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Military training programme for teens expands in US
CHICAGO, Dec 1, 2007 (AFP) – Dozens of teens dressed in uniforms provided by the US Marines stand at attention in the gym of a Chicago public high school as a drill sergeant goes through a list of the day’s do’s and don’ts.Bring your books to class. Come for extra help if you need it.And […]
Sri Lankan batting destroyed by England
KANDY, Sri Lanka, Dec 1, 2007 (AFP) – England’s pace-spin duo of Matthew Hoggard and Monty Panesar combined to dismiss Sri Lanka for just 188 on the opening day of the first cricket Test here on Saturday.England replied with 49-1 by stumps after losing opener Alastair Cook to the third ball of the innings when […]
‘s batting crumbles in first Test
KANDY, Sri Lanka, Dec 1, 2007 (AFP) – Matthew Hoggard grabbed four wickets in a hostile opening spell to give England a brilliant start in the first cricket Test against Sri Lanka here on Saturday. Sri Lanka’s delight at winning the toss and batting first on the slow pitch was short-lived as they crumbled to […]
Sri Lankan clashes kill 27
Dec 1, 2007 (AFP) – At least 27 people were killed in fresh fighting in Sri Lanka’s embattled northeast, the military said on Saturday, marking the latest violence in the long-running ethnic conflict.At least 11 Tamil Tiger rebels were killed and 49 injured in heavy clashes across northern defence lines in Mannar early on Saturday, […]
Ill Wind
Dec 01, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s power engineers are protesting a controversial deal with Enercon, an Indian energy firm, alleging a massive procurement scandal after authorities approved the project when it was shot down by an evaluation committee. The Ceylon Electricity Board Engineers Union (CEBEU) said the government was about to award a letter […]
Sri Lanka to release index showing lower inflation
Dec 01, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is about to release an inflation index that shows a lower level inflation a top official said, making the island the latest country to change indices in the face of runaway inflation from money printing. Rising inflation has prompted calls for legislated inflation targeting and full independence for […]
Sri Lanka to sell more rupee bonds to foreigners
Nov 30, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has lifted a ceiling on foreign holdings of government rupee bonds, allowing foreign investors to buy into more than 500 million dollars worth new medium term securities. The government has doubled an earlier limit of 5 percent of outstanding government bonds to 10 percent, from November 30. Sri […]
Sri Lanka inflation rockets 4.4-pct in November
Nov 30, 2007 (LBO) – Consumer prices in Colombo’s capital jumped 4.4 percent in November keeping 12-month inflation at a record 19.6 percent for the second month running, the government’s statistics office said.The Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI) gained 253.2 points to move to 5976.2 index points. The moving average of the index, averaged over […]
Sri Lanka plans longer term sovereign bond
Nov 30, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka want to issue longer term sovereign bonds going beyond the 5-year tenor issued in October, as part of a strategy to reduce pressure on domestic debt markets in 2008, a top official said.The government was looking at 7-10 year bonds to extend the tenor of its foreign debt […]
Sri Lanka in new push on agriculture
Nov 30, 2007 (LBO) – Sri Lanka is getting 360 million dollars in concessionary aid from Iran to build a multipurpose irrigation project that will generate 100 MegaWatts of electricity and divert water to irrigate the south of the country, officials said. The Uma Oya project with cost a total of 450 million dollars, Treasury […]
SriLankan Airlines gets global air safety certification
Nov 30, 2007 (LBO) – SriLankan Airlines has said it had received an international air transport safety audit certification a year ahead of a global deadline. . Corrected The airline has been added to the Registry of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Operational Safety Audit, which measures safety and quality standards among airlines throughout […]
China to stop arresting women for carrying condoms: state press
BEIJING, Nov 30, 2007 (AFP) – Chinese police are to stop arresting women who carry condoms, traditionally seen as evidence of prostitution, in an effort to help curb the spread of AIDS, state press said Friday.Despite efforts to stop the practice, women in China are still being sent to labour camps for prostitution offences merely […]