Many acres of forest reserve have been destroyed from a fire that erupted in Nuwara Eliya and Horton plains last week, but authorities have failed to nab the culprits who ignite forests and bring loss and destruction to the country, environmentalists charged.
They say that “Wildlife officers in Nuwara Eliya have not shown any interest in protecting the eco system and not a single wildlife officer took part in the attempt to extinguish the fire that erupted last Monday in Nuwara Eliya. More >>

The carving of the world’s largest stone Buddha statue out of a rock at Rambadagalla, Moneragala Vidyasara pirivena temple, in Kurunegala, is in its final stages. The statue which is 67.5 feet in height is carved completely out of rock. This rock which stood in a corner of the temple premises hidden by a clump of trees will become the world’s largest stone Buddha statue in the world shortly.
“When the Bahamian Buddha statue in Afghanistan was destroyed in 2001,More >>

The government party took a decision last week to limit a future cabinet to 35 — but other than this decision, it’ almost as if there is not much to talk about in a lackadaisical campaign season. The opposition is almost reduced to secretly faulting each other for the general situation - — a government going for a steamroller majority, and a hapless opposition. Last week the Fonseka juggernaut also looked very weak - - with Anoma Fonseka reduced to complaining to her party faithful that at least the window in the flat where the General is detained, should be opened for more ventilation. More >>

President Mahinda Rajapaksa has summoned parliament on Tuesday - a month after its dissolution - to allow for the extension of the state of emergency.
The president was acting well within the ambit of the constitution which states that he may summon parliament after dissolution if he is satisfied that “an emergency has arisen of such a nature that an earlier meeting of Parliament is necessary”. Parliament shall stand dissolved upon the termination of the emergency or the conclusion of the general election, whichever is earlier. While the president is within his constitutional right (he is not always so), More >>

A spirited all round performance helped St. Peter’s record a comfortable ten-wicket win in their 76th Battle of the Saints big match against St. Joseph’s College — the first win in 32 years for St. Peter’s - at P. Sara stadium yesterday. St Peter’s had last won the Battle of the Saints encounter in 1978 under Suraj Abeysekera. With a formidable first innings lead of 138, the Peterites were out for revenge, as they enforced the follow on, on to the Darley Road boys, whose failure in the batting department brought about a great collapse in the second innings. More >>

A penetrative spell of fast bowling from right-arm pacer and fresher Rangana Cooray who returned impressive figures of 17-3-54-5 helped Nalanda bundle out Ananda for a paltry 191 all out, before replying with 69 for 2 when bad light stopped play, on a level-pegging day one of the 81st Battle of the Maroons begun at SSC grounds yesterday.
Nalanda having won the toss had no hesitation in asking their rivals to take first lease of the SSC track and saw Rangana Cooray getting into his act immediately as he priced out four of the top Ananda bastmen cheaply. More >>

There is something uniquely wondrous about watching a religious pageant from a cross-legged position on the ground, your bottom unenthusiastically absorbing the heat of the tarred road and your mind conjuring up horrifying images of an elephant urinating abundantly in your direction. There is also something wildly exhilarating (in retrospect) about running for your dear life, offspring tucked under your armpit and one sandal given up for lost, when a couple of those endearing majestic mammals decide to throw a tantrum just inches from your nose. More >>

One woman writes a cook book that will change the way housewives cook in the US, another follows the book and blogs about her experiences. Set in two completely different eras, Julie & Julia, based upon two true stories, follows the journey of Julia Child and Julie Powell as they find cooking and through it, in Julie’s case for the most part, themselves.
Now, if I’d read this on the back of a book I can say for sure that I’d have never bought it. A revelatory journey via French cooking? Bah Humbug! I obviously have a lot more growing up to do...... More >>

Iraq, having beaten most of its insurgents, holds an election on March 7th. But its institutions may be too weak, and its politicians too greedy, to save democracy Things had been going well for Iraq’s footballers. They had re-established a national league, won the 2007 Asian Cup and last summer played host to their first post-Saddam international. Then, in November, a column of armoured police cars turned up at the headquarters of the Iraqi Football Association in eastern Baghdad. Uniformed men stormed the building, setting up sandbagged machinegun positions. More >>

Community leaders have appealed for calm after the body of Gurshan Singh was found in grassland on the side of the road near Melbourne Airport yesterday. His death follows the murder of an Indian student in a burger bar in January and protests about racially motivated attacks on Indian nationals.
There were no obvious signs of injury on Gurshan’s body and forensic tests are being carried out to determine the cause of death.
Gurshan, who was visiting Australia with his parents from Punjab in northern India, disappeared from a house early yesterday afternoon. More >>

Business circles have called for speedy action by the Foreign Affairs Ministry to combat malicious economic campaigns carried out against Sri Lanka by a fringe group called GTF (Global Tamil Forum).
“Their strategies to boycott Sri Lankan products and the holding of meetings with the participation of local VIPs such as British Foreign Secretary David Miliband only demolishes their political agenda,” stressed Public Administration and Home Affairs Minister Dr. Sarath Amunugama. More >>

The week ending 5th of March 2010 saw active turnover, making the indices at the CSE close higher on retail participation. The ASPI, which tracks all the stocks in the Colombo market, gained 0.4% (16 points) to close at 3,824. The Milanka Price Index, which tracks the movements of the 25 most liquid stocks, gained 0.8 % (33 points) to close at 4,388. The higher pace of gain in the MPI stocks were due to mid cap stocks showing gains on retail interest. Market turnover for the week was Rs 6.4 billion with a daily average turnover of Rs 1.3 billion. More >>

Bombay, with a population of nearly 10 million, is the largest metropolis in India. Renamed Mumbai in 1995, it is the capital of the state of Maharashtra as well as the major port and industrial centre on the west coast of India.
The main part of the city is built on Bombay Island. Greater Bombay, a metropolitan municipal organization that includes Bombay Island, and part of Salsette Island, was created in 1957. More than 15 million people live in Greater Bombay and its mainland suburbs. More >>

As a young woman, Elizabeth Blackwell earned her living as a teacher. But she was not happy in her work. She longed for independence and became a supporter of women’s rights. Searching for a career that would offer her independence and that would allow her to help people. Blackwell decided to become a doctor.
Medical profession
Blackwell was born on February 3, 1821, in Bristol, England. She and her family moved to the United States in 1832. More >>