June 20, Colombo (LNW): President Ranil Wickremesinghe has announced his vision to create a better future for the children of Sri Lanka within the next 5 to 10 years.

He underscored his commitment to alleviating the economic crisis within a two-year timeframe, ensuring no child in the country suffers.

These remarks were made during the Presidential Scholarship Award Ceremony held on the 19th at Temple Trees, according to the President’s Media Division (PMD).

President Wickremesinghe outlined several key initiatives, including the Aswasuma programme, which provides income support, and the Urumaya programme, aimed at securing land rights.

He also highlighted the Presidential Education Scholarship Programme, which guarantees educational opportunities for children.

Starting in 2022 (2023), 6,000 G.C.E. Advanced Level students, 60 from each of the 100 education zones, will receive educational scholarships of LKR 6,000 per month for two years, from March 2024 until they complete their G.C.E. Advanced Level studies.

Additionally, a scholarship programme for students from grade 1 to grade 11 is being implemented across all 10,126 schools in Sri Lanka, as per President Wickremesinghe’s concept.

The number of scholarships allocated to each school depends on its student enrolment, ranging from a minimum of four to a maximum of 22 scholarships per school.

Starting in April 2024, 100,000 students will receive educational scholarships from the President’s Fund, providing Rs. 3,000 per child per month for 12 months.

At the ceremony, 5,108 students received scholarships and awards, symbolically presented by President Wickremesinghe.

He also took the opportunity to meet with scholarship recipients to learn about their backgrounds and achievements.

June 20, Colombo (LNW): Showers or thundershowrs will occur at times in Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-western provinces and in Kandy, Nuwara Eliya, Galle and Matara districts, with fairly heavy showers above 75 mm being expected to occur at some places in Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces and in Galle and Matara districts, the Department of Meteorology said in its weather forecast today (20).

Showers or thundershowers may occur at a few places in Eastern and Uva provinces the evening or night.

Strong winds of about (40-50) kmph can be expected at times over the Western slopes of the central hills, Northern, North-central and North-western provinces and in Trincomalee, Hambantota and Monaragala districts.

Marine Weather:

1. President Ranil Wickremesinghe has affirmed that all agreements with international women’s organizations mandate that women must have the same rights as men. He emphasized that the judiciary, executive, legislature, or any other institution cannot interfere with these activities.
2. The inaugural public rally of the “Sarvajana Balaya”, the new alliance formed by several opposition parties, has commenced in Nugegoda. The public rally is being held at Ananda Samarakoon Open Air Theatre in Nugegoda under the theme of “repowering the aspirations of 6.9 million people.
3. The Senior Vice Chairman of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), Prof. Rohana Lakshman Piyadasa claimed that the President has pressured Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe, to resign from the government. He alleged that Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe revealed this during a politburo meeting.
4. The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SGCCI), paving the way for enhanced cooperation and growth between Sri Lanka and the dynamic business community of South Gujarat, India.
5. The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of Sri Lanka has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) to exchange information relating to investigations and prosecutions of money laundering, bribery or corruption, and other related offences.
6. A discussion is scheduled to be held between the University Grants Commission (UGC) and representatives of the University Trade Union Joint Committee (UTUJC) to address the latter’s wage issues. UTUJC co-chairman Dhammika S. Priyantha emphasized that the strike action, now in its 48th day, will continue until proper solutions are provided by the authorities.
7. A proposal by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to extend the term of Attorney General Sanjay Rajaratnam by another six months has been defeated at the Constitutional Council meeting.
8. MP Patali Champika Ranawaka revealed that ten businessmen, associated with both former and current ministers, have defaulted on loan repayments totaling Rs. 650 billion. He revealed this during an event held in Homagama recently.
9. Agriculture and Plantation Industries Minister and Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) Senior Deputy Chairman Mahinda Amaraweera stated that the party, which was handed over to former Chairman Maithripala Sirisena with 142 MPs, has been reduced to just two MPs. Amaraweera mentioned that due to the party’s deterioration under Sirisena’s leadership, former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga had to take legal action against him.
10. Veteran National Basketball Association (NBA) player Stephen Howard and veteran Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) player Astou Ndiaye have hosted training sessions for school-level basketball players and their coaches from across the Northern, Southern, Eastern, Western, and Uva provinces in Sri Lanka.

June 19, Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka’s cricketing legend Muttiah Muralitharan on Tuesday met Indian Industries Minister MB Patil and discussed his plans to increase investments in his soft drink manufacturing unit at Badanaguppe industrial area in Chamarajanagar.

Muralitharan, who runs a soft drink business in Sri Lanka , is expanding his venture with a greenfield unit in Chamarajanagar district at an investment of Rs 1000 crore, said an official statement from the industries department.

