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UNESCO World Heritage site, Sigiriya, located in central Sri Lanka was declared a polythene free zone from Friday to protect the biodiversity of the area and boost tourism, local media reported.

The decision was made by Sri Lanka's Minister of Housing, Construction and Cultural Affairs Sajith Premadasa.

Sigiriya Project Manager, Major N. Nishantha told local media that the use of polythene had not only harmed the environment and animals but had also affected tourism in the area as it destroyed its beauty.

He said following the government's decision, security personnel will check the belongings of all local and foreign tourists and all polythene or plastic materials carried by them will be taken and returned back when the visitors are leaving the area.

Nishantha further explained that visitors who carry water bottles will have to carry it without the plastic bottle cap.

Food will also be restricted to prevent tourists feeding animals who frequent the area.

One of Asia's major archaeological site, Sigiriya is visited by thousands of visitors per year and is a major tourist attraction.

An Iranian national was arrested at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) while trying to smuggle 400g of the popular cannabis substance known as ‘Kush’, the police said.

Police Spokesman SP Ruwan Gunasekera added that the 24 year old woman, who had arrived from Doha, Qatar was arrested early morning, today (31), by the Police Narcotic Bureau (PNB) officers stationed at the BIA. 

NB officers stated that the woman had concealed the cannabis substance in a false bottom of her luggage.

Narcotic substance popularly known as Kush that was caught by PNB officers. Pix: T.K.G. Kapila

Vice President Vincent Meriton of the Republic of Seychelles arrived in Sri Lanka on Wednesday (30) to receive two Wave Rider Inshore Patrol Craft (WRIPC) donated by the Government of Sri Lanka to the Government of Seychelles. The handing over ceremony of the Patrol Craft was held today at the Western Naval Command Headquarters in the Colombo Port.

Sri Lanka arranged this donation to Seychelles as per the request of Danny Faure, the President of the Seychelles during the bilateral discussion with President Maithripala Sirisena during the recent state visit to the Seychelles in October, 2018 coinciding with the thirty (30) years of establishment of Diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and the Seychelles.

The handing over ceremony was graced by President Sirisena with the participation of officers from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Ports and Shipping, Chief of Defence Staff, Secretary to the President, and the High Commissioner of the Seychelles in Colombo.

Even though modern day development is shaped by the technical and concrete exposures which leave behind stress, disease and death, a sustainable existence of the environment will be aspired by the entire world, President Maithripala Sirisena said.

The president added that twenty five years ago, many state leaders, politicians, scholars, and professionals showed no tendency to protect the environment. Since environmental pollution has become a threat to mankind's existence, today there is a vast interest in coping with this major challenge, he said.

Sirisena was addressing the Environmental Pioneer Presidential Medal Awards ceremony held yesterday (30), at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo.

This programme is aimed to bring forth environmentally sensitive future base by facilitating environmental centered school education to make the students actively participated in the process. 

Atotal of 93 environmental pioneers from 40 schools were handed over Presidential Medals during the Environmental Pioneer Presidential Medal Awards which was organized for the eighth year. 

The five-year programme serves the target of making four million school students environmental lovers while an environmental pioneer students, who has been awarded the Presidential Medal will receive four marks for extra curriculum activities during the university entrance.

Education Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam, Deputy Environment Minister Ajith Mannapperuma and the Chairman of the Central Environmental Authority, A.H.M. Muzammil were also present.

Twelve new foreign Ambassadors and High Commissioners accredited to Sri Lanka presented their credentials to President Maithripala Sirisena at the President’s House in Colombo, today (01).

The Envoys who presented credentials are:

Mr Ivan Lancaric – Ambassador of Slovak Republic

Dr David Goldwin Pollard – High Commissioner of Cooperative Republic of Guyana

Ms Dinah Grace Akello – High Commissioner of Republic of Uganda

Mr Andrei Rzheussky – Ambassador of Republic of Belarus

Mr Sekou Kasse – Ambassador of Republic of Mali

Mr Armen Martirosyan – Ambassador of Republic of Armenia

Mr Agis Loizou – High Commissioner of Cyprus

Mr Ariel Andrade Galindo – Ambassador of El Salvador

Mr Ung Sean – Ambassador of the Kingdom of Cambodia

Mr Omar Abdul Razzaq – Ambassador of Maldives

Dr Ron malka – Ambassador of Israel

Mr Gudmundur Arni Stefansson – Ambassador of Iceland

COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lanka has halted imports of Johnson & Johnson Baby Powder until the company proves its product is free from cancer-causing asbestos, two government officials and the product's local distributor told Reuters.

