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A powerful earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale struck the Indian Ocean off Northern Sumatra, Indonesia, at 10.26 a.m. today (27), the National Tsunami Early Warning Center of the Meteorology Department said.

According to the Earthquake Information Bulletin, the quake occurred at a depth of 25 km and was pinpointed at latitude 2.68°N and longitude 96.07°E.

Although no tsunami warning has been issued for Sri Lanka at this time, authorities have urged coastal residents to remain vigilant for further updates. 

A 6.6 magnitude earthquake struck off western Indonesia's Sumatra Island on Thursday, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said.

The quake struck at 4.56 am, with a depth of 25.4 kilometers (15.7 miles), 45 km (27.9 miles) west-northwest of Sinabang town on the east coast of Simeulue Island.

https://meteo.gov.lk/

(Source - Dailymirror)

The Department of Irrigation has issued an extended major flood alert for communities living in low-lying zones along the Deduru Oya Basin. The warning follows substantial rainfall recorded in the upper and middle catchments over the past 24 hours, which has increased the reservoir’s outflow. Spill gates at the Deduru Oya Reservoir are currently releasing water at an estimated rate of 33,000 cubic feet per second, heightening the possibility of flooding downstream.Based on recent observations and water-level readings, the Divisional Secretariat areas of Wariyapola, Nikaweratiya, Mahawewa, Kobeigane, Bingiriya, Pallama, Halawatha, Arachchikattuwa, and Rasnayakapura have been identified as potentially affected zones.

The flood warning first issued under Notification No. 01 at 6:30 a.m. on November 23, 2025, has now been extended for an additional 48 hours.
Authorities advise residents in these areas-and motorists travelling through them-to exercise maximum caution. Disaster management agencies have also been urged to implement appropriate preparedness and response measures.

The Commissioner General of Examinations, AKS Indika Kumari Liyanage, has announced that the 2025 G.C.E. Advanced Level examinations scheduled for today (27), tomorrow (28), and Saturday (29) will not take place as planned. The exams have been rescheduled for December 7, 8, and 9.

According to the Department of Examinations, the decision was made in response to the widespread disruptions and risks posed by the ongoing adverse weather conditions, which have created a disaster situation in several parts of the country. Authorities emphasized that the postponement aims to safeguard students and ensure fair access to examination centers.

The Department of Meteorology has issued an alert predicting significant rainfall across the country today, with certain regions expected to experience exceptionally heavy showers. Areas within the North-Central and North-Western provinces, as well as the Trincomalee District, may see rainfall surpassing 200 mm.

Meanwhile, parts of the Northern, Central, Sabaragamuwa, Uva, and Western provinces—and the districts of Galle, Matara, and Batticaloa—are likely to receive over 150 mm of rain. Other regions throughout the island could also face downpours exceeding 100 mm.In addition to the heavy showers, strong winds ranging between 60 and 70 kmph are expected to sweep across many areas.
The public has been advised to remain vigilant and take necessary safety measures to mitigate the impact of severe weather conditions.

Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, is the world’s largest urban centre with a population of almost 42 million, according to new research by the United Nations.Tokyo was the largest city in the world in the year 2000, but slower population growth over the previous quarter of a century has meant it has now been surpassed by Jakarta and Bangladesh’s capital, Dhaka.The UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs’ Population Division found Jakarta and Dhaka, with its population of nearly 37 million people, now far exceeded Tokyo’s 33 million.

Dhaka is expected to become the world’s largest city by 2050, while Tokyo’s population is projected to decline over the next 25 years — reflecting Japan’s shrinking ageing population.

Nine of the 10 most populous cities on the planet are located in Asia, the report’s authors said, with Cairo in Egypt the only non-Asian city making the top 10.

Elisa Sutanudjaja, director of the Jakarta-based Rujak Centre for Urban Studies, said the report confirmed what urbanists already knew — that greater Jakarta’s population had exceeded that of Tokyo for years.The huge size of Jakarta’s population posed major challenges, she said, not least because of poor coordination between local governments.Jakartans routinely deal with extreme traffic congestion, pollution and flooding.

In response, Indonesia’s government announced in 2019 that it would move the capital city off the densely populated island of Java to Borneo.

But the project to build Nusantara, as the new administrative capital is named, is behind schedule and has struggled to attract investment.Urbanisation a ‘defining force of our time’Cities were home to 45 per cent of the world’s 8.2 billion people in 2025, up from just one in five people in 1950, according to the UN report.It found the number of megacities - those with a population more than 10 million -had quadrupled since 1975 from eight to 33.

