Transforming Sri Lanka into a start-up nation
By Prajeeth BalasubramaniamPost Covid-19, Sri Lanka will be in an ideal position for a major pivot away from its old safety net of traditional investments. And with the correct mix fueling its start-up sector, Sri Lanka may not be too far behind its northern neighbour. “We recouped around 30% of our fund from just that one exit alone, so the start-up sector in Sri Lanka is undoubtedly ripe for huge rewards. Another key point of interest is that Sri Lanka in many ways is a largely untapped marketplace. Young Sri Lankan talent too is keen on returning to the country, and this brain gain has led to many successful start-ups in Sri Lanka being founded by returnees.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 18:56 UTC
Fresh bans in CEA bucket list
Speaking to us, CEA Director General P.B. “Once the list is approved by the Minister, it will be submitted to the Cabinet for approval of finalising the list. We will have to give a grace period to stakeholders involved; however, it will be hopefully implemented by January 2022,” Jayasinghe explained. Strict action will be taken on violators who are caught manufacturing and selling the banned items,” Jayasinghe added. The Ministry of Environment took the decision to impose a ban on single-use plastics and gazetted it on 31 March 2021, with the ban coming into effect from 1 April 2021, according to the CEA.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 18:56 UTC
Hundreds of anti-vaxxer protestors march through London
A huge anti vaccine passports march took over central London today as demonstrators waved large placards protesting against the documentation. Meanwhile hundreds descended on Glasgow City Centre for a Scottish independence march that was hijacked by anti-vaxxers. Pictured: London todayHundreds had earlier turned out for a Scottish independence demonstration with Saltire and Yes flags streamed across George Square. Pictured: London todayIt comes as Piers Corbyn took a weekend off protesting in London and headed to Scotland where he marched on Glasgow city centre. Pictured: London todayIt claims to report on 'Natural Rights, Civil Liberties, Police Abuses and Government Criminality' and live streamed the march online.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 18:22 UTC
Sunny Side Up: Maithri’s controversial post
A social media post by Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) Leader and former President Maithripala Sirisena, was last week subjected to much discussion in political circles. “Some chapters are sad and some chapters are action packed. The well-experienced writer would write the suitable book at the appropriate time. The final chapter of an experienced writer is astounding,” Sirisena had stated in a post on his Facebook page. Many were left to wonder about the “book” and “chapters” referred to by the former President and most of all, the “book with the astounding final chapter”.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 18:00 UTC
Joe Root hits brilliant century as he lifts England yet again against India
By Rory Dollard, Pa Cricket CorrespondentPublished: 08:41 EDT, 14 August 2021 | Updated: 13:55 EDT, 14 August 2021England captain Joe Root reeled off his fifth Test century of the year as he once again carried his side's batting hopes against India at Lord's. Bairstow was bounced out by Mohammed Siraj for 57 in the afternoon but Root ploughed on as he continued his single-handed mission to drag English batting to a higher plane. Neither batsman allowed India to settle into a groove outside off, with a reliable stream of runs in the arc around third man. India used Siraj as a battering ram at the start of the afternoon, with Root coping calmly with a diet of short stuff while Bairstow succumbed. A familiar celebration unfolded and he was soon chalking up another landmark, with Ishant's stiff footwork giving him the boundary that took him past 9,000 Test runs.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 18:00 UTC
SunnySide Up: Getting dollars
Governing Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) MP Premanath C. Dolawatta had last week sent a letter to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, proposing a solution to the issue of the ban imposed on importing vehicles. Dolawatte had proposed that Sri Lankan expatriates living overseas be permitted to send vehicles to Sri Lanka which they have purchased in those respective countries while paying the necessary taxes in US dollars. According to the MP, the proposal will fulfil a long-standing request of the expatriates to permit them to send vehicles to Sri Lanka, since they can buy vehicles for much lower prices in the country they currently reside in. This move, Dolawatte has pointed out, will also provide the country with much-needed foreign remittances by getting them to pay the necessary import taxes in foreign currency. The MP had added that such a move would also reduce the prices of used vehicles in the country.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 17:48 UTC
Sunny Side Up: Udaya to reveal all?
Gammanpila had explained that he started writing the book while being in quarantine and the book will be on the lines of, “The No-faith Motion Faced by Me – The Untold Story”. The dinner was first scheduled to be held on 5 August at the Grand Monarch in Thalawathugoda. Given the current surge in Covid-19 cases in the country and the revised health guidelines prohibiting large gatherings, Gammanpila has once again had to postpone the dinner. “Dear colleague, I am reluctantly compelled to postpone the party to be held on 19 August, indefinitely due to the pandemic. Udaya Gammanpila,” the message sent to the governing party MPs read.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 17:48 UTC
Sunny Side Up: New appointment
Prof. Bandara’s new appointment was revealed recently by Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardana. The recently formed National Trade Policy Committee had held discussions via Zoom. “Because of the current situation, we held Zoom meetings and discussed the new National Trade Policy Committee and the other relevant details. During this meeting, we decided to appoint Prof. Ranjith Bandara as the Chairperson,” Gunawardana had said. Gunawardana had earlier made a proposal to the Cabinet to appoint an expert committee representing all relevant parties to formulate a new national trade policy.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 17:48 UTC
Shenae Grimes announces the arrival of her second child
The former 90210 actress, 31, announced the arrival of her second child with husband Josh Beech on Instagram on Saturday, posting several intimate snaps capturing mom and the newborn. 'Kingsley Taylor Beech,' Shenae began in the caption. 'Our hearts are bursting with love and gratitude': Shenae Grimes has given birth to her second child, a baby boy named Kingsley Taylor Beech'Needless to say, our hearts are bursting with love and gratitude. The former Degrassi actress revealed back on Valentine's Day that she was expecting her second child. The former 90210 actress, 31, announced the arrival of her second child with husband Josh Beech on Instagram, posting several intimate snaps capturing mom and the newbornBaby on board: Shenae revealed she is expecting her second child with her husband Josh Beech with a special post on Valentine's Day'Here we go again!!!
