News
Excise Chief orders liquor manufacturers to install CCTV cameras by 30 Sept.
But unions say Madras Security Printer the number one culprit
Excise Commissioner General Saman Jayasinghe has ordered liquor manufacturing companies to install CCTV cameras by 30 Sept., in their factories allowing centralised observation by the Excise officials as a measure to prevent the use of forged revenue stickers on bottles of liquor. He has warned that noncompliance would lead to the cancellation of their licences.
The directive was given by Jayasinghe during a meeting with the heads of liquor producing companies at the Excise Headquarters at Rajagiriya on Monday.Jayasinghe told the liquor manufacturers that President Ranil Wickremesinghe had personally instructed him that severe action should be taken against those involved in forged sticker scam irrespective of their position and rank in the Department.
President Wickremesinghe had pointed out that this scam cannot go on without the knowledge of both liquor producers and retail sellers and their actions continue to drain the excise revenue due to the government, Jayasinghe said.
Meanwhile, the Unity of Excise Trade Unions issuing a statement following the directive of Excise Commissioner General said that the responsibility for the crisis caused by the forged revenue stickers should be apportioned on few Excise officers and the Madras Security Printers who supply the stickers to the Department to be distributed among the liquor producers. “It is our understanding that not all the Excise Department officials should be held responsible for this scam. There are a handful of senior officers who protect the MSP continuing with the supply of these stickers.
Even if the Excise officers seize liquor bottles with forged stickers, the MSP has not provided the department with the technology needed for subsequent legal processes. The agreement with the MSP was finalised during the Yahapalana rule in 2019 but the date of commencement is considered as Jan 03, 2022 so that the agreement is to continue till Jan 02, 2027. Since 2019, the MSP sympathizers put the blame on excise officers while a huge sum of money being taken to India, because the MSP charges 5.99 USD for 1,000 stickers whether they are paper or digital,” the statement signed by Nirosh Jayakody, Co-Secretary of the Unity said.
It said that the MSP is a blacklisted Indian company for notorious violations of agreements and contracts with many countries around the world. “We are aware of the invisible hand that made it possible for the entering of this contract with the MSP and we are ready to reveal the names and positions of those who were involved in this affair. Cause of most problems pertaining to the fool-proof revenue stickers was the MSP’s dubious conduct and its ability to get away without accountability,” Jayakody said, adding that the Unity may be compelled to make many revelations in the coming days if those with vested interests continue to hold excise officials responsible for the revenue sticker scam.
The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CEYPETCO) has announced a revision of fuel prices, effective from midnight on Saturday (May 30).
Accordingly,
the price of Auto Diesel has been increased by Rs. 15 to Rs.407 per liter,
the price of Super Diesel has been increased by Rs. 20 to Rs. 478 per liter.
the price of Petrol 92 Octane has been increased by Rs. 24 to Rs. 434 per liter
the price of Petrol 95 Octane up by Rs. 25 to Rs. 495 per liter
the price of kerosene by Rs. 20 to Rs. 285 per liter.
Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga has called for a comprehensive reform programme within Sri Lanka’s Buddhist clergy, warning that repeated efforts to strengthen the Sasana have in the past been derailed by opposition from within sections of the Sangha itself.
In a statement addressed to the Mahanayake Theras of the three Buddhist chapters, Kumaratunga stressed that the long-term preservation of Buddhism depends on safeguarding both the Dhamma and Vinaya, or disciplinary code, and urged urgent internal reform to address what she described as deep-rooted structural weaknesses.
She noted that Buddhist history has consistently demonstrated that periods of institutional crisis were addressed through reform processes, citing precedents from the First Buddhist Council to reforms during the Kandyan era under Welivita Sri Saranankara Thera.
Referring to post-independence efforts, Kumaratunga said initiatives taken during the 1956 Bandaranaike administration to strengthen Buddhism were left incomplete following the assassination of former Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike.
She further stated that during her own presidency, plans to convene a Buddhist Council under the guidance of the late Madihe Pannasiha Mahanayake Thera had received government backing but were ultimately abandoned due to resistance from certain sections within the clergy.
The former President alleged that, on both occasions, vested interests benefiting from existing weaknesses within the Buddhist establishment had worked to obstruct meaningful reform efforts.
Warning that Buddhism in Sri Lanka is currently facing serious challenges, she called for a broad internal dialogue within the Sangha to identify root causes and implement both short- and long-term corrective measures.
Kumaratunga urged the Mahanayake Theras to take the lead in convening a Dharma Sanghayana, or Buddhist Council, and said she was prepared to work with senior lay Buddhist leaders to support such an initiative.
The Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court on Friday ordered the arrest of former Minister Basil Rajapaksa, Tourism Promotion Bureau Chairman Bhashwara Gunaratne, Managing Director Rumi Jauffer and several others over the alleged misuse of Rs. 7.8 million belonging to the Tourism Promotion Authority during the 2014 Uva Provincial Council election campaign.
Magistrate Pasan Amarasena directed the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to arrest and produce the suspects before court, after it was informed that they would be named under the Public Property Act on the advice of the Attorney General.
The CID told court that attempts to take the suspects into custody from their residences had been unsuccessful as they were not present.
The Magistrate also imposed an overseas travel ban on the suspects and ordered that the Controller of Immigration and Emigration be notified.
Investigations have reportedly revealed that the funds were used to print 12,000 T-shirts bearing an image of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa on one side and the name of a political party on the other.
According to the CID, the T-shirts were later distributed at a political event held in the Monaragala District.
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