- LKR crashes by a massive Rs.21.08 or 7.07% in just one week from Rs.297.94 on 06.06.2023 to Rs.319.00 by 14.06.2023: business persons lament that it’s impossible to carry on business under such volatile conditions: analysts point out that the “hot-money” inflows may have started to reverse.
- Venerable Omalpe Sobhitha Thera claims the CEB has disconnected electricity supply to many temples where the payment of electricity bills has been delayed: also laments that the Govt has not provided any form of subsidy including solar panels to religious places as a solution to the recent increase in electricity tariffs.
- President Emmanuel Macron of France extends invitation to President Ranil Wickremesinghe to address a high-level panel discussion at the Global Leaders Summit for a New Global Financing Pact, to take place in Paris on June 22nd and 23rd, 2023.
- Opposition MP Mano Ganesan tweets that President Ranil Wickremesinghe publicly recognising “Tamil Buddhism” as a historical fact is the “key to many deadlocks”.
- Urban Development and Housing Minister Prasanna Ranatunga says there is no conflict between the ruling party SLPP and the President: also says some people are trying to claim that there is such a conflict: further says the people have strong faith that the economy of the country will recover according to the program currently implemented by the Govt led by the President.
- Parliamentary Committee COPA reveals that the congestion in prisons has increased up to 259%: 26,791 inmates occupy the prisons at present whereas all prisons in the country could accommodate only 11,762 inmates: in some prisons, the congestion has gone up to 300 to 400%.
- Govt extends Forex capital controls by a further 6 months to “continue to re-build the country’s foreign exchange reserves”: Cabinet Spokesman Bandula Gunawardena says foreign exchange reserves have risen from “near-zero” to over USD 3.5 bn, “driven by remittances and tourism inflows”: CBSL data shows however that the Minister’s statement is erroneous as the current Reserves mainly consist of Bi-lateral SWAPs of USD 2.0 bn, IMF loan of USD 0.35 bn, and sudden “Hot-money” inflows of 0.65 bn: CBSL data also shows the Reserves were USD 1.9 bn at end March 2022.
- Avissawella Magistrate’s Court remands Ravindu Sanka de Silva alias ‘Booru Muna’, who was prevented from going overseas & allowed to leave the Katunayake Airport by the Airport Police on 25 February, until 19th June.
- Plantations Minister Ramesh Pathirana says the Palm oil ban will persist till the report by the Ministry of Plantation Industries jointly with relevant ministries on palm oil plant cultivation, suggests otherwise; adds the study will look into the possibilities of growing palm in Mahaweli lands, as well.
- Education Minister Susil Premajayantha says new appointments will be given on June 16 to 7,500 teachers from Colleges of Education and 5,500 graduate teachers in all three mediums of language: also says graduate teachers who are below 35 years, will be appointed for subjects such as science, mathematics, technology, language, geography and commerce.
