A fire broke out at the Pachpadra Refinery in Balotra on Monday afternoon — just a day before its scheduled inauguration by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The United National Party (UNP) today denied the social media report which said the party is to hold a joint May Day rally with other parties.

The Sri Lanka Excise Department has earned a record revenue of Rs. 70.4 billion in the first quarter of 2026, exceeding the set revenue target of Rs. 61.95 billion for the same period.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has appointed Anura Karunathilaka as the new Minister of Energy.

Transport, Highways and Urban Development Minister Bimal Rathnayake has said that there is no interruption to ongoing construction projects in the country despite the prevailing conflict in the Middle East.

Dasun Shanaka has received a one-year ban from participating in the Pakistan Super League following a review of his contractContinue Reading The post Dasun Shanaka banned for one year from Pakistan Super League appeared

Senior Professor O. G. Dayarathna Banda assumed duties as the new Director General of the National Institute of Education (NIE)Continue Reading The post Prof. O.G. Dayarathna Banda assumes duties as new NIE Director Gene

Advisory for Severe Lightning Issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre  Issued at 12.00 noon 20 April 2026 valid for the period until 11.00 p.m. 20 April 2026 Thundershowers accompanied with severe lightning ar

Global oil prices have jumped after US President Donald Trump said its navy had intercepted and seized an Iran-flagged cargo ship. The Brent crude benchmark oil price jumped 5% to around $95 (£70) a barrel, reversing the

A strong magnitude 7.5 earthquake has struck off northern Japan, prompting authorities to issue a tsunami warning for waves of up to 3 metres (10 feet). The quake hit on Monday at 4:53pm local time (07:53 GMT) in waters

The United National Party (UNP) has issued a special statement addressing misinformation circulating on social media ahead of International Workers’Continue Reading The post UNP denies social media reports on May Day ral

The Vice President of India,  C.P. Radhakrishnan, who is currently on a two-day official visit to Sri Lanka, held a bilateral discussion with Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya on Sunday (19) morning  at Temple Trees.

After cruising through two 200-plus chases and easing past 196 without fuss, Punjab Kings faced a different challenge on Sunday against Lucknow Super Giants, of setting a target for the first time this season. And on a f

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has appointed Anura Karunathilake as the Minister of Energy. Accordingly, Anura Karunathilake took oaths before theContinue Reading The post President appoints Anura Karunathilake as En

A second group of monks has arrived in Sri Lanka from Dallas–Fort Worth (DFW) International Airport, Texas, United States, toContinue Reading The post Second group of Monks arrives for ‘Walk for Peace’ in Sri Lanka appea

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) registered their first win of IPL 2026 with their spinners bossing on a tailormade surface and their lower middle order bailing out their misfiring top order. Rajasthan Royals (RR) played the

Four newly appointed ambassadors and two high commissioners formally presented their credentials to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the PresidentialContinue Reading The post Six newly appointed diplomats present cr

Philippine and U.S. forces will carry out maritime strike drills on a remote Philippine ‌island near Taiwan during annual exercises that started on Monday, which Manila’s military chief said would test their readiness un

The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) has urged the Ministry of Mass Media to take immediate action against Hiru Media NetworkContinue Reading The post CPC urges Media Ministry to take strong action against Hiru TV appe

‘Welcome to Sri Lanka’, the travel documentary produced by Mark Julian Edwards, won the prestigious ‘Television Broadcast of the Year’Continue Reading The post ‘Welcome to Sri Lanka’ documentary wins top global TV award

Tectera, a leading Web Design and digital marketing agency in Sri Lanka, has officially been awarded Google Partner status —Continue Reading The post Tectera Achieves Google Partner Status, Reinforcing Its Place as Sri L

The Department of Meteorology has issued an advisory for warm weather in the Northern, North-central, North-western, Western, Sabaragamuwa, Southern, andContinue Reading The post April 21 : ‘Caution level’ heat alert iss

Three persons were injured when a three-wheeler carrying a family veered off the road and plunged nearly 50 feet into a ravine in the Carolina area of Watawala along the Hatton–Colombo main road on Monday (20), police sa

An earthquake ‌with a preliminary magnitude of 7.4 struck off ​the northeastern coast of ​Japan on Monday afternoon, ⁠the Japan Meteorological ​Agency said.

Former Minister of Skills Development and Vocational Training, Piyasena Gamage, who was arrested by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption over corruption charges, was today ordered to be rele

Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa indicated that a “significant plan” is in place aimed at regaining political power in the New Year, stating that a political shift is imminent and that the party is fully prepared for i

New Zealand has declared a state of emergency in its capital city Wellington as torrential rain and flash flooding drenched the country’s North Island. Footage online shows vehicles submerged, trees uprooted and houses h

“Market is still very proportional to the Middle Eastern conflict,”

Stocks were trending down

The US has intercepted an Iranian-flagged cargo ship in the Gulf as part of its naval blockade, Donald Trump has said. The US president wrote on his Truth Social platform that the Touska was seized by the US Navy after f

Warm Weather Advisory Issued by the Natural Hazards Early Warning Centre Issued at 3.30 p.m. on 19 April 2026, valid for 20 April 2026. The Heat index, the temperature felt on human body is likely to increase up to ‘Caut

WEATHER FORECAST FOR 20 APRIL 2026 Issued at 05.30 a.m. on 20 April 2026 by the Department of Meteorology Misty conditions can be expected at some places in the Western, Sabaragamuwa, Central and Uva provinces and in Gal

Sri Lanka’s economic growth is expected to slow to 3.6% in 2026 as higher energy prices weigh on activity, although the economy will regain its pre-crisis size last seen in 2018, the World Bank said in its latest South A

The parliament has erred, and erred terribly, in giving 'independence' to a central bank that demands 5-pct inflation

lt;p align= quot;center quot; gt; lt;strong gt; nbsp; lt;/strong gt; lt;/p gt; lt;ul gt; lt;li gt; lt;strong gt;Third shipment fails nbsp;quality test nbsp; lt;/strong gt; lt;/li gt; lt;li gt; lt;strong gt;None so far ha

lt;strong gt;By Jayani Madawla lt;/strong gt; The prevailing heatwave that Sri Lanka is experiencing is expected to continue through mid-May according to the Department of Meteorology. Experts warn that the situation cou

lt;strong gt;By Ranjith Padmasiri nbsp; nbsp; lt;/strong gt; Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody, who was indicted on corruption charges, was released on bail by the Colombo High Court on Friday after having his fingerprints

A renewed call for integrity, excellence and solidarity within the legal profession took centre stage at a women lawyers rsquo; gathering held in Hulftsdorp last week, where Supreme Court Justice Kumuduni Wickremasinghe

[caption id= quot;attachment_636994 quot; align= quot;aligncenter quot; width= quot;500 quot; caption= quot;Polonnaruwa quot;] lt;img class= quot;size-full wp-image-636994 quot; title= quot;Polonnaruwa-01 quot; src= quot

While the Sri Lanka Navy assisted in bringing to shore an ailing member of the crew of a Chinese research vessel anchored in Sri Lanka rsquo;s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), the vessel will not be allowed into the countr