News

The final rites of veteran singer Latha Walpola will be performed on the 31st of December at the Independence Square in Colombo, with full state sponsorship. 

The Ministry of Public Administration said a special discussion on funeral arrangements is scheduled to be held this evening. 

The remains of the late singer will be placed at a private funeral parlour in Borella from 3.00 p.m. today, allowing the public to pay their final respects. 

Latha Walpola, fondly remembered as one of the most iconic voices in Sri Lankan music, passed away last night while receiving treatment at the Sri Jayewardenepura Hospital.

She was 91 years old at the time of her demise and leaves behind a legacy of golden memories that shaped generations of Sri Lankan music lovers.

Recent newspaper reports have drawn attention to a proposed joint official committee involving Sri Lankan and Indian officials that is reportedly intended to oversee India’s US$450 million post-disaster reconstruction assistance to Sri Lanka. While these reports have generated significant public interest, the precise details and official confirmation of such a mechanism have yet to be formally disclosed to Parliament or communicated to the public.

According to print media accounts citing senior government sources, the reported joint committee would be responsible for determining reconstruction priorities, managing procurement under Indian concessional credit lines, and coordinating the deployment of Indian technical manpower.

The assistance package is said to cover key sectors including road and railway infrastructure, housing, health, education, agriculture, and the possible establishment of an Immediate Disaster Response Team.

However, at the time of writing, no official statement has been issued outlining the committee’s mandate, composition, legal basis, or reporting structure. Nor has Parliament been formally briefed on the operational framework under which such a committee would function, raising questions about transparency and oversight should the reported arrangement materialise.

The reported aid package comprises US$350 million in concessional lines of credit and US$100 million in grants. Its announcement was conveyed during a recent visit by India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, who arrived in Sri Lanka as a special envoy of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and met with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and other political leaders. While the assistance itself has been publicly acknowledged, the governance mechanisms for administering it remain unclear.

Media reports further suggest that the Indian High Commission would play a coordinating role in facilitating meetings and monitoring project progress, with Indian technical teams potentially assisting in sectors such as housing, railways, healthcare, and education. These claims, however, remain unverified through official channels.

The absence of confirmed information is notable, particularly given India’s own emphasis on parliamentary oversight in managing domestic and overseas credit lines. In India, sectoral oversight committees routinely review infrastructure projects, financial schemes, and public sector undertakings to ensure accountability and efficiency. Observers note that similar clarity would be essential in Sri Lanka if a joint mechanism is indeed established.

Until formal confirmation is provided, the reported joint committee remains a matter of public speculation rather than established policy. Nonetheless, the issue underscores the importance of timely disclosure, parliamentary engagement, and public communication when large-scale foreign-funded reconstruction initiatives are contemplated. In the absence of such transparency, even well-intentioned assistance risks becoming a subject of uncertainty and debate.

The Cabinet’s approval to set up seven new Industry Consultancy Committees reflects a broader shift towards sector-specific policymaking, addressing long-standing gaps that have limited the growth potential of several niche but economically significant industries.

Rather than focusing solely on post-crisis recovery, the initiative aims to correct structural weaknesses that have persisted for years.

Sri Lanka already operates 20 Consultancy Boards across major production industries, but many traditional, creative and service-oriented sectors have remained outside formal advisory frameworks.

Industries such as indigenous medicine, creative crafts, confectionery production and event management often fall between multiple ministries, resulting in fragmented regulation, unclear standards and weak institutional support.

By introducing dedicated committees for these sectors, the Government is attempting to streamline policy coordination and give industry stakeholders a clearer voice. The inclusion of representatives from State agencies, commercial boards, universities and research institutions is particularly significant, as it opens the door for innovation-driven policy rather than reactive regulation.

For example, the indigenous medicine sector has strong export potential but faces challenges related to quality assurance, intellectual property protection and sustainable sourcing of raw materials. A focused consultancy committee can help align health regulations, export standards and research funding, reducing uncertainty for producers and investors alike.

Similarly, the event management sector severely disrupted during recent economic downturns has lacked formal recognition as an industry. This has limited access to finance, training and social security mechanisms. A dedicated advisory body can help define industry standards, professional certification pathways and targeted incentives, supporting long-term formalisation and growth.

Another critical advantage of sector-specific committees is their ability to track emerging market trends. Creative craft industries and confectionery producers, for instance, are increasingly influenced by changing consumer preferences, sustainability requirements and digital marketing channels. Regular consultation with policymakers can ensure that regulations and support schemes evolve in step with these trends rather than lag behind them.

