All Blogs
Flash Dance
A Sri Lankan convict who joined his prisons dance troupe escaped when his jailers took him to perform at a Buddhist temple, an official said Friday.The prisoner, serving a four-year jail term for robbery, vanished when he was brought from the main prison in the central town of Kandy three days ago for the temple […]
Illiterate Cop
Sri Lankas Supreme Court is to investigate a complaint from a man of the tiny indigenous community that police violated his rights by stopping him from using his native language, officials said Friday.Uruwarige Kekula said a police officer had threatened him with physical violence unless he spoke the islands majority Sinhalese language instead of his […]
Tigers Tail
The key to unlocking the US$ 4.5 bn Tokyo aid is to restart peace talks endash but the governments main ally the JVP wants the LTTE to first lift its pre-conditions on the interim administration.The co-chairs of the Tokyo conference met in Brussels this week and called on both parties to resume peace talks as […]
Flash Floods
Sri Lankas government has received 52,000 jobrnapplications after a decision to hire unemployed university graduates intornthe public service, a Finance Ministry official said Thursday.rnAfter winning general elections in April, President ChandrikarnKumaratungas government said it would increase recruitment into the publicrnsector to reduce unemployment.rn rn “We are still going through the applications. They are being handled […]
Tea Shop
In search of new growth for its stunted tea export industry, India is cultivating plans to set up an auction centre in Dubai.Indian Tea Association Chairman C.K. Dhanuka was quoted saying that a separate auction centre in Dubai would be a shot in the arm for the ailing tea industry, whose exports fell from 201,010 […]
Fairy Godmother
The Treasury is considering the possibility of taking on the cost of thermal electricity generation to ease the CEBs cash crunch.CEB sources say the Treasury is now considering, among other measures, the feasibility of taking on the cost of thermal electricity generation to ease the CEBs financial difficulties.rn rnldblquote This cost will be treated like […]
Lost Kitty
Sri Lanka Telecom (SLT) says it has just plugged in a Rs. 60 mn revenue seepage, which was discovered after its new US$ 20 mn billing system kicked in.The telecom giant says around four million minutes of international inpayment calls were not billed, while nearly 3,000 customers were not sent invoices.rn rnLucky subscribers who got […]
Bonding Together
The EU-Sri Lanka Partenariat 2004 kicked off, paving the way for joint ventures, partnerships, marketing cooperation and the transfer of technologies between local and EU companies. rn rnSpeaking at the opening ceremony of the Partenariat, the Ambassador, Embassy of Ireland, New Delhi, Philip McDonagh, said the EU was solidly behind the governments peace efforts.rn rnMeanwhile […]
Friendly Chat
The meeting came a day after the Tamil insurgents warned of “calamityrnand destruction” unless the killings stop. They accused the military ofrnbeing behind some of the violence.rn rn More than 15 people – including a military intelligence operative andrnrebels – have been killed in recent weeks in eastern Sri Lanka. Both thernsecurity forces and the […]
Boom Times
The Seylan Merchant Bank (SMB) Groups earnings doubled for the first quarter ending March 31, boosted by its booming leasing portfolio.In results released this week, SMB Group reported a consolidated post-tax profit of Rs 10.4 million, up 100.30 per cent from the Rs 5.2 million reported in the first quarter of 2003.rn rnNet Interest Income […]