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 17:15 UTC
Samsung Galaxy A03s appears in new renders revealing more color options
The Samsung Galaxy A03s renders that leaked in May revealed the smartphone will pack a waterdrop notch display and sport a triple camera system on the rear. While those images showed us the Galaxy A03s in Black color, a new set of renders have surfaced, revealing two more colorways - White and Blue. In addition to showing the Galaxy A03s in new shades, the source reveals that the smartphone will come with a 6.5" HD+ Infinity-V display, Android 11-based One UI Core 3.1, 128GB storage, and 6GB RAM. The source also corroborates previously leaked specs, including a 5,000 mAh battery, 5MP selfie camera, and triple camera on the back consisting of 13MP primary, 2MP macro, and 2MP depth sensor units. There's no word from Samsung about the Galaxy A03s yet, but the smartphone's support page went live on the company's official Indian website last month, suggesting an imminent launch.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 15:56 UTC
Covid-19 UK: Inside Britain's 'Wild West' travel testing regime
Britain's wild west PCR testing for travel regime where swabs that were supposed to cost £2 actually sold for more than £100 was caused by a lack of regulation, industry experts have claimed. Health Secretary Sajid Javid admitted the Government’s own costs were too high and said its single post-holiday PCR test package will fall from £88 to £68. Ministers were branded ‘hypocrites’ this week after repeatedly calling on private firms to drop their prices but failing to cut their own for summer. Research by airline consultancy Skytrax shows airport PCR tests were available for as little as $8 (£5.70) in Mumbai, India, in April. ‘Providers who are making substantial profits during the pandemic are acting unethically when consumers are being forced to take these PCR tests by Government.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 14:48 UTC
New daily record as Sri Lanka reports 160 COVID fatalities
August 14, 2021 07:56 pmSri Lanka has registered 160 more COVID-19 related fatalities confirmed by the Director-General of Health Services on Friday (August 14). This marks the sixth consecutive day that the daily count of COVID-19 deaths surpassed 100. The new development has pushed the official death toll from the virus outbreak in Sri Lanka to 5,935. According to the data released by the Department of Government Information, the latest victims include 87 males and 73 females. One among the victims is aged below 30 years while 35 of them are aged between 30-59 years and 124 others are aged 60 and above.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 14:26 UTC
Major earthquake strikes Haiti, felt across Caribbean
By Shannon Thaler For Dailymail.Com and ReutersPublished: 09:23 EDT, 14 August 2021 | Updated: 09:57 EDT, 14 August 2021A major earthquake struck western Haiti on Saturday and was felt across the Caribbean where people fled their homes for fear that buildings might collapse. The 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck five miles from the town of Petit Trou de Nippes, about 7.5 miles west of Haiti's capital Port-au-Prince. It had a depth of about eight miles, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said. It's been years since such a big earthquake,' said Daniel Ross, a resident in the eastern Cuban city of Guantanamo, adding that his home stood firm but the furniture shook. The US Tsunami Warning System said there was no tsunami warning after the quake.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 13:52 UTC
Offices of Persons Registration Dept. closed until further notice
The Department of Registration of Persons has decided to close off its head office and all provincial branches for the public from August 16 until further notice. The decision was taken after several staff members of the department were exposed to COVID-19. In a notice issued on Friday (August 13), the Commissioner General of the Department, Viyani Gunathilaka said necessary steps will be taken to deliver the National Identity Cards (NIC) to the applicants, who have already reserved appointments or submitted applications, via registered post. Further, a special arrangement has been made to issue NICs for those who require obtaining National Identity Cards promptly for emergency and essential purposes such as for examinations, interviews, to obtain passports and they can inform their urgent requirement to the Department through the under-mentioned telephone numbers. The public can obtain further information on issuance of NICs and other services by contacting the following telephone numbers:Head Office: 0115 226 126 / 0115 226 100Southern Province Branch: 091 222 8348North-western Province Branch: 037 222 4337Eastern Province Branch: 065 222 9449Northern Province Branch: 024 222 7201
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 13:52 UTC
Pedri can lead Barcelona into the post-Lionel Messi era
The crown might slip down over his forehead but at a club the size of Barcelona there always has to be somebody sat on the throne and Pedri – not 19 until November – is the best fit to lead the club into the post-Lionel Messi era. He has that same impish spark that Messi had when he first played for Barcelona. Terry Venables once described Messi as Oliver Twist picking everyone's pocket; Pedri also looks like part of Fagin's gang. he asked Barcelona coaches in pre-season before immediately cancelling the club's plans to loan Pedri out at the start of last season. And what Barcelona as a football club need right now is someone to get excited about; someone to build a new team around.
Source:The Nation
August 14, 2021 13:07 UTC