Category: Other
Bangladesh city introduces polygamy tax
DHAKA, June 5, 2006 (AFP) – A Bangladesh city will impose taxes on polygamists to deter the “outdated” practice of marrying more than one wife, an official said Monday. The tax will come into force from July 1 in northern Rajshahi, Bangladesh’s fourth-largest city, mayor Mijanur Rahman Minu told AFP. As part of the city’s […]
Local tea industry draws up new standards on exports to Japan
June 05 (LBO) – After pressure from Japan, the Sri Lankan tea trade is drawing up a uniform declaration for exporters to clear their tea shipments as free from chemical residues. The herbicide is considered to be the only effective chemical against certain weeds on tea plantations, with the only alternative being costly mechanical weeding. “What […]
Tsunami puts Sri Lanka’s cinnamon industry on a different plane
A budding cinnamon plant that’s growing after the tsunami. PERALIYA, June 3, 2006 (LBO) — Wearing a red crash helmet to beat the sun, Punya Sena crouches on the ground, planting young cinnamon saplings to replace thousands that were destroyed by the tsunami that hit Sri Lanka’s coastal belt in December 2004. . Wimalawathi Mendis, […]
‘s cinnamon industry on a different plane
A budding cinnamon plant that’s growing after the tsunami. PERALIYA, June 3, 2006 (LBO) — Wearing a red crash helmet to beat the sun, Punya Sena crouches on the ground, planting young cinnamon saplings to replace thousands that were destroyed by the tsunami that hit Sri Lanka’s coastal belt in December 2004. . Wimalawathi Mendis, […]
Beat the heat — with rattlesnake ice cream
TOKYO, June 2, 2006 (AFP) – Anyone for rattlesnake ice cream? Japan is no stranger to bizarre frozen deserts and this year is no exception with cow tongue, Indian curry, cheese and even cactus among the flavours on offer for courageous taste buds at an annual event at the Namjatown theme park. Other ice creams […]
Rubber could lose some steam this year, but stay a cash cow
June 02 (LBO) – Overheated rubber prices are expected to settle down from its recent high spell, brokers say, but stocks with high exposure to rubber will still be the cash cow this year. Top grades of crepe rubber, which makes up bulk of Sri Lanka’s rubber exports, is now selling at 395 rupees a kilo, […]
Collision course
Though Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe are thousands of miles apart and are on two separate continents, but our economic policies have so much in common with that country, that it is uncanny. Now things are so bad in Zimbabwe, that the country does not have forex to import security paper and ink to print notes. […]
driving into poverty
Though Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe are thousands of miles apart and are on two separate continents, but our economic policies have so much in common with that country, that it is uncanny. The readers of this column are no strangers to Zimbabwe as we have tried to keep a regular update on what is happening […]
Illegal Smoke
June 01 (LBO) – Ceylon Tobacco Company together with several hotel associations filed petitions in the Supreme Court on Thursday against proposed laws to clamp down on smoking. The petition challenges the constitutionality of the proposed National Authority on Tobacco and Alcohol (NATA) bill, which the company claims prohibits smoking in hotels and restaurants, CTC […]
WHO accuse tobacco industry of continuing misleading labels
MANILA, May 30, 2006 (AFP) – The World Health Organization (WHO) Tuesday accused the global tobacco industry of continuing to use misleading labels to lure millions of people, including children, to take up smoking.On the eve of World No Tobacco Day, WHO said it would focus on the “tobacco industry’s lies” and the great variety […]
Rise of migrants is damaging planet: British think-tank
LONDON, May 30, 2006 (AFP) – The growing number of people who migrate from developing countries to over-populated Western states in search of a better life is damaging the planet and could be avoided, a think-tank said Tuesday.Governments and aid agencies should encourage families to stay put by tackling environmental degradation, such as the spread […]
Stressed-out Southeast Asians unhappy with their sex lives:survey
SINGAPORE, May 30, 2006 (AFP) – Southeast Asias have the unhappiest sex lives in the world, making love less often than people elsewhere and getting the least satisfaction from it, a global survey showed Tuesday.Mexicans scored the highest sex satisfaction levels with 74.5 percent declaring they were very satisfied, followed by Brazil at 64.5 percent […]