The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) has approved a power cut of two hours and twenty minutes for today.
Accordingly, zones A, B,C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V and W will meet a power cut of one hour during daytime and a power cut of one hour and twenty minutes during night time.
MIAP
Leader of the Opposition Sajith Premadasa has been appointed as the Leader of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) for the fourth consecutive year.
The decision was made during the SJB’s annual Party Convention held at Campbell Park in Colombo yesterday (11).
Meanwhile, MP Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka was appointed as the Chairman of the SJB, and MP Ranjith Madduma Bandara was appointed as the Party’s Secretary General.
MP Dr. Harsha De Silva was appointed as the SJB Treasurer, and MP Tissa Attanayake as the Party’s National Organiser.
MIAP
The Federation of University Teachers’ Association (FUTA) has called for immediate arrests over the alleged assault on former Vice Chancellor of Peradeniya University, Prof. Athula Senaratne and his son.
Reports emerged that a group of about 300 students have assaulted the Peradeniya ex VC and his son, during an attempt to forcibly enter their residence two days (10) ago.
The assault was reportedly due to an argument with the ex VC’s son having escalated into a clash with the said students and the Prof. Senaratne and his son were hospitalised due to sustaining injuries.
The event has been captured by the CCTV installed at the ex VC’s residence, according to FUTA, and the Union urged the Police to arrest the group involved in the assault by using CCTV footage.
MIAP
There has not been a programme to recover the loans given to the government institutions by state banks.
Opinions and proposals of trade unions and professional associations related to the economic stabilisation of Sri Lanka were discussed at the the National Council sub-committee on identifying short- and medium-term programmes related to economic stabilisation.
The Committee chaired by MP Patali Champika Ranawaka was recently convened.
General Secretary of the Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA) Dr. Haritha Aluthge, who addressed on behalf of the medical unions, pointed out that the solutions and proposals recommended by the Economic Stabilisation Committee regarding drugs, food and nutrition and the proposals presented by his association are very similar.
He also mentioned that according to the recently published data, the nutritional problems in Polonnaruwa, Matara, Galle and other areas where the nutritional problems were at a minimum level are also showing an increase in nutritional issues. Dr. Aluthge further pointed out that through systematic regulation, about 20 billion can be reduced from the current amount of 160 billion for the purchase of medicines.
President of the Association of Health Professionals Ravi Kumudesh pointed out that it is necessary to give more attention to the proposals related to elimination of corruption requested by institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He also pointed out that the authority of the National Procurement Commission in the procurement of medicines and equipment is not enough to overcome political interference.
Dr. Chandana Dharmaratne, editor of the Government Medical Officers Association, stated that due to the reduction of the retirement age of public servants, there will be early retirement of employees who are willing to work and who are able to work and there are preparations to close the opportunity for those who have left the public service to engage in private or foreign service.
According to the report issued by the Family Health Bureau regarding nutrition, it was emphasised that 50 per cent of children under 5 years are malnourished, and the body mass index of pregnant mothers is greatly reduced.
It was discussed that priorities should be identified at the level of Grama Niladari officials and Public Health Midwives and solutions related to this should be found and the committee chairman pointed out that the first report of the committee has proposed the electricity bill based method for preparing priority lists.
The representatives of the trade unions in the financial sector also pointed out that there was a severe economic collapse due to the political decisions made undermining the decisions of the Central Bank. They also pointed out that there has not been a program to recover the loans given to the government institutions by the state banking system.
It was also emphasised that about 80 per cent of the women work in the garment industry, and that industry suffers from extreme poverty. Committee Chief Ranawaka mentioned that even foreign banks have decided that doing business with Sri Lanka is dangerous. Therefore, he pointed out that even if the relevant large-scale companies decide to move their factories and offices to foreign countries, they do not try to take their employees who are suffering from poverty because those companies are interested in reducing their costs by getting cheaper labor from other countries.
Minister Nasir Ahmed and MP Ashok Abeysinghe were also present at this meeting.
MIAP
President Ranil Wickremesinghe emphasised the importance of youth participation in finding meaningful solutions to the current crisis facing the nation. He pointed out that solutions should be made to prepare the country to face the next 25 years. “Despite the economic and political situation of the country I decided to serve the voice of the youth and took over the country to create a better future for the youth. We have to look into solutions that suit the next 25 years which is a digitally developed future that will benefit the young generation.
Accordingly, necessary arrangements were taken to appoint a young member for oversight committees to look into the solutions for the current crisis facing the nation.
These remarks were made by President Ranil Wickremesinghe at the District 306 C2 Leos Mass Induction and Leo day Celebrations which were held at Nawaragahala, Royal College Colombo yesterday morning (11) to recruit over 6,500 new Leos members from around the country.
Speaking further the President said that in line with the 75th Independence Day celebrations in 2023, the National Youth Platform has been established and requested the future generation to join the platform to rebuild the country and the economy that would benefit the youth and work in line with Singapore, Japan, China and other developed countries in the region.
He also requested the Leos to join hands with the recently launched Climate Change Programme to obtain meaningful action from the youth to mitigate the climate change issues that have been a global crisis.
