News

Railway strike affects office trains (Update)

Published

2 years ago

October 4, 2023

editor

Several office trains have been cancelled due to a railway strike this evening.

The Army has been deployed at the Fort railway station following the cancellation of trains and protests by commuters.

Railway General Manager Kumara Gunasinghe confirmed that about 40% of office trains have been affected.

Operative Superintendent M. J Indipola has said that guards are delaying the trains on purpose in order to get the trains cancelled.

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(Previous News: 04^th October, 2023 at 12:52pm)

Station Masters request not to make Railways Dept. an Authority

The Railways Station Masters’ Association said that it has requested the President to take steps to restructure Sri Lanka Railways without making it an Authority.

Its secretary Kasun Chamara said that many issues may arise if Railways Department was made an Authority.

He further said: “We, as the Railways Station Master’s Association, have expressed our views at all the meetings. We have always said that it would be better to restructure Sri Lanka Railways instead of making it an authority. We have seen the Secretary of the Ministry saying that the Treasury will not allocate funds to pay the employees’ salary. He said that the salaries of the employees should be paid based on the profit earned by the department which currently incurs heavy losses. I think any move to make the deportment an authority should be decided by an experts committee.”

News

COVID subvariants spreading in Asia detected in Sri Lanka

Published

10 hours ago

May 31, 2025

editor

The Medical Research Institute of Sri Lanka has confirmed that the COVID-19 variant currently spreading in the Asian region has also been identified in the country.

Dr. Jude Jayamaha, a specialist in viral diseases at the Medical Research Institute, stated that patients infected with the Omicron subvariants LF.7 and XFG are being reported locally.

Dr. Jayamaha explained that this finding was confirmed through research conducted on biological samples collected from several hospitals across the island.

However, he emphasized that there is no need for undue fear regarding these COVID-19 variants.

Health authorities have also stressed the importance of vulnerable groups—such as pregnant mothers, the elderly, and those with chronic illnesses—following health guidelines, including wearing face masks and avoiding crowded places.

Dr. Jayamaha reiterated that new COVID-19 variants emerge periodically, and health authorities are continuously monitoring the situation, so the public should remain calm.

(newswire.lk)

(This story, originally published by newswire.lk has not been edited by SLM staff)

News

Anudi misses out from Miss World Quarter-Finals

Published

11 hours ago

May 31, 2025

editor

The Miss World organization has announced its quarter-finalists, selecting 40 contestants from across Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Americas.

Sri Lanka’s Anudi Gunasekara, was not selected in the top 40, despite being recognized for her impressive performances in the Multimedia and Head-to-Head challenges.

The top 40 consisted of 10 contestants each from Asia & Oceania, Europe, Africa and the Americas.