United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk is scheduled to visit Sri Lanka from June 23 to 26, marking the first official visit by a UN Human Rights Chief to the country since February 2016.

During his visit, High Commissioner Türk will meet with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Prime MinisterDinesh Gunawardena. He will also hold discussions with the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment, and Tourism, as well as other Cabinet Ministers, Members of Parliament, senior government officials, and religious and civil society leaders. Engagements with the diplomatic community and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lankaare also scheduled.

As part of his itinerary, Türk will travel to Kandy to pay respects at the Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic and meet with the Chief Prelates of the Malwatte and Asgiriya Chapters.

He will also visit Jaffna and Trincomalee, where he is expected to meet with the Governors of the Northern and Eastern Provinces.

The visit aims to further strengthen efforts related to the promotion and protection of human rights and national reconciliation, aligning with Sri Lanka’s ongoing constructive engagement with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

Deputy Minister of Education and Higher Education Dr. Madura Seneviratne informed Parliament that the Grade Five Scholarship Examination will continue without changes until 2029, and will not be discontinued immediately.

He stated that the Government has decided to retain the exam in its current form until a final decision is made in 2029. To that end, a review committee will be appointed in 2028 to assess the future of the scholarship exam. This committee will examine the feasibility of continuing the exam and propose measures to reduce the pressure placed on young students. The final decision will be based on both the committee’s findings and the Education Department’s recommendations.

Dr. Seneviratne also revealed that the Department of Examinations is currently preparing a plan to ease the stress of the examination for students during the transitional period leading up to 2028.

He further stated that the Government is committed to gradually addressing disparities between schools and ensuring a more equitable education system, thereby reducing the intense competition and psychological burden associated with the Grade Five Scholarship Exam.

Leader of the House and Minister of Transport, Highways, Ports, and Civil Aviation Bimal Ratnayake told Parliament yesterday that the Southern Expressway, Sri Lanka’s first expressway, was marred by political interference and irregularities during its early development.

Responding to a query from SLPP MP Rohitha Abeygunawardena regarding the placement of interchanges along the expressway, Minister Ratnayake alleged that the original design and feasibility studies were altered under political pressure, compromising the integrity of the project.

He further revealed that the expressway currently has only one designated rest area, which had been leased out for 99 years at a nominal rate of Rs.10,000. He claimed that during the Rajapaksa administration, proposed rest stops were deliberately omitted and interchanges were instead constructed to provide direct access to private residences of politically connected individuals.

During the debate, SJB MP Ajith P. Perera raised additional concerns regarding the lack of an interchange at Pelpola, located between the Gelanigama and Dodangoda interchanges. Perera pointed out that Pelpola had been earmarked as the location for an investment zone, and with ongoing development in nearby Galpatha, an interchange is crucial for improving regional access and economic benefits for Kalutara residents.

In response, Minister Ratnayake stated that the Pelpola-Millaniya interchange is not part of the current expressway expansion plan due to an estimated construction cost of nearly Rs.1,000 million. However, he confirmed that the proposal remains under active discussion, with Health Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa and Industries Minister Sunil Handunnetti also supporting the need for its inclusion in future development phases.

Sri Lanka’s Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) rose by US$ 96 million in the first quarter of 2025, compared to the same period in 2024, the Board of Investment (BOI) revealed during a progress review meeting held on June 20 at the Presidential Secretariat. The session was chaired by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake.

In addition to the FDI growth, the BOI reported that domestic investment increased by US$ 21 million, and export income rose by US$ 176 million in the same period. So far in 2025, the country has received foreign investment proposals worth US$ 4.67 billion.

The meeting also addressed the challenges hindering investment and explored strategies to boost investor confidence. President Dissanayake emphasized that the BOI plays a critical role in strengthening the national economy and uplifting rural living standards. He urged the agency to move beyond traditional sectors, as such avenues are becoming increasingly limited.

The President stressed the need for Sri Lanka to identify emerging sectors and innovation-driven opportunities to remain competitive in the global market. He noted that Sri Lanka has attracted only about US$ 22 billion in FDI since 1978, a figure that falls significantly behind regional counterparts like Vietnam, which drew US$ 23 billion in 2022 alone.

He called on the BOI to focus on expanding investments in the services sector, and to proactively seek new investment avenues instead of merely trying to recapture missed opportunities.

The meeting was attended by key BOI officials, including Chairman Arjuna Herath, Acting Director General Renuka Weerakone, and Senior Economic Affairs Advisor to the President, Duminda Hulangamuwa.

Showers will occur at times in the Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces and in Nuwara-Eliya, Kandy, Galle and Matara districts.

Several spells of showers will occur in the North-western province and in Matale district.

Showers or thundershowers may occur at a few places in the Uva province and in Ampara and Batticaloa districts during the afternoon or night.

Fairly strong winds of about (30-40) kmph can be expected at times over Western slopes of the central hills and in Northern, North-central, Southern and North-western provinces and in Trincomalee district.

