News
Opposition opposes issuing Treasury Bills worth one trillion
There was a heated debate, in Parliament, yesterday, when Leader of the Opposition Sajith Premadasa objected to a decision made by the government to raise one trillion rupees, by issuing Treasury Bills..Premadasa said the approval of the Public Finance Committee was needed to issue Treasury Bills as an urgent need and that the Committee currently did not have a permanent chairman.
“The decisions at the Committee are taken under an acting chairman. Therefore, these decisions are not valid. The current acting chairman is a government MP which is a violation of Standing Orders. Standing Orders clearly state that the Finance Committee has to be chaired by an Opposition MP,” Premadasa said.
Chief government Whip Prasanna Rantunga said the Opposition should name a suitable MP to be the chairman of the Public Finance Committee.
“The Opposition must come up with some names and we will consider them. We appointed an Opposition MP as the head of Finance Committee but the Opposition forced him to resign,” he added.
Minister Bandula Gunawardene said the money is being raised to pay salaries.
“We need a lot of money to pay salaries and welfare. We can’t print money because of the IMF agreement. Treasury must present a report to the House on the total State expenditure, on a monthly basis, so that the MP will be aware of the expenditures,” he said.
Following the conclusion of bilateral discussions between President Anura Kumara Disanayake and Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, official-level talks between the delegations of Sri Lanka and India commenced this morning (05) at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo.
Representing the Government of Sri Lanka were Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism, Vijitha Herath; Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Anil Jayantha; Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake; Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Dr. P. Nandalal Weerasinghe, along with other senior officials.
The Indian delegation included Minister of External Affairs Dr. S. Jaishankar, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and His Excellency Santosh Jha, High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, along with several other senior officials of the Government of India.
Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, who arrived in Sri Lanka on the invitation of President Anura Kumara Disanayake on Friday [04] night, visited the Presidential Secretariat this morning (05).
The Indian Prime Minister was warmly welcomed by President Anura Kumara Disanayake upon his arrival at the Presidential Secretariat.
Prime Minister Modi is currently on a state visit to Sri Lanka, reaffirming the theme “Friendship of Centuries — Commitment to a Prosperous Future” which symbolises the longstanding ties between Sri Lanka and India. The Indian Premier is scheduled to remain in the country until tomorrow (06).
[PMD]
The official welcoming ceremony for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was held this morning (05) at the Independence Square in Colombo.
On arrival at the Independence Square the Indian Prime Minister was warmly welcomed by President Anura Kumara Disanayake.
Discussions between Sri Lankan and Indian delegations at the presidential secretariat
Sears takes five again as New Zealand complete ODI series sweep over Pakistan
Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi arrives at the presidential secretariat
-
Business1 day agoStrengthening SDG integration into provincial planning and development process
-
News5 days agoBid to include genocide allegation against Sri Lanka in Canada’s school curriculum thwarted
-
Sports6 days agoSri Lanka’s eternal search for the elusive all-rounder
-
Sports2 days agoTo play or not to play is Richmond’s decision
-
Business11 hours agoNew SL Sovereign Bonds win foreign investor confidence
-
News6 days agoComBank crowned Global Finance Best SME Bank in Sri Lanka for 3rd successive year
-
Features6 days agoSanctions by The Unpunished
-
Features6 days agoMore parliamentary giants I was privileged to know