The Cabinet Spokesman Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa has emphasised evidence-based policymaking as a key objective. If implemented effectively, the committees could serve as early-warning systems, identifying bottlenecks before they escalate into sector-wide crises.

This proactive approach is especially important in a volatile economic environment where policy misalignment can quickly erode competitiveness.

Nevertheless, expectations must be managed. Consultancy committees are advisory by nature, and their success will depend on political will, administrative follow-through and transparency. Clear reporting mechanisms and timelines for acting on recommendations will be essential to avoid these bodies becoming symbolic rather than transformative.

Overall, the expansion of the consultancy framework signals recognition that diverse industries require tailored solutions. By closing policy gaps and improving coordination, the new committees have the potential to strengthen industrial governance and support more balanced, inclusive economic growth.

As Sri Lanka reels from the devastating impacts of recent cyclones and floods, the government has announced a bold initiative aimed at revitalizing the agricultural sector and safeguarding rural livelihoods. At a Cabinet meeting on Monday, ministers approved the launch of the “Sustainable Agriculture Program,” a concessional loan scheme set to begin next year, designed to strengthen agriculture’s contribution to national economic growth while promoting sustainability.

The program will operate through Participatory Finance Institutions, leveraging a revolving fund established under the ongoing Smallholder Agribusiness Partnerships Program. This fund, supported by both government resources and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), will ensure that all recoveries from loans are reinvested exclusively into agricultural financing. Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa emphasized that this mechanism aims to guarantee long-term continuity of concessional support for farmers.

In 2026, the government plans to allocate Rs. 800 million from the Sustainable Agricultural Fund to implement the scheme. Loans will be offered under two categories: individual and bulk loans. Individual loans, up to Rs. 5 million, will be accessible via agricultural and Samurdhi banks with a five-year repayment period and a 2% effective interest rate, including grace periods for working capital and joint ventures. Bulk loans, capped at Rs. 500,000 per beneficiary, will also carry a 2% interest rate with a three-year repayment period.

The program is structured to cover the entire agricultural value chain, including cultivation, processing, value addition, input supply, crop procurement, facilitation, production, and exports. This comprehensive coverage reflects the government’s strategy to boost productivity, enhance incomes, and drive value addition while supporting rural resilience in post-disaster recovery.

Analysts note that the use of a revolving fund model could enhance the program’s sustainability, allowing future borrowers to benefit from recovered credit. By integrating concessional loans with targeted support for disaster-affected areas, the government signals a commitment to balancing economic growth with rural welfare and environmental sustainability.

However, the initiative’s success will hinge on effective fund management, rigorous monitoring, and outreach to smallholder farmers who have been disproportionately affected by recent climate shocks. As the agricultural sector adapts to increasingly unpredictable weather, such programs could become vital tools in safeguarding food security and rural economic stability.

Sri Lanka’s decision to lift the vehicle import ban in early 2025 under the new NPP government was widely presented as a pragmatic fiscal move a fast way to raise revenue without imposing politically sensitive direct taxes.

While the policy undeniably delivered a short-term windfall, a closer examination suggests the strategy may have shifted economic risk rather than resolved it, raising questions about sustainability, equity, and long-term macroeconomic management.

The government entered 2025 under intense pressure to meet IMF revenue targets, stabilize public finances, and restore economic normalcy after years of crisis.

 Vehicle imports offered a tempting solution: high excise duties, import tariffs, VAT, and para-tariffs ensured that every dollar spent on vehicles yielded significant rupee revenue.

 Within months, tax collections from vehicle imports surged to unprecedented levels, helping authorities exceed revenue benchmarks and improve headline fiscal indicators.

However, this approach relied on one-off demand rather than recurring economic activity. Pent-up demand from nearly five years of suppressed imports created an artificial boom, pulling future consumption into a narrow time window.

By the second half of 2025, registration data clearly showed the momentum fading a predictable outcome once early buyers exited the market and affordability constraints re-emerged.

The Central Bank’s response highlighted the underlying fragility of the strategy. As foreign exchange demand surged, authorities moved swiftly to tighten lending standards, notably by reducing loan-to-value (LTV) ratios and maintaining high interest rates on vehicle financing.

These actions, while necessary to protect reserves, effectively throttled demand, causing sales to slow sharply across SUVs, hybrids, and electric vehicles by late 2025. The result was a policy contradiction: imports were opened to raise revenue, only to be constrained months later to protect macroeconomic stability.

From a foreign exchange perspective, the risks are more pronounced. Vehicle imports are consumption-oriented and generate no direct export earnings. Every dollar spent represents a permanent outflow, unlike capital goods that expand productive capacity.