The general public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damages caused by temporary localized strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Arun Hemachandra has underscored Sri Lanka’s keen interest in deepening private sector cooperation with Bangladesh, emphasizing its importance for enhancing bilateral trade and investment.

The remarks came during a meeting with a visiting business delegation from the Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), led by its President Taskeen Ahmed, held in Colombo, according to an official press release.

Deputy Minister Hemachandra highlighted that Sri Lanka has already signed Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with Thailand and Singapore, and is currently evaluating the potential benefits of a similar agreement with Bangladesh. He invited Bangladeshi entrepreneurs to invest in Sri Lanka’s growth sectors and assured full government support for such ventures.

Taskeen Ahmed noted that shifting global trade dynamics, driven by evolving geopolitical factors, are opening up new opportunities across South and Southeast Asia. While Bangladesh is a global leader in ready-made garments, he pointed out that Sri Lanka excels in technology, innovation, and value addition, providing a complementary foundation for deeper collaboration.

He also stressed the potential of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to enhance trade, investment, and people-to-people connectivity between the two nations, expressing optimism about joint ventures and mutual investment.

Former DCCI President Rizwan Rahman echoed these sentiments, suggesting that due to the structural similaritiesbetween the two economies, a Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) may fall short, and a comprehensive FTA would be more effective in driving growth.

In a separate discussion, Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning Dr. Harshana Suriyaperuma highlighted joint opportunities in IT, digital services, pharmaceuticals, tea, energy, financial services, and tourism. He also shared Sri Lanka’s vision to become a fully digital state within two years, encouraging foreign investment in digital infrastructure, including state-of-the-art data centers.

Dr. Suriyaperuma further invited Bangladeshi investors to explore pharmaceutical manufacturing in Sri Lanka, as the country seeks to expand domestic capacity to meet rising healthcare demands.

The Kumana entrance on the eastern edge of Yala National Park is set to reopen today (21) to accommodate pilgrims journeying to Kataragama for the 2025 pilgrimage season.

Recognized as the longest pilgrimage in Sri Lanka, the annual Kataragama walk sees devotees from the North and East of the country travel over 100 kilometers on foot, passing through rugged landscapes and wildlife zones in the Kumana and Yala National Parks.

An official from the National Park Department confirmed that the Kumana gate will remain open for two weeks, enabling safe passage for the pilgrims traveling from Okanda to Kataragama.

This sacred journey culminates at the historic Ruhunu Kataragama Maha Devalaya, where the annual Perahera Festival is scheduled to begin on June 26. Pilgrims typically take five to six days to complete the spiritual trek, navigating a route rich in both natural beauty and religious significance.

A high-level committee led by Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake has been appointed to devise and implement sustainable, scientific solutions to mitigate the growing threat posed by wild animals to agricultural and plantation sectors in Sri Lanka.

The newly formed committee, comprising senior government officials and subject-matter experts, held its inaugural meeting at the Presidential Secretariat, according to a statement from the President’s Media Division (PMD).

The committee’s primary focus is to scientifically assess the extent of agricultural damage caused by wild animalsand develop short, medium, and long-term strategies. It will also draft national policies and legislation, and coordinate human, physical, and financial resources to implement these solutions.

Emphasizing the need for ecological balance, committee members noted that any mitigation efforts must respect the right of wild animals to their natural habitats. A rapid response programme for high-risk districts was also discussed.

Professor Ashoka Dangolla of the University of Peradeniya highlighted insights from over 15 years of research on the Toque macaque, noting that population control and coexistence solutions can be achieved through a scientific approach.

Meanwhile, Director General of Wildlife Conservation M.S.L.R.C. Marasinghe stressed the importance of animal censuses and a multi-pronged strategy rooted in empirical data, beyond public opinion or anecdotal evidence.

The committee agreed to gather input from a wide range of stakeholders, including academics, environmentalists, wildlife experts, government officials, and affected community members, to ensure comprehensive and inclusive decision-making.

The meeting was attended by several key officials, including Senior Additional Secretary to the President Kapila Janaka Bandara, Ministry Secretaries, defence sector officers, university professors, and members of the newly appointed committee.

Cybersecurity experts have uncovered what they describe as the “mother of all breaches”—a massive leak involving over 16 billion individual records across 30 different databases. The compromised data includes login credentials and passwords linked to government agencies as well as major tech giants such as Apple, Google, Facebook, and Telegram.

While some of the database files were labeled vaguely with names like “logins” and “credentials,” others hinted at their origin, offering researchers partial insight into their sources. According to the investigators, most of the data appears to have been compiled by cybercriminals using infostealing malware, although some may have been gathered by ethical hackers, or “white hats.”

The breach was detected by the team at Cybernews, who reported that the databases were briefly accessible online before being taken offline. The ownership of the leaked datasets remains unknown, raising serious concerns about their potential misuse.

Given that more than 5.5 billion people globally use the internet, researchers caution that a vast number of users could have had their personal information exposed. They strongly recommend that all users immediately change their passwords and enable two-factor authentication wherever possible to safeguard their accounts from malicious actors.