News
Environmentalists say 150 elephants trapped without food
By Rathindra Kuruwita and Ifham Nizam
An unsuccessful attempt to relocate wild elephants from areas such as Sravasthipura, Thambuttegama, Wilachchiya, Moragoda, and Thanthirimale in the Anuradhapura District to Wilpattu National Park had resulted in around 150 elephants, including females and calves, being trapped without food for over a week at the Oyamaduwa National Livestock Development Board farm, environmentalists claim.
Kelum Mahesh of Husma organisation told The Island that the elephants had been confined to the farm and prevented them from foraging at night or following their natural migratory routes.
To manage the situation, the relevant authorities must allow the elephants to leave the farm premises via their natural migratory routes, he said.
“The government should closely monitor their movements and provide compensation for any property or crop damage caused during the migration. This is a solution that both local wildlife conservation officers and residents would agree to. However, senior administrative officials have shown little interest in implementing this measure. As a result, the elephants continue to suffer from starvation and severe stress in the confined area,” he said.
Supun Lahiru Prakash of the Biodiversity Conservation and Research Circle told The Island that the periodical relocating of elephants had been unsuccessful in the past. He added that some sections of the media had created a hysteria among the people about marauding elephants and certain government officials had been overreacting.
“President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is interested in solving the human-elephant conflict in a sustainable manner. However, knee-jerk reactions are not the way to go,” he said.
Meanwhile, Hasini Harishchandra, Spokesperson for the Wildlife Department said while there were some issues with elephant relocation, they were doing their best to address the problems. “Our end goal is to relocate them in Wilpattu,” she said, denying claims that the elephants were in danger.
She added that the Air Force would provide assistance from Friday to identify where the elephants were.
by Saman Indrajith
TheBatalanda Presidential Co-mission report was tabled in Parliament yesterday (14) by the Leader of the House and Transport Minister, Bimal Ratnayake.
Minister Ratnayake announced that the government has decided to forward the report to the Attorney General for legal advice. Additionally, a Presidential Committee will be appointed to provide guidance and recommendations on how to proceed with the findings of the report.
Ratnayake said that the Cabinet-of-Ministers, along with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, has made a policy decision to take necessary action in response to the report. He reassured the public that steps are being taken to ensure that such a dark chapter in the country’s history is never repeated.
Minister Ratnayake said that a two-day debate on the Batalanda Commission report will be scheduled in Parliament at an appropriate time, allowing for a detailed discussion on the report’s findings and recommendations.
The report, which will be printed in all three official languages—Sinhala, Tamil, and English—will be made available to the public in the near future. Ratnayake confirmed that printed copies would be provided to Members of Parliament, as well as the general public, for review.
The Leader of the House revealed that there are 28 evidence volumes associated with the Commission’s work, which will be submitted to Parliament at a later date for further scrutiny.
Ratnayake said that as the entire country is concerned about the findings of the Batalanda Commission, the government’s commitment to addressing the issues raised, and preventing future atrocities, stands clear. The next steps, including legal action and policy recommendations, will be shaped by expert advice and informed parliamentary discussions, he said.
The Parliamentary watchdog Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) has found that there were fake documents regarding the importing of medicines under the emergency procurement system in 2022 and 2023.
This was revealed during a COPE meeting held at Parliament probing the transactions of the National Medicine Regulatory Authority (NMRA).
NMRA CEO Saveen Semage told the Committee that several fake documents have been found due to the lack of registration of medicines.
Stating that six such fake documents were found last year alone, Saveen Semage said he had recorded statements regarding each of the documents with the Financial Crimes Investigation Division.
He revealed that, however, no investigations have been conducted yet into the incidents.
“We have documents with confessions from a woman accepting that fake documents had been made. However, a statement has not even been recorded from that woman yet,” he said.
Meanwhile, COPE member MP Asitha Niroshana Egoda Vithana also revealed that the highest number of waive-off registrations (WOR) for medicines had been obtained in 2022 and 2023.
He said 656 waive-off registrations (WOR) had been obtained in 2022 and 261 in 2023, adding that this proves that discrepancies have taken place during the emergency procurement of medicines during these periods.
Furthermore, Deputy Director General of the Medical Supplies Division of the Health Ministry, Dr. G. Wijesuriya, said discussions are underway on allowing the State Pharmaceutical Corporation (SPC) to directly import essential medicines.He pointed out that it was essential to take a policy decision in this regard as a solution to mitigate such discrepancies.
by Norman Palihawadane
Department of Prisons’ Media Spokesperson, Gamini Dissanayake said yesterday that retired Superintendent of the high security Boossa Prison, Siridath Dhammika, who was tragically gunned down at Thalagaha, in Akmeemana, on Thursday (13), had been provided with a firearm for his protection during his tenure, considering the potential threat to his life.
Dissanayake said that during his service period, he had received threats from certain individuals.
Furthermore, the Prison Department stated that during his service, there were no significant issues or shortcomings found in his personal records.
Dissanayake said that the majority of detainees at the Boossa Prison are individuals linked to organized crimes.
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