Category: Industry
Marine Land
March 15 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has accepted a proposal to reclaim the sea and develop 450 acres of land alongside the Colombo Port by John Keells Holdings (JKH), a senior minister said. Updated/adds quotes “In the committee headed by the president we approved a very important and a flagship project to add 450 acres […]
Light Rail
March 15 (LBO) – Sri Lanka has given a private consortium of Indian and Singaporean firms the green light to develop a firm proposal with financing in place, to build a light rail system for Colombo. However the project has had false starts with a letter of intent earlier being awarded with Siemens and OPUS […]
” in Cup opener
PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, March 14, 2007 (AFP) – If ace Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan sends down a ‘doosra’ in the opening World Cup Group B match here on Thursday, many Bermudian batsmen will struggle to read it. All the four Group B sides have arrived here and had workouts in bright sunshine on […]
No Skin
March 14, 2007 (AFP) – Sri Lanka banned on Wednesday the use of naked or semi-naked models in advertising, saying it was seeking to protect those offended by public nudity.The Ministry of Cultural Affairs announced the ban through notices in Sinhalese-language newspapers, warning advertisers against the use of unclothed males or females. The ministry statement […]
Health Wins
March 14 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s health service is now detecting tuberculosis patients faster and the infection rate of the once fatal disease is trending down, officials said.The national program hopes to decentralize treatment centers to better fight the disease where it occurs, Surakkali says. Last year 8,000 new infections had been detected which was […]
Suntel Sale
March 14 (LBO) – Seven suitors are chasing Sri Lanka’s wireless operator Suntel, but its parent Telia of Sweden may even consider a stock market listing in Colombo if a sale does not go through, a top official said. TeliaSonera, the holding company of Overseas Telia which owns Suntel, is among six firms listed for […]
Bowled Over
March 14 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s power utility is on a drive to provide uninterrupted supply to the country, while facing googlies from depleting hydro reserves, technical glitches, and higher demand from world cup cricket viewers. Meanwhile, the utility’s engineers union has also been warning that additional thermal plants may be needed to bridge a […]
Second Life
March 14 (LBO) – After several false starts, the failed Pramuka Bank would start operations 0n June 01 as the Sri Lanka Savings Bank, the finance ministry said Wednesday. The Pramuka Bank licensed as a specialized bank was closed by the Central Bank in October 2002, with an estimated 80 percent bad loans. Of the […]
Windies storm to opening World Cup win
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, March 13, 2007 (AFP) – West Indies, bidding to become the first host nation to win the World Cup, got their campaign off to a dream start on Tuesday with a 54-run win over Pakistan. Brian Lara’s side, who were restricted to 241-9 off their 50 overs, bowled out Inzamam-ul-Haq’s unpredictable Pakistanis for […]
Competitive Drive
March 13 (LBO) – Intense competition among Sri Lanka’s telcos will drive growth, with Dialog leading the pack and lifting earnings of its parent Malaysia Telecom, the investment bank Morgan Stanley said in a report. Sri Lanka is expected to top foreign contribution to Malaysia Telekom with 13 percent, followed by Bangladesh at six percent […]
Plastic Money
March 13 (LBO) – Visa International will give Sri Lanka’s 1.5 million plastic card market a boost, by issuing mini debit cards with Sampath Bank, officials said. Sampath says the card will be issued to all new customers who open accounts with the Bank and will be available to existing account holders. They could also […]
Spin kings may give World Cup twist and turn
GROS ISLET, St Lucia, March 13, 2007 (AFP) – Just about the one thing captains at the World Cup seem to be agreed on is that pitches will generally be slow and assist spin bowlers. Last week both England skipper Michael Vaughan and Australia captain Ricky Ponting talked up the tournament prospects of their frontline […]