Page 9 - Sri Lanka

Wickremesinghe hopeful of resolving problems faced by ethnic Tamils

Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe has said he is hopeful of resolving the problems faced by ethnic Tamils in the country, as he announced the appointment of a committee to find ways to integrate the Indian-origin workers in the plantation sector into the society. Wickremesinghe's remarks came on Sunday during an event in Colombo to accept a consignment of medicine donated by the Union Territory of Puducherry at the request of Ceylon Worker's Congress (CWC), a leading political party representing the Indian-origin Tamils in the Central Province. While some of the Tamils of Hill Country origin had integrated successfully into the Sri Lankan society, some have failed and measures would be taken to assist them to do so, he said. Wickremesinghe said that the government will appoint a committee to seek how best to integrate the Tamils of Hill Country origin further into the Sri Lankan society. He said that these issues would be gradually resolved in the coming years as the ...

Sri Lanka gets medicines from Puducherry for Tamil workers in hilly areas

Sri Lanka on Sunday received a consignment of medicines from the Government of Puducherry to be used for the Tamil workers in the hill plantation regions of the island nation's central province, according to the office of President Ranil Wickremesinghe. The consignment, which was coordinated by the trade union cum political party of the plantation Tamils of Indian-origin, Ceylon Workers Congress, was received by President Wickremesinghe. Speaking on the occasion, Wickremesinghe said that the government will appoint a committee to seek how best to integrate the Tamils of Hill Country origin further into the Sri Lankan Society. While some of the Tamils of Hill Country origin had integrated successfully into the Sri Lankan society, some have failed and measures would be taken to assist them to do so, he said. The President recalled the Sirimalwatte-Shastri Pact between the then Indian and Sri Lankan leaders under which some of the Indian-origin plantation Tamils was ...

Best of BS Opinion: Political currency, marginal progress, and more

Here is the best of Business Standard's opinion pieces for today

Bailouts and balances: Tough choices ahead for Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka's IMF rescue plan has geopolitical repercussions. The Island nation has entered a difficult terrain with China's expansionist interests and India and Japan's security concerns

Finch on Anchor, Stoinis in charge, Australia storm through Lankan bowling

The Australian team's performance on Tuesday against Sri Lanka proved they have enough fuel in the tank to pull back and punch up

Knew spin would play major role, so kept options for back-end: Shanaka

Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka on Sunday credited the spinners for their dominating nine-wicket win over Ireland in a T20 World Cup match, saying keeping spin options for the death overs did the trick. It was the bowling unit, especially spin duo of Maheesh Theekshana (2/19) and Wanindu Hasaranga (2/25), who set up the win by restricting Ireland to 128 for 8. "Really happy with the way we've played the game, we set out to do some things and did well. We knew spin would play a major role, we knew they'd like pace, so we kept a lot of spin for the back-end," Shanaka said at the post-match presentation ceremony here. Kusal Mendis then complemented the bowlers with a 43-ball 68 as Sri Lanka registered an easy chase to overhaul the target with five overs to spare and make a winning start to the super 12 stage. "He has been consistent this year (on Kusal Mendis), has played according to the situation most of the times, That's what he has improved - it is high-class batting. That ...

UK plans deportation of Sri Lankan refugees to 'a safe third country'

The United Kingdom has decided to move Sri Lankan refugees seeking asylum from the British-claimed Chagos Islands to 'a safe third country,' unless they returned to Sri Lanka 'voluntarily'

Sri Lanka's consumer inflation hits record 73.7% in September

Annual food price inflation picked up to 85.8 per cent from 84.6 per cent in August, while prices of non-food items rose 62.8 per cent.

Sri Lanka passes Constitutional amendment curtailing President's powers

The Sri Lankan Parliament on Friday passed, with over 2/3 majority, the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution curtailing certain powers of the President.

Lankan defence minister meets CDS Gen Anil Chauhan on sidelines of DefExpo

On the sidelines of DefExpo, Sri Lankan Defence Minister Premitha Bandara Tennakoon met Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan and appreciated the continued support of India for the island countries' armed forces.Tennakoon also praised India's impressive progress in establishing a strong defence industrial base.Apart fromTennakoon, several other countries' Defence Ministers were also present in DefExpo.Earlier, on october 18, the Sri Lankan Defence Minister had met Chief of Naval Staff Admiral R Hari Kumar. "Enriching consultations on collaborative Maritime Security & avenues to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation," Indian Navy spokesperson tweeted.Yesterday, Rajnath Singh addressed HQIDS-FICCI seminar on 'Atmanirbhar Bharat and Make in India' in Gandhinagar, where he said that the country "must have technological and production capability" if the "reliability of supplies" of defence items has to be maintained."If we have to maintain sustainability and reliability of ..

