- UK issues updated travel advisory: says Sri Lanka is in a severe economic crisis with acute shortages of medicine, gas, fuel and food which are affecting transport, businesses and emergency services: warns hospitals and medical services may be affected: meanwhile, CB Governor Nandalal Weerasinghe claims the situation is now near normal after the debt default.
- All Ceylon General Employees’ Union says it would resist the sale of the East Container Terminal, to Japan: claims it fought to free the terminal from Indian control: urges President not to offer ECT to Japan: warns of trade union action if warning is not needed.
- Cabinet Spokesman Minister Bandula Gunawardane says Cabinet granted approval to upgrade Amparai and Mannar Urban Councils to Municipal Council status.
- Minister of Energy Kanchana Wijesekera says the Uma Oya project will add 120MW of Hydro power to the National Grid: also says officials have assured that construction will be completed by end-April and power connection to the national grid will be completed by June 2023.
- Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court further remands Convener of Inter University Students’ Federation Wasantha Mudalige till 17th January 2023 for alleged offences under Prevention of Terrorism Act: previously, he was detained under the PTA for 90 days via a Detention Order.
- Sri Lankan Accountant Vajira Jayasuriya receives Australia’s “Best Accountant” Annual Award: it’s the first time a Sri Lankan has won this award.
- Former CB Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal says not a single dollar was used by the Monetary Board during his tenure of office as Governor to “defend” the Rupee: refutes such claims by State Finance Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya: asserts the identical policy re. the management of the Rupee is being followed by the present Monetary Board as well.
- SJB MP Harsha Silva calls on the Govt to reduce taxes on professionals to resolve the present brain-drain: says many in healthcare, IT, engineering & architecture sectors are seeking decreases in taxes: Silva has always been an ardent advocate for higher Govt revenue.
- Elections Commission Chairman S G Punchihewa says Nominations to elect 8,327 members for 24 Municipal Councils, 41 Urban Councils and 276 Pradeshiya Sabhas will be issued within 5 working days of the final week of December.
- Sri Lankan Senaka Weeraratna claims ownership of the widely used Decision Review System system in Cricket: requests ICC to accept his claim: says the DRS concept was conceived by him in 1997.
SRI LANKA ORIGINAL NARRATIVE SUMMARY: 14/12
Baurs celebrates 125 years with a gala night of glitter and grandeur
09th December 2022
Photo Caption:
- The Board of Directors at A. Baur & Co. (Pvt.) Ltd with the Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Dr. P. Nandalal Weerasinghe
- Rolf Blaser, Managing Director/CEO of A. Baur & Co. (Pvt.) Ltd.
In view of celebrating its historic milestone of marking 125 years of progressive innovation and growth among diverse industry sectors in Sri Lanka, A. Baur & Co. (Pvt.) Ltd., also known as Baurs, held a grand cocktail party capturing the grandeur of its journey, showcasing its resilience and strong commitment throughout the decades and the ambitious and bold plans to take on the future.
Held on the 30th November 2022 at the Cinnamon Lakeside Hotel, the event saw the participation of some of the esteemed and distinguished personalities in the country. ‘We are immensely proud of our achievements and the continued appetitive for bringing about timely and innovative solutions amidst the many challenges throughout the decades. I would like to thank our valued customers, partners, employees and to everyone who is part of the very fabric that I am of,’ said Mr. Rolf Blaser, Managing Director/CEO of A. Baur & Co. (Pvt.) Ltd.
Mr. Blaser took the audience through the company’s remarkable breakthroughs since its inception, paying tribute to the founder Alfred Baur who went onto setting up the first establishment to focus exclusively on organic and chemical fertilizers including providing farmers with scientific advice. Today, it takes reins as the most high-tech fertilizer factory possibly in the entire region.
The presentation showed how Baurs took the lead to be the first in many initiatives, including the first to build an industrial rail linking the harbor and plantation in 1901, introduce the Henry Ford agricultural tractor in 1919 which was the same year the tractor was built outside America, establish a fully electrified tea factory in 1936, and construct a shock-proof building with underground parking in 1941.
And the proceeding years, such as the first mural by the Australian artist Donald Friend in 1960, deploy paddy harvester in 1968 at its Polontalawa Estate where the main living area was designed by renowned architects Geoffrey Bawa and Ulrich Plesner, grow basmati rice in the island in 1975, and the first to register a biopesticide in Sri Lanka in 2020 to control Fall Armyworm.
