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Lanka Indian Oil Company says that fuel prices will be increased with effect from midnight today (11), in line with the revision of CPC prices.
 
The Ministry of Finance had announced the increase in prices of two types of fuel by the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) with effect from midnight yesterday.   The price of a litre of 95 Octane Petrol was increased by Rs 2 while the price of Super Diesel was increased by Rs 1 per litre.
 
Lanka IOC said it would also increase the price of 95 Octane Petrol by Rs 2 and Euro 4 standard Super Diesel by Rs 1. Accordingly the new price of a litre of 95 Octane Petrol will be Rs 160 while the new price of Super Diesel is Rs 130. However, the prices of 92 Octane Petrol and Auto Diesel will remain unchanged, Lanka OIC said.

A strong earthquake with a magnitude of 6.2 hit Indonesia’s Lombok island on Thursday, causing some buildings to collapse, according to witnesses and the Southeast Asian nation’s meteorology and geophysics agency.

The latest quake was felt strongly on the island and followed a 6.9 quake on Sunday that killed at least 131 people and damaged thousands of houses.

A Reuters witness said the latest quake sent people into the streets in panic and caused buildings to collapse.
 
Source: Reuters

Speaker Karu Jayasuriya today announced that there will be no change in the post of the Opposition Leader. Making a special statement in parliament, the Speaker said in accordance with the continuing long-established parliamentary tradition, the leader of the party which is not a party of the government and holds a majority of members in opposition, has been accepted as the Leader of Opposition.

Accordingly, in the current 8th parliament of Sri Lanka, the leader of the Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) party, Member of Parliament Rajavarothiam Sampanthan has been accepted as the Opposition Leader of parliament by the Speaker on 03 September 2015.

"As such, I hereby declare that my final decision is as the Speaker of this august assembly, I cannot constitutionally or traditionally make a change in the post of Opposition Leader of Parliament," the Speaker said in his long statement.

A letter signed by eight United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) Members of Parliament requesting the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament post to be given to UPFA MP Dinesh Gunawardena was submitted to the Speaker on July 30 claiming that 70 members of parliament represent the UPFA and therefore the Opposition Leader post should be given to a UPFA parliamentarian.
 
Source : Colombo Page

The Mannar magistrates court has issued an interim order barring local and foreign media from Media barred from photographing and video recording at Mannar Mass Grave. Mannar Magistrate T.G Prabhakaran issued this order yesterday when permission was sought to conduct further investigations in to the skeletal remains found.

The order was issued as media entering the excavation site was hampering its progress. As a result media organizations will have to seek approval from the magistrate to photograph and record at the site going forward.

Minister of Finance and Mass Media and Information Mangala Samaraweera said the government's main policy is to systematically reduce the tax burden on the people and therefore a new amended Inland Revenue Act will be presented in the House soon.

Minister Mangala Samaraweera made this disclosure commencing the debate on the Value Added Tax (Amendment) Bill which was passed in Parliament yesterday.

The bill to amend the Value Added Tax Act, No. 14 of 2002 to exempt private hospital channelling services and several other selected items from VAT was presented by the Finance Minister on 17th of July, 2018.

Speaking at the debate, Minister Samaraweera said the Value Added Tax (Amendment) Act was presented considering the people's view to introducing amendments to the VAT on several important sectors.

The amendment will exempt VAT on private medical services, especially channelling services used by people, medical services, medical institutions and healthcare. VAT will be applied only for the room charges for residential treatment in private hospitals.

According to the amendments, infant milk powder, educational books and periodic publications, medical equipment, clinical equipment, child care services and eco-friendly renewable energy equipment have been exempted from the VAT.

He said implementing the budget proposals system of refund of VAT for tourists will be introduced from September at the International Airport at Katunayake.

According to the Minister, the foreigners can claim for VAT refund up to 15 percent for items they purchase in Sri Lanka. This measure is to boost tourism in the country.

The Minister noted that income from tourism has risen to US$ 4 billion. "Minister of Tourism is planning a systematic program to increase the number of tourists visiting our country to 4 million by the year 2020 and through that to increase the earnings up to US$ 7 billion by 2020,� he said.

