News
Lanka-Indonesia Parliamentary Friendship Association strengthens bilateral cooperation
Senior MP W.D.J. Seneviratne was elected as the new President of the Sri Lanka-Indonesia Parliamentary Friendship Association recently at the revival meeting of the association for the ninth Parliament, communication division of Parliament said.
The meeting was held under the patronage of Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, Ambassador of the Republic of Indonesia to Sri Lanka Gusti Ngurah Ardiyasa and Secretary General of Parliament Dhammika Dasanayake.
At this meeting Member of Parliament Dr. Suren Raghavan was elected as the new Secretary of the Association and Members of Parliament Mohomad Muzammil, Aravindh Kumar and Imthiaz Bakeer Marker were elected as Vice Presidents.
In addition, MP Marjan Faleel was elected as the Treasurer and MP (Mrs.) Muditha Prishanthi de Zoysa was elected as the Assistant Secretary.
The Speaker said that there were a number of bilateral agreements between Sri Lanka and Indonesia, further strengthening the cooperation between the two countries.
“Paving the way to further strengthening collaboration between our two countries, Sri Lanka entered into several bilateral agreements and MOUs with Indonesia which cover wider range of areas such as economic and technical cooperation, promotion and protection of investments, higher education, research and technology, visa exemption, cultural cooperation, marine and fisheries cooperation, and combating international terrorism,” the Speaker said.
Several Ministers, State Ministers and Parliamentarians were present at the meeting.
In terms of the provisions of the Establishments Code on payment of festival advance to government officers, there’s a possibility of obtaining rupees 10,000/- as an advance for celebrating festivals of Theipongal, Ramazan, Sinhala and Hindu New Year, Wesak, Deepavali, and Christmas as well as for pilgrimages (Sri Paada pilgrimage and Hajj pilgrimage).
Provisions have been given to recover the said advance in 08 installments or if required earlier without interest. It has been proposed by the Budget 2026 to increase the said festival advance up to rupees 15,000/-.
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers granted approval to the proposal submitted by the Minister of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local governments to revise the relevant provisions so that the festival advance can be increased up to rupees 15,000/- .
As per the approval given by the cabinet meeting held on 02-06-2025, action is being taken at present to offer the underutilized lands/properties of the Sri Lanka State Plantation Corporation, the Janatha Etate Development Board, and the Elkaduwa Plantation Company which are under the Ministry of Plantation and Community Infrastructure which have been identified under stage one to suitable investors.
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal presented by the Minister of Plantations and Community Infrastructure to provide following lands/properties on a lease basis to the suitable investors for optimal utilization following the prescribed procurement procedure.
• underutilized lands/properties identified under stage two owned by the Sri Lanka State Plantation Corporation, the Janatha Estate Development Board, and the Elkaduwa Plantation
Company,
• The Mawarala watte land and the Tea factory 40.48 hectares in extent, located in Matara District belonging to the Tea Shakthi Fund.
• The underutilized land of 1,541 hectares in extent of Kondachchi Estate is enjoyed by the Sri Lanka Cashew Corporation.
The drafting of the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy has commenced with the objective of equitable distribution of the benefits of the fisheries industry and the sustainable management of fisheries and aquaculture. This policy has been updated from time to time according to current requirements. However, steps have not been taken to obtain the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers for that purpose.
According to the policy declaration of the present government, ‘Vistas of Prosperity and Splendor’ the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy has been redrafted, updating the aforementioned policy in line with the economic and development objectives of the government.
The recommendations of the Department of National Planning have been received for the drafted policy.
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal presented by the Minister of Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Marine
Resources to implement the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy, integrating it with other relevant policies.
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Festival advance for government officers to be increased
Providing underutilized lands/properties to suitable investors for optimal utilization.
Implementation of the National Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy
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