News
Sri Lanka has lost grip of the situation – PHIs
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.”
The Sri Lanka Navy rescued a fisherman from a local fishing trawler that encountered distress due to adverse weather conditions off the eastern coast of Sri Lanka.
The rescue operation took place on 17 July 2026, approximately 15 nautical miles off Pothuvil. The operation was launched following information received by the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) Colombo.
In response, the Sri Lanka Navy deployed the Offshore Patrol Vessel SLNS Vijayabahu along with additional craft to conduct a search operation in the designated sea area, where they successfully located the distressed fisherman.
Following the rescue, the individual was brought aboard SLNS Vijayabahu, where naval personnel administered preliminary first aid. He was subsequently brought to the mainland and rushed for further medical attention.
Meanwhile, the Navy, along with the coordination of MRCC Colombo, remains constantly prepared to swiftly respond to the eventualities faced by maritime and fishing communities operating within the island’s Search and Rescue Region (SRR).
The countrywide dengue outbreak has intensified, with the death toll rising to 50, by July 16, as the number of reported infections surpassed 73,000, according to the National Dengue Control Unit (NDCU).
The country has recorded 73,455 dengue cases so far this year, with the case fatality rate standing at 0.07 percent, highlighting the severity of the ongoing outbreak.
The Western Province continues to remain the worst affected region, accounting for more than half of the total cases, with 38,700 infections. The Gampaha District has recorded the highest number of cases in the province with 15,341, followed closely by Colombo with 14,625.
The Southern Province has reported 11,382 cases, while the Sabaragamuwa and Central provinces have each recorded more than 6,000 infections.
Dengue cases have shown a sharp increase in recent months, with June recording the highest monthly total of 21,538 cases, while July has already reported 18,076 infections. In comparison, 8,590 cases were reported in May, and 5,651 in April.
Health authorities have identified 175 Medical Officer of Health (MOH) areas as high-risk locations during the 27th epidemiological week. An average of 2,677 new dengue cases are being reported daily, prompting authorities to intensify prevention and mosquito control measures.
The Colombo High Court yesterday (17) resumed hearing the money laundering case filed against Yoshitha Rajapaksa, son of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The proceedings were held before High Court Judge Udesh Ranatunga, where evidence was recorded from prosecution witnesses, under the direction of Deputy Solicitor General Janaka Bandara.
President’s Counsel Sampath Mendis, appearing for Yoshitha Rajapaksa, cross-examined the witnesses during the hearing.
After recording evidence, the court ordered that further examination of evidence be postponed until July 24.
The Attorney General has filed indictments, alleging that Yoshitha Rajapaksa committed an offence, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, by purchasing five plots of land in Dehiwala and Ratmalana, valued at more than Rs. 73 million.
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