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ICC bats for its 2.5-metre rule
Wednesday, 2 March 2011 - 4:50 AM SL Time
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The controversial clause in the Decision Review System (DRS) that reprieved Ian Bell during the tense England run-chase against India in Bangalore was introduced into the rules because of players` doubts over the accuracy of the ball tracker technology. Speaking to ESPNcricinfo in Bangalore, ICC chief executive, Haroon Lorgat, said, `The rules were designed with serious thoughts in mind. That particular one [pertaining to the 2.5m rule] was to accommodate the scepticism that some players have got with predictive technology.`
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Sampur power plant 99% through
Wednesday, 2 March 2011 - 6:42 AM SL Time
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Contrary to reports here and in India last week that the proposed 500MW joint venture coal power plant at Sampur in Trincomalee was being further delayed by the Lankan Attorney General`s Department raising some 70 queries after sitting on the final documents for months, AG has already cleared 99 percent of the issues and the agreement could be signed at any time, a top official of the CEB said yesterday.
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Why Tigers use South India as rear base
Wednesday, 2 March 2011 - 7:59 AM SL Time
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One popular narrative in the Tamil disapora discourse is that the remnant of Tamil Tigers would launch a sea borne invasion of northern Sri Lanka. The story goes on to say that the LTTE cadres who escaped the annihilation in the final battle and later fled to safe havens abroad are now re-grouping. Once the process is completed, the group would land in the northern coast to wage the next phase of the Eelam War. The story is far-fetched as much as many other recent initiatives of the Tiger sympathizers, among which is a demand for a Southern Sudan styled referendum to decide the future of the North-East of Sri Lanka. 5-2
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Ex-Tigers released
Thursday, 3 March 2011 - 5:01 AM SL Time
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Over 100 former LTTE cadres were released to their families after undergoing rehabilitation to mark Mahasivarathri which is celebrated by Hindu`s worldwide today.
At a function to mark the Mahasivarathri Day held in Vavuniya today, Commissioner General of Rehabilitation, Brigadier Sudantha Ranasingha said that in total, 106 ex LTTE cadres were released to their families. This includes 104 males and two females.
Meanwhile according to the Brigadier, 26 rehabilitated former LTTE cadres were also issued certificates today after they successfully completed a Montessori training programme in the north.
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Sri Lanka `comfortable` with current rates, despite inflation, forex pressure
Friday, 4 March 2011 - 7:03 AM SL Time
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Sri Lanka is comfortable with current interest rates, Central Bank governor Nivard Cabraal said despite a spike in consumer prices to a two year high and an outflow of foreign reserves.
Sri Lanka has some of the highest policy rates in the world at 7.00 percent to drain excess liquidity and 8.5 percent to inject liquidity. But in February inflation accelerated to 7.8 percent in February, above the lower end of the policy corridor.
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Sri Lanka firms urged to employ war zone youth
Saturday, 5 March 2011 - 2:10 PM SL Time
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Mar 05, 2011 (LBO) - A Sri Lankan employment network is encouraging businesses to give jobs to over 15,000 youth in the former northern war zone who are seeking work and help improve ethnic relations in the country.
`Access to the job market will renew hope in the community in the resettled area as well as renew the relationship between the North and South through improved shared economic opportunities,` Sri Lanka Jobs Net said.
Lack of employment is a key issue in Sri Lanka`s north which is recovering from the effects of a 30-year ethnic war which ended in May 2009 enabling refugees to be resettled and infrastructure to be rebuilt.
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Sri Lanka December exports, imports hit new high
Sunday, 6 March 2011 - 6:24 AM SL Time
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Sri Lanka`s exports and imports hit new monthly highs in December 2010 with shipments of apparel, the main industrial export, rising sharply despite the loss of duty free access to Europe.
Earnings from exports increased by 34 percent to 968 million US dollars in December 2010 from a year ago and expenditure on imports rose by 30.8 percent to 1,429 million US dollars, the central bank said in a statement.
The December trade gap widened 25 percent to 461 million US dollars compared with the year before.
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ICC dismisses Hair criticism of Murali
Sunday, 6 March 2011 - 8:42 AM SL Time
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International cricket chiefs insisted on Saturday they had full confidence in their umpires after a former official reiterated his doubts about Muttiah Muralitharan`s unorthodox bowling.