Stocks of the product already in Sri Lanka can still be sold, but there will be no new imports of the talc, a popular healthcare product across Sri Lanka and much of Asia, until J&J India, from where Sri Lanka imports the product, provides fresh test results.

On Dec. 14, Reuters reported that the U.S. drugs and consumer products group knew for decades that asbestos lurked in its Baby Powder, leading to tests in several countries, including in India.

The report was based on thousands of pages of company memos, internal reports, and other confidential documents.

J&J has described the Reuters story as "one-sided, false, and inflammatory".

Kamal Jayasinghe, chief executive of Sri Lanka's National Medicine Regulatory Authority (NMRA), which is part of the health ministry, said it had informed the distributor, A.Baur & Co., that it would require  further tests for it to continue importing the powder.

"We have held their re-registration and informed the distributor to submit quality reports from an accredited laboratory to ensure there is no asbestos in their products,” Jayasinghe told Reuters.

The license for A.Baur & Co to import the product expired in December, a second person at the NMRA said.

Shalutha Perera, head of consumer for A.Baur, told Reuters the firm has informed J&J in India of the suspension of the licensing process.
"J&J India directly handles all the regulatory matters," he said.

Perera said the NMRA contacted A.Baur in December regarding new asbestos testing.

A spokeswoman for J&J India declined to comment on the halt of shipments to Sri Lanka but said the company "is in full compliance with current Indian regulatory requirements for the manufacturing and testing of our talc".

"We are fully cooperating with the Indian government and are awaiting results from their testing," she added.

The spokeswoman said the product was routinely tested by both suppliers and independent labs to ensure it is free of asbestos.

The launch of the Gamperaliya and the Enterprise Sri Lanka programmes for the year 2019 will be held at the Temple Trees tomorrow (02), under the patronage of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

The Gamperaliya programme that was launched in 2018 will be implemented on an accelerated basis, comprising of 12 areas after it was suspended with effect from the 13th of November 2018, following the swearing-in of Mahinda Rajapaksa in the premiership. 

LKR 300 million will be allocated for each electorate in 2019 under this rapid rural infrastructure development programme. The Gamperaliya programme aims to develop irrigation, rural roads, schools and playgrounds, Sathi Pola, green parks, renovation of religious and archaeological sites and housing development. The infrastructure development project areas will include rural roads, tanks, small-scale bridges and sanitary facilities in schools. 

Enterprise Sri Lanka, Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera's ambitious attempt to create 100,000 new entrepreneurs in the country has resulted in the disbursement of LKR 58 billion in concessionary loans to nearly 30,000 people. Loans have been disbursed across the country through all districts with Hambantota accounting for the largest number of loans released so far with 4,842 followed by Colombo 2,789, Ratnapura 1,691, Monaragala 1,498, Matara 1,481, Kandy 1,476, Kurunegala 1,471 and Kegalle 1,341.

Captain H.W.D Jayawickrama of Sri Lanka Light Infantry and Corporal S.S Wijekumara of 1 Mechanized Infantry Regiment who laid their lives while serving in the UN Peacekeeping operations in Mali were posthumously promoted to the ranks of Major and Sergeant respectively, on the recommendation of the Ministry of Defence and the Commander of the Army.

A communiqué issued by the Military Secretariat at the Army Headquarters as well as the Directorate of Personnel Administration confirmed those promotions on Wednesday (30).

Sri Lankan government signed an agreement with a Dubai-based company on Friday to implement a 200-million-USD mixed development project in Colombo suburb called "Battaramulla,"  Sri Lanka's Megapolis and Western Development Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka said.

Ranawaka said that his ministry had signed the agreement on behalf of the Sri Lankan government with the company named ESSAR Projects Ltd in Dubai.The minister said the project would include the construction of a 40-story office complex, an apartment complex and a hotel complex.

"There will be facilities for recreation. This will give a new facelift to the area. It will have a modern play area for children, a mini cinema and a gymnasium," he added.