"Our main goal is to reduce indirect taxes and expand direct taxes. In January last year, there were only 48,850 income tax files with 21 million people living in the country. In this January it was able to open 336,671 tax files. As such, arrangements are being made to expand the direct tax. About 82% of the country's national income is from the VAT paid by the general public and indirect taxes," the Minister explained.

"The main policy of the government is to gradually reduce that burden in the future. Currently, 18 percent of direct taxes are received.

Indirect taxes amount to 82 percent. Our aim is to change this to 60 to 40 in the next two years. For this we implement a formal tax program. We introduced the new Inland Revenue Act. Several amendments to the new Act will be brought to Parliament during this month," Minister Samaraweera said.

"There was some problems for artists and to the savings account of children. We hope to correct these and some others and present the amended Act within August," the Minister further explained.

Explaining the tax imposed on vehicles under 1000 CC, the Minister said, a tax system based on the engine capacity was presented. Through the system it was possible to stop all the smuggling rackets.

In January the price of vehicles under 1000 CC was reduced by Rs. 800,000 allowing the average middle class to buy the first car. However, the last six months turned into a tsunami. From January to May 24,000 vehicles below 1,000 cc were imported. On one side even at midnight there was traffic congestion in Colombo. A more serious problem was we were losing foreign exchange to the point that the dollar would have been 167 rupees if the trend continued. We considered these when we decided to raise the taxes. Still the taxes are Rs. 400,000 lower than the taxes during the former regime," the Finance Minister told parliament.

He expressed confidence that the VAT could be reduced by 2.5 percent by 2020 with the streamlining of tax system in the country.
 
Source : Colombo Page

Veteran actor Indrajith Nawinna passed away at his residence in Nikaweratiya yesterday after a prolonged illness. He was 70 at the time of his death. Nawinna had contributed to many films as well as teledramas in the Sri Lankan entertainment industry.
 
 ‘Badde Gedara’, Ambu Daruwo’, ‘Wana Wadule Wasanthaya’ and ‘Katu Imbula’ are several well-known teledramas which the actor contributed to with his stellar acting. A father of three, Nawinna has acted in more than 30 films and 100 teledramas.
 
His remains currently lie at his residence at Jayanthi Mawatha, Nikaweratiya. Funeral will take place at the Balagollagama Public burial grounds on Friday, August 10 at 3 pm

The Indian government today informed the Indian supreme court that convicts of the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case cannot be released and that it rejects the proposal of the Tamil Nadu government requesting for their release. 

The solicitors appearing for the government said the release could set a dangerous precedent adding that the prisoners do not deserve to be set free. 

Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated on the night of May 21,  1991  at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu by a woman suicide bomber of the LTTE, identified as Dhanu, at a poll rally. Fourteen others, including Dhanu herself, were also killed in the explosion.

Arputhammal, the mother of the AG Perarivalan, one of the life convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, urged the Tamil Nadu government for the mercy killing of her son, after President Ram Nath Kovind rejected the state's plea for the release of the convicts.

Kovind rejected the Tamil Nadu government’s request to release the seven prisoners, including Perarivalan, in the Rajiv assassination case. The convicts are V. Sriharan alias Murugan, A.G. Perarivalan, T. Suthendraraja alias Santhan, Jayakumar, Robert Payas, Ravichandran and Nalini.

In its May 1999 order, the top court had upheld the death sentence of four convicts -- A G Perarivalan, Murugan, Santham and Nalini -- in the assassination case.

In April 2000, the Tamil Nadu governor had commuted the death sentence of Nalini on the basis of the state government's recommendation and an appeal by former Congress president and Rajiv Gandhi's widow Sonia Gandhi.

On February 18, 2014, the top court had commuted the death sentence of Perarivalan to life imprisonment, along with that of two other prisoners - Santhan and Murugan - on grounds of a delay of 11 years in deciding their mercy pleas by the Centre.

The apex court had in March this year dismissed a plea by Perarivalan seeking a recall of the May 1999 verdict upholding his conviction. The charge against Perarivalan was that he had purchased two nine volt battery cells meant for detonating the bomb.

Rajiv Gandhi became the youngest prime minister of India at 40, when he assumed office after his mother and former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was assassinated in 1984.

