Vote on account in December, new budget in March next year: President

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake told Parliament that a vote on account will be presented in December this year while a budget will be presented by March next year.

President promises increase in ’Aswesuma’ welfare payments to combat poverty

The President assured an increase in the amount allocated for the ’Aswesuma’ welfare benefit payments as the first step toward eradicating poverty.

Government to boost IT workforce to 200,000 in five years

The government is expecting to increase the number of Information Technology (IT) professionals to 200,000 within five years to meet the challenges of the global IT market.

Australia proposes bill to restrict under-16s on social media, fines for tech firms

The Australian government is threatening multimillion dollar fines for social media companies that breach a proposed ban on children under 16 from using their service.

Government expected to sign new staff level agreement with IMF by Friday

The Government expects to sign a new staff level agreement with the IMF by Friday, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake told Parliament today.

SriLankan Airlines wins best entertainment award in Central/Southern Asia

SriLankan Airlines has won the prestigious 2025 APEX Best Entertainment Award in Central/Southern Asia at the FTE APEX Asia Expo, held on 20 November 2024 in Singapore.

No one will enjoy legal immunity in our government: President

No one will enjoy legal immunity under the present Government, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake told Parliament a shortwhile ago.

President vows to prevent racist politics and religious extremism

President Anura Kumara Dissanayaka assured that racist politics would not be allowed to appear again at any cost and confirmed that the issues of religious extremism would not be raised in the country.

President arrives at Parliament

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake arrived at Parliament a short while ago to deliver the government’s Policy Statement during the ceremonial sitting of the first session of the 10th Parliament.

Sajith Premadasa accepted as Opposition Leader

Speaker Dr. Ashoka Sapumal Ranwala informed Parliament that nomination of Sajith Premadasa, leader of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), has been accepted as the Opposition Leader of the 10th Parliament of Sri Lanka.

Parliament adjourned until 11:30 a.m.

Parliament adjourned until 11:30 a.m., and the Speaker requested one representative from each political party that contested the election to attend a party leaders’ meeting in his official room.

Mohammed Rizvi Sally elected as deputy speaker

NPP MP Mohammed Rizvi Sally was elected Deputy Speaker following a proposal by MP Nalinda Jayatissa, seconded by MP Saroja Savithri Paulraj.

Elected MPs sworn in

The swearing-in ceremony of newly elected Members of Parliament (MPs) took place at the 10th Parliament today.

Ashoka Sapumal Ranwala elected as new Speaker

National People’s Power (NPP) Gampaha MP Dr. Ashoka Sapumal Ranwala was elected as the Speaker of the 10th Parliament of Sri Lanka a short while ago.

10th parliament session commences

The ceremonial opening of the tenth Parliament commenced a short while ago marking a significant change after more than half a century.

Half of child population may be nearsighted by 2050 due to screen use

Thirty percent of children are nearsighted due to prolonged use of digital screens, and the World Health Organisation predicts that this figure will rise to 50 percent by 2050, Lady Ridgeway Children’s Hospital (LRH) Ophthalmologist Dr. Anusha Thennekumbura said.

Appointment of PM and Cabinet before Parliament meets is constitutional- Saliya Pieris PC

Former President of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL), Saliya Pieris, PC, stated that there is no basis for claims made by certain factions that the Prime Minister and Cabinet could not have been sworn in prior to the meeting of Parliament, rendering their appointments legally invalid.

Ceremonial opening of 10th Parliament to go down in the history

The ceremonial opening of the tenth Parliament today will go down in history for a number of reasons as it is set to be different after more than a half a century.

Man gunned down in Dikwella

A 48-year-old man riding a motorcycle was shot dead in Walasgala, Dikwella, this morning.

U.S. indicts Indian billionaire Gautam Adani in $265 million bribery scheme

An Indian businessman who is one of the world’s richest people has been indicted in the U.S. on charges he duped investors by concealing that his company’s huge solar energy project on the subcontinent was being facilitated by an alleged $265 million bribery scheme.

10 arrested with 160kg of narcotics

Ten suspects have been arrested in Gandara, Matara with 160 kg of crystal methamphetamine (ICE) and 60 kg of heroin by the Matara Divisional Crimes Detective Bureau (DCDB).

Government to initiate drive for stolen asset recovery

The government is to initiate action for the establishment of a mechanism for stolen asset recovery in keeping with the Stolen Asset Recovery Initiative (StAR Initiative) and fresh measures for probing into corruption and frauds as promised in the election manifesto, Public Security Minister Ananda Wijepala said yesterday.

SL targets US $ 36bn in annual exports by 2029

The government has set its sights on an ambitious annual export revenue target of US $ 36 billion to be achieved by 2029, according to the Export Development Board (EDB).

Former CB Governor confident of IMF review completion by February

Senior Economist and former Central Bank Governor Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy expressed optimism about the completion of the third review of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout package by mid-February next year, as stipulated by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

CEB reports turnaround performance in 3Q despite tariff cuts

The Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) reported a turnaround performance in the three months through September 2024, at both top and bottom-line levels, as the state-owned power behemoth turned to black, helped by the repeatedly raised tariffs in the last two years, despite the cuts to power tariffs earlier in the quarter.

Young Voices, Big Impact

Katkolam Army Camp land in North disbanded

In a move under the Army’s restructuring plan, an 8-acre land of the Katkolam Army camp in the north will be returned to civilians, the Army said.