Mr. Blaser shared Baurs’ entry into others sectors; such as healthcare in 1945 at the time when the deadly malaria was at its peak; plant protection in 1947 where a spray was developed together with Sandoz to save the Ceylon Tea from Blister Blight; aviation industry as GSA for Swissair in 1957; hospitality in 2021 with the world’s leading École hôtelière de Lausanne introducing the Swiss apprenticeship model.
Baurs have also come a long way in its digital transformation since the beginning of 1982 with IBM, and also being the first e-banking (Hexagon) customer of HSBC from 1991. The company also had its first ever upgrade execution of SAP S/4HANA completely off-site last year. Today, its technology infrastructure is one of the best-in-class, integrating cyber security, disaster recovery, sales force automation, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and IoT.
Mr. Blaser further went onto highlight the organic fertilizer challenge which Baurs took on last year, at the time when the country announced its intention to move towards embracing an organic agriculture approach. Baurs had been long involved in various R&D initiatives, for instance from 2017 till date, manure from dairy and poultry farming, sludge, biochar, composting, and introducing vermicompost.
And taking the initiative to bring down a team of experts from Switzerland-based FiBL and HAFL as part of its holistic masterplan for sustainable organic agriculture, which involves a continuous in-depth study analysis and solution program together with various diverse stakeholders, with the view of becoming a center of excellence in this area. Baurs have also inaugurated satellite office at its Kelaniya factory, onboarding HAFL graduate Jacques Kohli who actively works with the Swiss experts.
Baurs is only growing stronger with a dynamic board and leadership at the helm of the company, deeply rooted in its Swiss traditions and values. With its shareholder being Foundation Alfred et Eugénie Baur, the company has always pursued in the best interest of its employees and the people of Sri Lanka. Some of its CSR activities include empowering children with special needs, infrastructure development, training programs and emergency reliefs. Baurs is also making strides in sustainability, with the recent partnership with the United National Global Compact initiative.
The President said a national policy would be introduced to ensure food security
President Ranil Wickremesinghe said that new laws are expected to be introduced in the future to ensure food security.
The president also said that plans are being made to present the related bills to parliament soon.
President Ranil Wickremesinghe said this while joining the discussion held today (13) at Temple Trees to brief the representatives of the Joint Mechanism Committee on Food Security and Nutrition.
The President also emphasized the need to obtain accurate data in establishing food security and the nutritional status of the people and stressed that there have been disparities in the data available at the national level and at the regional level which should be rectified immediately.
In order to make this program a success, the President stressed that the contribution of everyone from the national level to the divisional secretary and Grama Seva Niladhari officer level is necessary and pointed out that not only the public sector but the private sector too has a great role to play.
President Wickremesinghe added that a long-term program is needed to promote agriculture in the country, and the government has already focused on the agricultural modernization program.
Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, expressing his views said that the program initiated by the President is very important for national food security. Pointing out that foreign exchange can also be saved by ensuring food security in the country, the Prime Minister said that he expects to produce all the food items needed by the people within the country and will work to provide government support for it.
The Prime Minister also said that due to certain decisions taken in the past, there was some setback in the country’s agriculture sector, but added that the background needed to face the upcoming monsoon season has currently been built in the country.
Agriculture Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said that today’s farmers are strong enough to produce all the rice required for Sri Lanka’s consumption within the country, adding that they will provide all necessary facilities for it.
Minister of State for Media Shanta Bandara and Member of Parliament Chamal Rajapaksa also expressed their views. Ministers Nimal Siripala de Silva, Kanchana Wijesekera, Ali Sabri, Nasir Ahmed, Keheliya Rambukwella, Wijayadasa Rajapakshe, Nalin Fernando, Douglas Devananda, State Ministers Sisira Jayakody, Sanath Nishantha, Mohan Silva, Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon, Jagath Pushpakumara, Anuradha Jayaratne, Kader Masthan, Janaka Wakkambura, Ashoka Priyantha, Chamara Sampath Dassanayake, Members of Parliament Duminda Dissanayake, S. M. Chandrasena, Rear Admiral Sarath Weerasekera, Nimal Lanza, Vajira Abeywardena, Dayasiri Jayasekara, Jagath Kumara, Ranjith Bandara, M. A. Sumanthiran, Chief of Presidential Staff and Senior Advisor to the President on National Security Sagala Ratnayake, Secretary to the President Saman Ekanayake, Secretary to the Prime Minister Anura Dissanayake, Senior Advisor to the President on Food Security Dr Suren Batagoda and a group of public officials attended the event.
President Media Division (PMD)
WEATHER FORECAST FOR 14 DECEMBER 2022
Showers or thundershowers will occur at a few places in Sabaragamuwa Province and in Kandy, Nuwara-Eliya, Galle and Matara districts during the afternoon or night.
