Rear Admiral (retd) Princely Liyanage has qualified for three Guinness World Records on a manual treadmill.

The Navy Headquarters has said in a media statement: “His monumental journey began on 20 Mar 26, and reached a triumphant milestone on 22 March, as he successfully completed 48 hours of continuous running. Guided by the Ministry of Defence, the Navy stepped in to ensure every essential facility was in place.

The veteran naval officer first surpassed his own previous world record of 94.30 km by clocking a remarkable distance of 100.36 km within the first 12-hour window. Continuing his relentless pace, he secured his second Guinness World Record qualification by outperforming the existing 24-hour mark of 188.13 km, covering an impressive total of 190.55 km within a single day.

Bringing immense pride to the Sri Lanka Navy and the motherland on the international stage, Rear Admiral Liyanage culminated his extraordinary effort by 10:00 am Sunday (22). By maintaining his momentum for a full 48 hours, he officially qualified for his third Guinness World Record with 316.7 km.

Additionally, alongside these Guinness World Records, three more records; including completing the fastest 100 kilometers in a non-mechanical walking machine in 11 hours, 57 minutes, and 18 seconds; completing 100 miles in 20 hours, 07 minutes, 42 seconds; and completing the fastest 300 kilometers in 44 hours, 40 minutes, 24 seconds have been established. These records are also proposed to be considered as Guinness World Records in the future.”

The Chairman of the Akurana Pradeshiya Sabha, I.M. Isthihar, has said that due to improper influence, obstructions, and difficulties caused by the Akurana Divisional Secretary, it decided to withdraw from the project to desilt the Pinga Oya.

During a special general meeting of the Pradeshiya Sabha held on 19 March on the desiltation of the Pinga Oya, which overflows, flooding the Akurana area, the Chairman made a special statement. He announced that the decision to withdraw from the project had been made unanimouslyl.

Expressing his views, the Chairman stated: “There have been long-standing and continuous discussions on the desiltation of the Pinga Oya to control flood.

“Accordingly, following a formal agreement reached in 2022 with the Akurana Divisional Secretariat and relevant sectors through a technical committee headed by the Kandy District Coordinating Committee and the Central Province Governor, we commenced the work. Based on that agreement, the Divisional Secretariat even provided us with machinery valued at approximately Rs. 3.4 million. We started the operations and even rented land at a monthly cost of Rs. 80,000. We have spent over Rs. 15 million on this cause. However, due to technical issues in execution, we took steps to call for bids and award tenders.

“All sectors were informed a month in advance, and advertisements were published. Following the calling of tenders on the 10th of last month, around 3:00 PM that day, the Akurana Divisional Secretary, Mrs. D.R.K. Hennayake, sent a letter through an office driver asking to immediately stop the tender process. Although the letter reached me on the 10th, the date on it was marked as the 2nd. It is astonishing that it took seven days for a letter to travel from Akurana to Alawatugoda. Given this situation, we immediately suspended the tender process.

“A project handed over to us by the Divisional Secretariat has now been stopped by the same office. We moved to call for tenders because this task cannot be completed using only the machinery we possess. Therefore, all 30 members of the council unanimously decided to cancel the existing agreement. It appears the Secretary is overstepping her boundaries and undermining the Pradeshiya Sabha. This will cause the greatest damage to the people of Akurana. It is a great injustice. We accepted this project at the request of the Divisional Secretariat, and now the Divisional Secretary herself claims it is illegal. If she has the authority, let her handle it; we have no issue. This project would have brought an economic benefit to the council. If Akurana town is submerged in floods in the future, we will have nothing to do with it.”

When inquired about this situation, the Akurana Divisional Secretary, D.R.K. Hennayake, stated that although an agreement had been reached with the Akurana Pradeshiya Sabha on the project in 2022, it was limited to a period of seven months. She added that the Pradeshiya Sabha had failed to take steps to renew the agreement thereafter. She said that if the agreement was to be renewed, the council must submit a project report to the Kandy District Coordinating Committee for approval. Due to the failure to meet several such conditions and the resulting issues, she had decided to stop the calling for tender bids for the Pinga Oya desiltation project. The Divisional Secretary further stated that the letter sent to the Chairman had been delayed due to unavoidable circumstances.

By S.K. Samaranayake

Bus fares have been increased by 12.19% with effect from midnight today [23rd March 2026].

The minimum fare will be increased from Rs 27 to Rs 30 while the maximum fare of Rs2159/- will be increased to 2422/-