THE YEAR THAT WAS AND THE YEAR TO COME – Tonight on FACE THE NATION on TV1

Colombo (News 1st) – The Sri Lanka Freedom Party, the Nidahas Janatha Sabhawa, Uththara Lanka Sabhagaya, 12 parties and 62 groups came together on Wednesday (11) to form a new alliance to contest the upcoming local government election. The new alliance has been named the Nidahas Janatha Sandhanaya or Freedom Peoples' Alliance. They will contest under symbol of the Helicopter.

Colombo (News 1st) – Chairman of the National Election Commission Attorney Nimal Punchihewa stated that there are no divisions amongst the commission members. "In any institution, be it a commission, agency, or even the Supreme Court, various opinions are put forth when a decision is being made – that is the order of things" he stated. "That has happened within this commission as well.

Over 15 lakh passengers have been traced & out of them over 200 passengers have been detected as Covid positive. Owing to the sudden COVID surge globally, Centre is tracing all the airports to ensure that no new variant enters the country.

Sore throat: Currently, it is the most common symptom of COVID and also, the earliest sign to identify that you have contracted the virus.  How does it feel? Usually, the symptom starts affecting the first week itself.  The patients complain of feeling discomfort, pain, or scratchiness in their throats. It can also lead to difficulty in swallowing your food.

The senior Congress leader was admitted to Sir Ganga Ram Hospital with a viral infection. Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who was admitted to Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, was discharged from the hospital on Tuesday around 3 pm, Dr Ajay Swaroop, Chairman Board of Management at the hospital, said.  The senior leader was admitted to Sir Ganga Ram Hospital with a viral infection.

Colombo (News 1st) – NEWSLINE: Nadima, an Afghan humanitarian, talks to Faraz Shauketaly about 'Reconciliation and Resilience'. Watch on YouTube. 

Colombo (News 1st) – India won game one of the three match ODI series against Sri Lanka depsite some late heroics by Sri Lankan skipper Dasun Shanaka in Guwahati, India.After the visitors won the toss and chose to field, the home side got off to a blistering start with openers Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill putting on 143 for the first wicket. The partnership was broken when Gill was dismissed for 70 in the 20th over.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – The Media Division of the United National Party in a statement on Tuesday (10) evening said that the UNP is engaged in discussions with political parties, factions, and groups that support the government with regard to the upcoming Local Government Election.It added that several rounds of discussions took place recently among the UNP members and the representatives from the other parties, and among them is the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna.The statement said that the UNP is expected to engage in talks with other parties and groups shortly. It added that the UNP Chairman Vajira Abeywardena, UNP Deputy Leader Ruwan Wijewardena, UNP General Secretary Palitha Range Bandara, and UNP Executive Director represented the party at these discussions.It added that the talks are yet to reach the final stages, and when the discussions are over the manner in which the UNP will contest the Local Government Election will be announced officially.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – A letter claiming to contain an order made to all District Secretaries notifying them to refrain from accepting bonds for the Local Government Elections is currently making its rounds on social media.The circular contains the signature of the Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration and Home Affairs.Ministry Secretary Neil Bandara Hapuhinna noted that the Cabinet that met on Monday (9) had instructed him to order all the District Secretaries to refrain from accepting the bonds from candidates until further notice.However, the Commissioner General of Elections had ordered all District Returning Officers to continue to accept the bonds by the candidates, noting that as per the powers vested with the Election Commission via the Local Authorities Elections (Amendment) Act Returning Officers have been appointed for the respective districts.Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa, and NPP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake slammed the government's efforts to delay the elections.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – Sri Lanka's Cabinet of Ministers decided to intruct the Minister of Power and Energy to introduce a price formula for electricity tariff, similar to the fuel price formula.The Government Information Department in a statement said that the Cabinet of Ministers considered the proposal submitted by the President in his capacity as the Minister of Finance, Economic Stability and National Policies and the Minister of Power and Energy regarding the revision of electricity tariffs. It was further observed by the Cabinet that the Treasury is not able to provide the necessary funds for the Sri Lanka Electricity Board within the existing financial space and therefore there is no other option but to revise the existing electricity tariffs to ensure a continuous electricity supply in the country while minimizing the impact on electricity consumers as much as possible. Accordingly, approval was given to proceed as follows:– The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka will further study the proposed revision of electricity charges submitted by the Electricity Board and if any revision is required, to submit the same on or before 15.02.2023.– Until then, the Ceylon Electricity Board and the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka will jointly take necessary measures to implement the electricity tariff revision proposed by the Ceylon Electricity Board with effect from 01.01.2023 as an interim measure in accordance with the amendments to the Public Policy Guidelines currently in force regarding the Power Industry– If the Sri Lanka Public Utilities Commission submits any amendments, the Ceylon Electricity Board will take steps to implement those amendments and make the necessary adjustments to future monthly

