President Ranil Wickramasinghe came to Parliament today (10) during the parliamentary debate.
The President, who came to the Parliament Chamber, also answered some questions asked by the Members of Parliament regarding the debt restructuring process and the budget.
The Latest Addition to Hanthana Eco Lodge Delivers a Transcending Experience
Inspired by the wonders of nature, designed for the adventurous, and created by the love for comfort and fine taste, Cabin @ Creek, the latest addition to Hanthana Eco Lodge, is a reflection of its promise of delivering a transcending experience where nature meets adventure.
Cabin @ Creek is a wooden cabin that is built preserving the natural landscape of the property, while maintaining the authentic Eco balance that is unique to the Hanthana mountain range. The spacious cabin is designed to offer the best of comfort and unique in-nature experience, creating an unforgettable ambiance. The cabin is located adjoining the mini waterfall on the edge of the property, with the lush green forest as a backdrop. The location provides a magnificent view of the forestry, flora and fauna, along with a never-seen-before closer look into the magical wild life. The property is blessed with the soothing and soulful hums of the wind, chirpings of birds, the colourful presence of butterflies and the nearby presence of the wild boars and majestic leopards.
Whether you are sitting back in the luxury of the indoors, enjoying the best of nature, treating yourself to a cup of the finest Ceylon Tea, or relaxing in the large balcony with a sparkling glass of your choice, you are transformed into a world of enchantment that captivate your imagination and exceed your expectations.
An ideal haven to indulge in with that special someone, be it as an exotic honeymoon destination, an anniversary celebration or treating your partner on that special birthday, embrace the coziness, the warmth and romantic ambiance of Cabin @ Creek and be in the heart of nature without losing sight of the modern day comforts.
This is also an ideal retreat for families or a small group of adventure loving friends who are ready to experience nature in its truest form. The spacious cabin, which can be reserved separately from the adjoining villas in the Hanthana Eco Lodge, can accommodate up to 4 adults with the modern amenities on offer. The large balcony is the ideal place to enjoy a quiet moments or gather around with friends for drinks and food. Cabin @ Creek is perfect for the outdoor adventurer or a glamping enthusiast as it captures the best of both worlds.
This new addition is backed by the strong principles and qualities of Hanthana Eco Lodge, where the strive for excellence is a practice that is of paramount importance. The excellent service coupled with exceptional culinary experiences makes this is the ideal choice to explore the surrounding nature and wild life of the world heritage site Hanthana Mountain range.
Nestled in the mesmerizing lush greenery of majestic Hanthana mountain range, towering over the Hill capital of Kandy, Hanthana Eco lodge is the perfect holiday getaway for all nature lovers. With the elevation of over 2,500 feet above mean sea level, just 8KM from the Kandy city, surrounded by thick forest reserves, and neighboring a beautiful mini waterfall, you are welcomed into a private space that transforms you into a mystic land of beauty and tranquility.
A perfect blend of nature and comforts, offering modern amenities, The Eco-friendly and nature blended Villas pamper you with relaxation and peace of mind, providing an ideal platform for you to immerse in the best of eco-adventure in the amazing hill country mountains.
For more information or to make a reservation at the Cabin @ Creek or the villas at Hanthana Eco Lodge, contact 0776 550 911 / 0777 750 911 or visit www.facebook.com/HanthanaEcoLodge/ or www.hanthanaecolodge.com/
According to the Department of Meteorology, the disturbance in the lower atmosphere in the south-east of Sri Lanka has now developed into a low pressure zone.
As it may develop further in the next 24 hours, rain conditions are expected to increase in most parts of the island.
The sky will remain cloudy in North, North Central and Eastern provinces.
Eastern, Uva, North and North Central provinces and Matale district will experience rain or thunder from time to time.
Rain or thundershowers will occur in the rest of the island during evening or night.
The department announces that 100 mm of heavy rain may occur in some places in North, North Central, East, Sabaragamuwa and South provinces.
Political sources say that the Ceylon Labor Congress has expressed its willingness to join the government.
Accordingly, it is stated that the Secretary General of Ceylon Labor Congress Jeevan Thondaman has informed President Ranil Wickramasinghe that his party has expressed interest in getting a cabinet minister position.
However, sources said that he has informed that the final decision on joining the government will be made depending on which cabinet minister position his party gets.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs continues to monitor the progress of the passengers of Sri Lankan origin who were rescued and brought to the Port of Vung Tau in Viet Nam on 08 November 2022.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed the Sri Lanka Navy that they had received information about a vessel carrying approximately 303 persons believed to be Sri Lankans which was in distress in the waters between the Philippines and Viet Nam on 07 November 2022. The Sri Lanka Navy, having contacted the vessel, informed that the crew had abandoned the vessel with the passengers onboard.