A few showers may occur in Eastern province and in Mullaitivu and Polonnaruwa districts.
General public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damages caused by temporary localized strong winds and lightning during thundershowers
Sri Lanka’s Anu Karunatilaka steps up as global Chief Technology Officer at Intrepid Travel
Photo Caption:
- Anu (Anuruddha) Karunatilaka, CTO of Intrepid Travel
Intrepid Travel, the world’s largest adventure travel company and a leader in responsible small group adventures recently announced the appointment of Anu (Anuruddha) Karunatilaka as its new Chief Technology Officer to lead the Australian headquartered company’s digital transformation strategy.
The company’s previous chief information officer role has been revamped and restructured, incorporating diverse learnings from Covid-19, to better reflect the company’s goals of capturing and delivering a seamless digital experience, improving resilience and relevancy, and aspiring to be the world’s first $1 billion adventure travel company.
Based in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Anu will manage a global team and oversee the design, development, security, delivery, and management of technology across all functions of the business, ensuring that every process and decision taken is driven by a data-centered approach.
‘I look forward to working with the wider team to pave the way in implementing a well-defined, strong digital transformation strategy across borders and disciplines backed by rich data and insights to enable timely and optimum decision making in a fast-paced environment,’ said Anu.
‘We couldn’t be happier to have Anu leading our global technology team in his new role as the chief technology officer. His vast expertise and knowledge speak volumes and will be pivotal to go beyond than just customer convenience to attaining sustained brand intimacy and interaction,’ said Intrepid Travel CEO James Thornton.
Anu will travel regularly to Melbourne and other offices, including London and Toronto. Anu moved to Melbourne for his higher education at Monash University one year into his degree at Moratuwa, joining Intrepid in 2007 as a senior solutions architect and later becoming a software development manager. His love for travel and technology kept growing heaps and bounds.
Anu returned to Sri Lanka in 2011 with an ambitious plan to set up a global centre of excellence for Intrepid in Colombo, by not just providing careers to the people but also contributing to the nation’s growth and talent pool. This is truly a success story of giving back to one’s home country. Anu’s most recent role was as managing director for Asia.
With a career stint spanning over 15 years at Intrepid, Anu was instrumental in consolidating all of the company’s joint venture companies into one technology platform and took the lead in creating the Intrepid’s main operating system.
He was responsible for the rapid growth and expansion of Intrepid Colombo, which today has evolved into a center of excellence within Intrepid with a team of over 170 colleagues. Celebrating a decade of building the best travel company for the world, Intrepid Colombo was awarded the Great Place to Work Certification™ during May this year and was recently featured among 15 Best Workplaces for Women.
Intrepid is a certified Benefit Corporation (B Corp), independently verified to have the highest environmental, social and governance standards, balancing profit with purpose.
AmSafe Bridport Sri Lanka making strides as one of the Best Workplaces for Women
Photo Caption:
- Seen here is the team at AmSafe Bridport Sri Lanka with the award
AmSafe Bridport (Pvt) Limited Sri Lanka, the largest manufacturing facility of AmSafe Bridport was certified as a Great Place to Work by Great Place to Work® in Sri Lanka earlier this year. The company was also recognized as one of the 10 Best Workplaces in the Manufacturing and Production industry and further went on to be recognized as one of the 50 Best Workplaces in Sri Lanka as well.
In September 2022 AmSafe Bridport (Pvt) Ltd was recognized as one of the Best Workplaces for Women in Sri Lanka which is a true reflection of the company’s embedded culture. When female employees state the organizational environment is fair and fulfilling, it’s a strong indicator that the business maintains an even playing field for each and every employee without any bias.
AmSafe Bridport is the global leader in designing and manufacturing engineered innovative and customized textile solutions that withstand high dynamic stress loads for the safety and securement needs of the global aerospace and defence niche markets, with their client portfolio showcasing the aviation industry giants such as Boeing, Airbus and other major aircraft manufacturers and airlines of the world.
Hasitha Bandaranayake, the Manufacturing Manager who rose the ladder from an executive role, went onto comment that the company’s culture, initiatives and various nurturing programs enabled her to achieve the position she is at today, overseeing and managing a division that has the highest labor force. Sharing similar thoughts is Rishani Dissanayake who has been with the company for over 15 years, now serving as the Engineering Manager, a role that is traditionally or customarily dominated by a male. She further went onto say that the company’s culture and the already set examples within the organization encouraged her to apply for the position when it came up.
