TNA Batticaloa District MP Shanakiyan Rasamanickam has submitted a motion to Parliament calling for the establishment of a special National Development Fund to reduce regional disparities and revive economically lagging areas affected by decades of conflict and neglect.

The motion, tabled for debate in the House, proposes the creation of a USD 250 million Fund to be implemented over a 10+2 year programme period, targeting regions such as the Northern and Eastern Provinces, Monaragala District and Nuwara Eliya District.

According to the motion, the proposed Fund would mobilise contributions from the Government, bilateral and multilateral agencies, private investors and philanthropic donors to address deep-rooted economic inequalities aggravated by the country’s ongoing economic crisis.

The motion noted that the Northern and Eastern Provinces, in particular, continue to suffer severe economic deprivation due to the impact of the protracted civil conflict and decades of historical neglect, while other underdeveloped districts have also faced persistent marginalisation in national development efforts.

Among the key objectives outlined in the proposal are the revival of rural livelihoods through agriculture, fisheries and cottage industries, the development of infrastructure to promote employment generation and women’s socio-economic empowerment, and the activation of idle assets to support small and medium-scale enterprises and cooperatives.

The proposed Fund would also invest in renewable energy projects and other commercially viable ventures while supporting capacity-building programmes and educational initiatives targeting women and youth.

The motion further called for the establishment of a Technical Assistance Facility (TAF) to strengthen local institutional capacity, bridge investment viability gaps and ensure the transparent and effective utilisation of funds.

Special emphasis has also been placed on gender inclusivity, with the motion seeking measurable targets to enhance women’s participation in economic activities and decision-making processes across all investment sectors.

The proposal has also urged relevant Ministries, Provincial Councils and local government authorities to coordinate with the Fund to ensure equitable regional coverage, accountability and sustainability in project implementation.

Describing the initiative as an urgent national measure, the motion stressed that inclusive economic growth, reconciliation and sustainable development could not be achieved without targeted interventions to uplift economically deprived regions disproportionately affected by war and economic hardship.

Sri Lanka’s cybersecurity organisation  (CERT) yesterday warned the public of an ongoing cyber scam targeting motorists through fraudulent SMS and WhatsApp messages claiming that traffic violations had been detected through CCTV camera systems installed on roads.

Full text of the Sri Lanka CERT statement: Sri Lanka CERT warns public regarding an ongoing cyber scam targeting motorists through fraudulent SMS and WhatsApp messages claiming that traffic violations have been detected through CCTV camera systems installed on roads.

These messages are designed to appear as official communications from the Sri Lanka Police and are intended to deceive individuals into disclosing personal and financial information.

It has been observed that these fake messages are being circulated using fraudulent phone numbers and malicious links while impersonating official notifications issued by the Sri Lanka Police.

The messages direct recipients to a fake website and instruct them to pay fines for alleged traffic offences. This fraudulent website has been designed to closely resemble the Government’s official “GovPay” payment platform, creating a high risk of misleading the public.

Sri Lanka CERT further warns that individuals attempting to make payments through these fake websites may unknowingly expose sensitive personal information, including credit/debit card details, OTP codes, National Identity Card information, and other confidential data to cyber criminals.

Accordingly, the public is strongly advised to exercise caution and follow these safety measures:

· Avoid clicking on suspicious links received via SMS or WhatsApp.

· Verify the authenticity of websites before making any payments.

· Do not provide banking or card details to unknown or suspicious websites.

· Never share OTP codes or personal information with third parties.

· Immediately report suspicious messages or websites to Sri Lanka CERT or the Sri Lanka Police.

Sri Lanka CERT also reminds the public that payments for traffic fines through the “GovPay” system should only be made after an official notification is issued by a Police Officer and a valid traffic fine ticket has been formally provided.

Sri Lanka CERT urges all internet and digital service users to remain vigilant and exercise extreme caution regarding such cyber fraud activities.

Tales of Mystery and Suspense 3

The murder, in a private dining room in the house, is of a financier with whom the government was negotiating a loan. When this seemed difficult the Minister of Home Affairs agreed to lead discussions, since he had known Mr Oissel the financier when they were young. Hence the private dinner, but when the Minister stepped out for a vote, Oissel was shot just as the Division Bell rang.

