The oil anointing tradition for this year’s Sinhala and Tamil New Year was held today (April 16).

The National Zoological Gardens of Sri Lanka in Dehiwala also performed these rituals on several of its inhabitants.

The rituals began with the ‘Kadol’ elephant, continuing a customary tradition of blessing elephants during the New Year period.

The head of a brown bear recently received by the zoo from United Arab Emirates, was also anointed.

However, the most special zoo resident that was included in these rituals, was the 153-year-old giant tortoise, recognized as the oldest living animal in Sri Lanka.

The event was organized by the zoo’s management team under the guidance of Director General Chandana Rajapaksa and coordinated by Deputy Director Dinushika Manawadu.

A seminar on exchanges between China and Sri Lanka in the fields of economic development and poverty alleviation was held in Beijing, China recently.

The seminar – ‘Experience Exchange in the Field of Economic Development and Poverty Alleviation between China and Sri Lanka’ was held from March 23 – April 05 and was attended by 28 officials across 13 different ministries or institutions of Sri Lanka.

The seminar aimed to expand bilateral exchanges and cooperation in areas such as poverty alleviation and development, rural vitalization, digital economy, and green development, and was designed to help Sri Lanka officials improve governance capacity.

During the state visit to China, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and President Xi Jinping reached extensive common understandings on governance and development experience sharing and exchanges and the seminar was held to implement this consensus.

Chinese experts were invited to the seminar to give lectures and host discussions on a wide variety of topics, including the interpretation of Xi Jinping’s Thought on Economy, introduction of China’s national conditions, the procedure and methodology of China’s national development planning, China’s poverty alleviation and poverty reduction experience, digital governance, and China’s rural revitalization policy and practice, etc.

Besides, the seminar organized field research and exchanges with local government departments and relevant enterprises, allowing participants to gain an in-depth understanding of China’s latest progress in the fields of economic development, poverty alleviation and reduction, green and low-carbon development, and digital economy. 

In Shijiazhuang of Hebei Province, the participants visited Majiazhuang and learned about the experience of Chinese villages in utilizing agricultural technology to increase production and income, actively expanding sales channels for agricultural products, and improving the quality of life.

In Hangzhou of Zhejiang Province, the participants visited Alibaba International Digital Commerce Group and had a discussion with the executives of the enterprise, so as to gain a deeper understanding of the development mode of China’s digital economy and its important role in promoting industrial upgrading and economic transformation.

In Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, the participants visited the photovoltaic power generation project in Longshan Town of Cixi City, and had a discussion with the relevant management departments of Ningbo Port to learn about China’s advanced experience in green and low-carbon development and efficient operation of ports.

According to the Chinese embassy in Colombo, the seminar is not only a vivid portrayal of friendly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation among developing countries. It is also a further deepening of cooperation and exchanges between China and Sri Lanka in the economic field, which will help introduce China’s experience in economic development and poverty alleviation into Sri Lanka, and inject a strong impetus to promote high-quality China-Sri Lanka cooperation in the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.

The Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) of Parliament, chaired by Member of Parliament Dr. Nishantha Samaraweera, conducted a field investigation at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) yesterday (April 09).

The COPE recently (2025.04.02) reviewed the Bandaranaike International Airport Development Project in connection with the Auditor General’s Reports for the years 2022 and 2023 and the current performance of the Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) (Private) Limited (AASL), and accordingly conducted this field investigation.

It was expected that the number of aircraft stands at BIA would be increased through the construction of a Remote Apron and Taxiways as part of the BIA Development Project.

However, it was observed that both the AASL and the Japanese joint venture company hired for design and consultancy services had undertaken these activities without proper technical or operational analysis. As a result, achieving the project’s objectives proved challenging.

Despite several weaknesses and practical challenges identified at the planning stage, the Committee noted that steps were taken to complete the project. Accordingly, the solutions already proposed by AASL to achieve the desired objectives of the project were also observed.

The COPE members held extensive discussions with local representatives from the Japanese joint venture and senior officials from relevant institutions. During these discussions, the Committee expressed displeasure over the financial losses incurred by the government due to these oversight issues and poor planning. The Committee recommended that, to prevent further misuse of public funds in future development activities, attention must be given to the issues arising during planning stages.

The Committee decided to reconvene with the officials from AASL in the near future to continue discussions on the matter.

The field inspection was attended by Hon. Members of Parliament M.K.M. Aslam, Samanmali Gunasinghe, Lieutenant Commander (Retd.) Prageeth Madhuranga, Ruwan Mapalagama, Sunil Rajapaksa, Thilina Samarakoon, and Chandima Hettiarachchi, along with officials from relevant institutions and parliamentary officials