Page 2 - Sri Lanka

Flood recovery ops underway in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand as tolls rise

Recovery and aid efforts are underway in parts of Southeast Asia and South Asia where the full number of dead and missing are not yet known after heavy rains and flooding left a devastating toll in the past week. The severe weather killed at least 469 people in Indonesia, 162 in Thailand and 334 in Sri Lanka, authorities said. In Thailand, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul on Saturday outlined recovery and compensation plans for the southern part of the country, where the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitgiation said severe flooding in 12 southern provinces affected more than 1.4 million households and 3.8 million people. Sri Lanka authorities said Monday that rescuers are still searching for 370 missing people. Nearly 148,000 people are housed in temporary shelters after being battered in the past week downpours that flooded homes, fields and roads and triggered landslides, primarily in the tea-growing central hill country. Indonesia President Prabowo Subianto on Monday .

Cyclone Ditwah batters Sri Lanka as it claims 334 lives, leaves 370 missing

India launched 'Operation Sagar Bandhu' to aid Sri Lanka following the devastation triggered by Cyclone Ditwah

Last batch of stranded Indians in Sri Lanka evacuated under Op Sagar Bandhu

India has launched 'Operation Sagar Bandhu' to aid Sri Lanka following the devastation triggered by Cyclone Ditwah

Cyclone Ditwah: Stranded Indians in Sri Lanka reach Thiruvananthapuram

Over 200 Indian nationals stranded in Sri Lanka due to Cyclone Ditwah were evacuated by the Indian Air Force (IAF) and brought to Thiruvananthapuram airport on Sunday, a Defence spokesman said. IAF aircraft operated from Colombo to Thiruvananthapuram reached here by 7.30 pm, according to the spokesperson, Another 135 personnel are expected to land by 11 pm in C-130 J aircraft, a press release said. According to the Defence spokesperson, IAF's IL-76 and C-130J heavy lift carriers, which were used to deliver rescue material and NDRF teams to the island nation, were used for the evacuation of stranded passengers. IAF continues to extend critical Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) support to the people of Sri Lanka as part of Operation Sagar Bandhu, following the severe humanitarian impact caused by recent natural calamities in the region, the press release said. Conducting multiple missions, IAF helicopters have airlifted a total of 57 Sri Lankan Army personnel from .

India helps Sri Lanka as death toll due to Cyclone Ditwah crosses 330

Sri Lanka continued relief and rescue efforts on Sunday with India's assistance in the aftermath of catastrophic floods, landslides and devastation caused by Cyclone Ditwah that killed over 190 people. According to the latest figures released by Sri Lanka's Disaster Management Centre(DMC) at 12 pm on Sunday, 193 people have been killed with 228 missing since Thursday. A whopping 9,68,304 people from 2,66,114 families were affected by the extreme weather, DMC said. Meanwhile, India's National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel, along with the Indian Air Force, continue to assist Sri Lankan authorities to save precious lives on a war footing. "@NDRFHQ personnel, in close coordination with local authorities, continue to undertake relief operations in Sri Lanka," External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar posted on social media. India sent two urban search and rescue teams comprising 80 National Disaster Response Force personnel to the Island nation under Operation Sagar Bandhu, ...

Sri Lanka declares emergency as Cyclone Ditwah kills 123; 130 still missing

The government issued an appeal for international help and asked Sri Lankans abroad to make cash donations to support nearly half a million affected people

India deploys 80 NDRF personnel, rescue dogs to Sri Lanka for flood relief

India on Saturday sent a contingent of 80 NDRF rescuers and specialised search dogs to Sri Lanka for undertaking relief and rescue operations in the aftermath of unprecedented floods in the neighbouring country following Cyclone Ditwah, an official spokesperson said. The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) personnel have been divided into two teams. The teams, along with four rescue dogs, took off onboard an IL-76 IAF aircraft from the Hindon airbase near Delhi for Colombo around 4 am on Saturday, the spokesperson said. He said the teams are carrying inflatable boats, hydraulic cutting and breaching tools, communication equipment, first-aid kits and other essential rescue stores to support search, rescue, and relief operations in cyclone-affected regions of Sri Lanka. The deployment is part of Operation Sagar Bandhu launched by India to help its southern neighbour. Sri Lanka is facing one of its worst disasters after Cyclone Ditwah caused floods and landslides that left a trail

