Despite the cost of living sizzling at red hot levels and the country being cash- strapped, the House Committee of Parliament has endorsed the proposal to offer concessionary vehicle permits for MPs as requested by them, a top source said.

The source familiar with the decision said the committee which looks into the requirements of the MPs positively considered the request by them for such permits in line with the similar facilities offered to executive graders in different categories of the public service.

The MPs , numbering more than 100 and representing different parties, submitted a letter to Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena asking for permission to import vehicles with no duty for their use.

Following the approval by the House Committee, the Speaker is expected to write to President Ranil Wickremesinghe who is authorized to execute the decision as the Finance Minister.

After constitution of every Parliament, the MPs are given vehicle permits . However, the MPs elected to the current Parliament at the 2020 general election did not get the benefit due to the economic crisis and the ban on vehicle imports to save foreign exchange.

The government is now mulling the possibility of lifting the ban. The MPs are likely to get permits once the ban is lifted only.

In the past, there were reports about the MPs selling off their permits and earning multimillion rupee revenue each.

(dailymirror.lk)

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

Officials at the Anuradhapura unit of the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) have seized over 176,000 kg of rice unfit for human consumption during a raid.

It has been revealed that the stock was taken to a mill for repackaging with the intention of being distributed among low-income families under a government programme.

CAA officials had conducted the raid when the rice was being mechanically cleaned and repackaged after being taken to a privately owned mill in the Kiriibbewa area by 08 lorries. It is said that the expiry date of the new packaging had been deviously extended by a month.

The rice mill had been sealed while the police had arrested the owner, reports add.

(Source : Aruna)

The National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) states that they will introduce a security ‘sticker’ to verify registered medicines in the market.

The move hopes to counter several irregularities in the pharmaceutical field such as the entering of substandard and dangerous medicines entering Sri Lanka through unregistered importers.

Speaking to media yesterday (May 12), NMRA Chairman Dr. Ananda Wijewickrama has said that they hope to implement the new move within a month or so.