Sri Lanka News | Online edition of Daily News

President Mahinda Rajapaksa met a group of UK and EU Parliamentarians in London yesterday. Ministers Prof. G L Pieris, S B Dissanayake, Sri Lankan High Commissioner in UK Justice, Nihal Jayasinghe were also present. Picture by Sudath Silva

Ganshu Province in China and the Central Provincial Council have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding to promote mutual friendship and understanding between them. Central Province Governor Tikiri Kobbekaduwa and Chinese Communist Party Central Committee member and Communist Party Committee Secretary in the Ganshu Province Lui Hao signed the agreement at a ceremony at the Governor’s office in Kandy on November 19. Picture by Sanjaya Asela Maturata

The Kapruka Company has agreed to sponsor the Musical Show at the annual get-together organised by the Lake House Sports Club at Airforce Grounds. The sponsorship cheque was handed over to Lake House Director Operations Upul Dissanayake by S S Alexander, Programs Manager of Kapruka Limited at the Lake House Auditorium on Tuesday. Joint Secretaries of the Lake House Sports Club Nalinda Illangakoon and Mahendra Rodrigo and Kapruka Development Manager Manoj Jayathunga were also present. Picture by Rukmal Gamage

Raid nets illicit liquor, 19 suspects

A stock of illicit liquor and distilling equipment were seized and 19 suspects taken into custody during a raid of an illegal brewery at Morathenna in Rambodagalle last week.

Fifty officers consisting of Assistant Superintendents of Police and OICs of the Kurunegala Police Division carried out the raid.

Police seized 17 barrels and 90 cans of illicit liquor (Kassippu) and distilling equipment.

Law breaker remanded

A drunk motorcyclist nabbed following a chase by police was arrested with nine T 56 cartridges.

The man travelling along the main road in Ambalangoda also did not have a valid driving licence or an insurance policy.

Rs 10,000 heroin fine

Dilshan Pieris who pleaded guilty to possessing 20 milligrams of heroin was fined Rs 10,000 by Additional Magistrate Indika Attanayake.

Teacher appointment interviews on Dec 8

Interviews to select English and Tamil medium graduates for teaching appointments in the Southern Province will be held at the Southern Province Education Ministry office at Upper Dickson Road, Galle at 10.00 am on December 8. Applicants must be English medium graduates below 45 years with English language as main subject. Applicants should call over with the documents, the Southern Province Education Ministry Secretary said.

Tea plant robbers held

Kolonna police arrested two suspects who had allegedly robbed 1,000 tea plants from a nursery at Maussakanda, Bultota.

The suspects were produced before Embilipitiya Magistrate Bandula Gunaratne and remanded till December 8.

Serpents in lake attracts large crowd

Clusters of serpents found in the lagoon below the Kalladi Bridge in Batticaloa during rains have become an attraction among local residents here.

People can be seen braving the inclement weather and standing on the bridge to have a glimpse of the reptiles moving about in the lagoon.

Army joins dengue fight

The Sri Lanka Army, which contributed to the National Dengue Control drive, initiated by the Health Ministry Secretariat weeks ago, has been requested to join its second phase of the campaign, scheduled for today and tomorrow.

Hundreds of Army personnel in coordination with Health Services Provincial and District Directors are to inspect and clean public places and homesteads.

Illegal power line electrocutes boy

A 12-year-old boy named Sanjeewa Raju Kumara died on admission to the Welimada hospital after being electrocuted on tripping an electricity cable laid to protect a cultivation Thursday.

Lankan jailed for fraud

A Sri Lankan was jailed for defrauding a Queensland charity of more than $1.7 million to fund his online gambling addiction.

Dinesh Enoka Abeysuriya stole the money over the 12 months to March last year from Uniting Care Queensland in Australia which trades as Blue Care. Abeysuriya skimmed money from inflated invoices and then spent it on online gambling.

Abeysuriya pleaded guilty in the District Court in Brisbane to two counts of fraud. Judge Kerry O’Brien noted he had voluntarily returned from Sri Lanka to be sentenced.

He jailed Abeysuriya for seven years with a parole eligibility date in November 2012. ABC.

Resolution unanimously passed

Jaffna Mayor Yogeswary Patkunarajah presented a resolution at the monthly meeting of Jaffna Municipality seeking the approval of the house for the establishment of a separate Highways Department to undertake and execute massive development projects and to purchase modern machineries.

The house also decided to obtain export advice and to give training facilities for the employees released for the job.

Dies after crashing into lamp post

A 28 year old youth died when the motorcycle he was riding at high speed crashed on to a lamp post on the Batticaloa Kalmunai road on Tuesday night.

A traffic policeman who tried to stop the speeding motorcycle too was injured after being knocked down by the cyclist and he was admitted to the Batticaloa hospital in a critical condition.

The deceased cyclist was identified as Marippodi Jegadeesan. Kaththankudy Police is investigating.

Man nabbed with ganja haul

Tangalle Police Intelligence Unit on an anti-narcotics raid in Andarawewa arrested a suspect in possession of 5.350 kilos of ganja and another in possession of 178 ganja plants.

The suspects handed over to Sooriyawewa Police were due to be produced in Court yesterday.

Buddhist talk

Dr Knishka Karunaratne will deliver a public Buddhist Talk in english on “Importance and the Practice of the Anapana Sati” at the meeting of the Servants of Buddha Society on Saturday, December 4 at 4.30 p.m. at the Maithree Hall, Lauries Road, Bambalapitiya.

Petition

A petition with one million signatures is to be presented to the President by a movement in Jaffna against the slaughter of milch cows. The signatures are to be obtained in all schools, temples, community centres and in all government offices.

The petition prays for immediate action to be taken against those who torture animals and slaughter cows in Jaffna.

Water diverted to barren lands

Water will be provided for the cultivation of paddy and subsidiary food crops to 100 acres that remained barren for decades.

The setting up of a new reservoir at the Hungama Bata Atha Chamal Rajapaksa Agro Technology Farm will provide water for this.

Suspects nabbed

Kananke police nabbed two suspects who alleged to have snatched gold chains from women and stolen motor cycles for a long time. They were remanded till December 8 after being produced before the Matara Magistrate.

Police recovered two gold chains and one motor cycle robbed by the suspects. They were handed over Thihagoda Police for investigations.

Meanwhile, Akuressa Police are conducting investigations to apprehend another suspect who snatched gold chain of a woman at Athuraliya recently.

PS member in illegal sand mining

Pitabeddara Police seized two suspects including a Pradeshiya Sabha Member who were involved in sand mining at Pitabeddara river which is tributary of the Nilwala river without permits. The two suspects produced before the Morawaka Magistrate Court were fined Rs 10,000 each by Magistrate Dhammika Hemapala.

Police hunt suspects

Vavuniya Police are looking for two suspects including a former UNP Pradesheeya Sabha member and a former co-ordinating secretary of a former Cabinet Minister who had allegedly defrauded several youth promising them government jobs.

The Pradesheeya Sabha member had been attached to the Nattandiya PS and the Co-ordinating Secretary is a resident of Thoduwawa Mahawewa. The PS member had been expected from the UNP for switching allegiance and the co-ordinating secretary had been fired by the Cabinet Minister following allegations of fraud.

Reservoir damage plays havoc

The Karuwamadu reservoir in Batticaloa has breached bund due to heavy rains inundating nearly 2,500 acres of paddy land in the area since November 26. Farmers in Pottanai, Karuwamadu and Kareiyadipatmai have been greatly inconvenienced as a result.