This equal opportunity is also seen in many employee categories across its various divisions. ‘AmSafe actively encourages everyone irrespective of gender or any other biases to take on bold and exciting new challenges we offer, provided that they possess the competencies to perform the task effectively. ‘We are proud to have many of our female employees rising up to the challenge and take up key managerial and leadership roles,’ said Chandani Ekanayake, General Manager at AmSafe Bridport Sri Lanka. She further said that all roles within an organization should be considered gender neutral which will enable competent employees of both genders to reach their true potential in any role they take upon and step beyond the boundaries set by the status quo, which is the culture we promote at AmSafe and a key factor in our success story.
Giving employees accountability and ownership over the years has enabled the company to spur and instill creative and innovative thinking and decision making, which is a key value that is deeply embedded into the company’s culture and norms. There are various initiatives and programs within AmSafe Bridport, including those that empower and enrich women through the provision of equal opportunities, learning and development opportunities, coaching and mentorship, health and wellbeing, counseling facilitation among others.
With a presence of over two decades in the country, AmSafe Bridport continues to expand, strengthening its growing workforce to cater to the increasing global demand, challenging the status quo and striking the balance on gender rights, and cultivating a culture of inclusivity and diversity across all parts and levels of the company.
Aloysius responds to SJB MP Wijesiri’s allegation on owning company investing for ‘Nelum Kuluna’ project
Businessman Arjun Aloysius said Sri Lankan Members of Parliament should not be acting juvenile to conclude that every Singaporean company that invested in Sri Lanka belongs to him, in response to a recent allegation levelled by Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Chaminda Wijesiri, who claimed that a certain project undertaken in Colombo was invested by a Singaporean company belonging to Aloysius.
Speaking exclusively to LNW, Aloysius emphasised that neither does he own the said company, nor is he wealthy enough to own all the Singaporean companies that invest in Sri Lanka.
MPs should not be hiding behind parliamentary privileges to publicly defame people, he went on, stressing that he would have filed defamatory charges against Wijesiri, had he made this false claim on a public platform outside the Chamber.
He also challenged the SJB MP to raise the legitimacy of his claims against him, in what Aloysius described as a ‘juvenile attempt’ to tarnish his image.
On a recent occasion, SJB MP Chaminda Wijesiri speaking in Parliament alleged that Aloysius owns the Singaporean company that invested the Lotus Tower (Nelum Kuluna) project in Colombo.
MIAP
Visit of Admiral R Hari Kumar, Chief of the Naval Staff, Indian Navy to Sri Lanka: 13-16 December 2022
Admiral R Hari Kumar, Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Indian Navy arrived in Colombo on 12 December 2022 , on a four-day official visit to Sri Lanka, at the invitation of Vice Admiral Nishantha Ulugetenne, Commander of Sri Lanka Navy. Rear Admiral Priyantha Perera, Chief of Staff, Sri Lanka Navy warmly welcomed CNS on his arrival.
2. During the visit, CNS is scheduled to call on President H.E. Ranil Wickremesinghe, Prime Minister H.E Dinesh Gunawardena and Minister of State for Defence Hon’ble Premitha Bandara Tennakoon. Other engagements include meetings with Defence Secretary, Chief of Defence Staff and Service Commanders. The Admiral will be the Chief Guest at the passing out parade of Naval and Maritime Academy, Trincomalee on 15 December 2022.
3. Indigenous Indian Naval Ship Sahyadri, a multi-role missile frigate of the Indian Navy is also scheduled to make port call at Colombo on 13 December 2022 to complement the visit of the Indian Navy chief. The ship would engage in training engagements with Sri Lanka Navy and participate in Maritime Partnership Exercises with Sri Lanka Navy.
4. It may be recalled that Indian Navy shared close interactions with Sri Lanka Navy during annual exercise SLINEX 21 in March 2022. Further, Indian Navy provided a maritime reconnaissance aircraft to Sri Lanka Air Force in August 2022 to augment its maritime capabilities. Indian Navy is also providing customised and specialised training to Sri Lanka Navy including in marine technology.
5. The visit of CNS symbolises strong relations and close cooperation between the two countries, with Sri Lanka being accorded the status of ‘Priority One’ partner by India. It would strengthen the existing bilateral maritime relations between the two countries and areas of common security concern and enhancing capacity and capability building initiatives towards ensuring peace in the region would be discussed during the visit. The visit is also indicative of the growing camaraderie and friendship between the two nations in line with India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy.
Colombo
13 December 2022
Former Health Minister makes shocking revelation on medicine shortage!
One of the main reasons behind the ongoing medicine shortage in the country is the malfunctioning of the software installed by the Ministry of Health of the Good Governance government for medical supplies, disclosed former Health Minister Rajitha Senaratne, speaking to Hiru TV, whilst making a shocking revelation of a recent attempt of defrauding Rs. 450 million received by the World Bank for the development of the software.
