**Sri Lanka Skybar**

[Amal]

A Passion for Rugby in an Unexpected Place

By EMMA STONEY

Published: April 25, 2012

WELLINGTON — When you think of Sri Lanka, rugby is not generally something that springs readily to mind.

The island nation is certainly better known for cricket, tea exports and its recently ended civil war. But Sri Lanka’s British colonial forefathers left behind more than cricket as a sporting staple.

Rugby was introduced to Sri Lanka in the late 1800s, and today it boasts a large playing population and a television audience of millions.

According to International Rugby Board figures, there are more than 103,000 rugby players in Sri Lanka, making it the second largest rugby-playing nation in Asia, behind Japan.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/26/sp...by26.html?_r=1

[Amal]

Pretty amazing I thought!

Galle
http://www.ocholeguas.com/en_360/201...lanka/6/6.html

Kandy
http://www.ocholeguas.com/en_360/201...lanka/4/4.html

Sigiriya
http://www.ocholeguas.com/en_360/201...lanka/2/2.html

Dambulla
http://www.ocholeguas.com/en_360/201...lanka/1/1.html

[Amal]

Interesting...

[Amal]

Shehan Karunatilaka wins 2012 Commonwealth book prize

Sri Lankan author's cricket-themed debut offering Chinaman: the Legend of Pradeep Mathew takes £10,000 award

guardian.co.uk, Friday 8 June 2012 15.58 BST


Shehan Karunatilaka's novel Chinaman: the Legend of Pradeep Mathew won warm praise from the Commonwealth book prize judges. Photograph: Simon Jones

Sri Lankan author Shehan Karunatilaka, a former advertising copywriter, has won the Commonwealth book prize for his highly praised debut novel Chinaman: the Legend of Pradeep Mathew.

Narrated by the alcoholic former sports journalist WG Karunasena, the novel is the story of his quest for Pradeep Mathew, a devastatingly talented Sri Lankan spin bowler who appears to have been expunged from historical record. Despite its cricket focus, Karunatilaka promises in the book: "If you've never seen a cricket match; if you have and it has made you snore; if you can't understand why anyone would watch, let alone obsess over this dull game, then this is the book for you."

Judges of the £10,000 prize agreed. "This fabulously enjoyable read will keep you entertained and rooting for the protagonist until the very end, while delivering startling truths about cricket and about Sri Lanka," said chair Margaret Busby.

"It's an insightful story about fact and gullibility, about world history, about friends and family [and it] sets the standard high for the new Commonwealth book prize."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012...?newsfeed=true

[Amal]

Sri Lanka the biggest gainer in Global Peace Index

Tue, Jun 12, 2012, 10:59 pm SL Time, ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.

Jun 12, Colombo: End of three-decades long civil war in Sri Lanka three years ago has propelled the country to experience the greatest improvement in overall peacefulness, according to the 2012 Global Peace Index (GPI) released today.

The Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) which produces the Global Peace Index said the world has become slightly more peaceful in the last year reversing a two-year trend.

Sri Lanka's GPI score experienced the largest year-on-year improvement of the 158 nations surveyed and it climbed 27 places to a still-low 103rd position overall and 17th in the Asia Pacific region ahead of India (142) and Pakistan (149).

The GPI produced for the sixth year ranks 158 nations using 23 qualitative and quantitative indicators which gauge ongoing domestic and international conflict, safety and security in society and militarization.

Sri Lanka joined Philippines, Zimbabwe, Bhutan and Guyana to be the top 5 countries that registered "improvements in peacefulness".

Sri Lanka's score improved markedly for the second successive year in the aftermath of the defeat of the Tamil Tigers and the ending of two decades of civil war in May 2009, the IEP says in its report.

FULL STORY: http://www.colombopage.com/archive_1...39522184CH.php

[Amal]

Of all South Asian nations, Sri Lanka has the lowest number of underweight and stunted children, World Bank’s South Asia Region Human Development Unit’s senior nutrition specialist Nkosinathi Mbuya said.

He said 22 percent of Sri Lankan children aged up to five, are underweight while the prevalence rates of underweight children are 33 percent in Afghanistan, 41 percent in Bangladesh, 43 percent in India, 39 percent in Nepal and 31 percent in Pakistan.

Meanwhile, 18 percent of Sri Lankan children aged up to five are stunted while it is 59 percent in Afghanistan, 43 percent in Bangladesh, 48 percent in India, 49 percent in Nepal and 42 percent in Pakistan. However, the stunting levels in tea estates are the highest (42 percent). Hence the government should intervene to improve nutrition levels in children, adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women in tea estates through community-based nutrition programmes targetting these areas, Mbuya said. He also praised the Sri Lankan government’s efforts to establish the National Nutrition Council in Sri Lanka.

http://www.dailynews.lk/2012/06/27/news02.asp

[Amal]

Sri Lanka population lower than estimated, but growing: Census Dept

June 27, 2012 (LBO) - Sri Lanka's first countrywide census conducted after the end of a 30-year war shows the population is 20.277 million, the statistics office said, which is lower than earlier estimates.