The former cricket star, the statement added, also told the minister that he remained committed his project in Dharwad to manufacture beverage cans.

The cricketer turned businessman now wanted to scale up his investments at the Chamarajanagar unit to Rs 1400 crore, the statement said. Tuesday’s meeting focused on coordination with Industries department officials to speed up the project.

S Selva Kumar, Principal Secretary, Industries and Industries Commissioner Gunjan Krishna were present at the meeting.

Sri Lankan beverages company Ceylon Beverage Can Pvt Ltd, headed by Muttiah Muralitharan, has already set up a full-fledged plant in Mummigatti off Dharwad in Karnataka, official sources said. 

The company had earlier sent a proposal to the state government for setting up an “aluminium cans and beverages filling plant” in the area. It had asked for 26 acres of land with an investment of Rs 440 crore. It is expected to generate jobs for 500 people.

The Sri Lankan company currently manufactures eight different sizes of slim, sleek and standard cans with a range of customer labels. It is setting up a plant in India owing to huge demand from this region

 Heavy and Medium Industries Minister MB Patil said that famous Sri Lankan cricketer Muttiah Muralitharan is starting a soft drink and sweets business in Badanaguppe of Chamarajanagar district and will gradually invest a total of Rs 1,400 crore. 

The minister held talks in this regard with Muttiah, who met him here on Tuesday. Speaking later, the Minister said that Muralidharan was starting his business in Badanaguppe under the brand name ‘Muttiah Beverages and Confectioneries’ and initially a plan was made for an investment of 230 crore rupees. 

Then it is now touching thousand crores. He explained that Muttiah told him that it would be Rs 1,400 crore in the next few days. 

For this they have already been given 46 acres of land. There were some minor complications with this. The authorities concerned have been instructed to rectify them immediately.

 He said that the production activity will start in Badanaguppe in coming January. The minister said that in the coming days, Muttiah will set up a unit of his business in Dharwad as well. 

Tax policy measures last push to get revenue to 15% of GDP IMF Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka Peter Breuer says policies are only a “small adjustment”

Asserts key causes of SL’s economic crisis is lack of revenue, which the programme is looking to address

While businesses and individuals in Sri Lanka are likely to witness more pain as plans are underway to bring in more taxes, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) asserted the measures are essential to increase the island nation’s reserves.

The Fund acknowledged that developments are seen in this regard, however the ground reality is that the general public is under greater financial distress having left with lesser disposable income.

Significant progress has been made in 2023 as well as in 2024. And it is sort of one more push to get revenues to the region of 15 percent of GDP in 2025, said IMF Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka Peter Breuer referring to the new tax policy measures. 

According to the lender, the policies are only a “small adjustment”. “In some economies, when the economy is in a downturn, then you think about stimulating the economy, and so you would adjust fiscal policy accordingly. 

In Sri Lanka, however, the cause for the crisis is the collapse in fiscal revenue that led to the fact that Sri Lanka was not able to service its debt anymore and it went into default. 

“So in Sri Lanka, one of the key causes of the crisis is the lack of revenue, and that is, you know, being addressed with the programme,” said Breuer addressing an online press-briefing following the approval of the second review. 

The IMF pointed out that Sri Lanka between 2019 and 2022 had general government revenues on average of about 9.3 percent, and that compares to an average of these other countries of 26 percent of GDP. 

“So again, almost three times as much. So this is really what, what this programme is seeking to address,” Breuer stressed.

Meanwhile, with regard to comparability of debt treatments, this is a concept that is important for Official Creditors, the Fund said.

The Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka noted that the concern is whether the debt relief offered is in line with that offered by other creditors.Breuer noted it is not something that is relevant for the IMF, at least not directly. 

“It is indirectly in the sense that we need all creditors to participate in the debt restructuring in order to restore debt sustainability. “But from the IMF’s perspective, what matters is whether the debt restructuring targets are being met, he added. .

KPMG in India, a global network of professional firms providing Audit, Tax and Advisory services.has made all arrangements to host its 31st All India Partners Meet in Colombo, from 20-22, June.

The annual meeting of the India Firm is one of the largest meets to be hosted in Colombo, with over 600 India Partners and their families attending it, to celebrate achievements for the  past year and discuss future plans. Several Partners from other member firms of the KPMG Global network will also join this meet.

The conference will be addressed by President Ranil Wickremesinghe, and other leading Indian business and industry luminaries.

KPMG in Sri Lanka Managing Partner Priyanka Jayatilake said that the collaborative efforts between KPMG in Sri Lanka and KPMG in India are poised to drive sustainable growth and provide expertise in addressing current challenges.

It will be capitalising on future opportunities, and KMPG Colombo looks forward to driving this collaboration through strategic initiatives designed to innovate and drive value to clients he said adding that ultimately making a meaningful impact to the overall economic development of Sri Lanka.