Nineteen of the world’s megacities are located in Asia.

The UN report’s authors said that Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia, would likely surpass the 10 million population mark by 2050 to become one of several additional megacities along with Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and Hajipur, India.Li Junhua, head of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, said in a statement that “urbanisation is a defining force of our time”.

“When managed inclusively and strategically, it can unlock transformative pathways for climate action, economic growth, and social equity,” he said.

“To achieve balanced territorial development, countries must adopt integrated national policies that align housing, land use, mobility, and public services across urban and rural areas.”

( Source : adaderana.lk)

Sri Lanka’s export sector has continued its upward trajectory in 2025, demonstrating resilience in the face of global market volatility, tighter competition, and uneven demand across major economies.

According to the latest figures released by the Export Development Board (EDB), total exports for the first 10 months of the year reached $14.43 billion, reflecting a 6% year-on-year (YoY) increase, even as some monthly indicators showed stagnation.

EDB Chairman and CEO Mangala Wijesinghe attributed the performance to stronger export competitiveness, market diversification, and the ability of local exporters to adapt quickly to global disruptions.

EDB Chairman and CEO Mangala Wijesinghe

“Our exporters have once again proved their resilience and adaptability,” he said, noting that Sri Lanka’s integration into global trade continues to strengthen despite global uncertainties.

Growth Driven by Key Sectors

In October alone, total export earnings amounted to $1.47 billion, marking a modest YoY rise of 0.16%, although month-on-month performance remained flat. Merchandise exports grew by only 0.2% YoY to $1.15 billion, supported by gains in gems and jewellery, coconut-based products, electrical and electronics, and food and beverages.

From January to October, merchandise exports reached $11.37 billion, an increase of 6.53% YoY.

Sri Lanka’s services sector continued to play a crucial role, generating $316 million in October and $3.06 billion during the first 10 months a 4.01% YoY rise. The ICT/BPM industry, construction, logistics, financial services and transport sectors recorded steady, broad-based growth, underscoring the shift towards a more knowledge-driven export economy.

Sectoral and Market Highlights

Apparel and textiles, the country’s largest merchandise export sector, recorded a robust 5.56% YoY growth, reaching $4.44 billion for the 10-month period. Agriculture exports also performed strongly: tea exports rose 8.72% YoY to $1.28 billion, while coconut-based exports surged by 43.83% to $1.03 billion, benefiting from higher demand in Europe and the Middle East.

On the services front, transport and logistics grew 6.07%, while ICT/BPM rose 9.25%, together generating a combined $2.9 billion in the first eight months.

Shifting Global Markets

The United States remained Sri Lanka’s largest export destination, accounting for 23% of merchandise exports. While October exports to the US slipped 0.46% to $246 million, cumulative exports for the year grew 2.68% to nearly $2.5 billion.

India emerged as Sri Lanka’s second-largest export destination during the January–October period, with exports rising 19.31% to $866.9 million, driven by petroleum oils, animal feed and vegetable fats. Exports to the EU, which account for 24% of Sri Lanka’s merchandise exports, rose by 14.43% in October and 12.56% over the 10-month period.

Confident Outlook

The EDB maintains confidence that Sri Lanka is on track to meet its $19 billion export target for 2025. Projections indicate merchandise exports will reach $14 billion, while services exports are expected to expand to $4.2 billion, aligning with the country’s five-year plan to boost export earnings to $36 billion by 2030.

Police officers at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) in Katunayake have taken three individuals into custody after uncovering a substantial quantity of foreign-made cigarettes valued at approximately Rs. 17.85 million.The suspects, all businessmen from Aluthgama, Yatiyanthota, and Mawanella, had flown into the country from Dubai. A detailed inspection of their baggage revealed 595 cartons holding a total of 119,000 cigarette sticks.

Following their arrest, the trio was presented before the Negombo Magistrate’s Court, where each was imposed a fine of Rs. 30,000.

India’s Chief of Army Staff, General Upendra Dwivedi, will arrive in Sri Lanka on December 1 for a two-day official visit that comes at a decisive geopolitical moment for the island—one in which Colombo is simultaneously deepening defence ties with the United States, expanding commercial cooperation with China, and attempting to maintain strategic balance in a competitive Indo-Pacific landscape.