COLOMMBO (News 1st) – The Committee on Public Finance chaired by Dr. Harsha De Silva unanimously expressed its displeasure over the operations of the Colombo Port City Economic Commission as its senior officials did not appear before the Committee and had not provided with a proper notice of absence under the due process.Whilst emphasizing on the importance of the Port City project for the purpose of generating investments and the work done thus far, the Committee unanimously expressed their dissatisfaction and advised the officials present that a better sense of responsibility needs to be exercised as professionals handling such project of importance.Therefore, the Secretary to the Commission was instructed by the Committee on Public Finance to submit by way of writing a reasonable explanation as to why high officials to the Commission are not present before the committee when they were summoned before the Committee on Public Finance on the 21st of December.

A Lanarkshire group have supported the hungry and people with mental health issues as parts of its aim to “try and build better and stronger communities”.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – The Magistrate's Inquiry into the mysterious death of businessman Dinesh Schaffter took place at the official chamber of Colombo Additional Magistrate Rajindra Jayasuriya on Tuesday (10).A brother of the deceased provided evidence for 45 minutes behind closed doors.As the recording of evidence took place inside the official chamber of the Colombo Additional Magistrate, journalists did not receive the opportunity to report on the proceedings of the case.Further examination of evidence will take place on the 13th of January 2022.Sri Lanka Police said that it has not informed the court or any other institution that they believe the death to be a suicide."We have not ruled out suicide.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – President Ranil Wickremesinghe has informed the cabinet that the fund allocations made via the budget for all ministries will have to be cut down by 5%.This was announced by Minister Bandula Gunawardena, the Cabinet Spokesperson on Tuesday (10) at the weekly Cabinet media briefing."There is no stable income to even support the essential welfare expenses.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – The United National Party will contest the upcoming  Local Government Election together with the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, said the UNP General Secretary on Tuesday (10).The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna and the United National Party met for talks again on Tuesday (10) at the President's Office.UNP General Secretary Palitha Range Bandara told reporters that the SLPP and the UNP decided to contest the Local Government Election together.He said the matter was discussed with the district leaders.He also said that discussions took place on which Local Government Institutions will be contested under the symbol of the Elephant, and which will be contested under the symbol of the Flower Bud.He also added that an agreement was also reached with regard to using a common symbol for certain Local Government Institutions.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna and the United National Party are to meet for talks again on Tuesday (10).A senior spokesperson for the SLPP speaking to News 1st said that the meeting will take place at the President's Office.It is reported that the formation of an alliance to contest the Local Government Election, as well as to contest under one symbol among other matters will be discussed at this meeting.General Secretary of the United National Party Palitha Range Bandara said that he will attend the meeting along with Deputy Leader of the UNP Ruwan Wijewardena.The SLPP is to be represented by General Secretary Attorney Sagara Kariyawasam, Rohitha Abeygunawardena, Mahindananda Aluthgamage, and Sanjeewa Edirimanne.The UNP and the SLPP met for talks on Sunday (8) as well.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – Sri Lanka's Cabinet of Ministers have once again granted approval to import eggs.Trade Minister Nalin Fernando speaking to News 1st said the Cabinet granted approval to his proposal on Monday (9).He said eggs will be imported before the end of the week from India, and the distribution will be handed over to the private sector, while Lanka Sathosa will be involved in the sale of eggs.The government decided to import eggs as a solution to address the high prices of eggs, as the local price of an egg is between Rs. 60/- to Rs.

