by Jehan Perera The increase in the price of petrol and diesel has been accompanied by the removal of the QR Code quota system for the purchase of fuel.  The elimination of long lines of vehicles, and people, outside of the fuel stations that existed a year ago is one of the signs of normalisation […]

By Dr. Ranil Senanayake Our history has been littered with carpetbaggers seeking to sell some new snake oil to ‘hicks’. They peddle the ideas that traditional values are old fashioned and the concept that ‘the newer/the more, the better’, irrespective of the social repercussions of such action. Sadly, we seem to be heading for a […]

Monday 24th July, 2023 President Ranil Wickremesinghe has returned from New Delhi with a to-do list given by the Modi government. He will have Big Brother breathing down his neck hereafter. It has been reported that the SLPP-UNP government is planning to hold an all-party conference on the ethnic issue. Some of India’s dictates have […]

Sri Lanka born international economist Dr. Howard Nicholas of Erasmus University, Netherlands has categorically stated that Sri Lanka must not adopt the IMF recommendations on monetary policy for it has no rational basis and evidence of success anywhere in the world. Coming from a Western based economist that provides a lot of food for thought […]

While sitting in a car on Duplication Road one evening around 6 pm in a traffic jam, it occurred to me that if an alien being happened to pass by, she would be intrigued as to why Sri Lankans are so fond of Colombo that they are prepared to sacrifice so much in order to […]

State Minister of Technology, Kanaka Herath, announced the introduction of the DIGIECON 2030 program, aimed at accelerating Sri Lanka’s economy towards an inclusive digital ecosystem through the utilization of advanced technology-based solutions. The program includes a comprehensive digital master

Babarandage Don Sarath Appuham, a 59-year-old fisherman, has worked at Negombo Lagoon since he was a teenager. Palpable differences in tide patterns and fish catches from climate change have complicated his work. “We used to always go at 9am, then 1pm. It’s no longer that predictable,” Sarath told Al Jazeera. They have to gauge conditions […]

Udeni Kaluthantri, a 54-year-old port worker, became an overnight sensation last year for reasons that had nothing to do with his job. Days after protesters stormed the presidential palace in the Sri Lankan capital Colombo, a video surfaced of Mr Kaluthantri lounging on a bed draped with the presidential flag. Pictures of young men jumping […]

When the five days long stretch of holidays ended last week and the Colombo bourse reopened for trading on Tuesday, the market surged 6.71 percent (633.69 points up) on the broad All Share Price Index (ASPI) while the Standard and Poor SL 20 index covering the 20 largest and more liquid companies quoted on the […]

By Amal JAYASINGHE The snaking queues for food and fuel that crisscrossed Sri Lanka last year have given way to a different kind of line — people scrambling for travel documents to flee their bankrupt island. “What we see as normalcy is a mirage,” customer care executive Gayan Jayewardena, 43, told AFP while queueing at […]

CP Chairman DEW G says lawmakers here should be aware of what is going on in the world. The Parliament cannot turn a blind eye to global developments, the former MP said, pointing out that the ongoing Ukrainian crisis underscored the need for greater understanding of international affairs as the rapid developments taking place with […]

By Chandre Dharmawardana chandre.dharma@yahoo.ca According to a recent news report (The Island 23rd June 2023), Minister Mahinda Amaraweera has claimed that the “agricultural sector to be transformed into an export-oriented economy”! This is a surprising statement since the plantation

It is important that Sri Lanka restructures its debt and relaxes the restrictions imposed on imports by the end of this year, Sri Lankan High Commissioner to India, Milinda Moragoda told News First in an interview on Thursday night. Sri Lanka has suspended its external debt repayments and the import of many goods, which are against […]

It was important for Sri Lanka to restructure its debt and relax import restrictions by the end of this year, Sri Lankan High Commissioner to India, Milinda Moragoda told News First in an interview on Thursday night. Sri Lanka had suspended its external debt repayments and the import of many goods, which are against some […]