Earlier estimates put mid-year population in 2011 at 20.869 million with an annual growth rate of 1.0 percent. The census conducted in March 2012 shows that the population growth has fallen to 0.7 percent in the past 10 years.
Sri Lanka's current population of 20.227 is around the level of the 20.217 million mid-year population estimated for 2008.

About 28.8 percent of the population was in the Western Province around the capital Colombo and 5.2 percent was in the north.

Colombo district had the highest population of 2,323,824 and the lowest was in Mullaitivu district at 92,527 in the north of the island.

The highest population growth rate of 1.33 percent was seen in the Anuradhapura District, in north central Sri Lanka.

The lowest population growth of 0.5 percent was seen in Nuwara Eliya district.

http://www.lankabusinessonline.com/f...nid=1143106308

[Amal]

Sri Lankans baptise new fish genus for atheist Dawkins

Mon, 16 Jul 2012

Sri Lankan scientists have identified a new genus of fresh water fish and named it after the evolutionary biologist and renowned atheist Richard Dawkins.



Lead researcher Rohan Pethiyagoda said the new genus, named Dawkinsia, comprises nine species that are found only in South Asia and are characterised by long filaments that trail from the dorsal fins of males.

The fish has previously been classified under the genus Puntius, comprising around 120 species of small tropical fish known as barbs.

Pethiyagoda, an ichthyologist and internationally acclaimed conservationist, said extensive studies in India and Sri Lanka showed that the level of diversity among such fish was "much greater than previously suspected".

This was partly the reason that the study group had chosen to name the new genus after the 71-year-old Dawkins, the British author of the anti-religion polemic, The God Delusion.

"Richard Dawkins has through his writings helped us understand that the universe is far more beautiful and awe-inspiring than any religion has imagined," Pethiyagoda told AFP on Monday.

"We hope that Dawkinsia will serve as a reminder of the elegance and simplicity of evolution, the only rational explanation there is for the unimaginable diversity of life on Earth," he said.

Male Dawkinsia barbs advertise their fitness by growing long fin filaments that make them more attractive to females but also dangerously conspicuous to predators.

"The filaments are rather like the peacock's tail, expensive ornaments that place their owner at greater risk while offering him the reward of being the preferred choice of females," Pethiyagoda said.

The genus re-classification followed an eight-year study of the DNA, bone structures and overall anatomy of Puntius species.

http://news.ph.msn.com/regional/sri-...eist-dawkins-2

[Amal]

Sri Lankan Arrack enters the USA:


http://whitelionvsoa.com




First US Import of VSOA - 2800 Year Old Spirit

WOODLAND HILLS, Calif., July 23, 2012 White Lion Imports, LLC announces the first US import of VSOA, a legendary spirit produced exclusively in Sri Lanka. VSOA enjoys a cult-like following by those fortunate enough to have discovered this rare beverage. White Lion now introduces this highly sought-after spirit to the US.

VSOA owes its existence to a group of spirits known collectively as arrack. As early as 800 B.C., countries began to distill alcohol from a variety of ingredients. Many used phonetically similar words (arrack, arak, etc.) to name their spirits. Sri Lanka chose the nectar of coconut flowers. The flavor was so unique, Marco Polo immortalized this wonderful spirit in his travel diary, Il Milione. Soon after, the British Royal Navy adopted arrack as a replacement for rum rations in Southeast Asia.

"VSOA defines an entirely new class of spirits for bartenders and consumers. Whiskey and rum drinkers alike are drawn to its exceptionally unique flavor. I've never seen a spirit enjoy such broad acceptance among drink enthusiasts," said Kathleen Adolphson, Executive Brand Director, White Lion.

Whiskey and rum drinkers appreciate VSOA's fruit forward intensity and absence of traditional malt characteristics. This distinctive flavor originates from naturally fermented nectar of coconut flowers. Rich in natural sugars and yeast, the nectar self-ferments without any additives. By focusing on a single ingredient, distilling within 24 hours and maturing 2 years in native Halmilla wood, White Lion obtains a purity and quality unmatched by other spirits.

"White Lion is proud to partner with Sri Lanka's oldest distiller, DCSL," states Sonali Gunasekera, Marketing Director for White Lion. "Their dedication to perfecting this legendary spirit began 700 years ago with distillation knowledge handed down among families of artisan distillers with generations of experience."

VSOA is available in 750ml bottles at a suggested retail price of $24.99. While 16th century sailors drank this spirit in punch and grog, new world drinkers enjoy VSOA with cola, ginger beer or as an alternative to whiskey and rum in traditional cocktails.

http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/805053#ixzz21S3l6BX5

[Amal]

[Amal]

[Amal]

[saraprobe]

Hey guys ,, look what I came across

Greater Hambantota Development Projects[18]

The construction of the Port of Hambantota is part of a larger development project centered around the Hambantota District. Apart of the port, the other development projects under going are;