NEW DELHI : The union health ministry on Monday said that covid-19 positive samples collected from sentinel sites reveals presence of all Omicron variants in the community. The government’s Integrated Disease Surveillance Program (IDSP) sentinel sites referred 324 COVID19 positive samples for sequencing to 22 INSACOG labs.

Health chiefs have tonight confirmed that both Ayr and Crosshouse hospitals have reached their full capacity.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – Sri Lanka's Cabinet of Ministers on Monday (9) granted approval to increase the electricity tariff.The tariff hike will be reviewed by a committee until the 15th of February, and measures will be taken to reduce the tariff, if there is a possibility, a Senior Government Minister told News 1st.The Chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka said that a proposal to amend the electricity tariff was received on Monday (9) evening.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – Sri Lanka's Former Power and Energy Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka has dismissed claims made by the present Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera over the profits made by the Ceylon Electricity Board.On Tuesday (3), Minister Wijesekera tweeted that the Ceylon Electricity Board was making operating profits during October & November each year due to the increase in hydropower usage.Wijesekera stressed that the operational profits were not due to the tariff adjustments made in August 2022, and states that the CEBs own financial statements from 2017 to 2022 highlight the false and misleading comments made by the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka and Former Minister Champika Ranawaka.However, in response to the Minister, Former Minister Champika Ranawaka pointed out that if the tariff was not increased in October 2022 the Ceylon Electricity Board would be making a loss of a whopping Rs.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe has instructed the Chairmen of the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and SriLankan Airlines to submit a report on awarding bonuses to employees, despite making losses.The President has requested their reasons to justify the payment of bonuses despite the Ministry of Finance having informed not to pay bonuses to loss-making corporations and boards.The President's Secretary Saman Ekanayake said that the chairpermen of the two institutions are expected to submit their justifications.The President's Secretary also said that the President received information that the awarding bonuses to employees was done in violation of the Finance Ministry circular.The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation has paid two months’ salaries to its employees as bonuses and SriLankan Airlines has paid 100,000 rupees as bonus to each of its employees as bonus for 2022.

India on Tuesday reported 134 new coronavirus infections and no deaths in the last 24 hours, as per the health ministry. New Delhi: Protected by herd immunity and early vaccination, Indians appear to have escaped the havoc being wreaked by the BF.7 Omicron sub-variant in China and some other countries. At the moment, the most prevalent variant in India is the XBB, accounting for 63.2% of cases, according to the Indian SARS-CoV-2 Consortium on Genomics (INSACOG).

Myalgia is regarded as ‘top’ symptom for COVID and is now widely reported. With new COVID strains striking at regular intervals and the symptoms related to infection also changing over time, it is now hard to identify the disease.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.

COLOMBO (News 1st): President Ranil Wickremesinghe in his new year message stated that Sri Lanka has gone through the "bleakest of times" and thanked the public for their "patience and courage" in the face of measures taken to stabilise the economy. "2023 will be a critical year in which we plan to turn around the economy," stated the President while wishing all Sri Lankans a "happy and peaceful new year."The Head of State admitted that the cries of the youth for a system change "cannot be ignored" adding that "proposed social, economic and political reforms" need to be implemented boldly. President's New Year Greeting "We are looking at the New Year 2023 after having undergone the bleakest of times, immense hardships, as well as the uncertainties and hopelessness of the last year. I understand the great burdens that are placed on all of us and the setbacks that a majority of us have suffered due to the country’s abject economic collapse.

On Friday, Covid guidelines were revised by the Centre for passengers arriving on international flights. Negative RT-PCR tests will be mandatory from January 1 to enter India from countries that are seeing massive COVID surge currently. These countries include China, Singapore, Hong Kong, the Republic of Korea, Thailand and Japan.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.

TESTS Not all countries are imposing tests. European Union members, in particular, are divided. Over the past days, officials in France, Germany and Portugal have said they saw no need for now for new restrictions, while Austria has stressed the economic benefits of Chinese tourists' return to Europe.

