Mihin Lanka to withdraw Tiruchi flights from June 1

Budget airline, Mihin Lanka, has decided to withdraw its flights on the Colombo-Tiruchi-Colombo sector effective June 1 on account of a steep fall in load factor of the flights.

Gotabaya's Remarks Not Acceptable: Narayanasamy

India today disapproved of a top Sri Lankan official's reported remark about it regarding terrorism in that country, saying the armed conflict there was a result of Colombo denying rights to Tamils there.

Video: SF says Soosai did not commit suicide

Former Army Commander General Sarath Fonseka today rejected media reports to the effect that LTTE sea tiger leader “Soosai” committed suicide and said that he was killed during the last day of the war along with LTTE Leader Prabhakaran by the Army.

US stands ready to partner with SL: Kerry

Greeting the Sri Lankans on the occasion of their New Year, US Secretary of State John Kerry has said that the United States stands ready to partner with the island nation as it works to make progress on reconciliation and accountability.

NICs to be mandatory from 15?

The Registration of Persons Department has proposed to bring down the present age limit for individuals to obtain National Identity Cards from 16 to 15 years, officials said yesterday.

Two Lankans dead in Doha accident

Two Sri Lankan nationals were killed while a number of people injured in a deadly road accident near the traffic lights below Ras Abu Aboud flyover in Doha, Qatar on Wednesday are still receiving treatment at the emergency unit of Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC).

Watcher shot dead; OIC in critical stage

The OIC of the Moragahahena Police station has been critically injured when a watcher at the State Farm in Horana shot at him. The watcher was later killed by police fire, the police said.

JVP concerned over military presence

Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) leader Somawansa Amarasinghe yesterday complained to Police Chief N.K. Ilangakoon about the alleged military patrol near the Matale mass grave on Wednesday night. 

SL rejects US request for talks on electricity tariffs

The government has rejected a request by the US embassy in Colombo for a special discussion with senior officials of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) with regard to the proposed revision of electricity tariffs, informed sources revealed.

‘Adhisthana Pooja’ by artists

Sri Lankan artists today held an ‘Adhisthana Pooja’ outside Independence square against the protest held in Tami Nadu by the Indian artists urging them to come to Sri Lanka and witness the real situation here. Pix by Kushan Pathiraja

Sri Lankans flown to Christmas Island

The Sri Lankans who arrived undetected in Geraldton harbour on Tuesday were last night on a charter flight to Christmas Island, as refugee advocates voiced concerns the group was being shielded from lawyers.

No flood of boats, says Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka's high commissioner to Australia says he doesn't expect a flood of asylum seekers will follow the 66 potential refugees who gobsmacked onlookers with their arrival in Geraldton

Businessman killed in Expressway accident

A 43-year-old businessman travelling with his family was killed when their jeep skidded and overturned at the 14.1 km post between Kahatuduwa and Gelanigama exits this morning Pictures

Video: US delegations to visit SL

Two delegations of US Congress Members are to visit Sri Lanka this year and the next following a pledge given by the Sri Lankan government to support USA’s Asia Pacific Programme, the United National Party (UNP) charged today

Kidneys of NCP residents comparatively small

Healthy youth of the North Central Province possessed kidneys which were comparatively small, a study has revealed.

Garbage in; garbage out

The Colombo Muncipal Council yesterday announced that it would not collect garbage that is not separated by households into degradable, glass and paper in an attempt to reduce the amount of garbage to be dumped in the Meethotamulla dumping site

Navy intelligence investigating boat escape

The Naval intelligence unit of the Sri Lankan Navy is currently investigating the recent incident of 66 asylum seekers reaching mainland Australia.

‘Make Monday a holiday’

The Labour Ministry yesterday requested the private sector, government corporations and statutory boards to grant a holiday on Monday, April 15 for their employees, as it had already been declared a public holiday

Indian security forces killing Indians: SC

Reflecting the grievances of people in Jammu and Kashmir and north-eastern states, the Indian Supreme Court on Tuesday said prolonged deployment of armed forces in disturbed areas was bound to result in extra-judicial killings.

MR praises Thatcher’s commitment to fighting terrorism

President Mahinda Rajapaksa in a message of condolence on the death of the former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in which he commends the late prime minister for her commitment to fighting terrorism.

India should address their own HR violations - JHU

The Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) today said, before India sought to point its finger at Sri Lanka on war crimes allegations it should address the human rights violations of the Indian people including 93,000 disappearances in Kashmir which still remained unaddressed

Next batch to be sent to S.Korea despite tensions

Quelling fears of a possible war in the Korean peninsula and the probability of Sri Lankan workers in South Korea being exposed to danger, resulting in migration back to Sri Lanka, Foreign Employment, Promotion and Welfare Minister Dilan Perera said there was no imminent danger of war, and the Ministry was preparing to send the next batch of workers to South Korea.

EC should ensure free and fair elections: Karu

The Elections Commissioner is responsible to create an atmosphere conducive for free and fair elections and to win the faith of political parties amid massive international pressure on the country, UNP MP Karu Jayasuriya said today

Audio:SL asylum seekers likely to be deported to SL-Australia

The Australian government today warned that the group of Sri Lankan asylum seekers, who reached Australian soil two days ago, is likely to be deported to Sri Lanka

‘Civilian casualties not because of army’

While claiming that International community had failed in their duty to stop the war crimes committed by the LTTE terrorists, the first part of the Army’s Court of Inquiry report stated that instances of shellings referred to in the LLRC report were not caused by the Sri Lanka Army.

Video: We have no faith in presidential commissions: JVP

While refusing to accept the Commission appointed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa to investigate the Matale mass grave site, the JVP asked for an Independent Court of Inquiry to probe this issue.???

'Boat arrival a game changer'

The Premier Colin Barnett has labelled the arrival of an asylum seeker boat off the Mid West coast as a "game changer".

CPI urges Puducherry to implead in TN’s Kachchatheevu case

Stating that retrieval of the Kachchatheevu island from Sri Lanka is the only permanent solution to the continuing attacks on India fishermen by the island nation’s navy, CPI state secretary R Viswanathan has urged the Puducherry administration to implead in the case filed by Tamil Nadu in the Supreme Court in this respect

Move to shift Lotteries Board to H’thota

The parliamentary Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) has identified a move to shift the National Lotteries Board (NLB) to Hambantota from its present location in Colombo, Parliament was informed yesterday

WikiLeaks: India gave LTTE Rs 50 lakh as compensation for Indo-Lanka pact

Did India compensate the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) after the 1987 Indo-Lanka pact and the dispatch of Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to Sri Lanka? The US administration believed so, according to a cable sent by its embassy here and released by Wikileaks