News

Boots headed by Lankan won best retail team in UK award

Published

5 years ago

2021/10/24

Sahan Weerasooriya

Chaminda Ratnayake and his team with the award

by Sujeeva Nivunhella reporting from London

Boots Piccadilly Circus branch headed by its General Manager Chaminda Ranasinghe Ratnayake won the Best Retail Team in the UK for 2020/21 out of 300,000 retail teams across the country at a glamorous award ceremony held in London last week. A former head boy of Carey College, Colombo, Ratnayake completed his Bachelors in Business Management in University of Bangalore and achieved his Masters Degree in International Marketing from the University of East London. He has now gained over 18 years experience in Retail in the UK.

Retailers award ceremony is conducted by the Retail Week magazine every year and winning an award at the event is considered to be the pinnacle of their career.

In the Best Retail Team category, Boots competed against renowned businesses such as Tesco, Sainsburys, CO-OP, B&Q, Mark & Spencer, Pets At Home and River Island who were also nominated for the award.

After the ceremony talking to Sunday Island, Boots Piccadilly Circus General Manager Ratnayake said that throughout the pandemic the store team demonstrated that they are true frontline heroes and a great asset to the organisation, as well as the community by overcoming personal and external barriers to ensure all services and support are accessible to the customers and patients. “Staff canceled time off and worked on their scheduled days off to ensure the branch stayed open to serve people in need, including homeless people, methadone users and victims of domestic violence, who sought refuge there”, he said.

“The team transformed the pharmacy consultation rooms into Safe Spaces for victims of domestic violence as cases soared during lockdown and employees took calls from patients in need of support day and night. They were part of the Government initiative “Ask ANI” project. This was supported by the Duchess of Cornwall. The team was part of the fight to fly Covid testing trial which helped thousands of customers who were traveling to see family and loved ones”, he further said.

Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Safeguarding, Victoria Atkins commended Ratnayake’s contribution towards social welfare. Then Health Secretary Matt Hancock also made a special acknowledgment about all the support and efforts made towards the public’s well being in the global pandemic.

Lord Bethell, Under-Secretary of State at the Department of Health and Social Care visited the branch to thank the team personally for all the work they did to support the COVID-19 testing and diagnostics.

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Geneva takes up Sallay’s case and govt. ignores opportunity to answer accusations

Published

53 mins ago

2026/10/5

Thilina Walpola

Suresh Sallay

The government has chosen not to respond to questions raised by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) regarding the detention of retired Maj. Gen. Suresh Sallay in connection with the ongoing investigations into the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks.

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) arrested the ex-official in late February this year. The Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, the Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health and the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers have jointly raised the issue on 20 July, 2026.

Drawing attention of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to what they called alleged arbitrary detention of Sallay, former Director General of the State Intelligence Service (SIS) and former Director of Military Intelligence (DMI), under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), as well as allegations of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment while in custody, resulting in the grave deterioration of his health, and imminent risks of retaliation through further torture and ill-treatment resulting in irreparable harm, should he be released from hospital and returned to custody, the UN sought the government explanation with a 60-day period.

The UN has stated: “This communication, and any response received from your Excellency’s Government, will be made public via the communications reporting website at the 60 days mark. Should your Excellency’s Government respond within 60 days, both the communication and the response, may be published before the 60 days mark. The communications and responses

will also be made available in the subsequent periodic report to be presented to the Human Rights Council.”

In the absence of the government’s response, the UN posted the letter, dated 20 July, 2026, addressed to President Dissanayake. The full letter can be accessed https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=31125

News

Section of wartime KKS High Security Zone vacated to facilitate economic development in the area

Published

54 mins ago

2026/10/5

Thilina Walpola

The Army, last week, vacated an area, within the wartime high security zone in the Jaffna peninsula. The Defence Ministry said that an extent of 187.56 acres of land, belonging to the Cement Corporation in Kankesanthurai, Jaffna, has been released by the military. The released land, located in Grama Niladhari Division J/233, Kankesanthurai West, within the Valikamam North (Tellippalai) Divisional Secretariat Division, had been utilised by the Sri Lanka Army since the middle of 1997.

The release of the 187.56-acre extent forms part of the initiative to make State land available for the proposed investment zone in Kankesanthurai, thereby facilitating future investment and economic development in the area.

News

Lawyer lodges complaint against Govt. Printer, Media Ministry Secy.

Published

55 mins ago

2026/10/5

Thilina Walpola

A complaint has been lodged with the Colombo Fraud Investigation Bureau against the Government Printer and the Secretary to the Ministry of Media regarding the online release of falsified documents bearing a forged Speaker’s certificate.

Attorney-at-Law Aruna Laksiri has lodged a complaint with the Colombo Fraud Investigation Bureau requesting legal action against the Government Printer of the Department of Government Printing (No. 118, Dr. Danister de Silva Mawatha, Colombo 08), Prasanna Jayaratne, and the Secretary to the Ministry of Mass Media (Asidisi Medura, 163, Kirulapone Mawatha, Polhengoda, Colombo 05), Dr. Anil Jasinghe.

The complaint alleges the commission of offences by forging and uploading falsified documents online using a forged Speaker’s certification, failure to perform statutory duties, and misappropriation of public property.

The complaint states that a copy of the English translation of the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution was downloaded and printed from the official website of the Government Printing Department (www.documents.gov.lk), which operates under the Ministry of Mass Media. On its outer cover and on page 1, the text “certified on 25th of September, 2026” is inscribed inside brackets.

The complaint pointed out that the Speaker has certified an English translation. Under Articles 23, 79, 83, and 80 of the Constitution, Parliament enacts laws and the Speaker certifies bills strictly in the Sinhala and Tamil languages; under the Constitution, therefore the Speaker cannot apply such certification to an English translation.