
Approval of the Cabinet of Ministers was granted for the National Charter and National Policy on Senior Citizens of Sri Lanka in the year 2006.
It has been identified that the National Policy on Senior Citizens should be updated according to the changing world trends. Since the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations has predicted that the population of elderly persons of 60 years or more will increase up to 24.8% by the year 2052.
Therefore, the necessity for the promotion and protection of the welfare and rights of senior citizens has been identified.
Accordingly, the national policy on senior citizens in Sri Lanka was prepared to facilitate their ability to live in good social, economic, physical, and spiritual conditions in line with the theme of “Respectful Senior Citizen-Meaningful Retirement” under the government policy framework.
The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the proposal presented by the Minister of Rural Development, Social Protection, and Community Empowerment for the aforementioned national policy.
Kuwait says a power and desalination plant has been hit by an Iranian attack.
Gulf countries continue to face retaliatory strikes on the 35th day, of the United States and Israel’s war on Iran.
Kuwaiti authorities said the plant was struck before midday local time on Friday. The extent of the damage is not yet known.
The attack came hours after the Mina al-Ahmadi oil refinery was targeted in early morning drone strikes. State news agency KUNA said the attack caused fires in a “number of operational units,” and no employees were injured.
Emergency and firefighting teams were sent with environmental experts monitoring air quality.
Al Jazeera’s Malik Traina, reporting from the capital, Kuwait City, said this was the third time the refinery’s been hit and that people across the country are on “high alert”.
“It’s one of the biggest refineries in the Middle East and it is also critical for local consumption,” he said.
Kuwait “is the closest country to Iran – just 80 kilometres separates Kuwait from Iran’s coastlines, so it’s perhaps the most easily targeted from these attacks from Iran,” he added.
In an early post on X, KUNA warned that “hostile missile and drone attacks” on Kuwait were under way. Sirens sounded during midair explosions as interceptions of Iranian missiles were heard across the country, the agency reported.
Kuwait and much of the Gulf are highly dependent on desalinated water. An Indian national was killed on March 30 after a Kuwaiti power and desalination plant was hit. Iran denied claims it launched the attacks and blamed Israel.
Elsewhere, the United Arab Emirates’ defence ministry said the country was battling a new wave of suspected Iranian missile and drone attacks.
[Aljazeera]
The Sri Lanka Cricket Selection Panel has named a 15-member squad for the upcoming Tri- Series tour of Australia, which will also feature England.
During the tour, the team will play a total of six matches, comprising two One Day and four T20 games, scheduled for the 7th, 8th, 12th, 13th, 17th, and 18th of April.
The squad is scheduled to depart for Australia today [3rd April 2026.]
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has announced the following appointments to the National High Performance Center:
Ryan van Niekerk, who served as the bowling coach and interim head coach of the Netherlands national team from 2023 to 2026, was appointed as the national bowling coach of Sri Lanka Cricket.
In this role, he will oversee fast bowling across all national teams, including the national men’s team.
Before taking over the interim role, he worked as the assistant coach and bowling coach of the Netherlands national men’s team.
During his stint with the Netherlands team, Ryan has contributed to the team’s participation in major international tournaments such as the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, and ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.
He was appointed for a two-year tenure, commencing on 15th April 2026.
Jordan Gregory, who has worked as a fielding consultant for Netherlands Cricket, was appointed as the national fielding and spin bowling coach.
He will be responsible for overseeing fielding and spin bowling across all national teams at the High Performance Center, including the national men’s team.
During his time with Netherlands Cricket, Gregory has contributed to several bilateral and multinational tournaments, including the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2023.
Jordan will begin his two-year tenure on 15th April 2026.
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