News
SriLankan Airlines to resume flights to nine Indian cities from Wednesday
BY S VENKAT NARAYAN
Our Special Correspondent
NEW DELHI, August 28: SriLankan Airlines will resume a limited number of flights to nine cities in India from Wednesday, September 1, V Ravindran, the airline’s New Delhi-based Manager for India and Bangladesh told Sunday Island.
They are: New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Tiruchi, Madurai, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram.
At present, SriLankan has a limited number of flights to Chennai, Bengaluru and Mumbai. And the traffic is limited due to Covid-19.
From September 1, the airline will restart flying to six other cities. But the number of flights per week will be limited: five flights each to Chennai and Mumbai, three to Bengaluru, two each to Delhi and Hyderabad, and one each to Tiruchi, Madurai, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram.
Once the Covid-19 situation improves in the island, the airline may increase the frequency of its flights to India, the manager said.
India is a lucrative market for Sri Lankan Airlines as well as Sri Lankan tourism. Before the coronavirus pandemic disrupted life everywhere, SriLankan used to operate 118 flights to 12 Indian cities. And as many as 450,000 Indian tourists used to visit the emerald island every year. That is more than any other country.
“Indians are bored sitting at home for such a long time due to Covid-19. Now, they are flocking to places wherever tourists are welcome. I am sure they will start going to Sri Lanka in large numbers as soon as things get better,” said Subhash Goyal, Chairman, Stic Travels, SriLankan’s GSA in India for North, West and East.
He said before Covid-19 broke out, Sri Lanka has been the most preferred destination for Indian corporates for MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Events) because SriLankan connects most important cities in India with Colombo. So, guests could fly direct to Colombo from their respective cities. “And Sri Lanka offers good value for money,” he added.
The Cabinet of Ministers approved the resolution furnished by the Minister of Transport, Highways and Urban Development to accept 08 used low floorboard buses offered as a grant by the Government of Japan.
News
Payment of the financial subsidy for fertilizer to farmers cultivating paddy lands for the Yala season 2026.
While approval has been granted at the Cabinet meeting held on 18.08.2025 to pay the financial subsidy for fertilizer to farmers cultivating paddy lands for the Maha season 2025/26, the programme is planned to be continued for the Yala season 2026 as well.
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers approved the resolution furnished by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Lands and Irrigation to pay a financial subsidy of Rupees 25,000/- per hectare and for a maximum of 02 hectares per farmer for paddy cultivation and to pay Rupees 15,000/- per hectare for field crops cultivated in paddy lands[maximum of 02 hectares per farmer]
News
Ministerial Committee appointed to submit recommendations on proposed program to mitigate loss of crops to wild animals
The rural agricultural livelihood and food security have been severely impacted due to the damage caused by wild animals such as elephants, wild boars, monkeys, toque macaque, squirrels, and peacocks roaming around human habitats and cultivated lands.
Animal-human conflicts and property destruction have mostly been reported around these areas, and serious social and economic issues have also arisen.
Therefore, the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Land, and Irrigation has prepared a comprehensive program based on the opinions of all stakeholders, including the public, university community, farmers’ organizations, environmentalists, non-governmental organizations which work for environmental issues, the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Agrarian Development, and other relevant organizations.
Taking into consideration the report submitted by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land, and Irrigation, the Cabinet of Ministers has decided to appoint a ministerial committee with the participation of other relevant ministers, chaired by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land, and Irrigation, to submit appropriate recommendations on how the aforementioned program should be implemented by further reviewing the proposals included in the said program and incorporating new proposals.
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