News

Manusha slams MoF officials

Published

1 year ago

January 18, 2024

editor

Minister of Labour and Foreign Employment Manusha Nanayakkara said that the Finance Ministry officials are acting without any understanding regarding how to protect the fishermen and the fisheries industry.

The Minister stressed, as a result these officials have not been able to prepare a viable programme to protect fishermen and develop the fisheries sector.

The Minister also pointed out that the Ministry of Finance officials’ actions indicate they do not have a proper understanding of the valuable contribution made by the fisheries sector to the development of the economy of this country.

The Minister stated this during a meeting held at the Ministry of Labour and Foreign Employment today (17) with those employed in the fisheries sector. The meeting was a part of a series of such events organized under the “Garu Saru” programme, initiated by the Ministry of Labour and Foreign Employment to uphold the dignity, security and professional status of all those employed in the informal sector of work in Sri Lanka.

As a person who hails from Galle district, the Minister pointed out that he has a good understanding of the fisheries industry and the challenges faced by the professionals who are engaged in the sector.

The Minister went on to say, “In other countries of the world, whether a person is a fisherman, a plumber, a doctor or an engineer, they are entitled to the same privileges. All of them have the same level of respect. In our country people are divided on party lines, ethnicity and also according to their professions. This is to take various advantages. By doing so, they try to keep the fishermen and the plantation workers at a low social status level and deny them privileges and respect enjoyed by some other professionals.

But as our main programme, our Ministry started an initiative to ensure that the workforce in the informal sector of this country gets the dignity, security and professional status enjoyed by those engaged in the so-called formal sector of work.

There are only 2.5 million employees in the country on record. But there are another 6 million who contribute to this economy. You are among those people. But there was no programme to protect this group.

That is why we have started this programme to give dignity, security and respect to these 6 million workers. Also, our aim is to introduce a proper social security mechanism for these workers to protect them when they are unable to work and when they are old.

We are introducing a new bill to bring an employment act. Thereby, a new chapter will be created and a committee will be created for those in these fields. Then we will take steps to make it a statutory body in this country.

The most important thing here is that this is not a workers’ union. This will be a professional council. Here, as fishermen you will decide what your industry wants and what is best for your industry. As the Minister, I have the power to gazette the regulations that you will decide and agree.

The real story is that nowadays anyone can become a fisherman. That means anyone can get a boat and go fishing. But this should go beyond that and it should be done in a professional manner.

Therefore, you should propose how to develop this industry at a professional level and I will spearhead efforts to implement them. Our aim is also to prepare a system to take care of those engaged in this sector when they are old or unable to work or when they lose their jobs.We gave an undertaking to the Cabinet of Ministers that we will submit a report within three months with proposals to usher in a social security system covering the entire workforce of the country.

Through that, we are trying to integrate the various insurance schemes such as agricultural insurance, farmer insurance and various social security funds such as EPF and ETF and have a one common system for all the working people. The related proposals are now being prepared by an expert committee.

After that you too can get EPF after 55 years of age. It is also possible to get employee benefit funds like the ETF. If you want, you can get it as a pension. This is a national programme.

The GPS system that was brought to prevent boats from illegally going to Australia was also installed in your boats. To install GPS you have to incur a cost of around Rs.800,000. Also, only one group has been given permission to make them.

Fishermen need a GPS. But what has happened here is that they have made it compulsory to install the GPS system given by Australia and not others. And without this you will not get the license to go to sea.

The GPS must be repaired to get this license. Also, the people going to the sea should be insured, and this insurance is done by different companies. But the insurance pays only if the boat breaks and all the lives are lost. There is a lot of confusion here.

Often when a life is lost, especially when a person falls into the sea and goes missing, a death certificate cannot be obtained. There are also questions about how to compensate them at such times. When a boat has to be towed, there is a problem of which insurance company intervenes.

These are not matters related to us, these are matters related to the Ministry of Fisheries. But we do what is necessary for your safety and dignity. Here, we are working to create your safety as well as professional dignity.

Although we have the sea around the country, we bring fish from abroad. Imported fish is taxed only 100 or 200 rupees for a kilogramme and this is also after excluding the water weight. But if we build a factory in the country, the Government imposes an 18% VAT. We are the ones who raised our hands for this.

But this has been prepared and sent by the officials of the Ministry of Finance. They do not know how to take care of the fishermen.

There is a problem that when we do fishing, whether we use the safety tools used by other fishermen in the world? If so, our accidents can be greatly reduced. We present these as laws.

Sometimes you may feel we are trying to further burden you. However, as the Ministry of Labour, we are trying to do things that need to be done for the safety of the worker. They are discussed with other institutions and we try to implement them without any conflict” the Minister said.

News

2nd phase of bidding for luxury vehicles from Prez Secretariat commences

Published

3 hours ago

May 9, 2025

editor

The second phase of bidding has commenced for the sale of 27 luxury and decommissioned vehicles from the Presidential Secretariat.

These vehicles, manufactured between 1991 and 2016, include a range of high-end and utility models: two BMW cars, two Ford Everest SUVs, one Hyundai Terracan SUV, two Land Rover SUVs, one Mitsubishi Montero, three Nissan petrol cars, two Nissan-type motor cars, one Porsche Cayenne, five SsangYong Rexton SUVs, one Land Cruiser Sahara SUV, six V08 vehicles and one Mitsubishi Rosa air-conditioned bus.