Source : Indian Media

Swiss Justice Minister Simonetta Sommaruga, concluding a four-day official visit to Sri Lanka, said that Switzerland will ensure that the nation’s newly formed Office of Missing Persons (OMP), as well as the Human Rights Commission, can conduct their work. 

During her visit, Sommaruga met President Maithripala Sirisena, as well as Government ministers, representatives of the national human rights commission, and several civil society organisations. 

TNA leader Rajavarothiam Sampanthan said that while the human rights situation in Sri Lanka has clearly improved since 2015, there are still problems and the population was “impatient” for progress. Sommaruga responded that this was “understandable”, but that “a new constitution, reconciliation, and democratisation takes time.” She added that with upcoming elections there comes a “risk that polarisation in Sri Lanka will increase again.”

On Monday, Sommaruga signed a memorandum of understanding in the capital Colombo with the Sri Lankan interior minister, Seneviratne Bandara Nawinne, solidifying their intention to facilitate and extend cooperation, according to the justice ministry. This agreement “also helps us address specific issues directly, so that we can remind the authorities and politicians of their responsibilities,” said the justice minister.

Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga is said to have been removed from the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP). During Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s tenure, she was appointed as the only Advisor to the party while after the appointment of the current President she was made a member of the Advisory Committee of the SLFP. 

While the committee was recently dissolved, Rajapaksa and Kumaratunge were appointed as advisors once again. Kumaratunga was also representing the Central Committee of the SLFP.

However, sources say she was not invited for the central committee meeting held on  August 8, while she claimed she only heard of it when several members inquired from her regarding the meeting. 

“Honestly I did not know of the meeting and neither did I receive an invite,” she said adding that several party members had inquired from her regarding the incident. “I am surprised and I think someone has said something untoward about me” she claimed.  
         

Finance and Media Minister Mangala Samaraweera urged the striking railways' employees to end the strike and come for discussions while strongly condemning the trade union action taken yesterday which severely inconvenienced the public. 
 
Minister of Finance said that the government strongly condemns the unannounced strike launched by the railway trade unions yesterday when the government has already appointed a special commission to revise the salaries of the state sector workers including the railway employees.
 
Arrangements have been made to deploy additional Sri Lanka Transport Board buses and also the Army has deployed their buses to transport the commuters. The train season ticket holders can ride the SLTB buses free the government announced. 
 
Permission was also given for the private bus owners to ply on any route disregarding route permissions and the cost of operating extra buses is set to be provided by the Finance Ministry. A special bus service by the Army was also launched to provide transportation to the students sitting for the GCE Advanced Level examination.
 
However, the unions have vowed to continue the strike action till their demands are met.

More corrupt practices of the Former Basnayake Nilame of the Kataragama Devalaya, D.P Kumarage whose services have been halted after being accused of financial corruption is now coming to light. 

According to sources, the Devalaya has been left in debt amounting to Rs. 16.8 million after he had taken a loan from a bank claiming it is for the Kataragama Devalaya Perahera during his tenure. Investigations have also revealed that he had made away with two vehicles belonging to the devalaya as well.  

An audit is ongoing regarding alleged corruption of Kumarage sources said with his services being temporarily halted till its conclusion.

The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) ship Qian Weichang arrived at the port of Colombo on a goodwill visit yesterday. The Sri Lanka Navy welcomed the ship in accordance with naval traditions.
 
Upon its arrival at the Colombo harbour, Senior Captain Dong Yan and Commanding Officer of the ship, Commander Zhang Juyong met the Commander Western Naval Area, Rear Admiral Nishantha Ulugetenne at the Western Naval Command Headquarters and held a cordial discussion on matters of mutual interest. Mementoes were also exchanged to mark this occasion. Senior Colonel Xu Jiawei, Military, Naval & Air Attaché of Embassy of China in Sri Lanka, was also present at the event.
 
During the four-day visit, the ship’s crew is expected to visit some of the places of tourist attraction in the island and take part in several events organized by the Sri Lanka Navy.
 
The 129m long and 17m wide vessel which has a displacement of 4,900 tons is manned by 158 officers and sailors. The Chinese ship is scheduled to set sail from the Colombo harbour on the 11th of this month.