News
Five leading manufacturers seek licences to produce more brands of booze
No business like liquor trade even during deadly pandemic
By Saman Indrajith
Controversy surrounds attempts by five leading liquor manufacturing companies in the country to secure new liquor producing licences, while the country is reeling from the effects of the deadly pandemic, Excise Trade Union sources say.
Five leading hard liquor manufacturing companies had applied for licences to produce new brews including wine and cider and the main regulatory body the Department of Excise had forwarded them to the Ministry of Finance for approval, union sources said.
Excise Commissioner General M.J. Gunasena told the media over the weekend that although they had received applications for liquor production licences from five well-known manufacturers, they had not yet decided to issue permits.
The trade union leader said that even the Ministry of Finance had considered completing the ground work to process the licence applications for these liquor giants.
Matara District SJB MP Buddhika Pathirana made this revelation a fortnight ago about these attempts by the government to grant more liquor manufacturing licenses to several companies.
According to statistics tabled by the SJB MP in the House, Sri Lanka has about 24 licence holders producing liquor. However, the data showed that only five of these 24 companies are contributing 95% to the tax income generated from the country’s entire liquor industry.
The rest of the 19 producers either do not make ample profits or evade paying tax by not maintaining proper books.
Excise Spokesperson Deputy Commissioner Kapila Kumarasinghe or Secretary to the Ministry of Finance were not immediately available for comment.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake will undertake a four-day state visit to Vietnam on 03 May, Cabinet Spokesman Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa said. Since the presidential election, President Dissanayake has so far visited India, China and the UAE.
The 5th annual Sri Lanka-Pakistan Bilateral Defence Dialogue commenced on Monday (April 28) in Islamabad, Pakistan, marking a continued commitment to strengthening defence cooperation between the two nations.
The MoD statement: “The Sri Lankan delegation is led by Defence Secretary Air Vice Marshal (retd.) Sampath Thuyacontha accompanied by Commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Kanchana Banagoda, and Additional Secretary (Defence) of the Ministry of Defence Jayantha Edirisinghe. The Pakistani delegation is headed by Lieutenant General (retd.) Muhammad Ali, Secretary Defence of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
In conjunction with the on-going defence dialogue, Defence Secretary Thuyacontha held a side-line meeting yesterday (April 29) with Defence Minister of Pakistan, Khawaja Muhammad Asif.
These high-level engagements aim to enhance bilateral cooperation, foster mutual understanding on regional security dynamics and explore opportunities for defence collaboration. Both nations share a longstanding relationship rooted in mutual respect and strategic cooperation. The dialogue reflects the growing importance of partnerships in maintaining stability and promoting peace in the South Asian region.
The three-day dialogue, which concludes today (April 30), is expected to reinforce bilateral defence ties and contribute to broader regional security objectives.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, in collaboration with the United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), conducted a two day seminar on disarmament for Sri Lanka Foreign Service Officers on 25 and 26 April, 2025 at the Ministry. The text of the FM statement: “Over 40 officers, based in Colombo, attended the workshop physically while over 60 officers, attached to Sri Lanka Missions abroad, followed the Seminar virtually.
Director of UNIDIR, Dr. Robin Geiss, Senior Researcher at the UNIDIR Security and Technology Programme, Dr. Dongyoun Cho, and Associate of Political Affairs, Ms. Fanny Sebban of UNIDIR, conducted the Seminar as resource personnel. They shared their expertise and perspectives on the global disarmament landscape and evolving threats to international peace and security, etc.
Director of UNIDIR, Dr. Robin Geiss, called on Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Vijitha Herath and discussed closer cooperation between the Ministry and UNIDIR.
The Human Resource Development, Research & Training Division and the United Nations and Human Rights Division of the Ministry organised the Seminar initiated by the Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the United Nations in Geneva.”
-
Business3 days agoPick My Pet wins Best Pet Boarding and Grooming Facilitator award
-
News3 days agoNew Lankan HC to Australia assumes duties
-
Features3 days agoKing Donald and the executive presidency
-
Business3 days agoACHE Honoured as best institute for American-standard education
-
News3 days agoLankan ‘snow-white’ monkeys become a magnet for tourists
-
Features5 days agoThe Truth will set us free – I
-
Business1 day agoNational Savings Bank appoints Ajith Akmeemana,Chief Financial Officer
-
Business5 days agoPositive take on US-SL talks on tariff question buoys bourse