Former Australian Test umpire Darrell Hair called Sri Lanka`s Muralitharan, the leading wicket-taker in Tests and One-Day Internationals, for throwing in 1995.
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The focus now is to beat both Zimbabwe and New Zealand
Monday, 7 March 2011 - 4:33 AM SL Time
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The abandonment last night was a great shame for everyone and really frustrating for us. With Sanga batting sublimely after the early loss of Upul and Dilshan, he was controlling the innings brilliantly with help from Tilan and steering us towards what would have been a competitive total on a turning pitch.
However, there is no point in us dwelling too much on it. The fact is that the points were shared and we now need to focus on beating both Zimbabwe and New Zealand to book ourselves into the Quarter Finals. I would, though, like to thank everyone who came to Premadasa last night because the atmosphere was sensational. We really appreciate your support.
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Prosecutors plan to play recorded calls in Rajaratnam trial
Monday, 7 March 2011 - 4:36 AM SL Time
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prosecutors plan to play recorded phone calls between billionaire Raj Rajaratnam and several Galleon Group employees in the case related to the hedge fund manager orchestrating an insider trading scam.
Galleon Group founder Rajaratnam is facing multiple charges of conspiracy and security fraud and is accused of making illegal profits worth millions of dollars.
British daily Financial Times has reported that US prosecutors plan to play recorded phone calls between Rajaratnam and several Galleon employees to bolster allegations that he traded on inside information.
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100 review scientist`s `alien life` claim
Monday, 7 March 2011 - 6:53 AM SL Time
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A NASA scientist`s claim that he found tiny fossils of alien life in the remnants of a meteorite has stirred both excitement and scepticism, and is being closely reviewed by 100 experts.
Richard Hoover`s paper, along with pictures of the microscopic earthworm-like creatures, were published late on Friday in the peer-reviewed Journal of Cosmology, which is available free online.
Hoover sliced open fragments of several types of carbonaceous chondrite meteorites, which can contain relatively high levels of water and organic materials, and looked inside with a powerful microscope.
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Hosts should play at home Sangakkara
Monday, 7 March 2011 - 3:01 PM SL Time
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`Why should we play in India against New Zealand when we are the hosts?` asked Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara after playing Zimbabwe here.
Sri Lanka take on New Zealand at Mumbai`s Wankhede stadium in the last league match, and this has irritated the skipper. `We were surprised when we learnt that we will have to travel to Mumbai to play the game against New Zealand. I was under the impression that as hosts we play all our matches at home.`
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Military HQ in LTTE graveyard
Tuesday, 8 March 2011 - 4:28 AM SL Time
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It has emerged that a new military divisional headquarters in northern Sri Lanka has been built on the site of a Tamil Tiger graveyard that was earlier flattened by the army.
The construction has come in for sharp criticism from a Tamil politician.
But the army says it was building on government land having vacated private land on official instructions.
The army website has a full illustrated account of Friday`s opening of the new headquarters for the 51 Division at Kopay, near Jaffna.
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Sri Lanka studies elevated Colombo highway: road agency
Tuesday, 8 March 2011 - 1:46 PM SL Time
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Sri Lanka`s Road Development Authority is considering building an elevated highway to connect the capital`s city centre with two key suburban towns and reduce congestion, R W R Pemasiri, its director-general, said.
`We can make it a toll road,` Pemasiri said. `We`re planning a feasibility study on the project soon to ease Colombo city congestion.`
The proposed elevated highway will be built over existing roads, so there will be no need for major land acquisition, Pemasiri told LBO.
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Rajaratnam Criminal Trial Begins With Jury Selection in Manhattan Court
Wednesday, 9 March 2011 - 5:26 AM SL Time
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Galleon Group LLC co-founder Raj Rajaratnam`s criminal trial began today with about 110 potential jurors assembling in Manhattan federal court to answer questions about their views of Wall Street, hedge-fund managers and the recession.
U.S. District Judge Richard Holwell today read items from a 15-page questionnaire to 40 of the potential jurors, who are drawn from eight counties in New York state. In most cases, people who responded yes to a question were called to the bench to answer further queries in private.
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Who will be the world`s first trillionaire?