The civil aviation ministry has asked the airlines to modify check-in systems ahead of new Covid norms for travellers from China, 5 other countries The civil aviation ministry on Friday asked airlines to modify their check-in systems for international passengers coming into India as part of the revised Covid guidelines, which makes a negative Covid test report a must for travellers coming from China and five other countries from Sunday. The ministry's direction comes a day after the health ministry decided to make RT-PCR negative test reports compulsory for passengers coming on all international flights from six high-risk countries --China, Singapore, Hong Kong, the Republic of Korea, Thailand and Japan.

Indonesia has decided to scrap the mask mandate, ending the coronavirus pandemic restrictions Indonesia will do away with indoor mask mandates and remove the requirement to show proof of vaccination when entering buildings, becoming one of the last few countries to completely end Covid-19 restrictions.  The changes will take effect from Friday and decision was taken as almost all of Indonesia’s population had immunity against the virus, said President Joko Widodo, who is popularly known as Jokowi.   “We once failed in containing Covid, but now we are among the few countries that did not experience a pandemic wave in past 10 to 11 consecutive months," he told a media briefing in Jakarta.

BBC – A Myanmar military court has sentenced Aung San Suu Kyi to a further seven years in prison, taking her overall jail time to 33 years.The country's former democratically-elected leader has been under house arrest since a military ousted her government in a coup in February 2021.Since then she's faced 18 months of trials on 19 charges – which rights groups say are a sham.The UN Security Council called for her release last week.On Friday she was sentenced on the final five charges she faced. A court found her guilty of corruption because she had not followed regulations in renting a helicopter for a government minister.She had already been convicted of 14 different crimes including breaching Covid public safety rules, importing walkie-talkies and violating the official secrets act.Her trials this year have been set behind closed-doors where the public and media are barred access and her lawyers are also banned from speaking to journalists.

HONG KONG : Beijing called on foreign governments to abide by scientific principles in setting travel protocols, after the U.S.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – Sri Lanka's Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella had rejected the allegations made by Education Secretary of the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP), Pubudu Jagoda over the proposed procurement of medicine from Kaushik Pharmaceuticals.The FSP activist alleged that the procurement was to take place in violation of procedures in place, and that Kaushik Pharmaceuticals was blacklisted by the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation (SPC).Jagoda also claimed that the Minister visited India on the account of Kaushik Pharmaceuticals that paid for his suite at a five-star hotel in Chennai.On Wednesday (28), Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella speaking to reporters in Colombo said that no misappropriation or misdeed occurred in the process, and that he reimbursed the air fare paid by a 'friend'. The Government reserved US$ 60 million to import medicines required for the next three-month period, Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said while adding that a personal request saw that the Indian Credit Line that was to exprire on the 22nd of November, be extended to the 31st of December 2022.The Minister also denied claims that he, as the Health Minister was attempting to purchase drugs by passing the President and his instructions. The Medical and Civil Rights Professional Association had addressed a letter to the President to intervene into this matter.They call on the President to conduct an investigation on the failure by authorities to inspect the quality of locally produced medicines before they are released to the market, and the attempt being made to procure Indian medicines without the approval of the NMRA.It claims that the President and the Ministry were misled by the Minister.The Medical and Civil Rights

COLOMBO (News 1st) – Sri Lanka's Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella had rejected the allegations made by Education Secretary of the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP), Pubudu Jagoda over the proposed procurement of medicine from Kaushik Pharmaceuticals.The FSP activist alleged that the procurement was to take place in violation of procedures in place, and that Kaushik Pharmaceuticals was blacklisted by the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation (SPC).Jagoda also claimed that the Minister visited India on the account of Kaushik Pharmaceuticals that paid for his suite at a five-star hotel in Chennai.On Wednesday (28), Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella speaking to reporters in Colombo said that no misappropriation or misdeed occurred in the process, and that he reimbursed the air fare paid by a 'friend'. The Government reserved US$ 60 million to import medicines required for the next three-month period, Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said while adding that a personal request saw that the Indian Credit Line that was to exprire on the 22nd of November, be extended to the 31st of December 2022.The Minister also denied claims that he, as the Health Minister was attempting to purchase drugs by passing the President and his instructions. The Medical and Civil Rights Professional Association had addressed a letter to the President to intervene into this matter.They call on the President to conduct an investigation on the failure by authorities to inspect the quality of locally produced medicines before they are released to the market, and the attempt being made to procure Indian medicines without the approval of the NMRA.It claims that the President and the Ministry were misled by the Minister.The Medical and Civil Rights