On the initiative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in coordination with the Sri Lanka Navy and the Sri Lanka Missions in the Philippines, Singapore and Viet Nam together with the regional Maritime Rescue Coordination Centers (MRCC) based in Singapore, the rescue efforts were coordinated.
Subsequently, the Japanese-flagged vessel, “Helios Leader”, having been contacted by the Singapore MRCC, rescued the passengers from the distressed vessel. The passengers were handed over to Viet Nam authorities at Vung Tau Port in South Viet Nam.
The screening of the passengers will be done by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in coordination with the Viet Nam authorities and the Sri Lanka Embassy in Viet Nam.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs continues to work closely with the Sri Lanka Missions in the Philippines, Singapore, Viet Nam and IOM for early repatriation, once the screening process to ascertain their nationality and other formalities are completed.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Colombo
09 November, 2022
Sagara Kariyawasam, Secretary General of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, says that Basil Rajapaksa will remove his dual citizenship and run for elections if necessary.
A meeting was held yesterday (08) between President Ranil Wickremesinghe and International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgiva, Ghana’s Finance Minister Ken Ofori-Atta and Maldives Speaker Mohamed Nasheed at the COP 27 Climate Change Conference in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.
Debt management was discussed and President’s Adviser on Climate Change Ruwan Wijewardena also participated.
Senior Advisor to the President on National Security and Chief of Staff of the President Sagala Ratnayake recalled that Faris Hadad-Zervos, the World Bank (WB) Country Director for Maldives, Nepal and Sri Lanka was amazed by the action policy and the vision of President Ranil Wickremesinghe which was revealed during their meeting recently.
The WB Country Director also expressed his willingness to support President Wickremesinghe’s vision. “The president’s vision for the country includes some measures that go beyond what the IMF or WB has stipulated. His vision is actually far ahead than this sphere,” Ratnayake said.
He emphasized the importance of getting everyone together to work hard on developing the road map and sticking to the timelines to get the best final report at the end of the next two weeks.
He also said that this is the best opportunity for the country to stabilize economically, to have a solid policy framework and to go into the road map that is needed. “As a country, we have that potential and request everyone to make maximum use of it,” Ratnayake added.
Rathnayake made these remarks while speaking at the World Bank Budget support and Development Policy Operation (DPO) Preparatory Mission kick-off meeting between the government officials and the members of the World Bank which took place yesterday morning (Nov. 08) at the Presidential Secretariat under the patronage of State Minister of Finance Shehan Semasinghe.
The discussed development policy operations, which provide direct budget support to governments for policy and institutional reforms, are aimed at achieving a set of specific development results.
These operations were designed under three pillars such as transforming Economic governance, enhancing growth & competitiveness and protecting the poor and vulnerable to provide rapid financial assistance to allow Sri Lanka to deal with actual or anticipated development financing requirements.
Lengthy discussions were held with the WB team on improving debt management and transparency, improving fiscal oversight, improving tax administration policy, increasing public procurement transparency and value for money, severing the sovereign-financial sector nexus, improving stewardship of the financial sector and reducing systemic risk.
They also focused on reforming and enhancing oversights of SOEs, reducing the anti-export bias of national tariff policy and elite capture, eliminating barriers to foreign investment, making energy and transport sector less dependent on imported fuels and more climate-friendly, and strengthening social protection institutions, delivery systems, and targeting.
Sri Lanka has temporarily suspended accepting applications for passports, said the country’s Department of Immigration and Emigration as the economic crisis continues to tighten its grip on the island nation.
The acceptance of passport applications is halted due to a result of computer system malfunction.
As per the report, the services were affected on Tuesday due to the breakdown in the computer system of the Immigration and Emigration Department.
The Department had appealed to the people to not visit the head office of the Sri Lankan Department of Immigration and Emigration for non-essential services considering the breakdown.
The Department announced that it has suspended accepting applications for passports as the country’s finance minister said that Colombo will have to endure the worst economic crisis and warned of an imminent cash crunch.
The Department of Immigration and Emigration says that the issuance of passports has temporarily been suspended due to a breakdown in the computer system for the third time this year.
Asimilar break down in the computer system was reported in May this year sparking public protests as the large number of people had been asked to visit the passport office some other day.
Accordingly, the relevant department announces that it has suspended issuing passports via all regional offices including the Head Office of the Department of Immigration and Emigration in Battaramulla.
The Department of Immigration and Emigration has suspended accepting applications for passports until the system is restored.
As a result of this, a heated situation had reportedly occurred in front of the Immigration Department this afternoon as a large number of people who had arrived to obtain their passports had voiced their protest.
However, the officials of the department and police officers had then arrived and explained the situation and sent them away.
