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A meeting between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and small and medium-scale paddy mill owners was held at the Presidential Secretariat this morning (Aug. 11) to discuss securing the contribution of small and medium-scale businesses towards maintaining a stable price for paddy and ensuring that paddy is purchased from farmers at a fair price.

During the meeting, the mill owners briefed the President on the issues they have encountered in conducting their operations. They also apprised him of difficulties faced in purchasing paddy and in dealing with banks under the Odapana loan scheme.

They proposed establishing a mechanism to provide funds for paddy purchases through District Secretaries or Divisional Secretaries. They pointed out that they have sufficient capacity to purchase paddy and that this would provide an opportunity to ensure a stable price for farmers while also guaranteeing a fair price for consumers.

Commenting on the matter, Minister o

Cabinet Spokesman Nalinda Jayatissa today (Aug. 11) clarified that the government has explained its judicial reform programme to the Chief Prelates of the three Nikayas.

Responding to questions at today’s Cabinet briefing, the minister said that he and the Minister of Justice met the Chief Prelates of the Asgiriya, Malwathu and Ramanna Nikaya together, and later held discussions with the Chief Prelate of the Amarapura Nikaya.

He said that the discussions went beyond the retirement age issue, covering the government’s plans for broader judicial reforms.

He added that the Chief Prelates listened to the government’s explanations, acknowledged the reforms, and expressed agreement if the measures would reduce delays and benefit the public.

The clarification came after Minister Jayatissa said during last week’s Cabinet briefing that he was not aware of any letter reportedly sent by the Chief Prelates of the three Nika

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Cabinet approval has been granted to convert 30,000 Metric Tonnes of paddy held by the Paddy Marketing Board into rice and release it to the market.

The decision follows a recommendation made at the 34th Food Policy and Security Committee meeting held on July 22, 2026, with the aim of supporting the government’s paddy procurement programme and ensuring an adequate rice supply.

Under the approved programme, the Cooperative Wholesale Trading Corporation (CWE) will arrange for the 30,000MT of paddy to be processed and packed as rice.

The CWE will invite expressions of interest from rice mill owners registered with the Paddy Marketing Board to process the paddy and supply rice in 5 kg, 10 kg, 25 kg and 50 kg packs.

A price committee appointed under a Cabinet decision made on December 15, 2025, has determined the paddy-to-rice conversion rate and the appropriate selling price. The committee includes officials from the Paddy Marketing Board, CWE,

The Cabinet has approved long-term contracts for the supply of petrol, Murban crude oil and diesel to the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC), following an evaluation of bids submitted under a limited international competitive procurement process.

The procurement was conducted among suppliers registered with the CPC. The approved contracts cover 03 petroleum products to be supplied between September 2026 – February 2027.

Aditya Birla Global Trading (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. was selected to supply 1.2 million barrels, with a margin of 5%, of 92 Unl petrol from Sept. 1, 2026, to Feb. 28, 2027. Four bids were received for the contract.

In addition, Aditya Birla Global Trading also selected to supply 2.8 million barrels, with a margin of 5%, of Murban crude oil from Nov. 1, 2026, to Feb. 28, 2027. Four bids were received for this procurement.

Meanwhile, Vitol Asia Pte. Ltd., Singapore, was selected to supply 1.12 million barrels, with a margin o

A Syrian court has sentenced ousted dictator Bashar al-Assad to death in absentia, after convicting him of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity during the country’s civil war.

It is the first conviction against Assad, who fled from Damascus to Moscow with his family after his regime was overthrown in December 2024, ending his family’s five-decade grip on power.

Assad’s cousin and the former head of political security in southern Syria’s Deraa province, Atef Najib, was also sentenced to death. He had been put on trial and appeared wearing a striped prison uniform inside a cage in the courtroom as the judge read out his sentence.

Deraa is widely seen as the birthplace of the uprising against Assad’s rule.

In March 2011, the detention and alleged torture of a group of teenagers accused of writing anti-government graffiti sparked protests in the city, which were met with a violent crackdown by security f

ஆந்திரப் பிரதேசத்தின் அனந்தபூர் மாவட்டத்தில் ஆறு தலைமுறைகளைக் கொண்ட ஒரு பெரிய கூட்டுக்குடும்பம் வசிக்கிறது. இந்த வீட்டில் ஒரு நாள் சமையலுக்கு 50 கிலோ அரிசி மூட்டை தேவைப்படுகிறது.

The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) has filed indictments before the Colombo High Court against former Fisheries Minister Rajitha Senaratne over an alleged corruption offence.

The case has been filed against Rajitha Senaratne, alleging that he caused a financial loss to the State by awarding the sand removal project at the Kirinda Fisheries Harbour to a Korean company during his tenure as Fisheries Minister.