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Weerawansa urges President to fast-track interest-free university student loan scheme

Published

4 years ago

2022/08/26

By Sanath Nanayakkare

National Freedom Front (NFF) Leader Wimal Weerawansa yesterday urged the Finance Minister and President Ranil Wickremesinghe to expedite the enrollment of students selected to enter non-state/private universities under the student loan scheme initiated by the Yahapalana government in 2017.

“As you are well aware, due to the limited

capacity of enrolling students to state universities, not all students who are eligible for university entrance in Sri Lanka get the opportunity. Against this backdrop, the interest-free loan scheme for selected students to enter private universities was introduced in 2017 while you were the prime minister of that administration.

Under this programme, five consecutive student groups are to be enrolled in private universities, however, the students selected by the Ministry of Higher Education to enter nominated private universities for the Academic Year 2021/2022, have not yet been registered.

The anxiously awaiting students are very concerned about this delay as years don’t wait for them and they can’t reverse the damage caused by it on their future,” Weerawansa stated writing a letter to the President on the matter.

“Providing the opportunity of enrollment to such students to private universities under the above interest-free student loan scheme would be a progressive measure because the capital we invest as a nation for tomorrow’s academic and professional excellence of our students would be a meaningful investment for the future.

“About 15,000 students who belong to this aspirant group are told by the Ministry of Higher Education that financial institutions including the Bank of Ceylon are citing the prevailing higher interest rates as a barrier to implementing this scheme as planned earlier. So I kindly request you to pay immediate attention to this matter as the finance minister and take appropriate action to resolve this issue and accelerate the registration process and intake of these students.”

Several students selected to enter private universities under this scheme told The Island that they were told by Higher Education Ministry authorities at a Zoom meeting that the state bank involved in the project is not willing to give out these loans at the previous rates (12%-13%) as current bank interest rates have exceeded 22% per annum. So we got the impression that either the government would have to give a fresh guarantee to the Bank of Ceylon (BOC) on the new interest payments or our parents would have to pay the increased part of the interest. Most of us are from low and middle income levels of the society, and therefore, it would be practically impossible for our parents to bear a significant share of the interest cost.”

According to the Higher Education Ministry’s website, the total interest-free loan period is 12 years. The repayment of the loan should be started after the study period and one-year grace period.

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Geneva takes up Sallay’s case and govt. ignores opportunity to answer accusations

Published

10 hours ago

2026/10/5

Thilina Walpola

Suresh Sallay

The government has chosen not to respond to questions raised by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) regarding the detention of retired Maj. Gen. Suresh Sallay in connection with the ongoing investigations into the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks.

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) arrested the ex-official in late February this year. The Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, the Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health and the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers have jointly raised the issue on 20 July, 2026.

Drawing attention of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to what they called alleged arbitrary detention of Sallay, former Director General of the State Intelligence Service (SIS) and former Director of Military Intelligence (DMI), under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), as well as allegations of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment while in custody, resulting in the grave deterioration of his health, and imminent risks of retaliation through further torture and ill-treatment resulting in irreparable harm, should he be released from hospital and returned to custody, the UN sought the government explanation with a 60-day period.

The UN has stated: “This communication, and any response received from your Excellency’s Government, will be made public via the communications reporting website at the 60 days mark. Should your Excellency’s Government respond within 60 days, both the communication and the response, may be published before the 60 days mark. The communications and responses

will also be made available in the subsequent periodic report to be presented to the Human Rights Council.”

In the absence of the government’s response, the UN posted the letter, dated 20 July, 2026, addressed to President Dissanayake. The full letter can be accessed https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=31125

News

Section of wartime KKS High Security Zone vacated to facilitate economic development in the area

Published

10 hours ago

2026/10/5

Thilina Walpola

The Army, last week, vacated an area, within the wartime high security zone in the Jaffna peninsula. The Defence Ministry said that an extent of 187.56 acres of land, belonging to the Cement Corporation in Kankesanthurai, Jaffna, has been released by the military. The released land, located in Grama Niladhari Division J/233, Kankesanthurai West, within the Valikamam North (Tellippalai) Divisional Secretariat Division, had been utilised by the Sri Lanka Army since the middle of 1997.

The release of the 187.56-acre extent forms part of the initiative to make State land available for the proposed investment zone in Kankesanthurai, thereby facilitating future investment and economic development in the area.

News

Lawyer lodges complaint against Govt. Printer, Media Ministry Secy.

Published

10 hours ago

2026/10/5

Thilina Walpola

A complaint has been lodged with the Colombo Fraud Investigation Bureau against the Government Printer and the Secretary to the Ministry of Media regarding the online release of falsified documents bearing a forged Speaker’s certificate.

Attorney-at-Law Aruna Laksiri has lodged a complaint with the Colombo Fraud Investigation Bureau requesting legal action against the Government Printer of the Department of Government Printing (No. 118, Dr. Danister de Silva Mawatha, Colombo 08), Prasanna Jayaratne, and the Secretary to the Ministry of Mass Media (Asidisi Medura, 163, Kirulapone Mawatha, Polhengoda, Colombo 05), Dr. Anil Jasinghe.

The complaint alleges the commission of offences by forging and uploading falsified documents online using a forged Speaker’s certification, failure to perform statutory duties, and misappropriation of public property.

The complaint states that a copy of the English translation of the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution was downloaded and printed from the official website of the Government Printing Department (www.documents.gov.lk), which operates under the Ministry of Mass Media. On its outer cover and on page 1, the text “certified on 25th of September, 2026” is inscribed inside brackets.

The complaint pointed out that the Speaker has certified an English translation. Under Articles 23, 79, 83, and 80 of the Constitution, Parliament enacts laws and the Speaker certifies bills strictly in the Sinhala and Tamil languages; under the Constitution, therefore the Speaker cannot apply such certification to an English translation.