Power cuts to end from tonight

Power cuts affecting several areas will be discontinued from tonight as the Lakwijaya power plant is slated to add 300MW to national grid, the Ceylon Electricity board said

60 year-old remanded for wooing 14 year-old

A 60 year-old man who had been on remand on the charge of wooing a 14 year-old schoolgirl was released on personal bail in Rs.25,000 by Kalutara Chief Magistrate Aruna Aluthge yesterday

Earthquake in Indian Ocean, no threat to SL

An Earthquake of 5.8 magnitude on the Richter scale has been reported off the Indian Ocean. The Tsunami Warning Centre says there is no threat to Sri Lanka

India Urges Lanka to Release TN Fishermen

India today urged Sri Lanka to immediately release on humanitarian grounds 23 Tamil Nadu fishermen, arrested on charges of entering the island nation's waters.

Court orders Rishad to show cause

Appeal Court today ordered Minister Rishad Bathiudeen to personally appear in courts on September  5 to show cause as to why he should not be punished for contempt for intimidating the Mannar Magistrate.

Video: Action plan submitted to Cabinet

The cabinet yesterday approved a road map for the implementation of the national action plan on human rights and the LLRC recommendations. Justice Minister Rauff Hakeem said this document would be presented at the universal periodic review in October.

Video: Lankan asylum seeker deported

Australian immigration officials have deported to Sri Lanka a Tamil asylum seeker, after failing to win refugee protection, Australian media reported.

Joint patrolling could be the answer-SL

As diplomatic parleys continued to seek the release of the 23 Indian fishermen detained by Sri Lankan navy earlier this week, the high commissioner of the island nation to Delhi, Prasad Kariyawasam, on Wednesday said that the joint patrolling by Indian Coast Guard and the Sri Lankan Navy could be the answer to settle the problem of fishermen.?

Guest houses to come under strict surveillance

The police have taken steps to monitor guest houses under a strict plan to curb child molestations and rape cases

UN must follow due process – SL

Sri Lanka said that UN system and member states, including the Human Rights Council, must follow due process and be guided by objective criteria in assessing developments in Sri Lanka.

Senior lawyers want court to punish Bathiudeen

Senior lawyers including the Presidents of the Mannar Bar Association and the Galle Law Association filed a petition seeking the Appeal Court to punish ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) Minister Rishad Bathiudeen for contempt of court

Audio: Intimidation rampant in the East: JVP

The JVP charged today that threats and intimidation was rampant in the Eastern Province

Namal should be Min. of Education; Akila

Kurunegala district UNP MP Akila Viraj Kariyawasam said today that UPFA MP Namal Rajapaksa should be made Minister of Higher Education if he had given an assurance to do justice to all students who sat their 2011 A/L examination

Ranaweera says S’gamuwa CM should be from Rathnapura

Former minister and UPFA candidate Jayathissa Ranaweera said the Sabaragamuwa PC Chief Minister must be someone from Ratnapura

Dayasiri won’t crossover: Karu

UNP MP Karu Jayasuriya said today he did not believe UNP MP Dayasiri Jayasekara will cross over to the Government.

Boyfriend who held girlfriend’s hand gets bail

A youth was arrested and produced before the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court after his girlfriend had complained to the police that her boyfriend had sexually harassed her by holding her by the hand and attempting to drag her out of a three-wheeler.

Beautician found dead in Vavuniya

A 30 year-old woman, beautician was found hanging in a hotel room where she had allegedly been staying with a man in Vavuniya early this morning, police said. PHOTOS

TNA candidate arrested over alleged human smuggling

A TNA candidate for the Eastern Provincial Council from the Trincomalee district believed to be one of the main suspects of the human smuggling operation was arrested by a special CID team in Trincomalee, police Spokesman SP Ajith Rohana said.

Heroin ‘extracted’ from Lankan drug mules

A brief ‘vacation’ — less than 12 hours long — in India landed two Sri Lankan nationals in the customs’ net Chennai on Tuesday. The duo, who posed as tourists, later turned out to be smuggling drugs about 300 gms of first grade heroin in their person.

MR to intervene

President Mahinda Rajapaksa has directed the Higher Education minister to forward him a comprehensive report on the implementing process of the Z -score immediately, the Government Information Department said.

SL thrash India

Sri Lanka thrashed India by nine wickets in the second one-day international in Hambantota on Tuesday to level the five-match series 1-1

274 jaywalkers within three hours today

Legal action will be taken against 274 pedestrians who were charged with jaywalking in the Colombo city, police said.

Power supply to resume by Friday

The two damaged power plants – Lakvijaya Coal Power Plant (LCPP) at Norochcholai and the Combined Cycle Power Plant (CCPP) at Kerawalapitiya -- will be fully repaired by Friday and power generation would resume with the supply of 400 MWs to the national grid, CEB chairman Wimalachandra Abeywickreme said.

Audio: No decision to cross over yet – Dayasiri

Responding to rumours that UNP MP Dayasiri Jayasekara is set to cross over to the government, Mr. Jayasekara said he has not taken any decision in this regard

India bound Lankans arrested

Sri Lanka Navy had arrested eight persons attempting to get on board a boat with the intention of sailing to India and from there to Australia from the beach in Mannar, a place known as Urumalai

Duminda cannot recall shooting incident: CID

CID informed Colombo magistrate Court that MP Duminda Silva told from Singapore that he cannot remember the Kolonnawa shooting incident where presidential Advisor Baratha Lakshman Premachandran was killed

Police to strictly implement pedestrian laws

Police are to strictly implement the pedestrian laws and will take legal action against jaywalkers in Colombo from today, police spokesman SP Ajith Rohana said

Another boat with Lankans intercepted

One boat carrying 123 passengers was found east of Christmas Island while the second sailed directly to Cocos Island from Sri Lanka with 36 people on board

Remanded for obstructing first lady

A youth who is alleged to have obstructed the path of First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa during her morning constitutional at Galle Face Green on Sunday was ordered to be remanded till August 3 by a Colombo Court yesterday

IMF starts talks with SL on a new loan

The International Monetary Fund, which has just fully disbursed a $2.6 billion loan to Sri Lanka, said on Monday it has begun talking with authorities in Colombo about arranging a new credit called an extended fund facility