Wednesday, 9 March 2011 - 8:07 AM SL Time
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Wealth really is a relative concept. Some treat millionaire status as pass , and these days it takes billionaire status to get much attention. On the other hand, there are over two billion people getting by on less than $1,000 per year.
John D. Rockefeller is held to be the world`s first official billionaire, achieving that status in 1916 largely through his ownership of Standard Oil. From that point nearly a century ago, wealth has multiplied to the point where the richest men in the world top out at around $50 billion (by comparison, Rockefeller`s wealth in modern inflation-adjusted terms would amount to about $400 billion). The question then, is how long it will be before the world sees its first trillionaire.
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How humans got big brains, barbless penises
Thursday, 10 March 2011 - 5:32 AM SL Time
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Missing chunks of DNA responsible for turning genes on and off help explain some key differences between chimpanzees and humans -- including why humans have big brains and why the human penis is not covered with prickly spines, U.S. researchers said on Wednesday.
The study, published in the journal Nature, reinforces the notion that genes that control the activity of other genes play a big role in what makes humans so different from other mammals.
To study this, David Kingsley of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Stanford University School of Medicine in California and colleagues compared the genetic code of humans to chimpanzees -- man`s closest relative -- and other mammals.
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Gaddafi tanks and jets strike deeper into rebel heartland
Friday, 11 March 2011 - 4:31 AM SL Time
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Libyan tanks fired on rebel positions in the oil port of Ras Lanuf and warplanes hit another oil hub further east on Thursday as Muammar Gaddafi carried counter-attacks deeper into the insurgent heartland.
State television said in late afternoon that the army had driven rebels out of Ras Lanuf. The insurgents denied it, but said government forces were heavily bombarding it and thrusting well into the Mediterranean coastal town.
The rebels took an important step towards international legitimacy when France recognised their national council. But while NATO and the EU discussed what measures they might take, the U.S. director of national intelligence forecast that a well-equipped Gaddafi would prevail over the rebels in the end.
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Kerala tightens vigil on T.N. border to curb LTTE activities
Saturday, 12 March 2011 - 4:33 AM SL Time
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The Intelligence Bureau is keeping a vigil on the movement of suspected persons in the border areas of Tamil Nadu after it received inputs that members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam had reportedly tried to set up camps in the forest areas near Idukki district.
Highly placed sources said there were chances of setting up such camps in the forest areas and adjoining villages as it would give them cover, adding Sri Lankan Tamils could be easily identified in Tamil Nadu by their dialect.
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Assassination attempt on TNA parliamentarian Sritharan
Saturday, 12 March 2011 - 4:58 PM SL Time
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The abortive attempt to assassinate Tamil National Alliance Parliamentarian Sivagnanam Sritharan has sent shock waves throughout the Tamil speaking world . Although the incident did not receive adequate coverage in the mainstream media, the attempted murder of the Jaffna district MP has rocked the Tamil people as many feared the bad days of old were returning.
There was a time when many Tamil MP`s and political leaders were being killed at regular intervals. Earlier the perpetrators were from Tamil militant organizations like the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam(LTTE) and Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization (TELO). Tamil moderates of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) were the victims in most instances. They were accused of being collaborators and vilified as traitors. Most of the killings were by the tigers.
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Sri Lanka private worker pension funds pays 12.5-pct
Sunday, 13 March 2011 - 8:12 AM SL Time
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A pension fund of private citizens of Sri Lanka worth 900 billion rupees, the island`s biggest investment fund, has paid 12.5 percent to its beneficiaries in 2010 its state managers said.
The Employees Provident Fund had grown 16.9 percent to 900 billion rupees by end 2010. It had received 54.8 billion rupees as compulsory member contributions from private sector workers and paid out 34.9 billion as refunds to members and heirs.
Sri Lanka`s state workers do not have a contributed contributory pension and are paid pensions out of general tax revenues. Sri Lanka`s rulers in power as well as in the opposition and a few of their acolytes get a pension after just five years in office.
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Developments after major Japan earthquake
Monday, 14 March 2011 - 5:21 AM SL Time
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TOKYO (Reuters) - Following are main developments after an 8.9 magnitude earthquake that struck northeast Japan on Friday and set off a tsunami.
- Death toll expected to exceed 10,000 from the quake and tsunami, public broadcaster NHK says. Strong aftershocks persisting in the stricken area.
- Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) says radiation levels at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, which is 240 km (150 miles) north of Tokyo, have risen above the safety limit but says this posed no `immediate threat` to human health. An explosion blew the roof off at reactor No. 1.
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Blast strikes Japan plant, core safe bodies found on coast
Monday, 14 March 2011 - 12:03 PM SL Time
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Fresh explosion rocks Japan`s crippled Fukushima nuclear plant, authorities dismiss claims of a fresh tsunami heading for the devastated north-east as false alarm. Read more
- Japan`s meteorological agency says no data to support claims that a fresh tsunami was about to hit the coast, despite local press reporting that an estimated 3-metre tidal wave was spotted by a helicopter out to sea.
- Local media, including Japan`s national broadcaster NHK, reported at about 1.14pm (AEDT) the sea level on the coast had fallen by 5 metres and said the tsunami was about to hit the coast. More
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Sri Lanka cheap skills lure for finance outsourcing
Tuesday, 15 March 2011 - 5:44 AM SL Time
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Sri Lanka is becoming an attractive location for `Finance and Accounting Outsourcing` (FAO) with the world`s second largest pool of management accountants and wages lower than India, a report said.
`The availability of a large pool of skilled finance and accounting professionals makes FAO one of the most logical niche competences to continue to build capacity,` said Dinesh Saparamadu, chairman of Sri Lanka Association of Software and Services Association (SLASSCOM).
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Three-year-old is UK`s `youngest ever alcoholic`
Tuesday, 15 March 2011 - 5:50 AM SL Time
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LONDON (AFP) - A three-year-old child who was treated in hospital for addiction to alcohol is thought to be Britain`s youngest ever alcoholic, health officials said Monday.
The youngster was one of 13 people under the age of 12 who were diagnosed as alcoholics by the state-run National Health Service (NHS) in central England between 2008 and 2010.
Health officials declined to give details of the three-year-old`s condition or disclose the toddler`s identity due to patient confidentiality rules.
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Sri Lanka wanted U.S. help as Indian radars not sufficient`
Tuesday, 15 March 2011 - 12:39 PM SL Time
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Sri Lanka quietly asked the United States for assistance to improve its air defence systems as India-supplied radars had proved insufficient to prevent an attack by LTTE aircraft on the Katunayake air base in March 2007, but it agreed with the Americans that New Delhi must be kept in the loop.
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Sri Lankan sleuths probing Maldivian drug peddlers operating in Colombo
Wednesday, 16 March 2011 - 5:36 AM SL Time
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COLOMBO, March 15 (HNS) - With Sri Lanka`s Police Narcotics Bureau cracking down on narcotics trafficking, the focus has currently shifted to Maldivian drug traffickers who are believed to be operating in Sri Lanka`s capital Colombo.
A recent probe, conducted by sleuths from Sri Lanka`s Police Narcotics Bureau, has identified that several Maldivians residing in Sri Lanka have been involved in an international operation concerning the trafficking and distribution of drugs such as heroin, marijuana and hashish.
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US intelligence assessed Narayanan as anti LTTE
Wednesday, 16 March 2011 - 3:50 PM SL Time
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A classified cable of the US embassy in India accessed by The Hindu through WikiLeaks shows that the US embassy made a particular note of the bias of M K Narayanan, the former National Security Advisor (NSA) of India, against the LTTE. US Consulate General Chennai officials recall his repeatedly expressed and profound distaste for the LTTE, notes the cable. Narayanan was the chief of India`s Intelligence Bureau during the IPKF times and was the NSA during the Vanni war. He and the present NSA, Shiv Shankar Menon, handled India`s role in the war and in the way the war ended. During the war, both were accused of wielding `extra-parliamentary` powers. The US cable noted Narayanan as part of the traditional `coterie` around Congress Party President Sonia Gandhi and as a part of the Keralite Mafia in the Prime Minister`s Office.
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Local Government Election -Desperate violent tactics cannot prevent Rajapaksa regime s defeat UNP
Thursday, 17 March 2011 - 6:21 AM SL Time
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Desperate violent tactics resorted to by the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime cannot prevent its defeat at tomorrow`s elections to 235 of the 301 Local Government Councils, the UNP said yesterday.