Tender documents are available from the Finance Division, located on the second floor of the Sema Building at the Presidential Secretariat, on working days between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. until 14th May. Interested parties may also inspect the vehicles at the Salusala premises, No. 93, Jawatta Road, up to the same date.

This auction follows the successful first phase of the programme, during which 14 luxury vehicles, six decommissioned vehicles and various spare parts were sold. That phase included the auction of 15 vehicles, including nine Defender Jeeps. The initiative reflects the government’s ongoing commitment to reducing public expenditure and ensuring fiscal discipline.

It is important to note that the vehicles on offer were not allocated to the permanent staff of the Presidential Secretariat. They were utilised by advisors and other individuals appointed under Article 41(1) of the Constitution during the tenure of the previous President.

The official notice regarding this auction is shown below :

Notice – English Download

(President’s Media Division)

News

IPL suspended for a week over safety concerns

Published

3 hours ago

May 9, 2025

editor

The Indian Premier League has been suspended for one week amid the ongoing tensions between India and neighbouring Pakistan.

Overnight, India accused Pakistan of attacking three of its military bases with drones and missiles, a claim which Islamabad denied.

Pakistani authorities say 31 people have been killed and 57 injured by Indian air strikes in the country and Pakistan-administered Kashmir since Wednesday morning.

Twenty-six civilians were killed in Indian-administered Kashmir last month and India has accused Pakistan of supporting militants behind the attack – an allegation the neighbouring country has rejected.

The situation escalated on Tuesday evening when India launched a series of strikes in a move named “Operation Sindoor”.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said: “The decision was taken by the IPL Governing Council after due consultation with all key stakeholders following the representations from most of the franchisees, who conveyed the concern and sentiments of their players, and also the views of the broadcaster, sponsors and fans.

“While the BCCI reposes full faith in the strength and preparedness of our armed forces, the Board considered it prudent to act in the collective interest of all stakeholders.”

On Thursday, the IPL match between Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals in Dharamsala was abandoned mid-match because of floodlight failure, with players, staff and media set to be evacuated from the city, which lies close to the contested region of Kashmir.

Later on the same day, the remaining matches in the Pakistan Super League were moved to the United Arab Emirates.

The IPL, the richest franchise T20 league in the world, had been set to run until 23 May, with 16 games left to be played.

“Further updates regarding the new schedule and venues of the tournament will be announced in due course after a comprehensive assessment of the situation in consultation with relevant authorities and stakeholders,” said the BCCI.

There are 10 England players – past and present – involved in this year’s tournament. They include former white-ball captain Jos Buttler, fast bowler Jofra Archer and all-rounder Jacob Bethell.

IPL matches have been staged outside India before, with the 2009 edition held in South Africa following an attack on the Sri Lankan national side in Lahore in Pakistan, while the 2020 and second half of the 2021 seasons were staged in the United Arab Emirates during the Covid-19 pandemic.

(BBC News)

News

First capacity-building program under NCGG – SLIDA MoU concludes successfully

Published

6 hours ago

May 9, 2025

editor

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the National Centre for Good Governance of India (NCGG) and Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration (SLIDA) was signed during the State Visit of President of Sri Lanka, H.E. Anura Kumara Disanayaka to India in December 2024 for training and capacity building of 1500 Sri Lankan civil service officers over a period of five years.

The first program under the MoU was successfully held at NCGG from 21 April to 02 May 2025, and was attended by 41 officers. Based on the request of the Government of Sri Lanka, the theme of the program was ‘digitization in governance’. The program featured a series of sessions focused on key areas such as digital service delivery, digital public infrastructure, financial inclusion through digital payments, and innovations in public grievance redressal systems. Senior officials and domain experts delivered presentations on flagship Indian initiatives in the digital domain, including Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, e-Office, GeM, Aadhaar, PM Gati Shakti, among others.

At an interaction session with participants in the inaugural program organized on 08 May 2025 at SLIDA, the High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, H.E. Santosh Jha underscored that capacity building is an important pillar of the development cooperation between the two countries, with Sri Lanka being among the largest recipients of scholarships and capacity building initiatives offered by India. He highlighted that, demonstrating India’s continued commitment to enhancing capacity-building opportunities for Sri Lankans, Prime Minister of India had announced additional training avenues to 700 Sri Lankan citizens annually during his recent State visit. In that context, the High Commissioner said that the participants in the first NCGG-SLIDA programme also represented the first set of Sri Lankan nationals to receive training as part of the significantly enhanced capacity-building endeavour of India that will now benefit 1000 Sri Lankans annually.

The interaction session was also attended by Secretary, Ministry of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government, Mr S. Aloka Bandara; Director General of SLIDA, Mr A.V. Janadara; senior officials and faculty members of SLIDA; among others.

In view of the highly positive feedback from the participants in the inaugural NCGG-SLIDA program, based on request from SLIDA, a second program on the same theme under the MoU is now being planned for another batch of around 40 officers for early June 2025.