While tax revenue boosted rupee inflows to the Treasury, it did little to strengthen the external account. Critics argue that the policy effectively monetized foreign reserves converting scarce dollars into temporary fiscal relief.

Social equity concerns have also emerged. Vehicle taxes are highly regressive in effect: only higher-income households or businesses can afford new or imported vehicles, yet the macroeconomic consequences tighter credit, higher interest rates, and potential currency pressure are borne by the broader population.

 Meanwhile, public transport investment and domestic vehicle assembly received comparatively limited policy attention.

Looking ahead to 2026, the limits of this strategy are becoming clearer. With pent-up demand largely exhausted, revenue from vehicle imports is expected to decline sharply.

Without structural tax reforms, export growth, or productivity-enhancing investment, the fiscal gap could re-open, forcing the government back to politically difficult choices.

In hindsight, lifting the vehicle import ban may have been a useful stopgap, but not a substitute for long-term economic reform. The experience underscores a familiar lesson in Sri Lanka’s economic history: short-term fixes can buy time, but they rarely buy stability.

Sri Lanka has secured $206 million in emergency financing from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) through its Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI), as the country reels from the devastating impact of Cyclone Ditwah. The government has formally assured the IMF that it will preserve fiscal discipline and maintain an open trade and payments regime, even as economic shocks threaten to undermine a fragile recovery.

The cyclone has caused widespread destruction across the country. According to the World Bank, initial damages are estimated at $4.1 billion, while the International Labour Organisation (ILO) places the broader economic impact at $16 billion. The IMF has forecast that Sri Lanka’s balance of payments deficit will widen by around $700 million, highlighting the urgent need for liquidity support.

In a Letter of Intent (LOI) dated 10 December, co-signed by President and Finance Minister Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Central Bank Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe, the government detailed its immediate response, the scale of fiscal needs, and its commitments under the IMF’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF). The LOI emphasized fiscal prudence, stressing that recovery and reconstruction will be funded primarily through spending reprioritization, reallocation of budget allocations, and contingency funds. The government noted that a supplementary budget in 2026 would only be considered if absolutely necessary.

The LOI further pledged full compliance with the Public Finance Management Act and international transparency standards, ensuring emergency spending is accountable and legally sanctioned. On monetary policy, the Central Bank reaffirmed its commitment to avoid financing the deficit through money creation, in line with IMF-supported reforms, and requested an expedited update to the Safeguards Assessment.

The government also assured the IMF that it will maintain an open external payments system. It committed not to introduce new restrictions on international transactions, trade, or currency practices, in line with Article VIII of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, a measure crucial to restoring investor confidence and stabilizing foreign reserves.

While the RFI provides immediate liquidity, analysts warn that Sri Lanka’s fiscal resilience will be severely tested. The combination of disaster recovery needs and existing economic vulnerabilities could strain the government’s ability to maintain reform momentum, safeguard price stability, and protect the banking sector.

The Fifth Review under the EFF is expected early next year. Despite the challenges, the government reaffirmed its commitment to structural reforms, debt sustainability, financial sector stability, governance improvements, and growth-oriented initiatives, signaling to international partners that long-term economic stabilization remains a priority even amidst crisis.

Former minister Douglas Devananda has been remanded until January 9.

This was after he was produced before the Gampaha Magistrate's Court.

The former minister was arrested the day before yesterday when he appeared before the Criminal Investigation Department to give a statement regarding an incident in which he allegedly handed over an Army-issued firearm to organized criminal known, Makandure Madush.

The Criminal Investigation Department yesterday took steps to detain and question the arrested former Minister for 72 hours.

The police said that the detentions were obtained under the provisions of the Prevention of Terrorism Act.

The police said that investigations are ongoing regarding 20 firearms issued to former Minister Douglas Devananda.

Among them are fifteen T-56 firearms and five 9 mm firearms.

Investigations are currently underway regarding over 1500 T-56 bullets and over 100 9mm bullets issued to the former minister.

Investigations are underway under the direction of the Criminal Investigation Department.

The police also stated that it has been revealed that the firearms were issued to former Minister Douglas Devananda in 2001. Based on information provided by notorious organized criminal Makandure Madush, a pistol—which was among several firearms issued to Douglas Devananda by the Army in 2001—was discovered near a culvert in Weliweriya in 2019.

Douglas Devananda was arrested following an extensive investigation conducted by the Homicide Investigation Unit of the CID regarding this matter.

Sri Lanka’s economy faces one of its severest tests in recent memory following the destructive path of Cyclone Ditwah, prompting the government to secure $206 million in emergency financing from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The disaster has inflicted widespread economic losses, with the World Bank estimating initial damages at $4.1 billion and the International Labour Organisation placing the total impact at $16 billion. The IMF projects the country’s balance of payments deficit could widen by $700 million, underscoring the magnitude of the challenge.

