Sri Lanka travel firm in pilgrimage market with Indian rail

Sept 09, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Hemas Travels is breaking into the Buddhist pilgrimage market by offering an eight-day tour in a dedicated train in partnership with the Indian rail system. Pilgrims are taken on Mahaparinirvana Express a dedicated train, with sleeping births and dining facilities offered at between 105 to 150 dollars a […]

Sri Lanka to lease islands for hotels

Sept 09, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka plans to lease islands off the north-west coast for tourist hotels, as the travel industry recovers after the end of the 30-year ethnic war, government officials said. We now wonder whether 4,000 rooms will be enough to meet increasing demand, he said. Sri Lanka has seen an upturn […]

Sri Lanka islet resort by Six Senses chain

Sept 09, 2009 (LBO) – International luxury hotel chain Six Senses is to manage a resort built on an islet on the north west coast of Sri Lanka becoming the first tourism project to be announced after an ethnic war ended, officials said. The 60 mangrove boutique chalets will located within inland water bodies and […]

Sri Lanka plantations firms, unions in more wage talks

Sept 09, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lankan regional plantations companies (RPCs) and labour unions are to hold another round of talks on a wage hike Thursday to resolve differences that have disrupted production and transport of tea, officials said. Obeysekere said workers continued to disrupt work on estates, disrupting supplies of water and electricity, apart […]

Sri Lanka gets US help to clear mines

Sept 09, 2009 (LBO) – The United States military’s Pacific Command is providing training and equipment to the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) to helps it clear landmines in the island’s former war zone, the US embassy said. This training will build additional SLA capacity to clear mines in the Northern Province and expedite the safe […]

‘s Sri Lanka expulsion

UNITED NATIONS, September 8, 2009 (AFP) – UN chief Ban Ki-moon Tuesday denounced a decision by the Sri Lankan government to expel a UNICEF spokesman, who allegedly took a pro-rebel stance at the end of the island’s ethnic war. “The secretary-general strongly regrets the decision of the Sri Lankan government to expel Mr.James Elder,” Ban’s […]

Gold higher, the best bet in uncertain times

PARIS, September 9, 2009 (AFP) – Gold is back in favour, hitting 18-month highs above 1,000 dollars as investors hedge their bets on the dollar in a global economy struggling out of its worst slump in decades, analysts said. Gold is the ultimate store of value when all else fails and in uncertain times like […]

Sri Lanka plantations wage talks fail, unions say

Sept 08, 2009 (LBO) – Talks between Sri Lanka regional plantations companies (RPCs) and estate labour unions on a wage hike have failed, resulting in uncertainty about production and exports, officials said.The two-year collective wage agreement between the unions and RPCs expired in March. Labour unions will meet today to decide their future course of […]

‘ money

MALE, September 7, 2009 (AFP) – The Maldives, whose fight against rising sea levels has become a cause celebre for environmentalists, said Monday it would have to skip UN climate change talks in Copenhagen this year to save money.Some campaigners said the negotiations would be weakened if the Maldives were missing, given their vocal campaigning […]

Sri Lanka power firm looks for Rs600mn in IPO

Sept 08, 2009 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s Hemas Power, a unit of listed Hemas Holdings is seeking up to 626 million rupees through a sale of 31.3 million shares to increase investments in renewable energy. The firm is pushing for growth by moving into renewable energy. It already has a 2MW run of the river […]

Sri Lanka Malinga, Samaraweera star in win

September 8, 2009 (AFP) – Lasith Malinga grabbed three wickets off five deliveries to bowl Sri Lanka to a crushing 97-run win over New Zealand in a tri-series match here on Tuesday.The paceman finished with a career-best 4-28 as New Zealand were dismissed for 119 chasing a 217-run target on a slow pitch in the […]

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