2023-11-20
It was disclosed that there are many administrative shortcomings and irregularities in Sri Lanka Customs at the COPA meeting held.
This was disclosed when the Committee on Public Accounts met in Parliament recently (Nov. 17) Chaired by Hon. Lasantha Alagiyawanna to look into the reports of the Auditor General of the Sri Lanka Customs for the years 2019, 2020 and 2021 and its current performance.
COPA drew attention to the financial advantage provided to the concerned institution by presenting fake local information during the release of warehouses brought by a private institution for the water development project in the Eastern Province. Accordingly, during the release of the goods which the concerned private company had warehoused as USD 5,139,621, locally prepared forged documents were used to pave way and obtain USD 1,210,743 in excess for the concerned company when the value shown was USD 6,350,364. Thus, COPA recommended that a report in this regard to be given within a month.
The status of the introduction of new technology by Customs was also discussed at the Committee meeting held. Accordingly, the officers who were present pointed out that currently a system called "Azikuda" is being used to maintain data and it is connected to the Ramis system. Furthermore, a new technology system will be introduced in the future.
Furthermore, attention was also directed to the measures taken regarding the amendment of the Customs Ordinance Act and the officials mentioned that the amendments in this regard will be submitted to Parliament in January 2024.
Due to non-disclosure of correct information while bringing coal to Norochchole thermal power plant, VAT was not charged as an additional tax in the customs investigation to recover the undercharged VAT of nearly 187 million rupees, and a penalty of 205 million rupees was imposed and 70% of the received amount was allocated to the rewards and welfare of the officials and the committee questioned the officials. Accordingly, officials pointed out that they have started discussions with the Ministry of Finance to start a program so that this kind of things does not happen again.
Discussions also took place regarding the use of fingerprints for reporting to duty by customs officials and the officials pointed out that it is difficult to record fingerprints in the most secret operations and in practical situations. COPA suggested the use of fingerprints in other routinely functions and to use a written record during special operations.
It was also discussed that the scanner purchased to check the import and export containers could not meet the expected plans.
The issue of non-exempted vehicles in the possession of customs was also discussed at the Committee meeting held.
State Ministers Hon. Prasanna Ranaweera, Hon. (Dr.) Suren Raghavan, Hon. (Mrs.) Diana Gamage, Members of Parliament Hon. Tissa Attanayake, Hon. J. C. Alawathuwala, Hon. Weerasumana Weerasinghe, Hon. Isuru Dodangoda, Hon. Sahan Pradeep Withana, Hon. (Dr.) Major Pradeep Undugoda were present at the Committee meeting held.
2026-09-18
Hon. Member of Parliament Sugath Wasantha de Silva, MP (Parliament of Sri Lanka) was awarded the 2026 New Parliamentarian Award in recognition of his contribution to promoting inclusive parliamentary democracy. The award was officially presented to him yesterday (Sep. 17) at the 69th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference held in Cape Town, South Africa.Elected in November 2024 as Sri Lanka's first-ever blind Member of Parliament, he has advanced the principles of disability-inclusive governance through his work as Chair of the Parliamentary Caucus for Persons with Disabilities. Through cross-institutional collaboration, he has also delivered practical reforms, best exemplified through Sri Lanka's first national participatory budget consultation with persons with disabilities.
2026-09-18
The Select Committee of Parliament to conduct a comprehensive study on the lack of preparedness to face Cyclone Ditwah and report to Parliament and submit its proposals and recommendations in that regard, has decided to summon representatives of Pradeshiya Sabhas and Municipal Councils before the Committee to examine how local authorities coordinated their response during the disaster situation.Committee members particularly highlighted the need for further investigation into how local authorities, including Pradeshiya Sabhas and Municipal Councils, were involved in official communication and coordination processes during the disaster.At a recent meeting of the Committee held in Parliament under the chairmanship of Hon. Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa, information was sought from members of the National Council for Disaster Management and the District Secretaries of Kandy and Matale regarding the disaster management process in the Kandy and Matale districts.Accordingly, the Committee focused its attention on the early warning systems, communication among government institutions, and emergency response procedures in response to the heavy rainfall, landslides, and flooding experienced in these areas from 23 to 27 November 2025.The Committee also discussed the need to establish formal written procedures to be followed during emergency disaster situations, conduct disaster preparedness drills regularly, and further improve the efficiency of early warning systems.Committee members, including Hon. Deputy Ministers Major General (Retired) Aruna Jayasekara and Anton Jayakody, and Members of Parliament Attorney-at-Law Anuradha Jayaratne, Rohini Kumari Wijerathne, Kanthasamy Prabu, Ruwan Mapalagama, and Dr. Pathmanathan Sathiyalingam, also participated in the meeting.
2026-09-17
The Ministerial Consultative Committee on Energy Affairs approved the Order relating to the calling for investment proposals for the exploration and development of petroleum resources in Sri Lanka and the formalization of the relevant process.The approval was granted at a meeting of the Ministerial Consultative Committee held recently (Sep. 11) at Parliament under the chairmanship of Anura Karunathilaka, Hon. Minister of Ports and Civil Aviation and Energy.The Order, made by the Minister of Energy under Section 48 of the Petroleum Resources Act, No. 21 of 2021, read together with Section 17 of the said Act, and approved by the Cabinet of Ministers, was published in the Extraordinary Gazette No. 2497/37 dated 16 July 2026.Under this Order, any person seeking to explore or develop petroleum resources in one or more identified blocks is required to submit an investment proposal together with payment of the administrative fee specified in the relevant invitation for bids.Deputy Minister of Energy Arkam Illyas, Members of Parliament, officials of the Ministry of Energy, and other officials participated in the meeting.
2026-09-17
Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, Hon. Prime Minister and Minister of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education, emphasized that universities must take the necessary measures to ensure that victim students have confidence in the investigations being conducted into incidents of ragging at universities.This matter was discussed at a meeting of the Subcommittee on Higher Education, convened under the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education, which was held at Parliament under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister.The meeting included an extensive discussion on measures to be taken regarding vacancies in the higher education sector, particularly at universities, as well as incidents of ragging.The Prime Minister pointed out that universities have a moral responsibility to prevent and control ragging and emphasized that students subjected to ragging must have confidence in the investigative procedures currently in place at universities.Accordingly, the Prime Minister stressed that investigations into ragging incidents must be efficient and effective and should be conducted in a manner that enables relief to be provided to victim students without delay.The Prime Minister also inquired from university vice-chancellors about the failure to date to make appointments that have already been approved by the Ministry to fill vacancies at universities. She instructed officials to take the necessary measures to fill the approved vacancies expeditiously.The meeting was attended by Hon. Dr. Upali Pannilage, Minister of Rural Development, Social Security and Social Empowerment; Hon. Dr. Madhura Seneviratne, Deputy Minister of Education and Higher Education; Hon. Member of Parliament Manjula Sugath Ratnayake; university vice-chancellors; the Chairman of the University Grants Commission; and a number of other representatives.
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