The Indian Army described the visit as a reaffirmation of New Delhi’s Neighbourhood First policy, signalling greater commitment to stability, capability-building, and military cooperation with Sri Lanka. But the timing also reflects India’s strategic urgency as the island strengthens multiple foreign partnerships that could reshape regional influence networks.

A Visit Driven by Regional Power Calculus

Military officials in New Delhi say General Dwivedi’s mission goes beyond ceremonial goodwill. His agenda includes reviewing bilateral defence cooperation, assessing Sri Lanka’s evolving security requirements, and expanding Army-to-Army collaboration through training, joint exercises, and intelligence-sharing.

 These initiatives are part of India’s broader goal of countering growing strategic competition, particularly China’s expanding footprint along the Indian Ocean littoral.

Sri Lanka’s position along critical maritime routes makes its partnerships central to India’s security doctrine. The Indian Ocean Region (IOR) has become the arena of a widening geopolitical contest, with major powers positioning themselves for influence.

 General Dwivedi is expected to discuss defence technology transfers, joint maritime surveillance, and ways to tighten cooperation against transnational threats such as illegal fishing, smuggling networks, and grey-zone maritime activities.

US Defence Pact Adds another Layer of Complexity

The visit comes months after Colombo entered a new defence pact with the United States under the State Partnership Program (SPP), marking the most significant upgrade in US–Sri Lanka military cooperation in recent years.

Washington sees Sri Lanka as a strategic node in its Indo-Pacific security architecture, and the pact includes joint training, disaster-response support, improved maritime domain awareness, and logistical coordination.

For India, a long-standing US strategic partner, the pact is not necessarily a threat but it signals that Washington is moving to deepen its presence in Sri Lanka at a time when New Delhi wants to maintain primacy in its immediate neighbourhood.

China’s Expanding Commercial Grip Raises Alarm in New Delhi

Adding to the complexity is Sri Lanka’s renewed push to strengthen commercial ties with China, including fresh investments linked to the Hambantota Port, logistics hubs, and industrial zones. While Colombo frames these partnerships as economic necessities, New Delhi views China’s expanding commercial and infrastructure presence as dual-use assets that could potentially shift regional power equations.

Balancing Act for Colombo

General Dwivedi’s visit seeks to ensure that India remains Sri Lanka’s closest and most dependable defence partner amid growing competition from Washington and Beijing. For Colombo, the challenge remains navigating tight geopolitical corridors leveraging partnerships for economic recovery and security modernisation while avoiding entanglement in great-power rivalry.

Prime Minister and Minister of Education Harini Amarasuriya told Parliament today that the government will gradually increase education spending to 6 per cent of the GDP, in line with the commitment made in the NPP election manifesto.

She noted that while the pledge remains firm, the government had not promised to achieve the 6 per cent target within its first year in office. “We will fulfil this commitment over time,” she said.

Responding to comments from SJB MP Rohini Wijeratne, the Prime Minister acknowledged that she and others had protested while in the opposition to push the former administration to allocate 6 per cent of GDP for education. However, she clarified that their demand was never for an immediate implementation but for a structured and sustainable increase.

Her remarks were made during a parliamentary exchange where the fulfilment of education funding promises was brought into focus.

Capital Metals PLC is entering a decisive phase as it moves toward the Final Investment Decision (FID) on its flagship Taprobane Minerals Projectan exceptionally high-grade mineral sands venture.

It is poised to become one of Sri Lanka’s most economically significant resource developments. Executive Chairman Greg Martyr said describing the deposit as “one of the highest-grade undeveloped mineral sands projects in the world,” with construction expected to begin in early 2026 following regulatory approvals targeted by the end of 2025.

The Taprobane Minerals Project, formerly known as the Eastern Minerals Project, is located on Sri Lanka’s eastern coastline in the Ampara District, Eastern Province.

The deposit stretches along a coastal belt close to the towns of Pottuvil and Akkaraipattu, placing it near key road networks and export-friendly deep-water ports. This strategic positioning adds commercial value while improving the logistics of future production.

At the heart of the project’s appeal is its exceptional resource quality. The company’s latest assessments show an average grade of 17.2% total heavy mineral content, more than three times the global industry average of below 5%.

Capital Metals discards anything under 5% material that most global operators treat as ore underscoring its geological advantage.

 Recent drilling has uncovered zones with grades reaching 60%, while exploration success to the west has tripled the initial mining area, supporting plans to reduce the cutoff grade from 5% to 2%. This will significantly expand the mineable resource while maintaining its high commercial value.