Cyclone Ditwah kills 123 in Sri Lanka's worst flooding crisis in 20 years

Sri Lanka's scheduled budget debate was cancelled for Friday and Saturday, and the Colombo Stock Exchange shortened trading hours on Friday due to the adverse weather

Op Sagar Bandhu: IAF delivers first relief supplies to flood-hit Sri Lanka

An Indian Air Force aircraft carrying emergency relief material for those displaced by unprecedented floods arrived in Sri Lanka early on Saturday morning. The C130 aircraft carrying essential food items and sanitary supplies reached Colombo's Bandaranaike International Airport airport at around 1.30 am and was received by the Indian High Commission officials and Sri Lanka Air Force officers. India on Friday launched Operation Sagar Bandhu' to assist Sri Lanka in its hour of crisis, and the first tranche of relief materials was handed over after the consignments were transported by the Indian Navy's aircraft carrier INS Vikrant and frontline ship INS Udaigiri to the island nation. The relief came as Sri Lankan authorities warned of an unprecedented disaster situation in the Western Province from Friday night due to rising water levels in the Kelani and Attanagalu rivers. Sri Lanka is facing one of its worst disasters as cyclonic storm Ditwah wreaked havoc, causing floods and ...

5 Colombo-bound flights diverted to Thiruvananthapuram due to bad weather

Five flights, three from the Middle East region and one each from Malaysia and India, bound for Sri Lanka were diverted to the international airport here on Friday due to bad weather over Colombo, TIAL said. TIAL said that more flights are likely to be diverted to Thiruvananthapuram in view of a cyclone warning over Colombo. Two were Srilankan Airline flights, one each from Dubai and Doha, one was an Etihad Airways flight from Abu Dhabi and one an AirAsia flight from Kuala Lumpur, the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport Ltd (TIAL) said. The fifth was an Indigo flight from Mumbai to Colombo, it said. The Etihad Airways aircraft landed here at 3.44 am, the AirAsia flight at 4.37 am and the Srilankan Airlines flights at 7.44 am and 7.55 am, TIAL said. The Indigo flight landed here at 9.49 am, it added. The flights which landed at the Thiruvananthapuram airport in the morning are still here due to the bad weather conditions in Colombo, a TIAL official said.

Sri Lanka shuts offices, schools as 56 killed due to floods and landslides

Sri Lanka closed government offices and schools Friday as the death toll from floods and landslides across the country rose to 56 while more than 600 houses were damaged, officials said. Sri Lanka began grappling with severe weather last week and the conditions worsened Thursday with heavy downpours that flooded homes, fields and roads, and triggered landslides across the country. More than 25 people were killed Thursday in landslides in the central mountainous tea-growing regions of Badulla and Nuwara Eliya, which is about 300 kilometres east of the capital, Colombo. Another 21 people were missing and 14 were injured in the Badulla and Nuwara Eliya areas, according to the government's disaster management centre. Others died in landslides in different parts of the country. As the weather conditions grew worse, the government announced the closing of all government offices and schools on Friday. Due to heavy rains, most reservoirs and rivers have overflowed, blocking roads. Authori

31 dead as torrential rains trigger floods and landslides in Sri Lanka

Torrential rains, floods and landslides have left 31 people dead in Sri Lanka with nearly 4000 affected in the last 11 days, as the Island nation grapples with one of its worst weather-related crises. Sri Lanka's Disaster Management Centre said on Thursday that 18 deaths were reported from the central hill districts alone due to landslides. In a terrifying incident, a passenger bus got trapped in rising floodwaters in Kumbukkana. Emergency teams managed to rescue twenty-three passengers successfully, Daily Mirror Online reported. Nearly 10 people have sustained injuries, while 14 persons are reported missing, Adaderana news portal reported. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake had called a crisis meeting to assess the deteriorating situation in 17 of the 25 administrative districts. According to the weather bureau, the island's southeast periphery had developed a low-pressure situation, which had developed into a depression and is centred 210 km southeast of Batticaloa. It is very

