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Commemoration of 50 years of association between National Defence College, India and Sri Lanka Armed Forces

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Commemoration of 50 years of association between National Defence College, India and Sri Lanka Armed Forces

High Commission of India, Colombo commemorated 50 years of association between National Defence College (NDC), India and Sri Lankan Armed Forces on 28 Aug 2023. The event celebrated the enduring bonds of cooperation, camaraderie and friendship among the militaries of the two countries. Secretary of Defence Gen Kamal Gunaratne(Retd)  was the Chief Guest of the event. Chief of Defence Staff Lt. Gen Shavendra Silva, Commanders of Sri Lanka Army, Navy and Air Force along with officers from NDC, India and dignitaries from Ministry of Defence attended the event.

2.    Gen Kamal Gunaratne(Retd) along with High Commissioner of India H.E Gopal Baglay felicitated the Guest of Honour, Admiral DB Goonesekara(Retd) on the special occasion. Admiral Goonesekara has the distinction of being the first NDC India alumni in Sri Lanka. Accepting the felicitations, he shared his cherished experiences from the times he spent at NDC, India in 1972, more than 50 years ago.

3.     High Commissioner HE Gopal Baglay highlighted at the event that India stands committed to Sri Lanka’s capacity building endeavours in line with India’s ‘Neighbourhood First Policy’. He emphasized that training engagements between the Armed Forces have instilled a spirit of brotherhood and interoperability amongst the services and form the foundation of their strong bonds.

4.     Addressing the gathering, Secretary Defence commended the efforts of the High Commissioner to bridge the bonds between the two nations across various dimensions. He underlined that India has always been a pillar of strength in training of Sri Lankan Armed forces personnel and shares strong cultural, demographical and behavioral similarities as a friendly neighbour. He further expressed his gratitude for the fully funded and comprehensive training opportunities being provided to Sri Lanka Armed Forces.

5.     The event was attended by close to 50 NDC India alumni in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka Armed Forces officers constitute around 10% of the total capacity building vacancies allocated to officers from foreign countries, making such allocation the largest.

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Colombo

29 August 2023

SL inflation drops to 4.0-pct as some prices fall true to CB’s watchword

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SL inflation drops to 4.0-pct as some prices fall true to CB’s watchword

By: Staff Writer

Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka’s central bank is pushing for an inflation target of around 4 to 6 percent, for the country in the belief that price pressures needed to push up growth to high levels, officials said.

Director of the Central Bank’s Director of Economic Research P K G Harishchandra explaining the rationale for the agency’s high inflation target said that it is diffuclt to double the growth without creating price pressure.

 Proving central Bank’s projection correct, Sri Lanka’s Department of Census and Statistics says that headline inflation based on the Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI) has further reduced to 4 percent in August, compared to 6.3 percent in July 2023.

According to its latest report, Colombo’s food Inflation has decreased to -4.8% in August, from -1.4% in July 2023.

The CCPI for all items for the month of August 2023 was 190.1 and it records a decrease of 0.1 in index points. Meanwhile the overall rate of inflation as measured by CCPI on Y-on-Y basis is 4.0% in August 2023.

The CCPI for all items for the month of August 2023 was 190.1 and it records a decrease of 0.1 index points that is 0.02 percentage change compared to the month of July 2023 on an expenditure value basis for which the index was 190.2. This represents a decrease of expenditure value by Rs 39.08 in the “Market Basket”.

The month-on-month change was contributed by decrease in Food items by 0.41% and increase in Non Food items by 0.39%.

These details conform that the sky rocketing of price of food items has been the same as previous months although the rate of price change has come down drastically, several economic experts said. 

Former Professor of Economics at the University of Colombo, Sirimal Abeyratne said that under normal circumstances, the prices tend to rise rather than to fall.

Therefore, the “average” price level of a country continues to rise, while that average price level reflects all the prices of a set of essential goods and services consumed by an average household.

While the increase in the average price level is inflation, sometimes the rate of inflation rises indicating that the prices rise at a higher rate. Sometimes, the rate of inflation falls indicating that the prices rise at a lower rate. Prices are, anyway rising!, he added.

The overall rate of inflation as measured by the CCPI on Y-on-Y basis is 4.0% in August 2023 and Y-on-Y inflation calculated for the month of July 2023 was 6.396.

The Y-on-Y inflation of Food Group decreased to 4.8% in August 2023 from -1.4% in July 2023 and the Y-on-Y inflation of Non Food Group decreased to 8.7% in August 2023 from 10.5% in July 2023.

SL Airlines, earmarks Kerala in its expansion drive according high priority

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SL Airlines, earmarks Kerala in its expansion drive according high priority

By: Staff Writer

Colombo (LNW): SriLankan Airlines is all set to expand its operations in Kerala a major state in India. The airline is likely to add one more flight to Thiruvananthapuram during the coming winter schedule.

