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Raghavan alerts parliament to resolution about to be passed in Ontario against Lanka

Published

4 years ago

2021/01/6

By Saman Indrajith

SLPP MP Dr Suren Raghavan yesterday called on the Speaker and other MPs to take immediate action to prevent a wrong being committed against Sri Lanka at Canada’s Legislative Assembly in Ontario.

MP Raghavan said that a Bill was being debated in the Ontario Legislative Assembly to name a week in May as the Tamil Genocide Education Week in that province.

“That Bill has passed its first reading stage and is being debated now in the second reading stage. If this is passed that week would be used to highlight what is called Tamil genocide here. That would also be taught in 4,800 schools in that province. We must protest and stop this.”

He said that particular Bill had been moved by Vijay Thanigasalam, who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from the Progressive Conservative Party. “He is originally from Velvetithurai. His Bill is factually wrong because no genocide took place here. Five years after the war in 2014, the then UN High Commissioner for Human Rights too stated that there was no evidence to investigate genocide claims but only the war crimes charges would be investigated. Now, there is this Bill in the Ontario Legislative Assembly. It was moved on April 13, 2019. The Progressive Conservative Party is the ruling party in the Assembly. It has a strong majority and the support of the Tamil community there. Ontario’s Toronto has the highest Tamil diaspora concentration in a city. I know this since I used to have Canadian citizenship and taught at the University of Ottawa.”

Dr Raghavan urged Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena and MPs to form a Sri Lanka-Canada Parliamentary group so that Lankan MPs could discuss the matter with Canadian counterparts and prevent that wrong against this country being committed there. “Passing of this Bill will be inimical to whatever reconciliation processes we have here. I urge the Canadian politicians including Doug Ford, who is the Premier of Ontario to take the real situation and facts into consideration and throw this Bill away. I also urge fellow MPs in this House to take this threat against the motherland into consideration and take whatever action they can to prevent our motherland’s name being tarnished for political gains by several individuals.”

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INS Sahyadri sets sail from Colombo

Published

1 hour ago

2025/04/7

Priyan

The Indian Naval Ship (INS) Sahyadri which arrived at the Port of Colombo on a formal visit on 04 Apr 25, departed the island today (07 Apr). The Sri Lanka Navy bade customary farewell to the departing ship at the Port of Colombo, following naval traditions.

During the ship’s stay in Colombo, crew members of INS Sahyadri took part in several programmes organized by the Sri Lanka Navy, aimed at enhancing mutual cooperation. In addition, they also explored some tourist attractions in the country. Further, personnel of Sri Lanka Navy had the opportunity to visit INS Sahyadri, gaining insights into her operational capabilities.

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Advisory for severe lightning issued for Sabaragamuwa, Central and Uva provinces and in Hambanthota district

Published

6 hours ago

2025/04/7

Priyan

Color: -Red Warning (Take action) Color: -Amber Advisory (Be prepared) Color: -Green Threat is over

The Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre has issued an Advisory for Severe Lightning for the Sabaragamuwa, Central and Uva provinces and in Hambanthota district.

The advisory issued at 02.00 p.m. today [07 April 2025] is valid for the period until 11.00 p.m. 07 April 2025

The public are warned that thundershowers accompanied by severe lightning are likely to occur at several places in for Sabaragamuwa, Central and Uva provinces and in Hambantota district. There may be temporary localized strong winds during thundershowers. General public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damages caused by lightning activity.

ACTION REQUIRED:

The Department of Meteorology advises that people should:

Seek shelter, preferably indoors and never under trees.
• Avoid open areas such as paddy fields, tea plantations and open water bodies during thunderstorms.
• Avoid using wired telephones and connected electric appliances during thunderstorms.
• Avoid using open vehicles, such as bicycles, tractors and boats etc.
• Beware of fallen trees and power lines.
• For emergency assistance contact the local disaster management authorities.

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“Census of Population and Housing 2024” Report Presented to the President

Published

7 hours ago

2025/04/7

Priyan

The report of the “Census of Population and Housing 2024,” conducted by the Department of Census and Statistics, was officially handed over to President Anura Kumara Disanayake this morning (07) at the Presidential Secretariat.

This preliminary report has been prepared based on island wide data collected between October and December 2024.

The report provides details on Sri Lanka’s population, its growth and the distribution of the population across districts.

The information gathered through the census is vital not only for the government but also for other institutions in formulating policies and development plans essential for the country’s progress. Significantly, for the first time in the history of census-collecting in Sri Lanka, data collection was carried out using tablet computers and user-friendly mobile devices.

The event was attended by Deputy Minister of Finance & Planning, Harshana Suriyapperuma, Secretary to the President Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance Mahinda Siriwardana, Director General of the Department of Census and Statistics D.D.G.A. Senevirathne and several other officials.