The project targets four key commodities ilmenite, rutile, zircon and garnet widely used in paints, ceramics, inks and industrial applications.

Extraction involves simple surface mining with no blasting, chemicals or deep excavation. Sand is mixed with water, processed through gravity-based spiral plants and immediately rehabilitated, allowing the land to be restored almost instantly.

This low-impact profile supports the global shift toward ESG-aligned mining practices.Capital Metals’ phased development strategy keeps upfront capital low. An initial US$25 million investment is expected to generate US$35–40 million in annual revenue at sub-US$20 million operating costs.

The total project requires US$80 million, and despite higher taxes and royalties introduced in Sri Lanka, updated modelling shows a strong NPV of US$180 million.

Local partnerships are central to navigating regulatory complexities. Ambeon Capital’s US$4 million investment for a 20% stake has strengthened the company’s domestic presence, supported by board member and former Sri Lankan cricket Vice captain Aravinda de Silva, now an influential investment professional.

The firm currently holds the only mineral-sands mining licence in the country and awaits two further approvals licence expansion and export clearance.

The project’s potential and favourable economics were highlighted at a recent promotional event hosted by the Sri Lankan High Commission in London.

Officials emphasised improving macroeconomic indicators, policy reforms and an upcoming Investment Protection Act aimed at strengthening investor confidence.

With first production targeted for early 2027, Capital Metals argues that the Taprobane project represents a rare opportunity: a high-grade, low-cost, strategically located mineral asset trading at a market value well below its economic potential.

An uncounted number of extra people have died from AIDS and 2.5 million have lost access to antiretroviral medicine to block the spread of HIV because of cuts to global programs since Donald Trump returned to the White House, the UN body fighting AIDS says.

“Persistent funding shortfalls and the perilous risks facing the global HIV response are having profound, lasting effects on the health and wellbeing of millions of people throughout the world,” the UNAIDS agency said on Tuesday in a report titled “Overcoming Disruption”.

The report, released ahead of World AIDS Day on December 1, said UNAIDS’s community partners had reported deaths of people living with HIV due to the closure of local clinics and treatment programs, although the exact number of additional deaths remained unclear as data collection was ongoing.

The global AIDS response community entered “crisis mode”, UNAIDS said, when its largest donor the United States, which accounted for 75 per cent of international HIV funding, temporarily halted all of its contributions earlier in the year.

The White House, asked for comment, rejected the assessment as “totally false” and said Mr Trump had a “humanitarian heart”.

“The Trump administration is simultaneously ensuring all programs funded by American taxpayers align with American interests, just as this president was elected to do,” White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said.

Other donor countries have also dramatically scaled back foreign aid programs this year, including European countries pressed by Mr Trump to ramp up spending on defence instead.

Though some HIV programs have since resumed with funds from a US program known as PEPFAR — the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief — overall funding continues to decline, jeopardising 2030 targets to end AIDS as a public health threat, the agency said.

UNAIDS executive director Winnie Byanyima said her agency was working with at least 30 countries to improve domestic financing to move away from dependency on international donors.

But she said the funding gap could not be closed immediately, and major challenges remained.

UNAIDS says 40.8 million people globally are living with HIV, with 1.3 million new infections reported in 2024.Prevention services ‘devastated’
Between 2010 and 2024, annual AIDS-related deaths have fallen by 54 per cent to 630,000, and new infections have also dropped by 40 per cent.But maintaining that progress has been put in peril by funding cuts which have “devastated” prevention services, the report found.

It was estimated that 2.5 million people had lost access to the PrEP preventive HIV medication as of October 2025 due to donor funding cuts.

Ms Byanyima said the distribution of preventive HIV medicines had fallen by 31 per cent in Uganda, 21 per cent in Vietnam and 64 per cent in Burundi.In Nigeria, the distribution of condoms fell by 55 per cent from December last year to March this year.

A survey conducted earlier this year by UNAIDS and women’s rights group the ATHENA Network found that nearly half of women and adolescent girls reported disruptions to HIV prevention and treatment services in their communities.

“Behind every data point in this report are people — babies and children missed for HIV screening or early HIV diagnosis, young women cut off from prevention support, and communities suddenly left without services and care,” Ms Byanyima said.

“We cannot abandon them. We must overcome this disruption and transform the AIDS response.”

( Source : adaderana.lk)