A meeting was held today (July 15) at the Ministry of Environment with officials from the Department of Wildlife Conservation, aimed at tightening laws against the shooting of wild elephants.

The discussion was chaired by the Minister of Environment – Dr. Dammika Patabendi, along with the Deputy Minister of Environment – Anton Jayakody.

Noting that incidents of elephant shoots are regularly reported to the Department of Wildlife Conservation, the Minister instructed the Director General of the Department to take the necessary steps to strictly enforce the law against such acts.

The discussion also focused on strengthening the process of punishing offenders by updating laws related to the killing of wild animals. It also emphasized enforcing strict laws against the illegal construction of electric fences on private lands, which often harm elephants.

To help reduce human-elephant conflict, the Ministry and the Department are working together on long-term, positive solutions. Accordingly, elephant fences are being built in districts with frequent elephant encounters.

Furthermore, multi-purpose officers have been recruited for the maintenance of these fences and the involvement of civil defense personnel is also being considered.

The Department of Wildlife Conservation announced that a special media briefing will be held in the coming days to inform the public on these initiatives.

Chairman of the Coconut Development Authority, Shantha Ranawaka, announced recently that a cabinet paper has been submitted seeking to ban the sale of unpackaged (loose) coconut oil in the local market.

Ranawaka explained that various types of oils are being sold under the label of coconut oil, some of which may be adulterated or harmful, with concerns that their consumption could contribute to non-communicable diseases.

To ensure public safety, the Authority proposes that all coconut oil sold in the market must be properly packaged and clearly labeled with essential information such as the manufacturer’s details.

He noted that a grace period will be given for suppliers and vendors to adapt to the new regulation, after which enforcement will begin. The initiative aims to prevent the sale of counterfeit or substandard oil under the guise of coconut oil.

(dailynews.lk)

(Except for the headline, this story, originally published by dailynews.lk has not been edited by SLM staff)

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed this morning (July 15) at the Presidential Secretariat between STEMedical of the USA and the Sri Lanka Institute of Biotechnology (SLIBTEC) to establish a laboratory with internationally recognised accreditation.

The MoU for this $15 million investment project, conducted under the guidance of the National Initiative for Research and Development Commercialisation (NIRDC), was signed by Professor Hans Keirstead, founder of the American company STEMedical and on behalf of the Sri Lanka Institute of Biotechnology (SLIBTEC), by its Chairman, Professor Samitha Hettige and Chief Operating Officer, Amali Ranasinghe.

For a long time, there has been a need to enhance the capacity of laboratories with internationally recognised accreditation for testing purposes across many sectors in Sri Lanka, including health, agriculture, cosmetics and Ayurveda, as well as in the import and export fields.

Professor Gomika Udugamasooriya, Senior Presidential Advisor on Science and Technology, who attended the event, said that today is a special day for Sri Lanka and that accreditation is very important for a country. Prof. Udugamasooriya emphasised the significance of a laboratory project with such accreditation facilities in achieving the government’s objective of doubling the country’s export revenue by the year 2030.

This laboratory is expected to function as a main lab, working in conjunction with existing laboratories across the island, to ensure the quality of goods and services in various fields.

Professor Hans Keirstead, founder of STEMedical, stated that he is pleased with the current leadership in Sri Lanka, which he said has a broad vision for the scientific sector and has been able to identify developmental needs such as enhancing laboratory capacity. He also said that this project would bring many benefits to the country, not only clinically but also economically. Mr Keirstead further mentioned that it would attract the attention of economic experts and generate revenue by bringing items, such as medicines, from other countries to Sri Lanka for accreditation.

Professor Hans Keirstead, the founder of STEMedical in the United States, is an internationally recognised stem cell expert. He is also a respected entrepreneur in the field of regenerative medicine in the USA. It is also noteworthy that Professor Hans Keirstead, who currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the Human Immunome Project, is among the top 100 scientists in the world, as listed by Discover Magazine.

The President’s Senior Additional Secretary, Russel Aponsu; the Director-General of the National Initiative for Research and Development Commercialisation (NIRDC), Dr Muditha Senarath Yapa; and the Chief Executive Officer of STEMedical in the United States, Dr Nistor Gabriel Loan, also attended the event.

(President’s Media Division)