Page 19 - Sri Lanka

Reliance Consumer to bring Sri Lankan beverage Elephant House to India

With this tie-up, RCP adds another brand to its beverage portfolio. It already has brands such as Campa, Sosyo and Raskik

Santhan, convict acquitted in Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, passes away

The assassins of Rajiv were set free by the top court on the grounds of having good conduct in jail

SL sets up fund to help Gaza children affected by Israel-Hamas conflict

The Sri Lankan government will contribute USD 1 million to a fund set up by it to help children in war-torn Gaza who are affected by the Israel-Hamas conflict, it was announced on Tuesday. All ministries and government institutions have been directed to forego Ifthar celebrations during the upcoming Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and to contribute to the Children of Gaza Fund, a press release issued by President Ranil Wickremesinghe's office said. The Sri Lankan Cabinet has approved the proposal by President Wickremesinghe to create the fund to help children caught in the war in Gaza, it said. Contributions by citizens are also encouraged for this purpose, it said. The government will also donate USD 1 million in aid for the affected children. The aid will be distributed through official UN agencies. Sri Lanka has called for a ceasefire in war-torn Gaza while advocating for a Palestine state. President Wickremesinghe has also highlighted the need to ensure the security of Israel.

Sri Lankan minister calls India 'big brother', thanks PM Modi for aid

Highlighting the development of Sri Lanka, he said, "Tourism is flourishing in Sri Lanka. We are looking at the renewables and the ports and the real estate in Sri Lanka is developing"

Maldives visit of Chinese ship could rouse Indian Ocean security concerns

China's foreign ministry has said research by the vessel was "exclusively" for peaceful purposes to benefit scientific understanding

Higher sales tax drives Sri Lanka inflation to 6.5% in January, shows data

The National Consumer Price Index (NCPI) captures broad retail price inflation and is released with a lag of 21 days every month

Reserve Bank of India, Nepal Rastra Bank sign pact for UPI-NPI linkage

The integration of Indian and Nepalese fast payment systems is aimed at facilitating cross-border remittances between the two countries, RBI said

PM Modi launches UPI, RuPay card services in Sri Lanka and Mauritius

Shaktikanta Das, Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Harvesh Seegolam, Governor of the Bank of Mauritius, and Dr. P. Nandalal Weerasinghe, Governor of Central Bank of Sri Lanka, were also present

Third offshore campus of IIT likely to be set up in Sri Lanka: Report

The third offshore campus of the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) is likely to be set up in Sri Lanka, according to sources. The proposal for an IIT in Sri Lanka was announced last November in the 2024 Budget unveiled by Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who also serves as the finance minister. According to sources, the Sri Lankan government is in touch with IIT Madras for the ambitious project. A high-level delegation had recently visited the Chennai campus to discuss the future roadmap. The talks are on and the campus is likely to come up in Kandy, a source said. The delegation also visited the Research Park at the campus and interacted with officials about possible areas of engagement, the source added. The Indian government had announced that opportunities for admission to the IITs in India will be provided to meritorious Sri Lankan students from the 2017-18 academic sessions onwards. If the plan for the Sri Lanka campus comes through, it will be IIT

UPI, RuPay card to be launched in Sri Lanka, Mauritius on February 12

The launch will enable the availability of UPI settlement services for Indian nationals travelling to Sri Lanka and Mauritius, as well as for Mauritian nationals travelling to India

UPI to be launched in Sri Lanka, Mauritius on Monday in virtual ceremony

India's Unified Payment Interface (UPI) services will be rolled out in Sri Lanka and Mauritius at a virtual ceremony on Monday that will be witnessed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the top leadership of the two island nations. India's RuPay card services would also be launched in Mauritius at the event Mauritian PM Pravind Jugnauth and Sri Lanka's President Ranil Wickremesinghe will join Modi at the virtual ceremony, according to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). "Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President of Sri Lanka Ranil Wickremesinghe and Prime Minister of Mauritius Pravind Jugnauth will witness the launch of Unified Payment Interface (UPI) services in Sri Lanka and Mauritius, and also RuPay card services in Mauritius on February 12 at 1 PM via video conferencing," it said. Developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), UPI is an instant real-time payment system to facilitate inter-bank transactions through mobile phones. RuPay is a global card payment

SL Navy arrests 19 Indian fishermen for illegally fishing in its waters

Sri Lanka has arrested 19 Indian fishermen and two trawlers for illegally fishing in the island nation's waters near Delft Island in northern Jaffna province, the country's Navy said on Thursday, in the second such incident this month. The Sri Lanka Navy in the operation with the Sri Lanka Coast Guard on Wednesday also seized 2 Indian trawlers alongside the arrest of 19 Indian fishermen poaching in Sri Lankan waters, the Navy said in a statement. The apprehended fishermen and their two trawlers were escorted to the Kankesanthurai Harbour and will be handed over to the Mailadi Fisheries Inspector for further action, it said. The Navy continues to conduct regular patrols and operations in Sri Lankan waters to curb illegal fishing practised by foreign fishermen as they have a direct impact on the livelihood of locals, it said. As an extension of these operations, the Northern Naval Command deployed Fast Attack Craft of the Navy and Coast Guard to chase away a cluster of Indian poachin

