Inter-provincial bus services resume operation; trains to resume tomorrow
Measures have been taken to resume public transport services between the provinces with the public servants being called to work as per usual from tomorrow (August 02). However, bus and train services will be operated with the intention of providing transport facilities only to those who leave for work. Meanwhile, inter-provincial bus services resumed from today (August 01). However, employees of bus services claim that there is a considerable shortage of passengers. Long-distance buses resumed operations from Kandy this morning, as per Ada Derana regional correspondent.
Source:The Nation
August 01, 2021 08:48 UTC
WHO congratulates Sri Lanka for administering over 500,000 vaccines in single day
The World Health Organization (WHO) congratulated the Sri Lankan government for once again administering a record number of over 500,000 COVID-19 vaccines in a single day on Friday (July 30). In a statement on its official Twitter account, the WHO said by administering such a large number of vaccines in a single day, the government had achieved an impressive milestone. Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in a statement said Sri Lanka had marked a new record by vaccinating over 500,000 people within a day thanks to the dedication of the Health Ministry and the tri forces. Furthermore, people have also been administered the AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna, and Sputnik V vaccines in the country. Another day with 500,000+ #vaccinated!
Source:The Nation
August 01, 2021 08:03 UTC
Top 10 Comedians With Depressing Histories
Many of our funniest comedians have lived the types of bleak, sorrowful lives that prove the equation true. Here are ten such comedians, those who were given the worst of tragedies and gave us back the best of comedy. 6 Andy DickInside rehab with Andy DickMany of those closest to Andy Dick have described him as being two separate people: sober Andy and drunk Andy. 4 John BelushiThe Tragic Side of Comedy- John BelushiThe theme of these accounts should be apparent by now, and John Belushi was no exception. 2 Robin WilliamsRobin Williams On Depression In His Own Words 14082014Robin Williams might just be the most beloved comedian ever.
Source:The Nation
August 01, 2021 08:03 UTC
Top 10 Olympic Scandals
Every Olympic Games has met with some form of contention or drama, from small spats to outright violence to clandestine long-term schemes. As a result, the Olympic Games go perpetually hand in hand with scandal. 7 Salt Lake City BribesSalt Lake City 2002 Olympic Bid Bribery Scandal (CBC)Speaking of the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, they probably shouldn’t have been in Salt Lake City. 3 Everything About 1936How Hitler Used The Berlin Olympics For Nazi Propaganda | The 1936 Olympic Games | TimelineThe 1936 Berlin Olympics are probably the most famous Olympic Games ever held. 2 Russian Doping2016: Russian doping at Sochi Winter Olympics exposedRussia has had a long history of doping offenses at the Olympic Games.
Source:The Nation
August 01, 2021 08:03 UTC
Ten point development plan for Negombo’s Katana area
Preparation of a new development plan for the Katana electorate to regularize the lives of the people, Dr. Sudarshini Fernandopulle, State Minister of Primary Health Care, Epidemics and Covid Disease Control participated in the preliminary ground survey of the development plan. The land survey required for the implementation of the new development plan was carried out and the proposed preliminary plan was also discussed. A housing complex with facilities near Katana PoliceA Jogging Track with a Tourist Attraction on 04 Acres of Land in the Pillawatta Lake Area at Andiambalama. Development of market area at Katana Kebellagas JunctionFormer Western Provincial Councilor Mr. Ananda Harischandra, Chairman of the KatunayakeSeeduwa Urban Council Mr. Chamith Nishantha, Chairman of the Katana Pradeshiya Sabha Mr. Nanda Wijeratne, Katana Divisional Secretary Ms.Priyanka Kodithuwakku, Western Provincial Director of the Urban Development Authority Mr. A.M.M. Nissanka, Head of the Gampaha Urban Development Authority Deputy Director Ms. Rupa Ranjani and several others were present at this occasion.
