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Following the successful first manned space flight by Yuri Gagarin on the 12th of April, 1961, earning the title of ‘First Cosmonaut’, he made his first visit to Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) a mere 8 months later on the 7th of December 1961. The year 2021 marks 60 years since this historic moment and the Russian House in Colombo jointly with the Sri Lanka Russia Friendship Society have organized a special Stamp and Photographic Exhibition to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of Yuri Gagarin’s Space Flight and Visit to Ceylon on the 6th, 7th and 8th of April, 2021, comprising over a thousand rare and original post stamps on the first manned space mission and space exploration which will be on display for the general public at the Russian House in Colombo.

The inauguration ceremony of the event will be held on the 6th of April, 2021 at the Russian House in Colombo with the presence of Dr. Seetha Arambepola, M. P., State Minister of Skills Development Vocational Education, Research and Innovation as the Chief Guest, Susil Premajayantha M. P., State Minister of Education Reforms, Open Universities and Distance Learning Promotion and President of the Sri Lanka Russia Friendship Society, Yuri Materiy, the Ambassador of the Russian Federation, and Dr. Saman Weerasinghe, Advisor to the Prime Minister of Sri Lanka and General Secretary of the Sri Lanka Russia Friendship Society.

The stamp exhibition part of the event has been organized in collaboration with Anura Samarawea, Philatelic Expert and Assistant Treasurer of the Philatelic Society of Sri Lanka. He is also a member of the International Association of Philatelic Journalists. He has been maintaining his ties with the Russian House in Colombo since younger days where he was a member of the Soviet Cultural House in the year 1973 while being the guitarist of the first musical group of the Soviet Cultural House.

In addition to the stamp exhibition, there will also be a photo exhibition pertaining to Yuri Gagarin’s Spaceflight and Visit to Ceylon.

These material were obtained from the Russian House archives as well as with the assistance of the Department of National Archives.

Adding more colour to the event, a special guest will be present to share her experience as ‘the girl who was chosen to garland Gagarin’ in 1961; Magilin Nona, a local hero of the country who is a living witness of that glorious day.

We invite all enthusiasts to join us in celebrating this momentous occasion as we will open the exhibition for the public from 10.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. on the 7th and 8th of April, 2021 to walk through this unique experience.

Sri Lanka has amended the list of designated persons published in the Gazette Extraordinary No.1992/25 of November 9, 2016.

Twenty-four Tamils have been deported from Germany to Sri Lanka. Citing the danger returnees face, a refugee support organization and a Catholic priest condemned the action. According to Germany's federal police, a flight with 24 Tamils took off from Düsseldorf airport on Tuesday (March 30) evening. On board were 24 Tamils, who were brought to the airport from a deportation detention center in Büren in the German state of North-Rhine Westphalia (NRW).

German public broadcaster Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR) reported on Tuesday that the affected persons lived and worked across NRW, Germany's most populous state.

According to WDR, some 50 people gathered at the airport with posters to demand a stop to the deportation. On Sunday, nearly 200 people had already protested against the measure in front of the deportation detention center in Büren, WDR reported. 'Deteriorating situation' in Sri Lanka

"Deportations to Sri Lanka were all but banned in recent years for good reasons," Birgit Naujok, managing director of the refugee council of NRW, said in an online statement.

It was inhumane to return the Tamils there, she said, especially since people with Tamil roots were subject to human rights violations in Sri Lanka.

Last week, the Human Rights Council of the United Nations (UN) confirmed this view. In a resolution, it spoke of a "deteriorating situation" in Sri Lanka and criticized "the erosion of judicial independence, marginalisation of minorities and impunity."

It further called on the Sri Lankan government to change the "law on the prevention of terrorism," which rights groups say the government uses "as a weapon targeting dissidents and minorities".

On March 23, the UN council announced it would "collect and preserve information and evidence of crimes related to Sri Lanka's 37-year long civil war".

The civil war between the government and the insurgent Tamils ended in 2009. According to the UN report, the government committed several war crimes, including against its own citizens. They have not been dealt with sufficiently though, the UN said. Letter to Seehofer

Albert Koolen, a Catholic priest from Krefeld, also in NRW, has spoken out against the deportation last week. In an open letter to German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, he called the deportation flight a "fatal signal" and asked Seehofer to stop it. The deportees could face prison, torture and death, Koolen said.