KPMG in India CEO Yezdi Nagporewalla said: “As a firm, they celebrate relationships with clients and people that are based on the foundation of mutual trust and respect.

The same holds true for India and Sri Lanka, as nations having deep rooted social, cultural and political relations. We are driven by the prospect of shared prosperity, and have been proudly collaborating on sustainable agriculture, waste-water technologies, renewable energy, and environmental conservation.”

He recalled that at the recent swearing in ceremony of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India and Sri Lanka leaders signed a series of tech, energy, connectivity and other agreements that are aimed to further accelerate mutual cooperation across trade, tourism and higher education.

KPMG in India has extensive experience in facilitating investments and enabling ease of doing business, having supported the Central Government of India and several State Governments in similar endeavours.

 In addition to this, KPMG is also engaged in several flagship projects – both in India and overseas – across multiple sectors, including tourism, agriculture, health, skilling, and public finance management.

 We value our long-term relationship with KPMG in Sri Lanka, which is the oldest Chartered Accountancy firm in the country, celebrating more than 126 years of existence he said..

June 19, Colombo (LNW): oPresident Ranil Wickremesinghe issued an apology for the Sri Lankan Government’s decision to enforce cremations during the COVID-19 pandemic, a policy that disregarded the religious beliefs of Muslim and Christian communities. Addressing Parliament on Tuesday, the President emphasized that every citizen should have the right to choose how their final rites are conducted.

“In this country, any person should have the right to determine whether he or she is buried, cremated, or given to the medical faculty,” President Wickremesinghe stated.

The President referenced the controversial mandate implemented by the previous Gotabaya Rajapaksa Government, which required the cremation of COVID-19 victims, including Muslims and Christians, despite their religious objections. This decision faced widespread criticism from the United Nations and various human rights organizations.

In February 2021, following sustained protests from Muslim and civil rights groups, the Government rescinded the regulation initially introduced in March 2020. President Wickremesinghe acknowledged the suffering caused by the policy, particularly among the Muslim community, but also among Hindus, Buddhists, and Christians who prefer burial rites.

“During this time, there was a lot of pain, witnessed mainly by the Muslims, but there are also Hindus, Buddhists, and Christians who also like to bury. We would like to apologize to them for what has happened,” he said.

President Wickremesinghe recounted that many countries initially halted burials as a precautionary measure, and the World Health Organization (WHO) subsequently reviewed the practice. In Sri Lanka, a committee recommended against allowing burials, and the Supreme Court upheld this decision, leaving the Government no choice at the time.

“But now all this is over,” the President affirmed.

With the issue now resolved, the Government plans to introduce legislation that will guarantee the right to burial, cremation, or body donation to medical institutions. President Wickremesinghe expressed his hope that the House will support the implementation of this Bill, ensuring respect for the diverse religious and cultural practices regarding final rites.

June 19, Colombo (LNW): A minor tremor was reported in the Vavuniya area late last night, according to the Geological Survey and Mines Bureau (GSMB). The tremor, which measured 2.3 on the Richter scale, occurred between 10:55 p.m. and 11:10 p.m. on the 18th of June.

Residents in Vavuniya and Medawachchiya felt the tremor, which was recorded at seismic stations in Pallekele, Mahakanadarawa, and Hakmana. No significant damage or injuries have been reported as a result of the tremor.

June 19, Colombo (LNW): Japan is experiencing a record surge in cases of streptococcal toxic shock syndrome (STSS), a dangerous and highly fatal bacterial infection. As of June 2, the Health Ministry has reported 977 cases, surpassing last year’s record of 941 preliminary infections, marking the highest numbers since statistics began in 1999. This year alone, 77 deaths were recorded between January and March.

STSS, with a mortality rate of up to 30%, is a rare but severe infection that can escalate rapidly, causing fever, muscle pain, vomiting, low blood pressure, swelling, and multiple organ failure. Despite treatment, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warns that as many as three out of ten individuals with STSS may die from the infection.

Most cases of STSS are caused by group A streptococcus (GAS) bacteria, commonly responsible for fever and throat infections in children. In rare instances, the bacteria can produce toxins that enable it to invade the bloodstream, leading to severe illnesses like toxic shock. Strep A can also result in necrotizing fasciitis, a “flesh-eating” disease, which may necessitate limb amputation. Patients with compromised immune systems, such as those with cancer or diabetes, are particularly at risk.

The surge in invasive group A strep infections follows the relaxation of Covid-19 control measures like masking and social distancing, which had previously helped curb such infections. Japan’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases reported 97 deaths from STSS last year, the second-highest in the past six years. Experts have yet to determine the exact cause behind the recent rise in cases.