Connect with us

News

Comprehensive plan to be prepared for reopening

Published

on

The task force of COVID-19 yesterday decided to formulate a comprehensive plan for lifting the lockdown. The decision was taken yesterday in a meeting led by Minister Basil Rajapaksa.

The Ministry of Public Administration and Management will issue guidelines on operating the state sector post lockdown. The Ministry of Transport will handle how the public transport sector would operate, while the Ministry of labour will issue guidelines to the public sector.

The three ministries will be guided by the Health Ministry and a committee of medical experts.

Rajapksa said that the economic grew at 12.3% in the second quarter of 2021 and that it fell to 1% during the third, due to the lockdown. There should be a proper plan to ensure that 3% growth in the fourth quarter, Rajapaksa said.

There was an in-depth discussion on reopening schools and the recommendations taken at the meeting had been sent to the Ministry of Education. Rajapaksa directed officials to communicate the recommendations to the governors and regional directors of health. It was decided that there was no need to keep schools closed until vaccinating children is complete.

The Task Force discussed the importance of using Ayurvedic Hospitals for COVID treatment. Ayurvedic treatment can be promoted among tourists because there is a demand for indigenous medicine.



Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

News

President holds virtual discussion with USAID Administrator on future cooperation

Published

on

By

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake conducted a virtual discussion on Friday (11) with the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Ms Samantha Power. During the meeting, the they exchanged views on matters of mutual interest and explored avenues for future cooperation.

Notably, Ms. Samantha Power,  stated that USAID is willing to support the government aligning with the manifesto presented to the people.

She also assured President Dissanayake that USAID is prepared to support Sri Lanka in any way needed. This commitment reflects a shared vision for enhancing development and cooperation with the USAID agency

[PMD]

Continue Reading

News

UN taking necessary steps to ensure safety of Sri Lankan peacekeepers in Lebanon

Published

on

By Rathindra Kuruwita

The Sri Lankan Army was in touch with the UN about ensuring the safety of the 125 Sri Lankan peacekeepers stationed in South Lebanon, Director of Media, Major General Nilantha Premaratne told The Island yesterday (11).Premaratne confirmed that two Sri Lankan peacekeepers in Southern Lebanon had sustained minor injuries during an Israeli strike.

He said the peacekeepers had been wounded at Naqoura in Southern Lebanon, and that they were being treated at the hospital at the UN base.

Major General Premaratne said the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) had been headquartered in Naqoura since 1978.

He said they are in touch with the UN and were taking necessary steps to ensure the safety of other Sri Lankan peacekeepers in Lebanon.

“According to our officers, there were Israeli air, tank and artillery attacks. The UN has taken all possible precautions to ensure the safety of its peacekeepers. The UN is taking care of the injured peacekeepers and I don’t think their injuries are bad enough to warrant a repatriation,” he said.

There are 11 officers and 114 other ranks as peacekeepers in Southern Lebanon, he said.

UNIFIL issued the following press release on the incident: “Recent escalation along the Blue Line is causing widespread destruction of towns and villages in south Lebanon, while rockets continue to be launched towards Israel, including civilian areas. In the past days, we have seen incursions from Israel into Lebanon in Naqoura and other areas. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers have clashed with Hizbullah elements on the ground in Lebanon.

“UNIFIL’s Naqoura headquarters and nearby positions have been repeatedly hit.

“This morning (10 October), two peacekeepers were injured after an IDF Merkava tank fired its weapon toward an observation tower at UNIFIL’s headquarters in Naqoura, directly hitting it and causing them to fall. The injuries are fortunately, this time, not serious, but they remain in hospital.

“IDF soldiers also fired on UN position (UNP) 1-31 in Labbouneh, hitting the entrance to the bunker where peacekeepers were sheltering, and damaging vehicles and a communications system. An IDF drone was observed flying inside the UN position up to the bunker entrance.

“On 9 October, IDF soldiers deliberately fired at and disabled the position’s perimeter-monitoring cameras. They also deliberately fired on UNP 1-32A in Ras Naqoura, where regular Tripartite meetings were held before the conflict began, damaging lighting and a relay station.

“We remind the IDF and all actors of their obligations to ensure the safety and security of UN personnel and property and to respect the inviolability of UN premises at all times. UNIFIL peacekeepers are present in south Lebanon to support a return to stability under Security Council mandate. Any deliberate attack on peacekeepers is a grave violation of international humanitarian law and of Security Council resolution 1701.

We are following up with the IDF on these matters.”

Continue Reading

News

CB says country still not out of the woods

Published

on

The overall stabilisation and gradual improvement of domestic macrofinancial conditions eased the pressure on balance sheets of households and institutions to some extent and thereby lessened the risks faced by the financial sector in the first half of 2024, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) said on Friday (11) in a statement.

Credit growth entered the positive territory, albeit lagging behind the pace of deposit growth, the CBSL said.

It said the decline in market interest rates with the accommodative monetary policy stance along with falling inflation and lower risk premia, resulted in a partial correction of interest rate anomalies, which in turn supported the gradual uptick in credit, he said.

Moreover, the tilt in financial sector exposure towards the public sector also showed signs of correction, indicating an improvement in the allocation of financial resources towards the private sector, the CBSL said.

The Central Bank observed that amidst these developments, the credit cycle progressed within the expansionary phase with the gradual widening of the credit gap. While these developments are encouraging in terms of stabilisation of the financial sector, lingering macrofinancial challenges continued to pose concerns, the CBSL said.

Diminished real income amidst elevated price levels and rigidities in the labour market continued to dampen both the demand for credit and the improvement in credit quality. Moreover, the downward rigidity in market interest rates coupled with declining yet elevated yields of Government securities also hampered the progress of financial intermediation, the CBSL said.

Continue Reading

Trending