The Brahms and Simon detective novels, the first of which I wrote about last week, were amongst several books by the pair that Robert Scoble gave me when I was in Australia towards the end of last year. Amongst them was another thriller of a very different sort, though that too was written and set between the wars.

Called The Division Bell Mystery, it was set in the House of Commons, the first such book I believe, and was by Ellen Wilkinson, a Labour MP who became Minister of Education in Attlee’s government after the war, having served previously as Parliamentary Private Secretary to several ministers. Her hero Robert West is also a PPS, but a conservative, and his Minister, of Home Affairs, is an old style aristocrat, not much loved by the less orthodox Prime Minister, who nevertheless needs his support on many occasions.

The murder, in a private dining room in the house, is of a financier with whom the government was negotiating a loan. When this seemed difficult the Minister of Home Affairs agreed to lead discussions, since he had known Mr Oissel the financier when they were young. Hence the private dinner, but when the Minister stepped out for a vote, Oissel was shot just as the Division Bell rang.

West was just outside the door when the shot was heard, and when he opened it saw only the dead body with a revolver beside it. The assumption that this was suicide was however challenged by Oissel’s grand-daughter Annette, who was his heir, on the grounds that he would never have killed himself. But her view was given greater credence by the Inspector put in charge of the case who said there were no burn marks on the body which would have been the case had Oissel fired the pistol himself.

Matters are complicated by the fact that Oissel’s flat had been burgled while he was at dinner, and Jenks the policeman allocated to him, who had served the Home Secretary and seemed more acceptable to Oissel than someone from the Security Service, had been killed. Matters get even more complicated when Annette says her grand-father’s notebook in which he wrote his secrets in cipher was missing.

That was found in Jenks’ pocket, and then a photographer came to West to say he had been asked by Jenks to photograph this. More worryingly for West, he finds in the Home Secretary’s drawer a few pages from the notebook with what appears to be an interpretation of the cipher.

Ellen

Overwhelmed by all this he confides in a recently created peer who knows all about the business world, who insists that they leave the house party at which they had met over dinner and discuss the matter with the Prime Minister who promptly summons the Home Secretary.

But the Home Secretary had gone to Scotland to launch a ship over the weekend, so the meeting could take place only on the morning of the Monday, when difficult questions were expected on the adjournment motion. He admits at the meeting that he had got Jenks to take the notebook, and also that he knew the code since it had been created by him and Oissel when they were young.

He thought he should resign, and even contemplated suicide, but the Prime Minister told him that that would be even worse for the government, and that he should go home to bed. The Prime Minister said that he himself would handle the question, which he did with aplomb, insisting that confidentiality was needed until the inquest. What had happened would be made clear then, he declared, leaving West and Inspector Blackit and Lord Dalbeattie what seemed the impossible task of solving the murder.

Dalbeattie had suggested that West ask a female Labour MP who was very fond of him to get what information she could from the staff. That there was some involvement there had become clear when West, going back late one night to collect a briefcase he had left in a dining room, found someone lurking in the dark in the corridor outside the private rooms. Room J, where the murder had happened, was meant to be guarded throughout by a policeman, but he had left the room having felt dizzy, and it seemed that his coffee had been drugged. West’s sudden appearance however had prevented anyone else getting into the room.

Dalbeattie decides to recreate the scene of the murder and has a dinner party in Room J on the Tuesday night, inviting West and Annette and the society hostess at whose house he had met, and also Patrick Kinnaird, an MP who was engaged to Annette, as well as the Permanent Secretary to the Home Ministry.

After coffee Inspector Blackit comes in with Grace, the Labour MP who had got the confidence of the staff, and a journalist who had also been helpful, and just as they say they think they are on the track the division bell rings. Grace jumps up and tells the Inspector that that provides the solution and they get a ladder, and sure enough find the revolver in the space where the bell is. Directed at the place where Oissel had sat, it had been primed to go off with the ringing of the bell. The waiter who had helped to set things up made clear who the murderer had been.

The reason for the murder and the confused motives of all those involved made for a fascinatingly intricate mix. But also impressive in the book were the descriptions of the isolation possible in the crowded premises of the house, the forceful characterization of the members – Grace based on the writer, the society hostess based on Nancy Astor, the first female MP – and the laid back nature of senior politicians which West realized had to change in the brave new world of high finance.