Source:The Nation
August 01, 2021 08:03 UTC
Tokyo Olympics: Who is Australia's fastest man Rohan Browning?
Before he stunned the world with a blistering race in Tokyo, Australia's fastest man was more recogniseable for his flowing mane than his sprinting prowess. Now mullet-sporting Rohan Browning has the chance to do what no Australian has done in 65 years and make the final of the Olympic 100m sprint. Browning first burst onto the international scene in 2017, where he was part of Australia's men's 4x100m relay at the world titles. 'I haven't been pushed this year like I would have liked and COVID has made it really tough to go overseas and find competition,' Browning told Nine newspapers recently. I can definitely be pushed a bit more,' Browning told Channel Seven post-race.
Source:The Nation
August 01, 2021 06:56 UTC
Second post mortem conducted on teenage domestic worker
Following the court appointment of a specialist medical team, the second postmortem was conducted on the remains of the teenage domestic worker who was employed at MP Rishad Bathiudeen’s residence. The procedure which took place yesterday (31), was conducted over a period of 9 hours at the Peradeniya Teaching Hospital. Police Media Spokesperson Senior DIG Ajith Rohana stated that the forensic team carried out a CT Scan to look for internal injuries, fractures in the body. He said, “The post-mortem examination was carried out at length, and samples were taken from various parts of the body. After receiving all this, a full report will be issued.”The body will remain in the mortuary of the Peradeniya Teaching Hospital until the report is issued, the Senior DIG said.
Source:The Nation
August 01, 2021 06:56 UTC
Sri Lanka-Russia direct flights resume after 6 years
August 1, 2021 11:35 amSriLankan Airlines has resumed direct flights between Sri Lanka and Russia from today (August 01) after six years. The SriLankan Airlines flight UL534, which departed from Moscow, Russia, arrived at the Bandaranaike International Airport at 06.30 this morning, Ada Derana Airport correspondent said. Accordingly, 51 passengers including foreign tourists were present in the flight. The flight will leave Moscow at 10.20 pm on Fridays and arrive in BIA at 06.10 am on Sundays.
Source:The Nation
August 01, 2021 06:00 UTC
Lunch sheet ban effective from today
Sri Lanka’s ban on all types of non-degradable lunch sheets will be implemented from today (August 01) onwards. The Government of Sri Lanka imposed a ban on the manufacturing, distribution, sale, or use of non-degradable lunch sheets. Previously, a grace period of a month was granted to sell the lunch sheets that had already been manufactured. It has been estimated that Sri Lanka releases over 10 million lunch sheets into the environment per day. While lunch sheets decompose in the soil within 2 to 3 years, scientists have confirmed that the micro-plastic particles that accumulate in the soil due to lunch sheets last for over 200 years.
Source:The Nation
August 01, 2021 04:30 UTC
07 arrested for stealing fuel from trucks transporting construction material
COLOMBO (News 1st); Sri Lanka Police Special Task Force arrested 07 people for operating a fuel stealing operation at the under-construction Central Expressway on Saturday (31). Police Spokesperson Senior DIG Ajith Rohana speaking to News 1st said a large number of heavy vehicles are being used to transport construction material for the central expressway, which is under construction. The suspects had equipped a tractor with a bowser to collected the stolen fuel. The suspects are 05 tipper truck drivers and 02 others who operated the tractor, said the Police Spokesperson.
Source:The Nation
August 01, 2021 03:00 UTC
(VIDEO) Worst COVID-19 outbreak in Sri Lanka yet to come, warns Professor Malik
COLOMBO (News 1st); The Delta COVID-19 variant will have a major impact on Sri Lanka, warned Professor Malik Peiris at University of Hong Kong. Speaking during a virtual event on Saturday (31) to launch a book titled “COVID-19: Impact, mitigation, opportunities and building resilience”, virologist Professor Malik Peiris at University of Hong Kong said that Sri Lanka will experience the worse COVID-19 outbreak in the months ahead. Professor Malik Peiris is a clinical and public health virologist with a particular interest in emerging virus disease at the animal-human interface including influenza, coronaviruses and others. In 2003, Prof. Peiris played a key role in the discovery that a novel coronavirus was the cause of SARS, its diagnosis and pathogenesis. “Although there was an initial decline globally and also in the south east Asian region, there has been a resurgence of cases globally including in the south Asian region and this is primarily due to the new variant which is the delta variant and this variant of course played havoc in India and I’m afraid I have to say that it is going to have a major impact on Sri Lanka in the coming weeks,” he warned.
