2021-11-26
News Categories : Committee News
According to the report of the Cabinet Subcommittee on teacher and Principals 'Salary Anomalies, an additional Rs. 31 million has been included in this year's budget following the discussions with the Prime Minister, the Hon. Minister of Finance and the Teachers' Trade Unions, Hon. Dinesh Gunawardena, Minister of Education said.
He stated the above addressing the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Education which met in Parliament recently (24).
Furthermore, the Minister stated that the z-score for the A / L results has been released and that the obstacles to the release of the G. C. E. OL results while the teacher-principal salary anomaly crisis persisted has been resolved.
Additionally, relevant dates to hold the GCE (Advanced Level) examination, Grade 5 Scholarship Examination and GCE (O / L) examination which was postponed due to COVID – 19 have already been decided, the Minister said. Accordingly, the Grade 5 scholarship examination will be held on January, 2022 and the GCE (Advanced Level) examination will be held in the first week of February. GCE (Ordinary Level) examination will be held on May 23rd.
The report of the technical Committee appointed by the Parliamentary Sub-Committee on the Inclusion of Law as a Subject in School Curriculum was submitted to the Consultative Committee by State Minister of State, (Dr.) Susil Premajayantha for approval.
Addressing the Committee, the state minister said that it is proposed to change the subject of Citizenship Education, which is currently a compulsory subject from Grade 6 to Grade 9 in the school curriculum, to Law and Citizenship Education after these reforms.
According to the report of the technical committee, the inclusion of law as a subject in the school curriculum will create awareness among children about the law, create awareness about the consequences of disobedience and punishment, provide an understanding of the rights protected by law, legislation and law enforcement mechanisms. It is expected to develop skills such as providing an understanding of the duties and responsibilities established by law in a civilized society.
The state minister further stated that the Final Report on the Policy Framework compiled into three sections on Educational Reforms in Vocational Education and Educational Reforms in Higher Education Educational Reforms from Early Childhood to Advanced Level in Relation to Expected New Education Reforms, has been released in August 2020. He also stated that a digital platform for anyone to express their views on general education was launched on March 28th, 2021 under the patronage of the H.E. the President.
The Minister said that a report prepared after examining 2400 ideas and suggestions received for this purpose has been submitted to the National Education Commission.
Hon. State Ministry of Skills Development, Vocational Education, Research & Innovation (Dr.) Seetha Arambepola said that an urban university would be established in every district where there is no national university.
Initiated as stated in the Policy Statement of H. E. the President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, the 1000 National Schools Program launched was also discussed at length.
Chairman of the Committee Hon. Dinesh Gunawardena, Minister of Education, Hon. Minister Mahinda Amaraweera, (Dr.) Susil Premajayantha, (Dr.) Seetha Arambepola, Piyal Nishantha, Vijitha Berugoda, Hon. Members of Parliament Rauff Hakeem, Thavaraja Kalai Arasan, Sudath Manjula, Shantha Bandara, Eran Wickramaratne, Premnath C. Dolawatte, Cader Mastan, (Dr.) Upul Galappaththi, Yadamini Gunawardena, Anupa Pasqual, Charles Nirmalanathan, Nimal Piyathissa, Chamara Sampath Dasanayake, (Dr.) V. Radhakrishnan, Udayakantha Goonetileke, Ajith Rajapaksa, Diana Gamage, Upul Mahendra Rajapaksha, Shantha Bandara, Geetha Kumarasinghe, Goonetilleke Rajapaksa, Prof. Charitha Herath, Madhura Withanage, Manjula Dissanayake, Rohana Dissanayake, Kokila Gunawardena and Prof. K. Kapila C.K. Perera Secretary of Ministry of Education and officials were present at this meeting.
2026-07-22
The draft Terms of Reference (ToR) prepared for the Parliamentary Caucus for Open Parliament Initiative was approved recently at a meeting held in Parliament with the participation of Parliament's development partner organizations.The approval was granted during a meeting of the Caucus chaired by its Co-Chair, Hon. Member of Parliament Shanakkiyan Rajaputhiran Rasamanickam.The draft Terms of Reference was developed based on proposals and recommendations received during a workshop organized by the Caucus in recent months to gather stakeholder input for its preparation.The meeting also agreed that, following the approval of the Terms of Reference, the document would be submitted to Hon. President, and that a discussion would be held with the President on behalf of the Caucus.
2026-07-22
The Sub-Committee appointed by the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) focused its attention on the methodology, implementation timeline and coordination arrangements relating to the research study proposed for the restructuring of the Sri Lanka Institute of Advanced Technological Education (SLIATE), when it met recently, at Parliament under the Chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament Ruwan Mapalagama.During the meeting, discussions were held on the establishment of the proposed Institutional Operations Committee and a six-member Coordination Team to facilitate the implementation of the research. Attention was also focused on the proposed Mixed-Methods Design, the preparation of questionnaires and the data collection process.The Sub-Committee further reviewed the progress of obtaining public views on the restructuring of SLIATE. Matters relating to obtaining the contribution of the Human Resources and Management Information Systems (MIS) divisions for the research, the preparation of the research implementation timeline through a Gantt Chart, and the stakeholder consultations to be held with representatives of the industry sector were also considered.The programme to obtain the views of stakeholders, including Chambers of Commerce, industry associations and professional bodies, as well as the conduct of field visits to selected SLIATE institutions across the country, was also discussed.The Sub-Committee decided to proceed with the future activities of the research in accordance with the agreed timeline and to present the relevant progress reports at its next meeting.Hon. Member of Parliament Lieutenant Commander (Retired) Prageeth Madhuranga also attended the meeting.