Sri Lanka debt restructuring makes slow progress even with 1.6% growth rate

The restructuring of Sri Lanka's external debt is to take much longer than expected, going by President Ranil Wickremesinghe's policy speech on Tuesday even though he signalled a positive shift in the cash-strapped economy with a surplus by the end 2023, first since 1977. Delivering the Statement of Government Policy' on the first day of the Fifth Session of the Ninth Parliament, Wickremesinghe said the finalisation of debt restructuring could be completed by the first half of the year, which is going beyond the earlier anticipation for it to be completed within the first quarter. The domestic debt restructuring plan has been successfully executed as the first step, and a policy agreement for restructuring has been reached with foreign creditors as the second step. Negotiations with private creditors are presently in progress, Wickremesinghe, who is also the finance minister, said. By September 2023 our total debt burden was USD 91 billion. It will take a considerable period of time

President Wickremesinghe paints positive growth in cash-strapped Sri Lanka

Projecting a positive shift in the cash-strapped Sri Lankan economy, President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Wednesday said despite negative growth through the earlier year, the nation rebounded with a 1.6 per cent growth rate in the Q3 of 2023 and also achieved a surplus by end 2023, first since 1977. President Wickremesinghe was delivering the Statement of Government Policy' on the first day of the Fifth Session of the Ninth Parliament here. Despite a 7.8 per cent GDP contraction and six consecutive quarters of negative growth in 2022, the nation rebounded with a 1.6 per cent growth rate in the Q3 of 2023, he said. Wickremesinghe further announced a significant turnaround in the nation's economic landscape. Despite the 1.9 per cent GDP deficit in 2022, the island nation has achieved a surplus by the end of 2023, marking the first such occurrence since 1977, Ada Derana website said, quoting the President as he delivered his speech streamed live. He started his address by announcing that

Free trade agreement with India by year-end: Sri Lankan foreign minister

Sri Lanka on Tuesday said it has plans to establish a free trade agreement with India by the end of 2024, Foreign Minister Ali Sabry said here as the cash-strapped island nation tries to spur economic growth. Similar Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) would be worked out for Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and China too by the year's end, Sabry told reporters here. These agreements will open up new markets for the cash-strapped Sri Lankan businesses, contributing directly to the nation's economic growth. The government continues to struggle to restructure its external debt on the one hand and has raised utility rates and taxes on the other. Sri Lanka and India resumed talks on the Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement in Colombo at the 12th round in October last year. The original talks were stalled after several rounds of talks between 2016 and 2018 due to political and trade union opposition. Last week, Sri Lanka inked an FTA with Thailand. This has already provided Sri Lanka acc

12 Tamil Nadu fishermen released from Sri Lanka, 11 still held in detention

"They were apprehended by the Sri Lankan Navy while fishing near Delft island, and subsequently taken to Myalati Naval Camp, Jaffna for further investigation," an official stated

Sri Lanka arrests 23 Indian fishermen for allegedly poaching in its waters

The Sri Lankan Navy has arrested 23 Indian fishermen and seized two trawlers for allegedly poaching in the island nation's waters, according to an official statement here. The fishermen were arrested, and their two trawlers were seized on Saturday north of the Delft Island, Jaffna, the Sri Lanka Navy said in a press release on Sunday. The 23 apprehended fishermen and their two trawlers were escorted to the Kankesanthurai Harbour and will be handed over to the Mailadi Fisheries Inspector for further action, it said. "The Sri Lanka Navy conducted a special operation to chase away Indian poaching trawlers from Sri Lankan waters on the night of February 3, 2024. The operation resulted in the seizure of 2 Indian trawlers and the apprehension of 23 Indian nationals poaching in the northern waters of Sri Lanka, off the Delft Island in Jaffna, the statement said. The Navy conducts regular patrols and operations in Sri Lankan waters to curb illegal fishing practices by foreign fishing ...

Sri Lanka's Marxist party to make official visit to India on Monday

A delegation of Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), a MarxistLeninist communist party in Sri Lanka, will on Monday start on an official visit to India. The delegation of JVP, the largest party under the broad entity National People's Power (NPP), is to leave Colombo tomorrow (Monday) for India on an official invitation of the Indian government," a statement from the party said. The delegation to India comprises JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake, senior legislator Vijitha Herath, Secretary Nihal Abeysinghe and executive committee member Prof Anil Jayantha, the statement said. The JVP, which led an anti-India campaign in 1987-90 against the Indo-Lanka Accord, has continuously led in at least one public opinion poll. Its NPP broader front has led in surveys, leaving the island nation's main parties trailing. The surveys claim that in the post-economic crisis phase since 2022, the NPP has gained significantly in public support, particularly in anti-corruption perceptions. Dissanayake

SL achieved economic recovery due to citizens' support: Wickremesinghe

President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Sunday said Sri Lanka has achieved progress in its economic recovery process due to the steadfast support of citizens to a comprehensive long-term national rebuilding programme despite facing hardships. Addressing the 75th anniversary of independence celebrations held here, Wickremesinghe said when the country marked Independence Day last year it was labelled bankrupt. He said progress had been achieved in the economic recovery bid owing to the steadfast support of our citizens who endured hardships in keeping with a comprehensive long-term national rebuilding programme. If we go on this road, the difficulties will fade away. The cost of living will become lighter. The economy will become stronger," Wickremesinghe stressed. Sri Lanka in April 2022 declared its first ever sovereign default since gaining independence from Britain in 1948. The crisis led Wickremesinghe's predecessor Gotabaya Rajapaksa out of office through a campaign of public agitat

India proposes supplying LNG to our power facilities: Sri Lanka's minister

'In the efforts to expedite the process to generate power from LNG the Government of India has proposed an interim solution from Petronet LNG,' Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera said