Connect with us

News

1st reading of the 2023 Appropriation Bill, tomorrow

Published

on

The First Reading of the Appropriation Bill for the year 2023 is scheduled to be presented tomorrow. This was decided at the Committee on Parliamentary Business held previously (07) under the chairmanship of Speaker – Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana.

From Oct.18th – 21st, time is allotted from 9.30 am – 10.30 for Questions for Oral Answers.

It was decided to hold the debate on the Second Reading of the Petroleum Products (Special Provisions) (Amendment) Bill from 10.30 am – 5.00 pm on the 18th of October. Thereafter, time has been allotted from 5.00 pm – 5.30 pm for the Motion at the Adjournment Time brought in by the Government, the Secretary General said.

The Committee also decided to take into debate 6 Bills presented by the Ministry of Justice on October 19th from 10.30 am – 5.00 pm. Accordingly, Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs’ (Amendment) Bill, Notaries Ordinance (Amendment) Bill, Powers of Attorney Ordinance (Amendment) Bill, Wills Ordinance (Amendment) Bill, Registration of Documents (Amendment) Bill, Prevention of Frauds Ordinance (Amendment) bill are scheduled to be taken up for debate.

From 5.00 pm – 5.30 pm time has been set aside for Questions at the Adjournment Time.

From 10.30 am – 5.00 pm on October 20th and 21st, the Second Reading debate on the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution Bill is scheduled to be held. Thereafter, time has been allotted from 5.00 pm – 5.30 pm for the Motion at the Adjournment Time brought in by the Opposition.

Furthermore, a vote is scheduled to be held at the end of the debate on the Second Reading on the 22nd Amendment to the Constitution Bill, which will be held on the 21st until 5:30 p.m.

News

Liquor shops to be closed on Nov. 14 and 15

Published

on

By

The Excise Commission has announced that all liquor shops and wine stores islandwide will be closed on Nov. 14 and 15 for the upcoming general elections.

Officials have been instructed to enforce regulations strictly and address any illegal operations during this period.

Continue Reading

News

India’s luxury airline Vistara ends operations

Published

on

By

Indian full-service carrier Vistara will operate its last flight on Monday, after nine years in existence.

A joint venture between Singapore Airlines and the Tata Sons, Vistara will merge with Tata-owned Air India to form a single entity with an expanded network and broader fleet.

This means that all Vistara operations will be transferred to and managed by Air India, including helpdesk kiosks and ticketing offices. The process of migrating passengers with existing Vistara bookings and loyalty programmes to Air India has been under way over the past few months.

“As part of the merger process, meals, service ware and other soft elements have been upgraded and incorporates aspects of both Vistara and Air India,” an Air India spokesperson said in an email response.

Amid concerns that the merger could impact service standards, the Tatas have assured that Vistara’s in-flight experience will remain unchanged.

Known for its high ratings in food, service, and cabin quality, Vistara has built a loyal customer base and the decision to retire the Vistara brand has been criticised by fans, branding experts, and aviation analysts.

The consolidation was effectively done to clean up Vistara’s books and wipe out its losses, said Mark Martin, an aviation analyst.

Air India has essentially been “suckered into taking a loss-making airline” in a desperate move, he added.

“Mergers are meant to make airlines powerful. Never to wipe out losses or cover them.”

To be sure, both Air India and Vistara’s annual losses have reduced by more than half over the past year, and other operating metrics have improved too. But the merger process so far has been turbulent.

The exercise has been riddled with problems – from pilot shortages that have led to massive flight cancellations, to Vistara crew going on mass sick leave over plans to align their salary structures with Air India.

There have also been repeated complaints about poor service standards on Air India, including viral videos of broken seats and non-functioning inflight entertainment systems.

(BBC News)

Continue Reading

News

Special unit to provide updates on SriLankan flight delays

Published

on

By

Minister Vijitha Herath has made a visit to the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) in Colombo to look into the complaints received with regards to the delays in SriLankan flights.

During the visit, the minister had visited various sections of the airport while engaging in cordial discussions with the staff.

Minister Herath has emphasized the need to create a special unit representing the airport and SriLankan Airlines at the airport premises to provide passengers with immediate updates on flight delays while operating 24 hours a day and to provide maximum facilities to passengers during the delays.

Also, authorities have been instructed to take measures to minimize these delays.

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2024 Sri Lanka Mirror. All Rights Reserved