President Ranil Wickremesinghe embarked on an official visit to Germany early this morning (27). During his absence, the responsibilities of the ministries under his purview have been temporarily entrusted to the respective state ministers.

As part of this arrangement, State Minister Pramitha Bandara Tennakoon will serve as the Acting Minister of Defence, State Minister Shehan Semasinghe as the Acting Minister of Finance, State Minister Kanaka Herath as the Acting Minister of Technology, State Minister Anupa Pasqual as the Acting Minister for Women, Children Affairs and Social Empowerment and State Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya as the Acting Minister for Investment Promotion.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe left for Germany to deliver the opening remarks at the Leaders Dialogue session during the ‘Berlin Global Dialogue’ on September 28-29. Subsequently, he will join a bilateral session with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the officials of the Federal Republic of Germany.

Minister of State for Tourism Mrs. Diana Gamage at a press conference themed ‘Collective path to a stable country’ at the Presidential Media Centre today (27) announced plans to launch promotional campaigns aimed at attracting 1.5 million foreign tourists to Sri Lanka by the year’s end. She emphasized the government’s commitment to ensuring the safety of tourists and mentioned initiatives such as establishing taxi associations to enhance the visitor experience.

The Railway Department has announced that train services on the coastal line will be delayed due a derailment between Kollupitiya and Colombo Fort this morning (27).

It also said that trains bound to Colombo will be given priority and requested South bound passengers to make use of alternate modes of transportation until the situation is rectified.