News
Transport Minister blows lid off scam involving printing driving licences by one firm for two decades
A major financial scam involving the printing of driving licences by a single private company over more than two decades had been exposed, Transport Minister Bimal Ratnayake revealed in Parliament yesterday.
The Minister said the long-standing contract, continuously awarded to the same company, had resulted in significant wastage of public funds. According to Ratnayake, the cost of printing a single driving licence under the private arrangement stood at Rs. 534.54, while the Department for Registration of Motor Vehicles (RMV) could produce the same for Rs. 367.
“We have decided that driving licences will henceforth be printed by the RMV,” the Minister announced. “Printing machines are currently being installed for this purpose.”
Meanwhile, in a move to modernise public transport, Ratnayake announced that from November 30, 2025, bus commuters will be able to pay fares using bank-issued credit and debit cards on buses equipped with ticketing machines.
“It’s a well-known fact that people are being cheated through the current bus ticketing system. This is one of the main reasons the bus industry is not financially viable,” he said, adding that bus operators have long struggled to earn sustainable income.
He noted that private bus owners have been demanding the introduction of a digital payment system for years. Although several attempts had been made to introduce transport cards, the process had proven too complex.
Under the new system, passengers on buses fitted with ticketing machines will be able to pay with any bank card accepted in Sri Lanka, Ratnayake said.
The Minister also addressed delays in the issuance of new vehicle number plates, revealing that as of September 30, over 165,000 requests remained unfulfilled.
“The new plates include seven special security features. We assigned testing of these features to the University of Moratuwa, which took three months—but they were only able to test six of the seven,” he explained. “We’ve now had to seek international assistance to complete the process. That is the reason for the delay.”
He emphasised that while the added security was crucial, it had impacted the timeline.
Ratnayake also assured Parliament that the backlog in issuing new driving licences would be cleared by October 18 .
By Saman Indrajith
Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya met with the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Dr. Kristalina Georgieva, at Temple Tress on the 17th of February
Dr. Georgieva, commended the Government’s efforts in stabilizing the country’s economy and in managing recent economic and natural shocks. She noted that Cyclone Ditwah had caused severe impacts, especially on economically vulnerable communities, underscoring the importance of targeted support and resilience-building measures.
The Prime Minister expressed appreciation for the IMF’s continued support to Sri Lanka, particularly in the aftermath of Cyclone Ditwah. The PM further emphasized that real economic recovery and development must directly benefit the economically vulnerable groups and ensure inclusive growth, highlighting the need for Sri Lanka to attract quality and sustainable investments, particularly in the tourism sector.
The importance of reforming the education system to focus not only on knowledge acquisition but also on skills development and employability was also discussed
The meeting was attended by the Chief of Staff of the IMF Managing Director Andreas Bauer, Director, Asia and Pacific Department, Dr. Krishna Srinivasan Division Chief (Strategic Communications), Communications Department, Pierre Mejlak Resident Representative for Sri Lanka Dr. Martha Woldemichael, Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka Dr. P. Nandalal Weerasinghe, and Deputy Governor Dr. C. Amarasekara, Secretary to the Prime Minister Pradeep Saputhanthri and Additional Secretary to the Prime Minister Ms. Sagarika Bogahawatta.
[Prime Minister’s Media Division]
The Cabinet of Ministers approved the resolution forwarded by the Minister of Health and Mass Media to relocate the Deniyaya Base Hospital after constructing a new hospital with a capacity of 300 beds at an estimated cost of Rupees 6,000 million.
The Southern Provincial Department of Health has acquired a plot of land in Handford estate which is approximately 03 kilometres away from the town for this purpose.
News
Cabinet nod to legally empower methodology for implementing the ‘Praja Shakthi’ poverty alleviation national movement
The Cabinet of Ministers granted approval for the resolution furnished by the Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment to instruct the Legal Draftsman to draft a bill to legally empower the implementation of ‘Praja Shakthi’ (Strength of the Community) poverty alleviation national movement
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