Asia Cup title is history, need to get into Super 12s of T20WC: Shanaka

The Asia Cup title is a thing of the past now, insists Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka, saying their only focus right now is to produce a perfect performance in their must-win match against the Netherlands to qualify for the Super 12 stage of the T20 World Cup. Stunned by Namibia in their tournament opener, Sri Lanka bounced back strongly to beat UAE by 79 runs in a first round Group A game. But occupying the third spot in Group A, Shanaka's men will now have to win their last match against table toppers Netherlands on Thursday to ensure their place in the Super 12 stage. "...I think Asia Cup champions is history, so it's just a title for us. There is no pressure at all. We just need to concentrate on our own performances and what we need to do to make sure that we get into that second round after the next game." "We know our strength. The first game we didn't execute in that match, so we got beaten by Namibia. But we are a far better team from the team we performed in the first ..

'The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida' by Sri Lankan writer wins Booker Prize

Writer Shehan Karunatilaka won the prestigious Booker Prize for fiction for "The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida," a satirical "afterlife noir" set during Sri Lanka's brutal civil war. Karunatilaka, one of Sri Lanka's leading authors, won the 50,000 pound (USD 57,000) award on Monday for his second novel. The 47-year-old, who has also written journalism, children's books, screenplays and rock songs, is the second Sri Lanka-born Booker Prize winner, after Michael Ondaatje, who took the trophy in 1992 for "The English Patient." Karunatilaka received the award from Camilla, Britain's queen consort, during a ceremony at London's Roundhouse concert hall. The judges' unanimous choice, "The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida" is the darkly humorous story about a murdered war photographer investigating his death and trying to ensure his life's legacy. Karunatilaka said Sri Lankans "specialise in gallows humour and make jokes in the face of crises". "It's our coping mechanism," he said, and express

Debt restructuring talks underway with IMF, India, China: Sri Lanka Prez

Sri Lanka has started debt restructuring talks with the IMF, India and China, President Ranil Wickremesinghe said on Sunday, exuding confidence that if the discussions move forward in a systematic way, the country would tide over its worst economic crisis. Addressing a gathering in the Siyambalanduwa district, Wickremesinghe said talks have also started with private creditors on debt restructuring. For the first time yesterday, we began talks with the IMF, China, Japan and India on lessening our debt burden, he said. It will be difficult for us to pay back debt, still we have to find ways to lessen our debt burden. We are faced with a situation where we are unable to meet interest payments. But I'm hopeful that if our talks could be carried forward in a systematic way, we would be able to solve our problems, he said. The president said he spoke to the Chinese finance minister while Sri Lanka's finance minister Shehan Semasinghe on Saturday started talks with India on debt ...

Swiss cricket: Newest kid on the block has a strong subcontinent flavour

Among the players, those from India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Jamaica

HCLTech to boost presence in Mexico; to hire 1300 employees over next 2 yrs

The new centre in Guadalaraja will enable the company to serve its local and international client base across industries

Sri Lanka's apex court to try rights petition against ex-Prez, PM & FM

Sri Lanka's SC ordered the Auditor General to investigate reasons for economic crisis the country is going through in a case filed against former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his 2 brothers

Imran Khan wants Pak to face a similar situation like Sri Lanka: PM Sharif

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday alleged that Imran Khan wanted Pakistan to face a similar situation like Sri Lanka and said the decisions of the previous government led by the cricketer-turned-politician was responsible for the current economic crisis. In August, Pakistan took a sigh of relief as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved the revival of its Extended Fund Facility programme after which the cash-strapped country will receive the 7th and 8th tranche of USD 1.17 billion. However, Sharif said the country was paying the price for the confusion created by the erstwhile regime headed by Khan. They made agreements with the IMF on their own and later ripped apart the conditions, Sharif said while addressing a press conference on Thursday, adding: The-then finance minister [Shaukat Tarin] created confusion. Pakistan and the IMF had signed the USD 6 billion deal in July 2019 but the programme was derailed in January 2020 and restored briefly in March last year ..

Sri Lanka begins crucial debt restructuring talks with China

Sri Lanka's president said on Thursday his government has started debt restructuring discussions with China, an important step toward finalising an International Monetary Fund rescue of the island nation from its worst economic crisis. President Ranil Wickremesinghe told Parliament on Thursday that the initial talks will continue after China's Communist Party congress meeting that begins on October 16. Wickremesinghe, who recently returned from a trip to Japan, also said the Japanese authorities agreed to mediate the talks with China. China has been supporting us from ancient times and we believe they will do the same in these difficult times, Wickremesinghe said. Sri Lanka is nearly bankrupt and has suspended repaying its USD 51 billion foreign debt, of which it must repay USD 28 billion by 2027. Sri Lanka has reached a preliminary agreement with the IMF for a USD 2.9 billion rescue package over four years. Finalisation of the rescue hinges on assurances from Sri Lanka's creditor

Sri Lanka's central bank to hold rates as inflation worries persist

The CBSL has raised rates by a record 950 basis points this year to battle high inflation which is adding to the country's economic woes

Sri Lanka cuts tax on female hygiene products amid ongoing economic crisis

Amid the ongoing economic crisis in the country, Sri Lanka has cut taxes on female sanitary products in a bid to help women unable to afford the hygiene product, according to reports