At present, the airline operates six flights a week from Thiruvananthapuram and 10 flights from Kochi. The airline is also looking forward to starting service from Kozhikode airport based on the availability of aircraft.

V. Ravindran, the national carrier’s regional manager of India, Bangladesh, and Nepal, told TNIE that SriLankan Airlines is on an expansion drive and will start more flights to various destinations in India.

This was confirmed by SriLankan Airlines high official here in Colombo stating that “Kerala is one of the Indian states where a highest number of their travelers has chosen to travel frequently as an attractive destination.

Sri Lanka has cheaper hotels and accommodation facilities. Compared to other countries, including the Maldives, Sri Lanka has better destinations with cheaper packages.

 So we are getting frequent passengers from Kerala. That is why we decided to expand our operations in Kerala. As an immediate plan, we will start one more service from Thiruvananthapuram during the winter schedule,” Ravindran said.

He pointed out that the business prospects of the Vizhinjam port will be immense, as it will enhance the connectivity of air cargo between Colombo and Thiruvananthapuram in the future.

There has been a steep rise in passengers from India to Sri Lanka in the past seven months. It indicates that Sri Lanka has become a preferred tourist destination for people from India, especially from Kerala, Ravindran added.

As part of increasing air connectivity from Thiruvananthapuram to Colombo, the SriLankan airlines have appointed Sandun Jayasinghe as an area manager in Thiruvananthapuram.

Ravindran also said that the Sri Lankan government is in talks with many private airlines, including Tata, Adani, and Emirates, to privatise the airline.

The crisis in Sri Lanka last year prompted the airlines to depend on Thiruvananthapuram airport for refuelling purposes and for technical landings. Ravindran said that things are getting normal in Sri Lanka, and hence, the business of the airline is also picking up.

 Launched in 1979, SriLankan Airlines is currently expanding and further diversifying its wide range of products and services to drive the country’s ongoing boom in tourism and economy.

The airline’s hub is located at Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo, providing convenient connections to its global route network of 112 destinations in 58 countries.

SriLankan Airlines has a global workforce of approximately 6,000 employees based in Sri Lanka and abroad. 

Two Opposition MPs file petition against Health Minister and NMRA

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Two Opposition MPs file petition against Health Minister and NMRA

Colombo (LNW): Two MPs of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) today (01) filed a fundamental rights (FR) petition in the Supreme Court against the Sri Lankan health authorities, including Minister Keheliya Rambukwella and the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) over the failure to prevent the importation of substandard or unauthorised medicines and medical equipment.

These parliamentarians are reportedly SJB MPs Kavinda Jayawardena and Harshana Rajakaruna, and cited the Health Minister, the Chairman of the NMRA, its members, the Director General of Health Services (DGHS) and several other officials as respondents to the petition.

The petitioners alleged that the health authorities have repeatedly approved the importation of medicines and medical equipment that are either substandard or unauthorised, pointing out that these items are not fit for human consumption.

These substandard or unauthorised medicines and medical equipment have been provided for the hospitals and administered to the public without proper research, in a clear violation of the standard procurement process and health guidelines, thereby endangering the lives of the people, the petitioners emphasised.

Health Ministry says Rs. 13 bn overdue to medicine importers

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Health Ministry says Rs. 13 bn overdue to medicine importers

Colombo (LNW): There is an outstanding bill amounting to about Rs. 13 billion that needs to be settled with medicine importers, the Ministry of Health disclosed.

Funds required for the settlement have already been requested from the Treasury, and the Treasury agreed to release the funds in stages, according to a senior Ministry official.

In the occurrence of non-payment of outstanding bills, some medicine importers are reluctant to supply medicines, but the shortage of essential medicines in the country has declined to 161, he added.

Orders are underway to procure medicines and the stocks are due to arrive over the next few weeks under several phases, the Ministry noted.

India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to head for SL this weekend

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India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to head for SL this weekend

Colombo (LNW): India’s Defence minister Rajnath Singh will head for Sri Lanka this weekend to further bolster bilateral military ties and cooperation to meet the challenges in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), in a visit that comes amid China’s ever-growing presence in the region, which has also seen some of its naval ships as well as ‘spy’ vessels docking at Sri Lankan ports, a report by Times of India disclosed.

Singh is slated to meet Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe during his visit to the island nation on September 2-3.

Noting that India is committed to help Sri Lankan armed forces in “capacity and capability-building”, an official said New Delhi has extended a $150 million defence line of credit to Colombo. “Out of this, around $100 million credit has been utilised so far,” he said.

Singh’s visit comes soon after Chinese warship Hai Yang 24 Hao docked at Colombo earlier this month. Beijing has also sought Colombo’s nod for a visit by its survey vessel Shiyan-6 in October-November.

India in the past has conveyed its strong concerns to Sri Lanka over allowing Chinese naval and spy vessels to dock at its ports.

The docking of Chinese vessel Yuan Wang-5 at Hambantota in August last year had, in fact, led to a major diplomatic wrangle between India and Sri Lanka.

