The Department of Meteorology has issued a warning for a significant increase in thunderstorm activity in Sri Lanka today. Showers or thundershowers are likely at several places over most parts of the island after 2.00 p.m., with heavy showers above 100 mm expected in parts of Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central, North-Western, and Southern provinces.

The warning also indicates that showers or thundershowers may occur in the Eastern province and in Mullaitivu and Hambantota districts during the morning. The general public is advised to take adequate precautions to minimize damages caused by temporary localized strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.

The sea areas around the island will also experience an increase in thunderstorm activity. Showers or thundershowers will occur at several places in the sea areas around the island. The winds in the sea area will be south-easterly, and the wind speed will be 20-30 kmph. The sea areas around the island will be slight to moderate, but temporarily strong gusty winds and very rough seas can be expected during thundershowers.

This warning is a result of the current weather conditions and is intended to provide the public with the necessary information to ensure their safety. It is recommended that individuals stay indoors during thunderstorms, avoid using electronic devices that are connected to power sources, and stay away from tall trees or open fields.

The Department of Meteorology regularly issues weather warnings to ensure the safety and well-being of the public, and it is crucial that individuals pay attention to these warnings and take the necessary precautions.

A workshop on Indian cinema was inaugurated at the Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre in Colombo on 28 April 2023. Hon Arundika Fernando, State Minister of Urban Development and Housing was present on the occasion. Mr. Vinod K Jacob, Deputy High Commissioner participated in the inauguration and  welcomed the delegation led by the highly decorated director, actor, screenwriter and lyricist from  Kannada cinema, Dr. Nagathihalli Chandrashekaran to the workshop.

2.     Speaking on the occasion, Deputy High Commissioner noted, “At a time when India and Sri Lanka are celebrating 75 years of diplomatic relations, it is indeed timely that we are having this workshop.” Wishing that the workshop would contribute to deepening people to people ties, he highlighted six main observations during the course of his speech.

3.     First, every year, more than 2000 films are made in India. In 2011, the total number of cinema tickets sold were 3.5 billion. The history of Indian cinema is more than 100 years old. The pioneering filmmaker was Dadasaheb Phalke, who is known as the father of Indian cinema, gave India the first full length silent feature film titled RAJA HARISHCHANDRA on 3 May 1913. Through this long journey, Indian cinema has enriched Indian society and vice versa. The movies have tackled issues like nationalism, women’s and children’s rights, caste, religion, class and the like.

4.     Second, looking at the more than 100-year-old journey of Indian cinema and how we responded to the restrictions of Covid 19, there are some interesting trends. The fact that RRR’s Naatu Naatu won the Best Original track at the latest Academy Awards is a testimony to the ability of Indian cinema to innovate. He quoted a report which estimated that Hindi theater-going universe shrank by 21.5 per cent compared to pre-pandemic levels. In contrast, most South Indian languages have shown stability or growth, with Kannada gaining the most at 25%, from 1.16 crore to 1.45 crore.

5.     Third, it is important to recognize that commercial success is an essential element of the progress of the Indian cinema. Equally, this is a fluid concept. Among the earliest examples in this regard is the success of the 1951 movie AWARA which set a record in terms of collection, was overtaken in 1952 itself with collections for the movie AAN. This year, the movie PATHAAN has set fresh records. However, related to this is the aspect of success in terms of creative content which cannot only be measured by collections. Convergence of these two aspects namely the commercial and the creative depends in large measure on the audience.

6.     Fourth, Kannada cinema has come a long way since the first talkie SATI SULOCHANA in the 1930s. Its output has been prolific and contributed to the vitality of Indian cinema and indeed Indian society. The KGF series is fresh in everyone’s minds but the workshop will educate about the versatility of Kannada cinema.

7.     Fifthly, the ecosystem that enables Indian cinema flows from the freedom of speech and expression which is a fundamental right in the Indian constitution. The Cinematograph Act of 1952 is the main piece of legislation in this regard. As is normal in any other jurisdiction, there are structures and mechanisms that govern censorship, copyright and piracy including digital piracy.

8.     Finally, the Government and people of India have stood by the people of Sri Lanka and have given support to the tune of USD 4 billion. This has been in line with the Government’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy. It is important that Sri Lankan friends appreciate that such a policy can be successful only if the people of India support these initiatives. The Indian people continue to stand in solidarity with the people of Sri Lanka.

***

28 April 2023

Colombo

Sri Lanka’s central bank has laid out the extent of the country’s worst economic crisis in more than 70 years.

In its annual report, the bank outlined how last year wages failed to keep up with the soaring cost of everything from food to fuel.

“Several inherent weaknesses” and “policy lapses” helped to trigger the severe economic problems that engulfed the South Asian nation, the bank says.

