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Minuwangoda Brandix InQube to be closed

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Discussions are being made for the temporary closure of the InQube factory in Minuwangoda owned by the Brandix company, it was reported.

According to internal sources, there is a risk of nearly 1,000 employees losing jobs due to the closure of the factory.

The management of Brandix previously closed the factories located in Kahawatta and Welisara.

Meanwhile, industry sources said that Brandix Group Chief Executive Officer Ashroff Omar has recently told the media that the garment industry is facing frequent challenges and that there will be a major loss of jobs in the short and medium term.

The managers of garment factories in Sri Lanka closed down the factories citing lack of orders for garment products, and the instability of the US Dollar caused by the US economic crisis and Sri Lanka’s financial crisis.

In Asia, several factories owned by Brandix are located in countries like India, Bangladesh and Cambodia and they are said to be operating successfully.

The Brandix company founded in 1969 by M.H.Omar has been considered as one of the leading local organizations that have earned profits for more than five decades.

It is said that Mr. Omar received the foundation for this business through Martin Trust, a forward-looking businessman from the US, who is considered to be the father of the modern garment industry in Sri Lanka.

Brandix was established in 1969 with his support.

Then around 1972, Brandix became a group company with Omar Group.

Later, under the leadership of renowned businessman Deshmanya Ken Balendran, Brandix Company rose to the top of Sri Lanka’s apparel industry.

Ashraf Omar is the Director and CEO of Brandix following the retirement of Mr. Balendran.

Brandix is also among the top companies in the list that have enjoyed GSP plus tax relief.

The European Union’s Generalized Scheme of Preferences (GSP) is a system that allows exports from developing countries to the European Union to pay a minimum tariff or to be fully duty-free.

Mihintale MAS on life support

Meanwhile, MAS Holdings Group which has amassed a large amount of wealth for almost 36 years as one of the largest garment exporters in Sri Lanka has decided to temporarily close down its Mihintale factory for a period of 4 months from yesterday (10).

It was said that this month’s salary is the last salary given to the employees of the factory with all allowances.

In the coming months, the employees will receive only the basic salary.

It was reported that there is a plan to assign the skilled workers from the factory to the local and foreign factories owned by the company.

However, sources said that after the closure of this factory, nearly 1,000 people will lose their jobs.

Jobs still unsafe

When inquired, Free Trade Zones & General Services Employees Union Joint Secretary Anton Marcus said that the temporary closure of a factory directly affects the job safety of its employees.

Mr. Marcus said that when a factory is temporarily closed, only the basic salary is given to the employees.

“In addition to the basic salary, attendance allowance, incentive allowance and low-cost or free meals are also important for the employees,” he said.

If only the basic salary is paid after the closure of the factory, he said the employees will leave their jobs since they cannot live only on the basic allowance.

He said that this company implemented the same strategy during the Covid-19 pandemic to reduce the number of employees without giving compensation.

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Passengers jump from plane’s wing after fire alert on Spain flight, triggers panic

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Wildfires have broken out on an island and in towns near Athens in Greece, with blazes also being sparked in Turkey and Syria.

The Hellenic Fire Service and local authorities said that two villages – Tsakeoi and Limnionas – had been evacuated on the island of Evia after the blaze started late on Friday.

One fire service official said more than 160 firefighters, 46 trucks and five aircraft were deployed in southern Evia to put out the fire.

Southern Evia, to the east of Athens, was one of several regions in Greece placed on high alert for wildfires over gale-force winds forecast for today.

Images from Koropi, a town to the southwest of Athens, also show houses burnt down and helicopters dropping water on burning forests.

It marks the latest wildfires to break out in Greece – where blazes are common during the summer – as it tackles strong winds and dry conditions amid an early summer heatwave in southern Europe.

Officials have linked the conditions to at least nine deaths across the continent.

A wildfire broke out in Achlia on the island of Crete on Wednesday, forcing thousands of residents and tourists to evacuate – with some taken to a nearby basketball arena and hotels in safer parts of the island.

The fire service official told Reuters on Friday that the fire in Crete was largely contained.

Meanwhile, blazes have also broken out on Turkey’s west coast – the latest in a series of blazes which started in late June – as well as its southerly neighbour Syria.

At least five fires have been reported in Izmir after extreme heat, strong winds and low humidity. Two people have been killed by the blazes, while tens of thousands have been evacuated.

Fires also flared on both sides of the Turkish-Syrian border on Friday, with a new blaze reported near the town of Dortyol in Turkey’s border province of Hatay.

According to Syria’s Civil Defence, wildfires have spread across large parts of mountainous areas in the Latakia province.

The government department added that conditions have hampered efforts to bring the fire under control, and noted unexploded ordnance could be in some of the areas affected.

Source: SKY NEWS

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CBSL extends Perpetual Treasuries suspension for six months

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The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) has decided to extend the suspension of Perpetual Treasuries Limited (PTL) from carrying on the business and activities of a Primary Dealer for a further period of six months.

The extension is with effect from 4.30 p.m. on 05th July 2025, in order to continue the investigations being conducted by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka.

The suspension has been extended by CBSL acting in terms of the Regulations made under the Registered Stock and Securities Ordinance and the Local Treasury Bills Ordinance.

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Kataragama Basnayake Nilame pressured over complaint against Kapuwas’ donation misuse

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It has been reported that Dishan Wickramaratne Gunasekara – the Basnayake Nilame of the historic Ruhunu Kataragama Maha Devalaya, is facing pressure including from several parties including political circles to withdraw his complaint lodged against the custodians (Kapu Mahattaya) of the devalaya.

The issue had arisen after it was discovered that some custodians were collecting money into their own tills instead of allowing them to be deposited in the official donation box.

Public discussion about the transparency of the temple’s donations intensified after the Basnayake Nilame had begun using a portion of the funds for community projects like hospital construction.

Traditionally, devotees often handed donations directly to the custodians, but the Basnayake Nilame had urged the public via media to place offerings only in the official donation box managed by the Ministry of Buddha Sasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs.

He subsequently arranged a proper audit of all such donations for the first time.

In response, some custodians had reportedly begun pressuring devotees near the official box to hand over donations to them instead.

Upon learning of this, the Basnayake Nilame had lodged a complaint with the Kataragama Police, arguing that diverting funds from the official box amounts to fraudulent misappropriation.

Acting on the complaint, police arrested 02 custodians who were collecting offerings near the official box.

However, other custodians then surrounded the police station and pressured the officers to release the arrested individuals, resulting in their release.

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