2026-07-22
The Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) focused its attention on referring the matters revealed in relation to land misuse, financial irregularities and administrative deficiencies at the National Housing Development Authority (NHDA) to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) for a formal investigation.The matter was taken up when the Committee met recently at Parliament under the Chairmanship of Hon. Member of Parliament (Dr.) Nishantha Samaraweera to continue its examination of the Auditor General's Reports for the years 2022 and 2023 and to consider the remaining matters relating to the current performance of the National Housing Development Authority.During the meeting, lengthy discussions were held regarding the leasing of valuable NHDA-owned lands located at Maligawatta, Elvitigala Mawatha and Rangirigama, Dambulla to external parties at low nominal values without Cabinet approval, the use of such lands for purposes contrary to the conditions stipulated in the relevant agreements, and the failure to adequately safeguard the Authority's assets.The Committee observed that many of these transactions had been carried out in contravention of the objectives of the National Housing Development Authority and the relevant legal provisions. Accordingly, the Committee recommended that comprehensive reports on the identified irregularities be referred to the Criminal Investigation Department and the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption for the institution of appropriate legal action.The Committee also instructed the officials to expedite internal audit investigations into these matters, identify the officers responsible and initiate disciplinary action against them. Furthermore, the Committee recommended that the necessary measures be taken to strengthen asset management and internal control systems in order to prevent the recurrence of such irregularities in the future.The meeting was attended by Hon. Members of Parliament Attorney-at-Law Dayasiri Jayasekara, S.M. Marikkar, Attorney-at-Law Sujeewa Senasinghe, Mujibur Rahman, Chaminda Wijesiri, Dr. S. Sri Bavanandarajah, Sunil Rajapaksha, Thilina Samarakoon, Chandima Hettiarachchi, Asitha Niroshana Egodavithana, Ruwan Mapalagama, Jagath Manuwarna, Dinesh Hemantha, M.K.M. Aslam and Sudath Balagalla.
2026-07-21
Discussions focus on strengthening disability-inclusive legislation and policy implementationThe Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities held discussions with the United Nations Resident Coordinator and representatives of several United Nations agencies at Parliament with a view to strengthening cooperation in promoting the rights of persons with disabilities and advancing disability-inclusive legislation and policies in Sri Lanka.The meeting was held in Parliament under the Chairmanship of the Chair of the Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities, Hon. Member of Parliament Sugath Wasantha de Silva recently.Addressing the meeting, the United Nations Resident Coordinator, Mr. Marc-André Franche, commended the Parliament for establishing the Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities and emphasized the importance of treating disability inclusion as a national priority across all sectors. He reaffirmed the commitment of the United Nations to provide technical expertise and institutional support in areas including legislative reforms, accessibility, inclusive education, employment, community-based rehabilitation and strengthening national coordination.The UNICEF Representative, Ms. Begoña Arellano, highlighted the need to safeguard the rights of children with disabilities, particularly in relation to health, nutrition and education, while emphasizing the important oversight role of Parliament in ensuring the effective implementation of disability-inclusive policies.Representatives of UNFPA, UNDP, ILO and UN Volunteers also briefed the Caucus on ongoing initiatives relating to youth, education, disability data collection, employment opportunities and social inclusion.During the meeting, the Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment, Hon. (Dr.) Upali Pannilage, informed the Caucus that the proposed Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill and the Sign Language Bill are currently with the Attorney General's Department and are expected to be presented to Parliament on September 2026. He further stated that measures are underway to improve accessibility in public institutions, expand employment opportunities, introduce educational grants for university students with disabilities and establish ten day-care centres for children with disabilities within this year.The Caucus also discussed future initiatives, including the preparation of disability-inclusive budget proposals by Government Ministries, the finalisation of a national disability database and the conduct of a sensitisation programme for journalists to promote a rights-based approach to disability related reporting.The meeting concluded with the Chair, Hon. Sugath Wasantha de Silva, reiterating the Caucus's core theme, "An unhindered social life," and calling for continued, unified collaboration to make an inclusive society a reality.The meeting was attended by the Deputy Co-Chairs of the Caucus, Hon. Gayantha Karunathilleka, and Hon. (Dr.) Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam, the Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Community Empowerment, Hon. (Dr.) Upali Pannilage, Members of Parliament and representatives of the United Nations Resident Coordinator's Office, UNFPA, UNICEF, UNDP, ILO and UN Volunteers.
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