President Sirisena had, in a manner of speaking, thrown a bra at the voters to distract them from the country’s burning issues. Speaking at a gathering of young minds, he could not have asked for a more captivating audience. For the nation’s leader, who is supposedly ignorant of the FCID or the CID hauling our […]
Plight of the paddy farmer: From quick fixes to lasting solution – I October 16, 2015, 9:02 pm article_image By Professor Ranjith Senaratne, University of Ruhuna (ransen.ru@gmail.com) “A bold peasantry is country’s pride, When once destroyed, can never be supplied”. Oliver Goldsmith, Importance of paddy farming The beginning of paddy cultivation in Sri Lanka dates […]
The Government Medical Officers Association (GMOA) and the SLMC – affiliated with the doctors from GMOA – are embroiled in a bitter battle with the government to stop the students from SAITM been trained at Public Hospitals. This is despite Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa, JVP MP for Kalutara District, admitting that Sri Lanka currently needs 30,000 […]
“Lokuaththa, why did you become a doctor?”asked my daughter from my father. “Is it because of something you read or did you want to become a hero by saving lives?” My father laughed, but his reply gives us much to pause. “No, Duwa!” he replied. “Education was the only way out of poverty for us.” […]
The government has stirred a stinky mess by replacing vouchers for uniform material. Teachers are vowing never again, media is littered with disgruntled parents shopping for cloth and various politicians are asking why different voucher values for different ethnicities. MP Udaya Gammanpila shakes his head to all this and hints at a bigger problem at […]
Substituting school uniform material with vouchers have stirred a honest’s nest! Parents and teachers, including principals, alike are up and protesting. Their main grouse is this hassles and harasses everyone. Some even allege that this a sinister plot by the government to slowly phase it out altogether. Those in support of the voucher system rightly […]
The Political Watch, As published in Sunday Island, December 06, 2015 The first budget of the new government has run into stiff opposition from trade unions, farmers’ organisations and the like – a situation that was hardly unexpected given the provisions in the budget. This is probably the first time in living memory that a […]
The world is at crossroads – to stay with the old familiar fossil fuels (FF) or harness renewable energy (RE). Changing climate translates to changing economies. The world was just in France with proposals to counter climate change. Indian PM Modi is advocating developing nations to “use whatever carbon that’s safe to burn and climb […]
As published by Roar.lk, December 05, 2015 Earlier this year, the populace of this country was unintentionally introduced to the company known as Avant Garde, after one of its many floating armouries was found in the Galle Harbour. Since then, Avant Garde has become the catalyst to many theories that sometimes border on downright conspiratorial. […]
As published in AdaDerana, December 04, 2015 The Ontario Progressive Conservatives said they were unaware that a guest they entertained at Queen’s Park last week was being deported for being a member of a terrorist organization. Last Thursday, MPP Jack MacLaren stood in the Ontario legislature to welcome a group of “friends and guests” he […]
The world is at crossroads – to stay with the old familiar fossil fuels (FF) or harness renewable energy (RE). Changing climate translates to changing economies for both developed and developing. The world is in France with proposals to counter climate change. Indian PM Modi is advocating developing nations to “use whatever carbon that’s safe […]
The insanity of adding any more Coal Power Plants By Eng Parakrama Jayasinghe As published in The Island, October 27, 2015 There has been a fervent appeal by many, over the years to implement the proposed Sampur Coal Power plant, with warning of dire consequences of power shortages due to any delay in this project. […]
As published in The Island, December 11, 2010 By Jayantha Danapala “I am happy to attend this great assembly not only as a representative of my country but also as a woman and a mother who can understand the thoughts and feelings of the millions of women, the mothers of this world, who are deeply […]
Political Watch, Sunday Island, November 08, 2015 *Yahapalanaya under the microscope again after the CB Bond scam *Flouting of established tender procedures alleged *Minister recommends that cabinet ignore ruling of the Procurement Appeals Board *Coal supplier petitions the Supreme Court The tender for the supply of coal to the Norochcholai power plant is probably the […]
“Why did the Foreign Minister not tell the truth and save our country?”, asked Opposition MP Dinesh Gunawardena in Parliament regarding Sri Lanka’s decision to co-sponsor the resolution against Sri Lanka. The truth, Gunawardena refers to, has divided the country and the world’s view of Sri Lanka. Those who sees Gunawardena’s truth, sees a Government […]
The Island Editorial, November 06, 2015 The government with both the UNP and the SLFP at its helm is like a two-headed donkey struggling to move in different directions at the same time only to get nowhere and make a spectacle of itself. What a song and dance some of its top guns once made, a […]
People’s consent needed for infrastructure development says Megapolis Minister As published in The Island, November 06, 2015 By Hiran H.Senewiratne Sri Lanka’s future infrastructure development projects should be done in consultation with the people, without resorting to any adhoc and haphazard measures, Minister of Megapolis and Western Regional Development Patali Champika Ranawaka said. “We have […] ...
Big Names are Needed to Bring the Numbers As published in Daily Mirror, November 06, 2015 Sustained promotion and consistent branding of Sri Lanka as a holiday destination are essential if the country is to overhaul its tourism industry, Rajan Brito, the Deputy Chairman and Managing Director of the conglomerate Aitken Spence, has said. Speaking […]
In the month of October, the birth month of Mahatma Gandhi, The Mahatma Gandhi Centre (MGC) holds a special event to celebrate Gandhi’s message of peace and non-violence. This year, MGC with the assistance of International Alert invited the Nigerian High Commissioner, His Excellency S U Ahmed to recount the ‘untold’ story of Nigeria. At […]