In a Letter of Intent (LOI) submitted to the IMF, President and Finance Minister Anura Kumara Dissanayake and Central Bank Governor Dr. Nandalal Weerasinghe outlined the government’s immediate fiscal strategy.

The authorities emphasized that emergency reconstruction will be funded primarily through budget reallocations and contingency reserves, and that any supplementary budget in 2026 will strictly comply with transparency and public finance regulations.

The LOI reaffirmed Sri Lanka’s ongoing commitments under the IMF’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF), particularly the Central Bank’s pledge not to finance fiscal deficits through money creation.

The government also guaranteed an open external payments system, pledging to avoid new restrictions on international trade or currency flows a key condition for maintaining investor confidence and external stability.

Analysts caution that while the IMF’s Rapid Financing Instrument provides urgent liquidity, Sri Lanka’s fiscal and economic resilience will be tested in the months ahead.

The government must balance the immediate demands of disaster recovery with long-term commitments to structural reforms, debt sustainability, and financial sector stability. Any misstep could exacerbate inflationary pressures, further weaken reserves, and undermine growth.

The Fifth Review under the EFF is scheduled to begin early next year, a critical juncture for assessing whether Sri Lanka is on track to meet reform targets.

The government has reaffirmed its commitment to structural reforms, improved governance, and growth-oriented policies, signaling an intention to continue pursuing fiscal discipline despite the economic shock.

This emergency financing and reform engagement highlight both the international community’s confidence in Sri Lanka’s policy framework and the precarious balance the country must maintain.

As recovery efforts unfold, the effectiveness of budget reprioritization, adherence to fiscal rules, and timely implementation of reforms will determine whether Sri Lanka can navigate the dual crises of natural disaster and economic vulnerability.

Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa on Sunday donated medical equipment worth Rs. 4.65 million to the Mahiyanganaya Base Hospital in the Badulla District under the Samagi Jana Balawegaya’s “Husma” programme.

The donation included a Dialog+ single-pump hemodialysis machine valued at Rs. 3.8 million and a Bluedot RO System 600Gpd water purification unit worth Rs. 760,000. The equipment was provided to strengthen treatment facilities for kidney patients at the hospital.

Addressing the event, Premadasa said access to quality healthcare is a fundamental right and stressed the need to ensure essential medical services are available to patients in regional hospitals.

The Sri Lanka Working Journalists’ Association strongly condemns the government’s attempt to suppress freedom of expression and press freedom through police action, including the unlawful summoning of journalist Tharindu Jayawardena to the Gampola Police Station in connection with his journalistic work, and the request made by the Sri Lanka Police to the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) to cancel the broadcasting licence of the Hiru Media Network.

The police have instructed journalist Tharindu Jayawardena to appear at the Gampola Police Station at 11:00 a.m. on 26 December 2025 to provide a statement in relation to a complaint arising from his investigative reporting that exposed multiple instances of fraud and corruption connected to the Ambuluwawa Biodiversity Complex and its affiliated institutions. In a separate incident, the Hiru Media Network broadcast a news report on a cannabis raid, which revealed an alleged assault on a police officer involved in the operation, as well as reported links between the ownership of the cannabis plantation and parties connected to the National People’s Power (NPP) government. Claiming that the report constituted misinformation, the police have requested the TRCSL to revoke the broadcasting licence of the Hiru Media Network.

In both instances, it is evident that the police have intervened in the independent and lawful journalistic activities of both the journalist and the media institution with the intention of carrying out unlawful repression. If inaccurate reporting has occurred, there exist recognized professional standards, regulatory procedures, and legal mechanisms to address such matters. Instead, the government appears to be using the police to target journalists and media organizations that refuse to submit to political pressure.

These actions form part of a broader pattern of repression during the past 15 months of the NPP government, marked by increasing restrictions on media freedom and the constitutional right to freedom of speech and expression. The Sri Lanka Working Journalists’ Association expresses deep concern that the government, which came to power appearing to safeguard press freedom, is in fact a wolf in sheep’s clothing, demonstrating clear authoritarian tendencies.

We urge the government to refrain from these shameless attempts to enforce media repression through the expansion of a police-state approach, and instead to create an environment that genuinely protects press freedom, editorial independence, and journalistic ethics in Sri Lanka. Furthermore, we call upon all individuals and organizations who value freedom of expression to stand together against the growing pressure imposed on media freedom in Sri Lanka through repressive laws and state interference.