Tamils are a ethnic minority in several Asian countries. In Sri Lanka, they make up around 15% of the population. There are more than 70 million Tamils globally. (Source: infomigrants.net)

The Attorney General (AG) has advised to appoint a five member committee for the administration of Sri Lanka Cricket until new officers are appointed from the next election.

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)  has agreed to provide USD 107 million for the development of the Sri Lanka's agriculture industry.

Sports and Youth Affairs Namal Rajapaksa said that steps will be taken to strengthen the sports economy by holding several tournaments such as LPL in conjunction with the tourism industry.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday said China is willing to work with Sri Lanka to enhance Belt and Road cooperation and contribute to the economic revival of Sri Lanka in the post-pandemic era. Xi made the remarks during a phone call with Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

Xi said China will continue to provide necessary assistance to Sri Lanka, conduct cooperation in areas including aviation and education and explore other potential cooperation areas.

Xi said China will never forget Sri Lanka's support for the restoration of China's lawful seat in the UN, and is willing to continue working with Sri Lanka to support each other on issues of mutual concern, safeguard each other's legitimate rights and promote global justice and fairness.

Rajapaksa congratulated China on the 100th founding anniversary of the Communist Party of China and spoke highly of China's achievements in fighting the pandemic and its economic recovery.

Rajapaksa said Sri Lanka hopes to learn from China's experience in poverty reduction and rural revitalization and is willing to expand cooperation in infrastructure construction, tourism and so on, so as to benefit Sri Lanka's economic development and its people.(CGTN)

The importation of a large stock of crude coconut oil with impurities has opened big can of worms following the denial of Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI) that it has not issued any directive to Sri Lanka Customs to release 13 substitute coconut oil containers now in detention.

Those who are responsible for the bond scam during the good governance administration will never be uncovered under the present government similar to how the masterminds behind the Easter Sunday attack and the mega sugar fraud can't be identified, popular social media activist and journalist Dharshana Handungoda said. He made this observation on the 'SL VLOG' YouTube programme referring to the political operation being executed against former Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake.

"This is just a drama that is being played to hide the real culprits. This government needs to dramatize events to cover up certain issues. That is why the bond scam saga has raised its head again," Dharshana Handungoda said.   He also alleged that the real masterminds behind the Central Bank bond scam are still at large.

Video: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=596361881321567&t=0

A prompt probe is to be initiated into the ilmenite sale deal carried out by Lanka Mineral Sands Limited, a wholly owned state-owned company. Prof. Charitha Herath, Chairman of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) requested the Secretary to the Ministry of Industries, Anusha Palpita, to immediately investigate and submit a report on the tender awarded by Lanka Mineral Sands Limited for the sale of ilmenite.

Investigations are to be instigated in to the action taken by this wholly owned state-owned company, for the sale of 85,000 metric tons of ilmenite at USD 147 per ton to the third-placed bidder instead of the buyer who had offered the highest price of USD 165 per ton of ilmenite.

Officials of Lanka Mineral Sands said the tender for the sale has been awarded by a tender subcommittee appointed by the Cabinet of Ministers and has been approved by the Cabinet.

The COPE members who drew their attention to this said it is observed that the officials of the Mineral Sands Institute have taken steps to mislead even the Cabinet of Ministers.

It was also revealed that the current price of a metric ton of ilmenite is close to USD 240. The committee focused its attention on the decline in sales in 2020 compared to the total sales in 2018 and 2019.

It was revealed that as a result of still storing the 85,000 metric tons of ilmenite sold to a buyer in October 2020 in the Pulmoddai deposit, the company is incurring losses due to minimizing the space available for the institution to store further minerals.

Officials of Lanka Mineral Sands Limited said that the deadline for the removal of the consignment has been extended due to the prevailing Covid situation.

It was revealed that payments had been made only for 65,000 metric tons from this stock and payment for another 20,000 metric tons is to be recovered.

Although the tenders were awarded by a subcommittee appointed by the Cabinet of Ministers, the Chairman stressed that in such cases, matters should be looked into more responsibly.

The COPE Chairman stated this at the Committee meeting held on the 23rd to review the performance of Lanka Mineral Sands Limited.

The committee also pointed out the importance of formulating a specific policy for the sale of mineral sands and instructed the Secretary to the Ministry to formulate a specific policy

The Sri Lanka Life Saving (SLLS) organisation held a graduation ceremony on March 27 for trainees who recently completed an intensive training conducted in partnership with the United States.

A blood donation drive will be held this Saturday (27), from 9.00 am to 3.00 pm at the Dharma Shastrodaya Piriven Viharaya in Piliyandala.