Predicting a landslide victory for the UNP, the party`s General Secretary Tissa Attanayake told a news conference in Colombo, that the government was hoping to win by the use of violent methods, but the masses who have continued to suffer unbearable economic hardships would ensure its defeat.
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Sri Lanka impressed by security cover
Thursday, 17 March 2011 - 2:37 PM SL Time
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Mumbai: The Sri Lankan team was shocked to receive security cover much more than what they get in their own country. Ever since the team reached Mumbai on Sunday night, special security men have been around every player and their team bus like bees.
Bullet proof terror combat vehicles, which the Mumbai police now have following the terror attack in this city in 2008, follows the team bus always. The Sri Lankan team bus entered the Wankhede Stadium with combat vehicles leading and following them, virtually shooing away anyone from near the bus.
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Low turnout as local elections poll close in Sri Lanka
Friday, 18 March 2011 - 5:51 AM SL Time
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Colombo - Only about one in two eligible voters cast their ballots Thursday in local elections in Sri Lanka that are seen as a test for President Mahinda Rajapaksa`s government, one year after his presidential victory.
Election officials estimated turnout after polling closed at 4 p.m. (1030 GMT) at around 55 per cent.
The figure is lower than usual turnout at a parliamentary or presidential elections, which normally averages 75 per cent, an election department official said.
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UPFA wins 179 LG bodies, UNP only 8 so far
Friday, 18 March 2011 - 12:06 PM SL Time
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The United People`s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) has won 179 LG bodies out of 204 results released so far. The United National Party (UNP) has won 8 while Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) has won 10 so far.
Meanwhile the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) has won 4, UPCPF 1, NC 1 and the IND has won 1 Local Government body out of the released results so far.
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UPFA wins LG election in a landslide
Friday, 18 March 2011 - 12:12 PM SL Time
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The United People`s Freedom Alliance has won the 2011 Local Government election with a majority victory over 205 out of the total 234 LG bodies. Illankai Tamil Arasu Katchchi (ITAK) comes in second winning 12 while the United National Party (UNP) only managed to secure 09 LG bodies.
The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) has won 04, National Congress 02, the Up-Country People`s Front (UPF) 01 while an Independent Group has secured 01 LG body.
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Meet the world`s youngest CEO
Tuesday, 22 March 2011 - 8:56 AM SL Time
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A 14-year-old girl has been crowned the world`s youngest Chief Executive Officer.
Sindhuja Rajaraman, a ninth grade student from India has become the head of Chennai-based Seppan, an animation company set up by her father.
`I am just proud to be an animator,` Rajaraman told indianexpress.com.
`The CEO is just a post given in this company`
Rajaraman is the youngest CEO recognised by the National Association of Software and Service Companies.
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Sri Lanka wants Czech tourists, direct flights from Prague
Tuesday, 29 March 2011 - 3:23 PM SL Time
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Sri Lanka is interested in the resumption of direct flights from Prague and it wants to attract Czech tourists, Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Gamini Lakshman Peiris said after a meeting with his Czech counterpart Karel Schwarzenberg.
Schwarzenberg said he is in favour of direct flights, but added that this is up to air carriers.
The direct flight to Colombo was operated by the Czech CSA some years ago.
The number of foreign tourists in Sri Lanka rose by 46 percent to 655,000 last year.
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.On the smugglers trail: U.K. man Peg Leg Shankar wanted by Interpol
Thursday, 31 March 2011 - 6:46 PM SL Time
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Interpol has issued an arrest warrant for a British man accused of running the human smuggling network that sent 76 Sri Lankans to Canada aboard a cargo ship in 2009.
Shanmugasundaram Kanthaskaran, 40, is wanted by Sri Lankan authorities for people smuggling, trafficking and illegal immigration as well as terrorism, according to the Interpol website.
While the public Interpol notice is vague, classified details of the allegations obtained by the National Post show he is wanted in connection with the human smuggling vessel Ocean Lady.
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Simon Taufel and Aleem Dar named as umpires for WC final
Friday, 1 April 2011 - 5:19 AM SL Time
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The ICC have named Simon Taufle and Aleem Dar as the on-field umpires for the World Cup final in Mumbai on Saturday (April 2) while Jeff Crowe will be the match referee. Ian Gould will act as Third Umpire while Steve Davis will be the fourth Umpire, the ICC further announced.
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