According to the minister, the project will be completed by 2022. (Xinhua)

National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA) and Institute of Marine Research, Norway (IMR) held an event on Monday to launch the main research findings of the survey carried out by the Norwegian Research Vessel Dr. Fridtjof Nansen in Sri Lanka in 2018.

Norwegian Research Vessel Dr. Fridtjof Nansen successfully completed an ecosystem survey in the coastal waters of Sri Lanka from June 23 to July 16, 2018. The survey was part of the EAF-Nansen Programme implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in close collaboration with the Institute of Marine Research, Norway and funded by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad). The survey was a result of Sri Lanka - Norway bilateral agreement to provide technical assistance to improve management of the fisheries sector in Sri Lanka and it provided training for Sri Lankan scientists and post survey data analyses.

The aim of the survey last year was to carry out a marine resources survey around Sri Lanka with the expectation that the survey should provide Sri Lanka with up-to-date data, which will be useful for future management of the country’s fisheries resources.

Welcoming the research findings, Ambassador of Norway to Sri Lanka and Maldives, H.E. Thorbjørn Gaustadsæther stated that that Norway is committed to bilateral cooperation on oceans and to helping Sri Lanka put in place data based management of ocean resources, which will enable Sri Lanka to better monitor its fish stocks. 

Nina Brandstrup, FAO Representative in Sri Lanka said, “the successful completion of this programme in Sri Lanka is a testament to the longstanding relations between FAO, the Government of Norway and Sri Lanka. The findings of the survey will be an important baseline for FAO in supporting Sri Lanka achieve sustainable management of fisheries resources amidst mounting pressures such as climate change and pollution.”

The visit of the RV Dr. Fridtjof Nansen was also an opportunity to highlight the longstanding development cooperation between Sri Lanka and Norway, especially in the field of fisheries, which started in 1971. The Norwegian fisheries cooperation with Sri Lanka includes fisheries management, research and education, and private sector development. From 2013 to 2017, NOK 11.1 million (approx. 1.3 million USD) has been disbursed for these activities.
 
Hon. P. Harrison, Minister of Agriculture, Rural Economy Affairs, Livestock Development, Irrigation and Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development and Hon. Dilip Wedaarachchi, State Minister, Ministry of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Development also highlighted the importance of the resource survey and its findings to take necessary management decisions.

The Finance Ministry has appointed its Additional Secretary H.G. Sumanasinghe as the Acting Director General of the Customs Department.

The Cabinet of ministers earlier last week had approved Rear Admiral Shemal Fernando to head Sri Lanka Customs as the new Director General.

However, trade unions voiced their concerns with regard to the appointment of a former naval officer as the new DG, and after successful talks with customs trade unions, the Finance Ministry has appointed H. G. Sumanasinghe instead, it is learnt.

Sources from the Treasury said that the decision to remove the former Customs DG, P.S.M. Charles, was due to the continuous drop of revenue from the Customs department as well as its inability to curb the ingress of narcotics to Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka's war-ravaged Northern Province is gearing for a new awakening with the completion of many infrastructure development projects, funded with Indian assistance, such as the construction of houses, school buildings, cultural centres and model villages, the Indian High Commission said.

New class room buildings are currently being constructed in 27 schools in the Northern Province at a cost of LKR 250 million. 10 school buildings have already been completed and inaugurated including the two buildings vested in students on Monday 28 in Jaffna.

The rest of the school buildings are expected to be handed over in the coming days, High Commission sources said.

The school buildings, in Navatkuli Mahavidyalam and Drieberg College were jointly declared open by the Deputy High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka Dr. Shilpak Ambule and  the Governor of the Northern Province Dr. Suren Raghavan.

Apart from various projects undertaken for rehabilitation and resettlement, the Indian government has constructed a total of 46000 houses in the region so far.

The ‘1990 Suwaseriya’ Emergency Ambulance Services are also operational in a total of eight provinces including the Northern Province.

The ongoing development cooperation projects in the Northern Province under Government of India’s grant assistance included the construction of USD 12 million cultural centre in Jaffna, construction of 3000 rain water harvesting units, construction of 25 model villages consisting of 600 houses and the establishment of a Business/ICT incubator centre in Jaffna among others.