“There are three types of medicines. One is “lifesaving medicines.” There are 14 lifesaving medicines. Three are missing. You may have heard of the TNT pill, which is placed under the tongue in heart attack conditions. Now, if you get a heart attack today, you won’t be able to save yourself. And then there is the IV Set, which is a direct liquid injection given when there is no time to give pills. The lifesaving medicines are directly injected into the veins. The set is not available now. The third is saline. Now saline is even manufactured in Sri Lanka, isn’t it? I was the one who initiated the Saline Factory. Only a month’s stock is available there. Generally, there should be stocks sufficient for three months,” Senaratne said.
The former Health Minister added: “Two is “essential medicines.” These are not as vital as lifesaving, but are essential. What are they? A diabetes patient has to take their daily pill, which is not a lifesaving situation, but is a daily necessity. For blood pressure there is a daily pill. If you have renal disease, there is daily medication. These are the essential medicines. There are 636 of them, and 185 are missing. These claims are not made by me, these are said by the Medical Supplies Division.”
“Then there is “non-essential medicines,” under which there are 400 medicines and 190 have run out of stock,” the SJB MP went on. “These are data I received the night before the Budget Debate. According to them, 30 per cent of essential medicines is missing. 48 per cent of non-essential medicines is missing. This is not a problem related to dollars. Take a look at what the Additional Director of the Ministry of Health, Dr. Saman Ratnayake, said about the medicine shortage during a press conference. He said that delays in the importation process have contributed to the medicine shortage. This stands for the procurement procedure. The Treasury says that 90 per cent of the required amount of money has already been released to the Ministry.”
Dr. Senaratne further added: “Then, the College of Pharmacists is assigned to submit a report from the World Health Organisation. Because Sri Lanka has the required amount of money, and therefore, they cannot accept the claim that there are no medicines. So, they wish to know how the shortage occurred in the first place. The current procurement procedure existed even during my tenure. It had existed long before. This is not an unfamiliar procurement procedure, is it? So, listen, where is the software brought in for this purpose? The App is missing now. We had installed it at every hospital belonging to the Central Government. Then we had installed it at every base hospital belonging to the Provincial Councils. We had carried out this affair smoothly. This led to zero shortage of medicines. There was no such shortage since about 2017. Maybe for a day. This was because we installed the App. Our officials can observe through the App when will the stocks be running out. We maintained a three-month stock every day. Now the App is missing. It was lost not because of the current Minister. But what did the administration before him do? Now, because this App was so good, the World Bank had donated Rs. 450 million to the Health Ministry for the development of the App. (If the App works perfectly, more funds could’ve been obtained; we did during our time) During our time, I received funds amounting to Rs. 468 billion from the countries of the European Union to develop these hospitals. They do release money, if we work and there is a system to work. When Rs. 450 million was released for the development of that App, what did the previous regime do? They attempted to allocate that money – the whole portion of Rs. 450 million – for the establishment of a company in a matter of one day through one of their cronies. The Rs. 450 million grant was lost on the spot. It received to neither the government, nor that person. The money was withdrawn. Neither do we have the App now!”
MIAP
Repression makes its way into CBSL as HR Dept issues threatening letter against trade union action
We earlier disclosed about an open letter issued strongly criticising a central bank governor by all trade unions last December 01 for the first time in the history of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) and the distribution of this letter took place with the intervention of about 200 central bank employees.
Now reports emerge that the CBSL has established a strict repressive action against this trade union action, considered of which the following letter has been sent by the HR Department of the CBSL to all the union leaders.
As shown in this letter, in relation to the letter jointly distributed by the CBSL unions, any employee who does not agree with the statements made by the aforementioned trade unions against the Governor should inform the Human Resources Department of the CBSL about their disagreement in writing on or before December 15, 2022.
It is also indicated through this letter that if the CBSL employees fail to produce such a written statement that they do not agree with the statements of those trade unions on or before December 15, 2022, each of those employees should be held accountable for those statements as well.
It is highly notable that this comes as the form of an open threat to Central Bank employees.
Based on the facts contained in this article, it is clear that the Governor of the CBSL is preparing to take disciplinary action against 75 trade union activists who have repeatedly reminded him of the mistakes committed during his tenure at the Central Bank.
In this background, all the CBSL employees are extremely upset and a huge wave of protests has now broken out in the central bank, sources disclosed.
Sources further indicate that a major professional explosion may occur in the Central Bank in the near future, and LNW will be all eyes, should the current Central Bank Governor be preparing for repressive measures.
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