Category: Opinion
Opinion: Is Jaffna a quaint tourist destination, or an economic powerhouse waiting for some diesel in the tank?
By Jekhan Aruliah Deloittes, one of the top global accounting firms, has for many years produced a “London Office Crane Survey”. The Deloittes website states: “The level of construction is widely used as a measure of economic activity – counting the number of cranes / construction sites across Central London is a relatively easy and […]
Opinion: Blood on your hands? Guard the safeguards
By the Commuter The politicians have a new excuse. So do the bureaucrats, and seemingly some segments of the public. Apparently, projects are getting delayed due to regulatory requirements to safeguard environment and citizens’ rights. Such as having to do a proper EIA. Or comply with equitable procedures in land acquisition. And the “smarter” ones […]
Opinion: No room should be left to ‘distort’ freight market in Sri Lanka
By Dinesh De Silva The impact of shipping surcharges including terminal handling charges have been battering the Import and Export industry from 1991 to 2004. Import Export trade knowing the effects on their respective business and keeping the end consumer in mind lobbied with every government from the inception, highlighting the unfair trading practices that […]
Opinion: IT security for your enterprise, have you got it all covered?
By Dimuthu Leelarathne, director of solutions architecture at WSO2 Cyber security and the resultant risks, if not addressed properly, was a hot topic in Colombo recently. And it’s now taken the spotlight globally as well with various discussions taking place to commemorate US cyber security month. Even a top regional study released in Singapore recently […]
Opinion: Is electricity from Norachcholai coal power plant cheap?
By Vidhura Ralapanawe CEB (and the CEBEU) has been touting a cost of 5-6 Rupees for Norachcholai, saying that it is cheap. PUCSL approves the CEB’s bulk supply tariff every six months, and based on the last such approval, the fuel cost is Rs 5.75/kWh (based on a USD80/tonne delivered), the fixed cost (maintenance, salaries […]
Opinion: ‘Drexit’ from Bribery Commission – The good, bad & ugly
By Chrishmal Warnasuriya So His Excellency the President has ended all speculation and accepted the resignation. If the exit of Britain from Europe was “Brexit”, the resignation of our learned friend Dilrukshi from the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) must surely be our very own “Drexit”; at least for the massive sensationalism […]
Opinion: Perpetual and the problem of unfettered capitalism
By Chamath Ariyadasa Questions about rampant capitalism are raised not just in Sri Lanka but in all developed financial markets. Hence, calls for a more subdued, socially conscious process reverberate here as well, and these arguments are important. Once we set the rules, the private sector steps in to maximise profit — acting within the […]
Opinion: Suggestions from a small business for the budget
By Ranjit Hulugalle I run a printing business which employs nearly 100 people in Biyagama, outside of the BOI — Board of Investment zones for export. It is not in the zone and does not get any privileges, tax concessions and other benefits that companies receive at the zone. Our main inputs are imported papers, […]
Opinion: Rajagiriya flyover, for whose benefit?
By Commuter Commuters on Sri Jayewardenepura Mawatha are currently circumnavigating a construction site in the middle of the road in Rajagiriya. The site – and therefore the circumnavigation – appears to be getting longer by the day. The signboard put up by RDA at the side of the road indicates that the flyover under construction […]
Opinion: Sampur Coal Power Plant, how did it get environmental clearance?
By Vidhura Ralapanawa The Trincomalee Coal Power Plant (TCPP), a joint venture between Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) and Indian coal power giant NTPC, was planning to build a 500MW subcritical coal power plant in Sampur, in the Eastern coast of Sri Lanka. The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the project is replete with errors of […]
Opinion: Big banks exploit countries like Sri Lanka, probe finds
Sept 07, 2016 (LBO) – Big banks have turned to the powerful worldwide legal system and commandeered it for profit, exploiting countries like Sri Lanka in the process, according to a Buzzfeed probe. In 2006, big international banks presented officials who ran Sri Lanka’s state oil venture with a way to hedge against further price […]
Opinion: Viharamahadevi Park – Time To Finish What Gotabaya Started
By Lancelot Viharamahadevi Park, once called Victoria park, is the showcase public park for the city of Colombo. It rests in a place of prominence in our city and has a vital role to play in the development and beautification of the proposed Megapolis. I have visited the park well over one hundred times in […]