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Saudi Embassy marks World Arabic Language Day in Colombo

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Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment Arun Hemachandra with top officials of the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia at the World Arabic Language Day at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo on Wednesday

The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia hosted a ceremony to celebrate World Arabic Language Day at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo on Wednesday (18). The event was attended by a distinguished group of dignitaries, including Arun Hemachandra, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment, who served as the Guest of Honour. Also present were senior government officials, including representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Heads of Diplomatic Missions, Islamic leaders, and media personnel.

During the ceremony, Deputy Head of Mission and Minister Plenipotentiary, Abdul-Elah Orkobi, delivered a speech highlighting the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s long-standing commitment to promoting the Arabic language. He traced the Kingdom’s dedication to Arabic from the era of its founder, King Abdulaziz Al Saud, to the current reign of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. Orkobi emphasized Saudi Arabia’s efforts to spread Arabic both within the Kingdom and globally, through the establishment of universities, institutes, and initiatives like the King Salman Global Academy for Arabic Language, aimed at preserving and empowering classical Arabic.

In addition, Dr. Razik Abdul Majeed, Head of the Department of Arabic at South Eastern University of Sri Lanka, and Professor Mohamed Saleem, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies, University of Peradeniya, also addressed the audience, underscoring the cultural and academic significance of Arabic language education.



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G.C.E. Advanced Level Examination will resume on 12th January 2026

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The Ministry of Education has announced that the .postponed subjects of the G.C.E. Advanced Level Examination will be conducted from 12 – 20   January 2026,

 

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The aim of the Government is to ensure a safe life for every citizen -President

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President Anura Kumara Dissanayake stressed that the aim of the Government is to ensure a safe life for every citizen and that it is everyone’s responsibility to act with proper supervision during the resettlement of the people.

The President instructed the relevant sectors to complete all necessary repairs before 31 December by utilising the allocations given by the Government for infrastructure development for this year and not to return any part of those allocations under any circumstances.

The President said that there is no shortage of funds required for relief to the people and for restoring normal life and that what is necessary in this emergency situation is for all institutions to fulfil their responsibilities through proper coordination without limitations.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake made these remarks while participating on Monday (08) afternoon at the District Coordinating Committee meeting held at the Uva Province Library Auditoriam to review the programme being carried out to restore normalcy in the lives of the affected people in the Badulla District and to develop essential infrastructure. Due to the disaster situation, 64,140 individuals belonging to 19,133 families in the Badulla District have been affected. A total of 418 houses have been completely damaged and 7,703 houses have been partially damaged.

The President inquired separately into the programmes being carried out to restore essential infrastructure such as repairing damaged roads, electricity, water supply, communication, irrigation, restarting agriculture, the livestock sector, inland fisheries and restoring the health and education sectors, among others.

The President pointed out the need to carry out all road repairs simultaneously without dividing them as roads under the Road Development Authority, provincial roads, or local authority roads. He informed officials that if the funds allocated for this purpose are insufficient, they should request the required additional allocations.

The President also instructed that an estimate be prepared and submitted for all roads in the district requiring permanent repairs and noted that funds can be provided to commence this work by January.

Officials stated that, 90% of the district’s damaged electricity supply due to the disaster situation has already been restored and the remaining supply is also being restored swiftly. They further pointed out that steps have been taken to ensure the district’s water supply is provided as required.

The reopening of schools was also discussed and the President instructed that the Government’s allowance of Rs. 15,000 granted to affected schoolchildren be paid promptly through the intervention of Divisional Secretaries.

Due to the disaster situation, 6,711 acres of agricultural land in the Badulla District have been damaged. The President instructed that the relevant farmers and the extent of damaged land be identified, compensation be provided swiftly and they be directed back into cultivation.

He further instructed officials of the Irrigation Department to provide water to agricultural lands at least temporarily, so that the farmers will be able to harvest the Maha season. The President stated that the allowance of Rs. 25,000 provided for the cleansing and restoration of damaged temples and religious sites will be granted through the Department of Cultural Affairs and that a Cabinet decision regarding this matter is expected this week.

Lengthy discussions were held on providing compensation to destroyed and damaged houses and on the resettlement of the affected people. The President also highlighted the need to implement programmes aimed at improving the mental health of people living in camps.

President Dissanayake expressed his gratitude to the Tri-forces, Government officials and the public who are working with immense dedication in all these activities.

Participating in this occasion were the Chairman of the Badulla District Coordinating Committee and Minister of Agriculture and Rural Infrastructure, Samantha Vidyaratne; Chairman of the Badulla District Coordinating Committee and Governor of Uva Province, Attorney-at-Law Kapila Jayasekara; Deputy Minister of Trade, Commerce and Food Security, R. M. Jayawardena; Deputy Minister of Power and Energy, Arkam Iliyas; Deputy Minister of Youth Affairs, H. M. Dinindu Sampath Hennayake; Deputy Minister of Tourism, Professor Ruwan Ranasinghe; Members of Parliament Sarath Kumara, Ravindra Bandara, Sudath Balagalla, Kittnan Selvaraj, Ambika Samuel, Ajantha Gammaddege and Chamara Sampath Dasanayake, along with other ruling and opposition MPs; Chief Secretary of Uva Province, Ms. Anusha Gokula and representatives of Provincial Councils; Secretary to the Ministry of Finance, Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma, together with senior officials of the Ministry of Finance; Badulla District Secretary Panduka Sri Prabath Abeywardena and other Government officials of the district, as well as representatives of the security services

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Death toll 635 as at 06:00 AM today [09]

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The Situation Report issued by the Disaster Management Center at 06:00 AM today [09th December] confirms that 635 persons have died due to floods and landslides that took place in the country within the past two weeks. The number of persons that are missing is 192.

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