February 15, 2019 was a sad day for the CIMA Toastmasters Club. Our dear Charter President, Distinguished Toastmaster Padmini Samarasinghe passed away that afternoon. It is only fitting that we pen a few lines about this amazing lady.

I have great pleasure in welcoming you to the golden jubilee celebrations of Rev. Father Vernon Saturninus Panteleon Regis, who was born in Dehiwela and named Vernon because Monsignor Vernon Johnson,

The 19th Amendment to the Constitution which was meant for the strengthening of democracy by reining in of the Executive Presidency has by now created several issues, challenging democracy.

‘Whispering Forests’ is a collection of nature inspired paintings and drawings by mother daughter duo Iranganie and Chandima Wickramasinghe. Both artists are immensely inspired by nature and...

King Kosol of India had 16 strange dreams and he desired to find out whether they were good or bad or to what they meant. He approached the Buddha for clarification. As at today, corruption is the subject of the day...

The Colombo YMBA Scholarship Awards Ceremony was successfully concluded recently at the Colombo YMBA main hall. 447 bright and deserving Undergraduates attached to State Universities....

Cosmetic testing isn’t bunnies trying on a new shade of lipstick or getting their fur shampooed with the latest formula. What happens to animals in laboratories has always been a bit of a mystery to consumers. It wasn’t until photographs re

The latest edition of the World Bank’s Sri Lanka Development Update (SLDU) was launched in Colombo, on Thursday, February 14. The report finds Sri Lanka in a challenging macroeconomic landscape. The post-conflict high growth momentum has deceler

A ceremony was organized on February 21, 2019, with the patronage of Jaffna Commander, Sri Lanka Army Major General Darshana Hettiarachchi for the distribution of wooden chairs and tables to the pre-schools in Iyattalai Durgamalai in Kodikamam with t

The Ministry of Finance and Mass Media has called upon all stakeholders to make proposals for the budget of 2019 as a contribution to ensure the introduction of a successful budget to build a strong economy and an enriched country.

Payment cards provide customers with the convenience of withdrawing cash through Automated Teller Machine (ATM) networks and transacting through merchants worldwide. However, there is a possibility of ATM and card reading machines being abused by cri

Quite justifiably the train journey from Nanu Oya to Ella is being touted as the most “scenic train ride in the world”. lt takes you over one of the most enchanting and unforgettable landscapes of Sri Lanka. Some relations of mine, presently d

The Grease Yaka has already seen a few avatars. Both in the form of a political fear-mongering device and a dramatic enterprise, undertaken by the topical and incisive team at Ananda Drama. Its latest manifestation attempts to take on one of the most

On October 30, 1996, Shirani Bandaranayake was appointed as a Judge of the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka. The Government had proposed a power-sharing package and was attempting to reach a settlement with the Tigers. It was at the height of the devolutio

Ginnen Upan Seethala directed by Anuruddha Jayasinghe, now being screened in cinemas halls around the country tries to explore the background which pushed the founder of JVP Rohana Wijeweera to react - the way he did - to various changing situations

Buddhadasa Galappaththi (Buddhi) in his incarnation as a journalist has a prodigious output. The fifth book in his Edawasa Sondurumaya series based on his newspaper columns is now available as an author publication.

In Sri Lanka, deaths from cancer are on the rise. In 2018, government statistics showed the registration of 29,843 cancer patients. Out of them, breast cancer had been the commonest. Cervical cancer had come next.

When Lord Northcliffer opened Carmelite House to hold his gigantic newspaper operations which included the ‘Daily Mail’ and the ‘Evening News’, Mr. D.R. Wijewardene, who was then at Cambridge University, contrived to get an invitation to the

February 23, of this year marks the 133rd birth anniversary of Don Richard Wijewardene (DR), the doyen of the National newspaper industry in Sri Lanka.

The stark reality of death has removed from our earthly scene my Trinity College Kandy and Napier House friend, Tyronne.

Heen putha, heen malli, malli, heen mama, kudappachi, kudapps and Ananda to relatives and Alu to friends, he passed away late last month in California at the age of 80.

I was only 10 years old when I first started sailing. As a young boy, I watched the Sunday sailing races at the Ceylon Motor Yacht Club on Bolgoda Lake. I soon learnt that Uncle Jeremy was one of the best sailors at the club. Not just his sailing sk

We, the Past Girl Guides of 1st Wattala and 13th Wattala, take this opportunity to congratulate Rev. Sister Immaculta Silva RGS who celebrates her diamond jubilee today. She has dedicated forty out of sixty long years of her spiritual life to teach a

Replying to my column last week (“Reflections on Sri Lanka’s Nationalisms”) Dr Dayan Jayatilleka posted the following comment: “Ceylonism did exist and not only as the consciousness of a socioeconomic elite.

It was in the 1960s that my parents took me to see the play at the then-new Veerasingham Hall in Jaffna. A key attraction was that producer Ernest MacIntyre and his sister Evelyn had been living within a hundred yards of our home down Chemmany Road w

On February 24, 2019 the public will have the great opportunity of participating in and experiencing an extraordinary and exceptional Latin Mass in symphonic dimensions, at St. Mary’s Church, Grand Street, Negombo.

“Being mute is like having your brain gouged out,” writes Chandima Rajapatirana as he reflects on being mute for 18 long years. Chandima, fondly known as Chammi was diagnosed with autism at the age of four, but that didn’t stop him from learn

Ma-Aa-Maga (The Path I Came), is a recollection of memories of a versatile personality in Sri Lanka’s newspaperdom. It is none other than Kumar Wethasinghe, who earned an unblemished career record at Lake House (ANCL), and at Wijeya Newspapers with

Wesley College-a leading, Christian Boys School in Colombo was founded on the 2nd of March 1874. Every year, the Double Blue Fraternity gather to celebrate the memory of their Founder, the Rev. Daniel Henry Pereira – on Founder’s Day on the 2nd o

I obtained a second class reserved seat for the 05.55 a.m. Colombo – Kandy Train. I arrived at the station by 05.30 a.m.. The train was parked at platform number 2 all ready to roll. I located my seat. Since there was time I walked from one end to