Source:The Nation
August 01, 2021 03:00 UTC
Girls can rap too! Meet Yasheelee Kalingamudali
One of them is Yasheelee Kalingamudali – she is an amazingly talented artist and baker! What are your thoughts on the rap scene in Sri Lanka? Women and girls have always had to fight their way into things and I believe there will be more women and girls in the rap scene in Sri Lanka in the near future! The Sinhala rap scene in Sri Lanka is thriving while English or any other language seems to be having a slow growth. I’ve had another cover on hold due to my studies and I’ve been coming up with more ideas in the past few weeks.
Source:The Nation
July 31, 2021 23:03 UTC
Teachers-principals strike continues
BY Yumiko PereraStating that discussions with the respective authorities have failed to provide substantial solutions to their issues including the teacher-principal salary anomalies, trade unions have decided to continue their ongoing strike, The Sunday Morning learnt. With teachers withdrawing from online teaching on 12 July, the strike enters its 21st day today (1). Moreover, the trade unions also demand that at least 6% of the gross domestic product (GDP) be allocated to education, amongst several other demands. Several attempts made by The Sunday Morning to contact Education Minister Prof. G.L. Meanwhile, a meeting to be held last week between President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the teachers’ and principals’ trade unions has been rescheduled for this week
Source:The Nation
July 31, 2021 21:00 UTC
Delta variant spread: Health authorities undecided
Cite insufficient sequencing runs and data as inconclusiveMinistry notes need for more sequencing on random PCR testsMore labs with sequencing capacity under developmentJayewardenepura Uni confirms Delta in 68 samplesBY Aazam AmeenThe health authorities are unable to confirm as to whether the spread of the virulent Indian B.1.617.2 Delta variant of Covid-19 is under control in Sri Lanka or not. “It is possible that within the Colombo area, 20-30% of the Covid-19 cases may be infected with the Delta variant. The basis for this is the data that has emerged from the lab at the Sri Jayewardenepura University,” he explained. Commenting further, Dr. Herath reiterated that in order to fully understand whether the spread of the variant in question is increasing or decreasing, more sequencing runs of random samples need to be conducted. Meanwhile, Allergy, Immunology, and Cell Biology Unit Director Dr. Chandima Jeewandara told The Sunday Morning that the presence of the Delta variant has been detected in 68 samples.
Source:The Nation
July 31, 2021 21:00 UTC
Coconut oil industry: Local production increase pushed
By Yumiko PereraThe importation of dehydrated copra chips to produce coconut oil locally may be the solution to revive the struggling industry, according to State Minister of Coconut, Kithul, and Palmyrah Cultivation Promotion, and Related Industrial Product Manufacturing and Export Diversification Arundika Fernando. According to State Minister Fernando, the country requires at least 39,000 MT of dehydrated copra chips to produce coconut oil locally. If we produce coconut oil locally, then we have more coconuts available to be used by the industries.”He reiterated that this could potentially help bring down the price of coconut oil in the future. According to State Minister Fernando, the country requires nearly 2.4 tonnes of coconut oil annually. As per the current practice, coconut oil is imported in the form of crude oil and refined and bleached deodorised oil (RBD oil), which has raised several concerns in the recent past, owing to carcinogens called aflatoxins being detected in the oil stocks that had been imported.
Source:The Nation
July 31, 2021 20:15 UTC