The bank now expects the economy to return to growth next year.

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka forecast the economy will shrink by 2% this year, but expand by 3.3% in 2024.

The prediction is more optimistic than the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which forecast a contraction in 2023 of around 3% and growth of 1.5% next year.

The central bank’s report also outlined how headline inflation reached almost 70% in September as prices of fresh fruit, wheat and eggs more than doubled.

At the same time the cost of transportation and essential utilities such as electricity and water rose even faster.

Last year, the economy shrank by 7.8% and the country defaulted on its foreign debt for the first time since independence from the UK in 1948.

Defaults happen when governments are unable to meet some or all of their debt payments to creditors.

This damaged its reputation with lenders, making it even harder to borrow money on the international markets.

“The Sri Lankan economy faced its most onerous year in its post-independence history,” the report said.

An “unsustainable” economic model “steered the country towards a multifaceted disaster,” it added.

Sri Lanka owes about $7bn (£5.7bn) to China and around $1bn to India. In February, both countries agreed to restructure their loans, giving Sri Lanka more time to repay them.

Last month, the IMF agreed to lend Sri Lanka $3bn. That was on top of a $600m loan from the World Bank last year.

Sri Lanka’s government is currently negotiating its debt repayments with bondholders and creditors before the IMF reviews the situation in September.

BBC

In a significant development, the Sri Lankan parliament has passed the resolution for the implementation of the arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility (EFF) of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The resolution, which received 120 votes in favor and 25 against, is a crucial step towards strengthening Sri Lanka’s economic stability and achieving sustainable growth.

The IMF’s EFF program aims to support countries that are facing balance of payment difficulties and require financial assistance to address their macroeconomic imbalances. Sri Lanka had requested the IMF’s assistance in May 2020 to address the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and the structural challenges facing the country’s economy.

The EFF program for Sri Lanka is worth approximately $1.5 billion and will be disbursed in six tranches over the next three years. The program’s main objectives are to support Sri Lanka’s macroeconomic stability, improve public finances, and promote structural reforms to enhance the country’s economic resilience.

1. Russian Ambassador in SL – Levan Dzhagaryan says sanctions imposed by the US on SL’s former Navy Commander Wasantha Karannagoda are totally unacceptable: previously, US State Dept announced that Karannagoda, the current Governor of North Western Province, and his family are banned from entering the US over “violation of human rights”: SL Govt has also expressed grave concerns about the US action.
2. Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe says the Govt will delay the tabling of the Anti-Terrorism Act in Parliament until broader consensus is reached.
3. NPP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake claims there’s a connection between the IMF loan and the CB Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe’s decision to default on foreign debt: also says the decision to default had been taken
   even though money had been allocated from the budget: labels decision as “conspiratorial”: similar allegations against Governor Weerasinghe have been made by several MPs: reports show pipeline of inflows at the time of the sudden default announcement was a massive USD 10.7 billion.
4. Shares at the CSE fall further: investors await more clarity on local debt restructuring: ASPI falls below 9000 to 8983.
5. Dept of Census & Statistics says the Overall Rate of Inflation, as measured by CCPI dropped to 35.3% in Apr’23, compared to 50.3% in Mar’23: analysts allege the Census Dept arbitrarily changed it’s base for the calculation of the CCPI from Feb’23 onwards to reflect and report a lower CCPI.
6. CB Annual Report 2022 states “stunting” and “wasting” among children under 5 years had increased to 9.2% and 10.1% in 2022, from 7.4% and 8.2% in 202
7. SriLankan Airlines Chairman Ashok Pathirage says “privatization” of the airline would help as long as the right partner is found: Airline’s CEO Richard Nuttall says there is a need to reactivate the fleet and replace the aircraft with expiring leases.
8. Committee on Parliamentary Business decide to take the Sri Lanka Central Bank Bill for debate (second reading) on 11th May.
9. Parliament approves Sri Lanka’s Agreement with the IMF with 120 voting for and 25 against: 80 MPs abstain: strong IMF & Default proponent Harsha de Silva, and SJB MPs walk out at voting time: former President Mahinda Rajapaksa votes for: MPs G L Pieris, Wimal Weerawansa, Vasudeva Nanayakkara vote against: Namal Rajapaksa not present.
10. SL win 2nd Cricket Test against Ireland by an innings & 10 runs: SL – 704/3d (Kusal Mendis 245, Nishan Madushka 205, Dimuth Karunaratne 115, Angelo Mathews 100*) IRE – 492 & 202: SL win series 2-0: Prabath Jayasuriya becomes fastest in the world to take 50 Test wickets as a spinner and fastest SL bowler to take 50 Test wickets.