Ather Energy expands product offering in Sri Lanka with Rizta launch

Electric two-wheeler maker Ather Energy on Friday announced expansion of its product offering in Sri Lanka, which has become a growing international market for it. The company, which entered the island nation in December 2024, said it launched its family scooter Rizta in Sri Lanka at the Colombo Motor Show 2025 in partnership with Evolution Auto Pvt. Ltd, its authorised distributor in the country. It marks the next step in Ather's international growth strategy, focused on expanding its product portfolio and strengthening its ecosystem in key international markets, Ather Energy said in a regulatory filing. "Since entering Sri Lanka last year, it has quickly become a growing market for us, and expanding our portfolio here with the Rizta felt like the natural next step," Ather Energy Chief Business Officer Ravneet Singh Phokela said. Stating that the Rizta has seen strong acceptance in India for over a year and more recently in Nepal, he said, "We believe it is well-suited for the ne

India's NCDEX eyes 20% stake in Sri Lanka's first commodity exchange

Move strengthens India-Sri Lanka financial ties and regional commodity trade presence

Flight bound for Jaffna carrying 44 passengers cancelled due to bad weather

An aircraft carrying 44 passengers bound for Jaffna on Saturday was diverted to Tiruchirappalli due to bad weather in the northern city of the island nation, sources said. However, as the weather did not clear and nearly after a delay of more than 3 hours, the airline cancelled its service, sources said. The flight, operated by a private airline, departed at 10.20 am and shortly after take off, the pilot was informed about the adverse weather conditions in Jaffna, they said. Later, the plane was diverted to Tiruchirappalli. "Right now the plane has landed safely in Tiruchirappalli with all the passengers. The flight will resume its journey once the weather is clear in Jaffna," they added. Due to persistent bad weather in Jaffna, the flight was delayed for over three hours before airline officials decided to cancel the journey. Later, the aircraft returned to Chennai, sources told PTI on Saturday. Upon landing, officials of the private airline informed passengers that the flight

Work on wind power projects in Sri Lanka continues despite protests

Work on controversial wind power projects in Sri Lanka's northeastern Mannar islands is continuing despite a government announcement that it would implement the disputed projects only with the consent of local residents, activists alleged on Friday. The cabinet earlier this week decided that the wind power projects under dispute would proceed only after receiving approval from the public. We will not stop our protests and will continue until we see action in black and white to stop them, Father S Marcus, president of the Mannar Civil Committee, told PTI. Two privately owned wind power plants, a 20 MW Windscape Mannar and a 50 MW Hayleys Fentons, were scheduled to begin operations in December 2025 and December 2026, respectively. The committee has been protesting for over three months, highlighting the projects' adverse environmental impact on the area. Marcus said despite the cabinet's announcement, work on the projects had continued. "The projects would leave the Mannar islands

From Dhaka to Colombo, Gen Z has started raging at rotten governance

Each revolt in our neighbourhood was driven by corruption, with lessons for India

Sri Lanka puts mandatory ETA rule on hold: How Indians can still apply

Sri Lanka has suspended its new rule making Electronic Travel Authorisation compulsory for all short-stay visitors, easing the process for Indian tourists while keeping earlier visa procedures active

Colombo terminal with Adani funding tops Sri Lanka's FDI inflows in 2025

The Colombo West International Terminal (CWIT) was the largest contributor to Sri Lanka's Foreign Direct Investment inflows during the first nine months on this year, investing USD 229 million in state-of-the-art port infrastructure, the Board of Investment said on Tuesday. The CWIT is an investment from Adani International Port Holdings Pte Ltd (India) and John Keells Holdings PLC in partnership with the Sri Lanka Ports Authority. The Board of Investment (BOI) announced that Foreign Direct Investment inflows including foreign commercial loans for investments to BOI-approved enterprises have reached USD 827 million during the period January to September 2025, marking a remarkable 138 per cent increase compared to the corresponding value during the period in 2024. It said that the CWIT invested USD 229 million in "state-of-the-art port infrastructure under a strategic development agreement". It will expand the port's capacity by 3.2 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs), ...

Sri Lankan PM Harini Amarasuriya meets PM Modi to discuss bilateral ties

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday discussed a range of issues such as development cooperation and the welfare of Indian fishermen with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya. Amarasuriya met Modi at his official residence here. "Glad to welcome Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Ms. Harini Amarasuriya. Our discussions covered a broad range of areas, including education, women's empowerment, innovation, development cooperation and welfare of our fishermen," Modi said in a post on X. "As close neighbours, our cooperation holds immense importance for the prosperity of our two peoples as well as the shared region," Modi said.