The President who inspected the exhibition which was organised by the Leo clubs of the District 306 C2 appreciated the most creative and talented idea of a seed paper done by Ananda College Colombo.
District President Leo Indunil Udara Palihawadana presented mementos to President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Senior Advisor to the President on National Security and Chief of Staff of the President Sagala Ratnayake while the President also presented awards to the Leo members.
Mayor of Colombo Rosy Senanayake, Principal Royal College Colombo Mr. M.V. S. Gunathilake, Past District Governor Lion Lasantha Goonewardena, District Governor Lion Bannet Gamalath, and Head Prefect Royal College Colombo Leo Kavisha Ratnayaka were also present at this occasion.
PMD
Showers or thundershowers will occur at several places in Northern, North-Central, Eastern and Uva provinces during the afternoon or night, and showers may occur in Puttalam, Ampara, Batticaloa, Mannar and Jaffna districts during the morning too, said the Department of Meteorology in a statement today (12).
A few showers are likely in Western, Sabaragamuwa and Central provinces and in Galle and Matara districts.
General public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimise damages caused by temporary localised strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.
Marine Weather:
| Condition of Rain: |
| Showers will occur at several places in the sea areas off the coast extending from Kankasanthurai to Colombo via Mannar and Puttalam. Showers or thundershowers will occur in the sea areas off the coast extending from Batticaloa to Kankasanthurai via Trincomalee during the evening or night. |
| Winds: |
| Winds will be south-westerly to south-easterly and wind speed will be (20-30) kmph. The wind speed can increase up to 50 kmph at times in the sea area off the coast extending from Kankasanthurai to Colombo via Mannar and from Matara to Pottuvil via Hambanthota. |
| State of Sea: |
| The sea area off the coast extending from Kankasanthurai to Colombo via Mannar and from Matara to Pottuvil via Hambanthota will be rough at times. Temporarily strong gusty winds and very rough seas can be expected during thundershowers. |
MIAP
The public views the economy and economic crisis, followed by inflation as the top two problems facing Sri Lanka – and no other concerns come close.
In polling by the Sri Lanka Opinion Tracker Survey (SLOTS) during October and November 2022, respondents were asked to identify their top national issues currently facing the country.
Seven-in-10 Sri Lankans (73%) view the economy and the economic crisis as one of the top two problems for the country, with the public also rating inflation (41%) and jobs and unemployment (13%) as major economic problems.
After economic issues, one-in-four Sri Lankans (23%) view corruption as a priority issue, followed by one-in-10 (9%) who cite politicization or political interference.
Significant numbers of Sri Lankans also list fuel shortages (8%) and power cuts (7%) as priority problems, followed by 6% who mention high taxes and 5% who mention problems with the health services, according to SLOTS interviews of 622 adults conducted between 4 October – 30 November 2022.
Better-off and poor Sri Lankans differ in their rating of key problems. The poorest one-third of Sri Lankans almost universally (89%) rate the economic crisis as one of the two main national problems, but less than two-thirds (62%) of the richest one-third of Sri Lankans do.
In contrast, better-off Sri Lankans are far more likely to view corruption (36%) and political interference (11%) as leading problems, with few poor Sri Lankans listing corruption (6%) and political interference (3%) as leading problems.
IHP said these differences are paralleled in differences in views between Sinhala and non-Sinhala adults, which also reflects Sinhala adults on average being socioeconomically advantaged than members of other ethnicities.
Non-Sinhala adults are far more likely than Sinhala adults to rate the economic crisis as a leading problem (95% versus 66%). In contrast, the view of corruption (31%) or political interference (12%) as the leading problems is largely a Sinhala concern, with negligible numbers of non-Sinhala adults listing these as the top problems.
IHP is an independent, non-partisan research centre based in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The SLOTS lead investigator is Dr. Ravi Rannan-Eliya of IHP, who has trained in public opinion polling at Harvard University and has conducted numerous surveys over three decades.
SLOTS combines data from daily interviews of a national sample of adults (ages 18 and over), drawn from a large national panel of respondents who were recruited in a field survey during 2019 using stratified random sampling and a separate sample of respondents reached by random digit dialing of mobile numbers.
Responses are adjusted to match the national population for sex, age, ethnicity, province, sector, and economic status.
The Hambantota International Port reached the milestone of handling 500,000 RORO cargo units in 2022 this November, with the discharging of 4302 units from Hyundai Glovis’ Hae Shin to the yard for transshipment, the company said today.
This year, 223 RORO (cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses ) vessels called at the port with cargo from India, South Korea, Japan and the Middle East for transshipment mainly to East and South Africa, Mexico, the Middle East, Chile, and Japan.
The port has seen a 4% growth from 2021 in RORO cargo amidst economic challenges globally and locally. Last year’s transshipment figure up to November was 484,467 units.
In 2022, HIP has transshipped 505,185 units to and from the regional ports in the past eleven months.
These transshipment volumes were achieved amidst a ban on vehicle imports to the countrySri Lanka, already hailed as South Asia’s transshipment hub, draws tremendously from the expertise of its global partner China Merchants Port Holdings (CMPort), whose extensive relationships and international networking spreads across some of the most prominent international maritime centres in the world.
The Hambantota International Port and the Colombo International Container Terminals Ltd. (CICT), are the two major projects of CMPort, which are collaborations between the global port operator and the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA).
The expert knowledge sharing, know-how, and strategic investments by CMPort in these projects, is helping Sri Lanka maximize its growth potential both locally and globally.
A subsidiary of the reputed China Merchant Group, CMPort Holdings is the largest, globally competitive public port developer, investor and operator in China, with investments in Mainland China, Hong Kong and overseas.
An award-winning operator in the cargo logistics sector, with an international track record for best practices and sustainable cargo transportation CMPort, has a network of 36 ports in 18 countries and five continents.
With reliability and innovation as its primary focus, Hambantota International Port (HIP) is fast gearing to become the most efficient port in the region.
The port set a record by reducing 57% operational time in discharging marine fuel cargo of MV Yanbu recently.
HIP also kicked off its first ever dual cargo loading operation at the port’s oil jetty, loading both MGO and VLSFO at the same time on to tanker Mahaweli. T
his is the first time HIP facilitated the loading of 2 types of marine fuel cargo onto a single vessel simultaneously.
“The port’s efficiency is driven on Key Performance Indicators at every level, beginning from truck drivers upwards.
Keeping to efficiency levels in a multipurpose port is that much more challenging because the same work force is used for different types of cargo handling, and unlike in a container port, it is also more labour intensive.
The Joint Post Trade Union Front has launched a strike this (11) afternoon, based on several demands.
The strike action will be in effect from 4 pm this evening to midnight tomorrow (12), revealed Front Co Convener Chinthaka Bandara.
The demands include the revision of the overtime pay system at the Central Mail Exchange.
Accordingly, customers will not be able to receive services from any post office across the island, Bandara said.
MIAP
A teenage girl is recovering from leukaemia after becoming the first patient in the world to receive a pioneering cell-editing treatment.
The 13-year-old, named Alyssa, from Leicester, was diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, which could not be treated with chemotherapy or a bone marrow transplant.
With no options left, doctors at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, attempted a groundbreaking experimental therapy in which donated immune T-cells were genetically edited to target her cancer.
The technique, known as base-editing, is the first time a cancer treatment has altered the fundamental building blocks of DNA.
Experts changed the genetic code of immune cells to allow them to hunt down and kill cancerous T-cells while leaving themselves alone.
After just 28 days, Alyssa was in remission and after a second bone marrow transplant to restore her immune system the leukaemia is now undetectable. She is recovering at home and hoping to go back to school soon.
Professor Waseem Qasim, Professor of Cell and Gene Therapy at UCL GOS ICH and Consultant Immunologist at GOSH said: “This is a great demonstration of how, with expert teams and infrastructure, we can link cutting edge technologies in the lab with real results in the hospital for patients.
“It’s our most sophisticated cell engineering so far and paves the way for other new treatments and ultimately better futures for sick children.”
To create the cells, healthy donor T-cells needed to be engineered in four stages. Firstly, receptors needed to be removed from the donated cells to avoid rejection.
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Next, a “flag” known as CD7 that identifies them as T-cells was removed so that the engineered cells did not end up destroying each other.
In the third step, a second “flag”, called CD52, was snipped away to make the edited cells invisible to drugs given to the patient during the treatment process.
Finally, a receptor was added allowing the cells to recognise leukemic T-cells.
These changes were achieved by “base editing” – chemically converting single nucleotide bases or letters of the DNA code, which carry instructions.
For example, changing the nucleotide bases in the gene for CD7 from a cytosine to a thymine creates the equivalent of a genetic full stop, and stops the immune system attacking T-cells.
Alyssa was diagnosed with T-cell leukaemia in May 2021, after a long period of what the family thought were colds, viruses and general tiredness.
Despite months of treatment in hospitals in Leicester and Sheffield medics were unable to get her cancer under control and into remission.
Kiona, Alyssa’s mother said: “We’re on a strange cloud nine to be honest – it’s amazing to be home.
“The doctors have said the first six months are the most important and we don’t want to get too cavalier but we kept thinking ‘If they can just get rid of it, just once, she’ll be ok.’ And maybe we’ll be right.
“Hopefully this can prove the research works and they can offer it to more children – all of this needs to have been for something. It just feels so senseless.
“Alyssa wants to go back to school and that could be a reality soon.”
A clinical trial for this treatment is currently open and aims to recruit up to 10 patients with T-cell leukaemia who have exhausted all conventional treatment options.
If shown to be successful, the bone marrow transplant and CAR T-cell therapy teams at GOSH hope it can be offered to children earlier when they are less sick.
Dr Robert Chiesa, consultant in bone marrow transplant and CAR T-cell therapy at GOSH, said: “This is quite remarkable, although it is still a preliminary result, which needs to be monitored and confirmed over the next few months.
“The entire team here at GOSH are extremely happy for Alyssa and her family and it’s been a privilege to work with them over the past few months. “
The results are being presented this weekend at the American Society of Haematology annual meeting in New Orleans, US.