Moves by several countries to mandate COVID-19 tests for passengers arriving from China reflect global concern that new variants could emerge in its ongoing explosive outbreak — and that the government may not inform the rest of the world quickly enough. There have been no reports of new variants to date, but China has been accused of not being forthcoming about the virus since it first surfaced in the country in late 2019. The worry is that it may not be sharing data now on any signs of evolving strains that could spark fresh outbreaks elsewhere.

With inputs from agencies

While the Central government has started random sampling and testing of 2% of foreign travellers at Delhi airport, in the last two days, more than 6,000 international travellers have been scanned, out of which 39 passengers have tested covid-19 positive. New Delhi: Government officials warned that the next 40 days would be crucial in determining the possibility of a resurgence of covid-19 cases in India as they urged people to follow safety protocols and complete their vaccination doses.

Italy is now sequencing those tests to see if there are new variants coming from China Italian health authorities will begin testing all arrivals from China for Covid after almost half of the passengers on two flights to Milan were found to have the virus.  The country is now sequencing those tests to see if there are new variants coming from China, the Health Ministry said in a statement. If a new strain is found, officials may impose stricter curbs on travel from China.

Expert said that owing to the fact that samples are few, the chances of finding new variant is slim. With COVID continuing to surge worldwide, one of the biggest worries currently is the rise of new variants. All viruses mutate, and the higher the rate of the infection, the easier it is to mutate.

Crude prices also gained amid supply concerns in the US as winter storm has hit energy production across the country New Delhi: International crude oil prices rose on Tuesday as China’s plans to relax quarantine norms for inbound travellers revived hopes of demand recovery. The February contract of Brent on the Intercontinental Exchange was trading at $84.76 per barrel, higher by 1.00% from its previous close. The February contract of the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) rose 0.80% to $80.20 a barrel.

7) There is NO cause for alarm in India. [7/18] Explaining why, we continue to have > 98% population with natural immunity.

Name Change In another sign of downgrading the impact of the virus, the government changed the Chinese name of Covid-19 from “new coronavirus pneumonia" to “new coronavirus infections." Omicron’s much reduced virulence compared to the ancestral strain that emerged from Wuhan means most people are sickened with only mild upper respiratory tract infections, authorities said. “The new coronavirus will linger in nature for a long time to come," according to the statement.

₹800+ GST+ hospital charges according to sources. Bharat Biotech’s iNNOVACC is now available on CoWin, priced at ₹800 for private hospitals and ₹325 for a government hospitals. The country’s first intranasal covid vaccine will be rolled out in the fourth week of January as a booster dose for those above 18 years of age, said the company spokesperson.

The covid-19 surge in China has triggered concern among Indian exporters as it may add to the softening of demand from Western countries The covid-19 surge in China has triggered concern among Indian exporters as it may add to the softening of demand from Western countries. China, India’s largest trading partner, reported an 11% decline in imports in November, and the latest outbreak could further hit exports of Indian goods. While experts noted that the impact on Indian exports from the outbreak in China would not be immediately visible, as orders for the next quarter have been received, China’s decision to stop publishing daily covid-19 data has created significant uncertainty about the severity of the spread.

HONG KONG : China’s central health authority has stopped publishing daily Covid-19 data, ending a three-year effort that has drawn mounting criticism for massively underreporting the surge in infections now sweeping the country. In a one-line announcement Sunday, China’s National Health Commission said it would no longer issue its daily report on Covid infections and deaths.

AP “China has a population that is very large and there’s limited immunity. And that seems to be the setting in which we may see an explosion of a new variant." “When we’ve seen big waves of infection, it’s often followed by new variants being generated," Ray said. Experts said a partially immune population like China’s puts particular pressure on the virus to change.