The Department of Meteorology says that showers or thundershowers will occur at times in Western, Sabaragamuwa and North-western provinces and in Galle and Matara districts today (May 16).

Showers or thundershowers may occur at several places elsewhere on the island during the evening or night.

Fairly heavy rains about 75 mm are likely at some places in Central, Eastern, Uva, Northern and North-central provinces.

Fairly strong winds of about 30-40 kmph can be expected at times over North-western, North-central and Southern provinces.

The general public is kindly requested to take adequate precautions to minimize damages caused by temporary localized strong winds and lightning during thundershowers.

The Cabinet of Ministers has approved the decision to allow the importation of salt for industrial and consumer use until June 10, 2025.

The Ministry of Trade has said that the decision was reached at the Cabinet meeting held today (May 15).

The Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities held a discussion with representatives of groups with disabilities regarding the key issues affecting the community with disability.

This discussion took place recently (8th) in Parliament under the Chairmanship of Member of Parliament Sugath Wasantha de Silva.

The representatives informed the Caucus of their issues following a request made by the Caucus. The Chair of the Caucus stated that all the proposals and ideas presented would be received with great respect and that appropriate action would be taken by the Committee in this regard.

During the discussion, the attending representatives proposed that a specific quota be reserved for the community with disabilities in all elections. They also proposed the creation of a dedicated web page containing all necessary data related to the community with disabilities, which should be accessible via mobile phones.

Furthermore, attention was drawn to the need for increased facilities for children receiving education through Braille media. They also brought to the attention of the Caucus the proposal previously submitted to the Ninth Parliament regarding the introduction of new legislation for the community with disability and requested that further action be taken on it.

In addition, the Caucus was informed about the shortage of teachers affecting the education of the hearing-impaired community, and proposals were also presented regarding the creation of employment opportunities for persons with disabilities in both the public and private sectors.

State Minister Dr. Upali Pannilage and Hon. Members of Parliament – Dr. Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam, Chandima Hettiarachchi, and Susantha Kumara Nawarathna also participated in this Parliamentary Caucus.