International airport
Extension of highway to Kataragama
Extension of Southern Railway to Kataragama
An oil refinery and an oil tank farm with 14 for fuel bunkering with a total investment of US$ 76 million.[9]
500-acre (2.0 km2) Safari Park is being constructed in Ridiyagama,Ambalantota scheduled to be open in 2011.
A Botanical Garden
Hambantota City Center with an Adminitrative Complex[19] and an International Convention Center[20]
A Beach Park
Industrial Area with an expected investment of US$ 1 billion.[21]

Proposed Projects
A University Complex
City Hotels
Institutional Square
Banking Square
Hospital
Dodol Kada

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_of_Hambantota

[Amal]

Party atmosphere as World Twenty20 lifts off



By Shahid Hashmi (AFP) – 1 hour ago

HAMBANTOTA, Sri Lanka — Tight security and empty seats failed to dampen a party atmosphere Tuesday as cricket's World Twenty20 began under a cacophony of vuvuzela horns in Sri Lanka.

Fans blowing the plastic trumpets and wearing lion head-dresses greeted the players as the hosts went into bat in the opening game in Hambantota, the president's home town and future site of a major new port.

Roads leading to the far-flung Mahinda Rajapaksa Stadium -- named after the president -- were jammed with fans, as hundreds of police formed a security cordon. Sri Lanka was beset by four decades of ethnic conflict until 2009.

Mohammad Sajid, among a group of 20 students who travelled from the nearby town of Tissamaharama, said the three-week tournament in Hambantota, Pallekele and Colombo would shift perceptions of Sri Lanka.

"We have formed a group of 20 to suit Twenty20 cricket," said Sajid. "It is befitting that Sri Lanka is the first Asian country to host the World Twenty20 and we hope that it will help lift our country's image."

Unlike some tournaments, there was no glitzy opening ceremony or parade, just the national anthems and handshakes from dignitaries, as Sri Lanka's biggest ever sports event got under way.

And at the start of the match, the 35,000-capacity stadium was not even half-full. Organisers were expected to open the gates to non ticket-holders later in the evening to fill up the ground.

"At last year's World Cup, they arranged pick and drop for the fans because it is tough to come with the nearest town Suriyawewa 10 kilometers (six miles) away from here," said Ranith Waliya, a factory worker.

The tournament hosts hope it will be a sell-out when Sri Lanka face South Africa in the last Group C match in Hambantota on Saturday.

And those inside the stadium, many daubed in face paint or wearing traditional dress, did not hide their excitement as the first ball of the tournament was dispatched for a boundary by debutant Dilshan Munaweera.

"It is electrifying," said Sujita Fernando, a hotel receptionist who came along with her husband and ten-year old son. "We are planning to go to Colombo to see the final with a hope that Sri Lanka is one of the teams there."

The final is scheduled for Colombo on October 7.

http://bit.ly/OWT7bY

[Amal]

[Amal]

SL grabs 58th position on global prosperity

November 25, 2012, 8:19 pm

It is great news that Sri Lanka has achieved the 58th place out of 142 countries based on criteria in eight categories including economic strength, health, education and governance in the 2012 Prosperity Index published in November by the London-based Legatum Institute think tank, surpassing its neighbours Philippines (67), India (101), Bangladesh (103), Pakistan (132), and closing on China (55).

http://www.island.lk/index.php?page_...de_title=66897

[Amal]

China launches Sri Lanka’s first satellite

(Reuters) / 27 November 2012

Sri Lanka launched its first communications satellite on Tuesday in partnership with a Chinese state-owned space technology firm, the Sri Lanka partner said, adding to unease in neighbouring India about Beijing’s growing ties with the island nation.

The Sri Lankan government has emphasized the launch was a private effort, carried out by SupremeSAT (Pvt) Ltd and the China Great Wall Industry Corp. But Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s youngest son, Rohitha, has been credited in domestic media as the creator of the satellite.

Vijith Peiris, chief executive of SupremeSAT, told Reuters in Colombo that the launch from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in western China was successful.

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/kt-artic...=international

[Amal]

[Popthepuff]

Originally Posted by Amal

I love this video.

Originally Posted by Amal

SL grabs 58th position on global prosperity

November 25, 2012, 8:19 pm

It is great news that Sri Lanka has achieved the 58th place out of 142 countries based on criteria in eight categories including economic strength, health, education and governance in the 2012 Prosperity Index published in November by the London-based Legatum Institute think tank, surpassing its neighbours Philippines (67), India (101), Bangladesh (103), Pakistan (132), and closing on China (55).

http://www.island.lk/index.php?page_...de_title=66897

Well, that's interesting, and surprising given that most of the development is concentrated in the Western district.

[Popthepuff]

Friday, December 28, 2012 - 06.45 GMT
Electricity generation is expected to grow by 6 % in 2013



Electricity generation is expected to grow by 6 per cent in 2013 with the expected high economic growth, states the Central Bank in its report on Recent Economic Developments 2012.
With expectations of fewer plant shutdowns in the future, the operation of the plants at maximum capacity and provided that normal weather conditions will prevail a supply shortage of electricity is not expected in 2013, the report further said.

With increased low cost hydro power and the coal power, the average generation cost is expected to decline, thereby helping to improve the financial situation of CEB and improve the competitiveness of the economy, the report adds.