President Anura Kumara Disanayake stated that land belonging to the people should rightfully remain with them. He further emphasized that the issue of land disputes in the Northern Province is under review and that steps are being taken to expedite the process of returning land to its rightful owners.
The President highlighted that while the government has the authority to acquire land anywhere in the country for development projects or security purposes, it is imperative that alternative land is provided to those affected.
President Disanayake made these remarks during the Jaffna District Coordination Committee (DCC) Meeting held today (31) at the Jaffna District Secretariat.
He also stressed that the Jaffna President’s House will be fully repurposed for a project of greater significance to the people of the region. He urged officials to submit suitable proposals for this initiative.
The President instructed officials to investigate and take swift action regarding reports that families displaced by the war are still residing in the Northern Province.
He also noted that a committee, led by the Secretary to the Prime Minister, has identified approximately 30,000 vacancies in state institutions. He assured that these vacancies would be filled in accordance with the established recruitment process, ensuring opportunities for university graduates as well.
Additionally, the President announced that Tamil-speaking youth will be given greater opportunities to apply for vacancies in the Police Department and encouraged them to come forward for recruitment.
The government has also planned to implement a comprehensive strategy to strengthen the transportation system in the Northern Province. This includes launching a joint bus operation project between the Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) and private bus operators. Furthermore, attention has been directed toward increasing the frequency of train services in the region.
The President stated that three new industrial zones will be established in Paranthan, Mankulam, and Kankesanthurai to improve the living standards of the people in the Northern Province. He also extended an invitation to Sri Lankans who left the country due to the war to invest in these projects.
The government is prioritizing the Northern Province in its development plans, ensuring targeted initiatives for the region, the President emphasized.
He further revealed that with an estimated 2.5 million tourists expected to visit Sri Lanka next year, the government will identify and promote new tourist attractions in the Northern Province to boost tourism in the region.
Additionally, the President assured that new recruitments for the state sector in the Northern Province will be carried out without political interference, while efforts will be made to further strengthen public service in the region.
President Anura Kumara Disanayake stated that the government would engage in maximum diplomatic intervention to resolve the fisheries-related issues affecting the region.
Additionally, he highlighted that the Northern Province has been identified as the region with the lowest consumption of piped drinking water in the country. In response, he emphasized the need to accelerate the on-going water supply projects in the area. Furthermore, he announced that funds have been allocated in the upcoming budget for the implementation of new water supply projects to improve access to clean drinking water in the province.
President Anura Kumara Disanayake acknowledged the numerous challenges faced by the people in the Northern Province and emphasized the government’s commitment to strengthening the education, healthcare, transportation and agricultural sectors, along with the overall public service in the region. He further stated that both political authority and state mechanisms must work together to uplift the living standards of the people.
The Jaffna District Coordinating Committee meeting was attended by several key figures, including Minister of Fisheries, Aquatic and Ocean Resources, and Chairman of the Jaffna District Coordinating Committee Ramalijngam Chandrasekar, Minister of Transport, Highways, Ports, and Civil Aviation Bimal Rathnayake, Members of Parliament (NPP), Ilankumaran Karunanandan, Dr. Saravanabhavanandan Shanmuganathan, Rajivan Jayachandramurthy, Ramanathan Archuna, Member of Parliament (ITAK) Sivagnanam Sridharan, Member of Parliament (AITC) Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, Governor of the Northern Province Nagalingam Vedanayagam, Chief Secretary of the Northern Province L. Ilangovan, Jaffna District Secretary M. Pradeepan, Acting Inspector General of Police Priyantha Weerasooriya and Senior military officials overseeing the Northern region, along with other government officials.
The Government of the United Kingdom (UK) has unveiled a package of reforms to simplify imports from developing countries like Sri Lanka after upgrades to the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS).
The changes, announced as part of the UK’s wider Trade for Development offer, aim to support economic growth in partner countries, including Sri Lanka, while helping UK businesses and consumers access high-quality, affordable goods.
New measures include simplifying rules of origin, enabling more goods from countries such as Sri Lanka, Nigeria, and the Philippines can enter the UK tariff-free, even when using components from across Asia and Africa.
These changes are expected to be in place by early 2026.
This move strengthens Sri Lanka’s position in its second-largest apparel market, supporting exports, jobs, and economic growth.
The British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Andrew Patrick, said: “This is a win for the Sri Lankan garment sector, and for UK consumers. With the UK being the second largest export market and garments making up over 60% of that trade, we know manufacturers here will welcome this announcement.
“We want Sri Lanka to improve the utilisation of the UK’s Developing Countries Trading Scheme for a wider range of goods, not just garments. With the Sri Lankan government’s ambition to grow exports, and with the simplification of rules of origin for other sectors too, we strongly encourage more exporters to explore how they can benefit from the preferences offered by the DCTS. The UK remains committed to working towards creating shared prosperity for both our countries.”
Pakistan police have arrested 149 people in a raid on a scam call centre, the country’s National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) said on Thursday.
The agency told the BBC it acted after a tip-off about the network, which was operating in the city of Faisalabad.
It said the centre was involved in Ponzi schemes and tricked people into handing over vast sums of money in the name of fake investments.
Those arrested included 78 Pakistanis, 48 Chinese nationals, eight Nigerians, four Filipinos, two Sri Lankans, six Bangladeshis, two Myanmar nationals and one Zimbabwean national. Eighteen of the 149 were women, the agency added.
A copy of a police report said victims of the alleged scam would initially receive a small return on their first investments, before being persuaded to hand over larger sums of money.
“The charged individuals ran WhatsApp groups where they lured ordinary people by assigning small investment tasks like subscribing to different TikTok and YouTube channels,” the agency said.
“Later, they shifted them to Telegram links for further online tasks requiring larger investments.”
Pakistani citizen Muhammad Sajid told BBC Urdu that he was added to a Telegram channel with tens of thousands of members and was impressed by the company’s work. He said he gave them more than 3.138 million rupees ($36,600) in various instalments.
The raid, which took place on Tuesday, saw authorities seize hundreds of computers, servers, cryptocurrency exchanges and foreign SIM cards from the site.
On Wednesday, 149 suspects appeared in court, 87 of whom were handed over to the NCCIA on a five-day physical remand.
A further 62 suspects have been transferred to the district jail on judicial remand until 23 July.
The agency said the raid was at the residence of Malik Tehseen Awan, the former head of Faisalabad’s power grid, who has not been arrested.