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Peliyagoda land to be sold to pay salaries of two state institutions!

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State Engineering Corporation (SEC) Chairman Rathnasiri Kalupahana said that a Cabinet paper has been prepared to sell a valuable land located in Peliyagoda belonging to the SEC for about 10 billion rupees.

He said that the land will be sold for the payment of employee salaries, arrears of salaries and arrears of EPF of the SEC and its affiliated National Equipment and Machinery Organization (NEMO).

The chairman said that it has been decided to sell a 17-acre, 2-rood, 17-perch land with a high urban value located next to the Peliyagoda Fish Market.

Mr. Kalupahana said this when inquired about the payment of mere Rs.7,000 to the NEMO employees for the month of May.

He said that due to the ongoing economic crisis in the country and the collapse of the construction sector, the salary payment to the employees of SEC and NEMO has become a serious issue due to the loss of income. He said steps have been taken to pay a part of the salary in this way from the money that received.

The chairman said that Rs.2,600 million will also be required to pay some 1,100 employees who are ready to retire voluntarily.

He said that the large-scale financial irregularities of NEMO and the recruitment of an excess of employees during the ‘Yahapalana’ Government have also led to the issues at the institution.

Speaking to the media, Mr. Kalupahana said that they have pointed out to the ministers in charge and the Ministry of Finance on several occasions that it is difficult to pay salaries to the employees of these institutions in the face of the current economic crisis.

“Not only the salaries, even the employee EPF and ETF allowances have not been paid for two years. Therefore, 1,100 employees are about to resign voluntarily. We made a request to the Treasury to compensate them. But the Treasury rejected our request and informed us that if our institution has any assets, it could be sold to pay compensation.”

“Accordingly, we prepared a Cabinet paper through Minister Prasanna Ranatunga to sell a valuable land adjacent to the Peliyagoda Fish Market and compensate the employees.”

“The current value of this land has been determined by the Government Valuation Department as between Rs.9 billion and 10 billion. There is also a two-storied building that was built during the tenure of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa. However, the construction was halted during the ‘Yahapalana’ Government and it has been abandoned now. If the building had been fully constructed, the value of this land would have increased even more.”

“Although President Ranil Wickremesinghe approved the Cabinet paper, the Lands Ministry Secretary informed us that it is not possible to implement the decision. This situation has become a major issue for us. Accordingly, following the intervention of Minister Ranatunga, the institution was taken over by the Ministry of Finance through a special gazette. This will be convenient for future activities,” he said.

Mr. Kalupahana said that a discussion will be held today (19) with Acting Finance Minister Shehan Semasinghe and a group of senior officials of the Finance Ministry to discuss and find solutions to these pressing issues.

Source – Aruna

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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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