News
SJB asks govt. to reduce prices of stationery, etc.
By Saman Indrajith
Schoolchildren and their parents could not afford books, stationery, etc., since the government had failed to maintain price controls, Parliament was told on Saturday.
Chief Opposition Whip and Kandy District SJB MP Lakshman Kiriella said that prices of books and stationery had increased by 300 percent.
Matara District SLPP MP Weerasumana Weerasinghe said that the country needed 500,000 to 600,000 tonnes of paper a year. “Paper prices have increased. In 2020, we imported 454,000 tonnes of paper. In 2021, we imported 469,000 tonnes of paper. We import around 90 percent of our paper requirement. Imposing cess on them will further increase the prices of stationery. Children on plantation and in rural areas find it difficult to continue with their school education. The rupee depreciation is not the sole reason for this situation. The prices of paper has galloped manifold than the depreciated value of the rupee against the dollar,” Dissanayake said.
Minister of State Finance Ranjith Siyambalapitiya said that cess on paper used as raw material to produce exercise books had not been increased.
SLPP dissident MP Dullas Alahapperuma said that 10 to 15 percent children had stopped going to school because of food shortage or non-availability of books or other problems such as transport costs. “A pair of shoes is over Rs 4,000. The price of a box of mathematical instruments is unaffordable. We must understand this crisis and find solutions rather than pointing our fingers at one another,” Alahapperuma 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
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Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi arrives at the presidential secretariat
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