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Sri Lanka has lost grip of the situation – PHIs

Published

5 years ago

2021/05/21

By Rathindra Kuruwita

Sri Lanka was no longer capable of carrying out random sampling which helped identify clusters at an early stage during the first and second wave of the pandemic, Public Health Inspectors’ Union head, Upul Rohana said yesterday.

Rohana said the country could only test about 26, 000 PCR samples a day and most of that capacity was used up to test the first-rung associates of COVID-19 cases.

“There were over 3,600 COVID-19 positive cases on Wednesday. Imagine how many first-rung associates they had? And what about the first-rung associates of the first-rung associates of confirmed cases? Right now, we cannot quarantine these people. We have to wait till we get PCR reports of first-rung associates of confirmed cases to quarantine their associates.”

Rohana said that on average it took four to nine days for a PCR test report to be issued and by that time many potentially positive persons were freely mingling in society. Thus, the number of actual COVID-19 cases could be what was reported, he said.

“During the first wave, we overreacted and that was good. We pursued potential cases and dismantled clusters before they exploded. However, we just do not have the capacity to do this now,” he said.

Given the circumstances, the best thing that could be done was to restrict the movement of all Sri Lankans until the authorities could get a grip of the situation, Rohana said, adding that unlike in the first and second waves of the pandemic, some private laboratories were not sharing PCR test results with the government.

“This is a punishable crime under the Quarantine Ordinance. Because of this, some people infected with the coronavirus are staying at home. On the other hand, we must admit that people have unpleasant experience at treatment centres,” he said.

Rohana said that although the number of COVID-19 cases had dropped around 2021 March, the PHIs had seen some disturbing signs and warned the Health Ministry that all was not well. For example there were clusters being reported in work places and factories.

“When the Sinhala and Tamil New year season started we urged caution. We saw that people had started celebrating even by 06 April. People went on trips and went shopping. In most clothing shops there were infections among employees. There were a person or two in most of the groups that went on trips. As we noted, COVID-19 was in factories and during the vacation; these workers went home and mingled with their friends. Now, we are seeing the results.”

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INS GHARIAL makes port call in Colombo

Published

3 hours ago

2026/02/6

Priyan

The Indian Naval Ship (INS) GHARIAL made a port call in Colombo for operational turnarounds on 04 Feb 26. The Sri Lanka Navy welcomed the visiting ship in compliance with naval traditions.

Commanded by Commander Gaurav Tewari, INS GHARIAL is a vessel with a length of 124.8 meters.

During this visit, ten (10) Bailey Bridges, brought by ship, through the coordination of the High Commission of India in Sri Lanka, will be handed over to the Disaster Management Center. These bridges will provide temporary transportation links while bridges damaged across the island by adverse weather conditions are repaired.

The crew’s itinerary features scheduled goodwill activities with the Sri Lanka Navy, alongside visits to several tourist attractions across the island.

News

Speaker’s personal secretary accused of interference with ongoing bribery investigation

Published

4 hours ago

2026/02/6

Thilina Walpola

Harshana

SJB Gampaha District MP Harshana Rajakaruna yesterday told Parliament that the Speaker’s Personal Secretary had written to the Secretary-General of Parliament seeking information on a complaint lodged with the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) by a former Deputy Secretary of Parliament against the Speaker. Rajakaruna called for an immediate investigation into what he described as interference with an ongoing probe.

Raising the matter in the House, Rajakaruna said he had formally requested the Commission to initiate an inquiry into the conduct of the Speaker’s Personal Secretary, Chameera Gallage, questioning the authority under which such information had been sought.

Rajapakaruna tabled in Parliament a copy of the letter allegedly sent by Gallage to the Secretary-General requesting details of the bribery complaint.

Addressing the House, Rajakaruna said that the letter, sent two days earlier, had sought “full details” of the complaint against the Speaker. He maintained that seeking such information amounted to interference with an investigation and constituted a serious offence under the Bribery Act.

“The Speaker’s Secretary has no right to interfere with the work of the Bribery Commission. Under what law is he acting? What authority does he have? The Speaker, like everyone else, is subject to the law of the land,” Rajakaruna said, urging the Commission to take immediate action.

He noted that the Bribery Act treated the obstruction of investigations and the destruction of documents relating to such inquiries as serious offences punishable by law, and said he believed the Minister of Justice would concur.

The allegations sparked sharp reactions in the Chamber, as Opposition members called for accountability and due process in relation to the complaint against the Speaker.

By Saman Indrajith

News

Govt: Average power generation cost reduced from Rs. 37 to Rs. 29

Published

4 hours ago

2026/02/6

Thilina Walpola

Kumara

The Ceylon Electricity Board has managed to reduce the average cost of electricity generation from Rs. 37 per unit to Rs. 29, marking a 22 percent reduction, Minister of Power and Energy Eng. Kumara Jayakody told Parliament yesterday.

Responding to an oral question raised by Opposition MP Ravi Karunanayake, the Minister said that electricity tariffs cannot be reduced unless the cost of generation is brought down.

“You cannot reduce electricity tariffs without reducing the cost of generation. What we are currently doing is buying at a higher price and selling at a lower price. When we assumed office, the cost of purchasing and generating electricity was Rs. 37 per unit. We have now managed to bring it down to Rs. 29, a reduction of 22 percent.

Our target is to further reduce this to Rs. 25. Once that is achieved, we will reduce electricity tariffs by 30 percent within three years, as we promised,” Minister Jayakody said.

He added that the government has already formulated a long-term generation plan to further expand the country’s power generation capacity.

According to the Minister, key measures include increasing the absorption of renewable energy into the national grid, expanding the national transmission and distribution network, introducing renewable energy storage systems, and constructing thermal and liquefied natural gas (LNG) power plants to replace aging facilities and meet future demand.

He also said that steps would be taken to enhance the capacity of existing hydropower plants as part of the broader strategy to ensure energy security and reduce long-term electricity costs.

By Ifham Nizam