Source: Times of India

Defamatory comments on Alles: Court issues notice to FSP Propaganda Secretary

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Defamatory comments on Alles: Court issues notice to FSP Propaganda Secretary

By: Isuru Parakrama

Colombo (LNW): Fort Magistrate Thilina Gamage issued notices to Propaganda Secretary of the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) Duminda Nagamuwa over an alleged defamatory comment made on Facebook and YouTube against Public Security Minister Tiran Alles.

Accordingly, Nagamuwa has been issued notices to appear in the Fort Magistrate Court on September 06, 2023.

Prime Minister endorses UNDP indexes, admits data on poverty and vulnerability essential for effective planning

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Prime Minister endorses UNDP indexes, admits data on poverty and vulnerability essential for effective planning

Colombo (LNW): Responding to the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) and the Multidimensional Vulnerability Index (MVI) formulated by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to understand and implement measures to help move Sri Lanka away from vulnerability and poverty in the future, Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena called upon all policy makers, as well as the private sector and civil society and said that data on poverty and vulnerability would be essential for effective planning.

The Sri Lankan Prime Minister made this remark when UNDP Resident Representative Azusa Kubota called on him at the Temple Trees yesterday (31) together with the members of the UNDP experts team Dr Sabina Alkire, Director, Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), University of Oxford and Prof Siri Hettige, Professor in Sociology to hand over the UNDP MVI MPI Reports.

The Prime Minister thanked the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative, the UNDP SURGE Data Hub, and the Citra Social Innovation Lab, which is anchored within the Prime Minister’s Office in Sri Lanka for the preparation of the data base which will be of extremely useful to effectively design national policies for these vulnerable groups.

Kubota explained that the data for the report was collected from a national level survey capturing insights from 25,000 households covering the issues related to nutrition, education, household debt or risks of disasters.

Dr Alkire said the MVI MPI offer a robust evidence base to better understand the challenges faced by vulnerable groups and to assist policymakers in formulating targeted and effective policies.

Prof Hettige said the data base on poverty and vulnerability will be useful for the government to effectively plan its policy programmes to bring Sri Lanka back on track and onto a more sustainable development pathway.

Secretary to the Prime Minister Anura Dissanayake, Advisor (Media) Sugeeswara Senadhira and UNDP Team Leader Fadhil Bakeer Markar were also present on this occasion.

Prevailing showers expected to continue today (Sep 01): Met Dept

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Prevailing showers expected to continue today (Sep 01): Met Dept

By: Isuru Parakrama

Colombo (LNW): The prevailing showery condition in south-western part of the Island is expected to continue further, and accordingly, showers will occur at times in Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, Central and Northwestern provinces, the Department of Meteorology said in its daily weather forecast today (01).

Heavy showers above 100mm are likely at some places in Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces and in Galle and Matara districts, and showers or thundershowers will occur at several places in Eastern and Uva province and in Polonnaruwa, Vavuniya and Mullaitivu districts during the evening or night, the statement added.

General public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimise damages caused by temporary localised strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.

On the apparent southward relative motion of the sun, it is going to be directly over the latitudes of Sri Lanka during 28th of August to 07th of September in this year. The nearest towns of Sri Lanka over which the sun is overhead today are Ippanthivu Island (Puttalam District), Anuradhapura, Katukeliyawa and Ilukwewa (Anuradhapura District) about 12.11 noon.

Marine Weather:

Condition of Rain:
Showers or thundershowers will occur at times in the sea areas off the coast extending from Puttalam to Hambantota via Colombo, Galle and Matara.
Winds:
Winds will be South-westerly and speed will be (30-40) kmph. Wind speed may increase up to (50-60) kmph at times in the sea areas off the coast extending from Galle to Pottuvil via Hambantota and from Puttalam to Kankasanthurai via Mannar. Wind speed may increase up to 50 kmph at times in the sea areas off the coast extending from Puttalam to Galle via Colombo.
State of Sea:
The sea areas off the coast extending from Galle to Pottuvil via Hambantota and from Puttalam to Kankasanthurai via Mannar will be rough at times.  The sea areas off the coast extending from Puttalam to Galle via Colombo will be fairly rough at times. Temporarily strong gusty winds and very rough seas can be expected during thundershowers.

CEYPETCO increases fuel prices

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CEYPETCO increases fuel prices

By: Isuru Parakrama

Colombo (LNW): The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CEYPETCO) has increased the prices of fuel in a significant rise, effective from midnight August 31.

The revised fuel prices are as follows;

  • Price of Octane 92 Petrol soared by Rs. 13 per litre; new price Rs. 361
  • Price of Octane 95 Petrol soared by Rs. 42 per litre; new price Rs. 417
  • Price of Auto Diesel soared by Rs. 35 per litre; new price Rs. 341
  • Price of Super Diesel soared by Rs. 01 per litre; new price Rs. 359
  • Price of Kerosene soared by Rs. 05 per litre; new price Rs. 231
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