More than 500 guitar players strummed away at the Pioneer Courthouse Square in Portland, Oregon on Sunday. The event was a fundraiser for Sisters of the Road Cafe to feed the homeless and also set a record for the largest guitar band. The song “This Land is Your Land” was played for 60 minutes. Reuters

Finance Minister unveils first Mid Year Fiscal report

Economy records 5.5pc growth in first quarter

by Ravi Ladduwahetty

The Sri Lankan economy has reported a turnaround for 2003, recording a 5.5 percent growth in the first quarter of 2003 over the 0.5 percent growth for the corresponding period a year ago.
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SLMM urges LTTE to remove camp in Kinniya

by Ranil Wijayapala

The Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission yesterday urged the LTTE to remove a camp it was constructing in the government controlled area of Kinniya. The SLMM who conducted an investigation in this connection said this was a violation of the ceasefire agreement.
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Minister to commence land distribution programme

by Ananda Kannangara

Landless citizens countrywide will have the opportunity of owning 20 perch blocks of land each to construct houses and a further two acres of land for agricultural purposes under the Government's National Land Distribution Policy scheduled to be implemented shortly.
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Ministry accuses PA-JVP unions of sabotage

Hospital employees strike demanding pay hike

by Manjula Fernando

Around three thousand minor employees in the Colombo National Hospital are expected to go on strike from today over six demands including a Rs. 5000 pay hike and a Rs. 7000 uniform allowance a year while the Health Ministry accused the PA-JVP backed trade unions of sabotage.
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Other Stories

• Security operations stepped up in Colombo and suburbs
  
  
• Mundo gas allowed refilling of any trademark : SC restores interim order vacated by Court of Appeal till July 16
  
  
• Profit making farms will not be privatised - Minister
  
  
• Bindunuwewa massacre judgement today
  
  
• Micro credit interest single digit from today
  
  
• WP Chief Minister forcibly opens IT Unit at Colombo girls' school
  
  
• Drug abuse closely interwoven with poverty & under development - President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga
  
  
• MFI's could handle overseas workers' remittances to profit and help poor
  
  
• FAO boon to flood affected farmers
  
  
• All organisations helped in flood relief aid - Deputy Minister Gunawardena
  
  
• Science should be utilised as a useful technology - CRD Minister
  
  
• Sevana Sarana Scheme to help flood affected children
  
  
• Book launch on July 16
  
  
• Rs. 1.5 billion required to replace railway tracks
  
  
• Time to rethink Nilwala Ganga scheme now - Minister Wijesekera
  
  
• Buddha statues, Rock temples abandoned
  
  
• Major well cleaning exercise in the South
  
  
• House donated to two spinster sisters
  
  
• Bangladesh apparel and textile exhibition in October
  
  
• Udatalawinna mass murder : Witness cross-examined further by defence counsel

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