Nimali awarded by Air Force for her outstanding feats in 2019 

Suryakumar Yadav sizzles in India’s comprehensive win

Serena Williams beats second seed Anett Kontaveit in New York

Probe alleged underhand deals by Sri Lanka Cricket – SJB in parliament

Isipatana and Joes favourites in schools’ rugby semis  

CSE moves up in the wake of SL-IMF deal as local corruption comes into focus

SL clinches deal with IMF for 4-year EFF of $ 2.9 billion subject to debt restructuring and prior actions

SLT-MOBITEL unveils ‘The Arena’, a new Experience Centre where smart innovation meets technology

Seylan Cards partners KOKO to enable Buy Now, Pay Later Easy Payment Schemes

UNICEF and Rotary International partner to deliver critical lifesaving supplies to families impacted by the crisis in Sri Lanka

The orthopaedic ward of the Lady Ridgeway Children’s Hospital is in urgent need of critical surgical supplies. These are essential to make it less painful for children either recovering from broken bones or after surgeries to correct deformities.

Anyone who has had the misfortune of having had a limb in a plaster of paris cast will know what it feels like when it starts itching. Doctors use good quality stockinette to minimise that unbearable itch. But, unfortunately, the hospital is rapidly running out of these supplies and surgeons are cutting corners and trying to stretch the limited stocks, according to orthopaedic surgeons.

Soft rolls that are used between the skin and the cast are also in very short supply.  Any donations of stockinette and soft rolls could ease the pain for a lot of small children at this hospital.

Orthopaedic surgeon Dr. Dimuthu Tennakoon and his team hope that donors will assist the hospital procure these supplies, which are available in the local market but are unaffordable for patients.Very soon, the hospital will also run out of crucial Nancy nails, plates and screws to fix splintered bones. Orthopaedic surgeons will be helpless when they are out of these vital devices to treat trauma patients as well as those needing surgery to correct birth deformities.

“After we run of the stocks, we will not be able to undertake surgeries,” one of the doctors at the LRH said. “We can’t put off these surgeries in growing kids. This is going to be a big tragedy.”

These are the often-unseen calamities awaiting young patients at the premier children’s hospital in the country due to the current cash crunch faced by the government.Donors could either directly make purchases from suppliers and arrange for deliveries to the LRH or source from elsewhere and hand over directly to the doctors at the orthopaedic ward. This appeal is specifically to help the young patients in the orthopaedic ward of the hospital. Donors can also help the hospital through its website:  https://lrh.health.gov.lk/donate/ .

Hospital contact person medical officer in charge of planning,  Dr. Savithri Dharmarathna,  on mobile number  071 444 1705 (when calling from abroad+94 71 444 1705).  If any donor requires logistical support to arrange transport etc of the supplies they procure for the hospital, they may contact Shantha on + 070 116 2706.

List of urgent supplies needed at LRH children’s hospital

The following surgical supplies are urgently required at the Lady Ridgeway Hospital for Children.Instruments, consumables and dressings NEW OT LRH

Acculan 4 Battery Operated Drill with all Attachments – 2

Pneumatic Tourniquet A.T.S 4000 with accessory basket – 2

Cast Padding (3M or Benecare)

1 Round body vicryl 22mm ½ circle – 100

Ethibond polyester 25mm or 16mm ½ circle – 100

Instruments, consumables and dressings NEW OT

 3M Ioban surgical adhesive Drape size: 12″ – 25

Instrument box with dull tray – 2

HMTS Reel for Plasma Sterilization

3.5mm locking proximal femur plate 3 holes 110 degree – 10

3.5mm locking proximal femur plate 3 holes 120 degree – 10

3.5mm locking proximal femur plate 3 holes 130 degree – 10

3.5mm locking proximal femur plate 3 holes 140 degree – 10

3.5mm locking proximal femur plate 3 holes 150 degree – 5

5mm locking proximal femur plate 3 holes 110 degree – 10

5mm locking proximal femur plate 3 holes 120 degree – 10

5mm locking proximal femur plate 3 holes 130 degree – 10

5mm locking proximal femur plate 3 holes 140 degree – 10

5mm locking proximal femur plate 3 holes 150 degree – 5

 Instruments, consumables and dressings NEW OT

Periosteal Elevator AO for small fragment set – 1

Periosteal elevator AO for large fragment set – 1

Killner double Ended Retractor (Cat’s paw) – 2

Bone nibbler Ronger type Medium – 2

B.P Handle No 3 short – 5

Adolescent lateral femoral Nail Instrument set – 1

8- plate system with implants for 50 patients – 1

Fassier-Duval telescopic IM Nail system – 1

Japan seeks to organize SL creditors’ conference: Will China attend?

Rebels to launch new alliance, initiate talks with GL-Dallas group

IMF extends helping hand to SL, but warns of worse crisis unless …

­Gota to return on Saturday?

Nimali awarded by Air Force for her outstanding feats in 2019 

Thanks to its generosity to gas station owners, CPC bleeding to death, says FSP

Field Marshal wants people on the roads

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

A disgruntled section of the ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) intends to launch a new coalition, on Sunday (04), against President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s government.

The group includes former SLPP ministers Vasudeva Nanayakkara (Democratic Left Front), Wimal Weerawansa (Jathika Nidahas Peramuna) and Udaya Gammanpila (Pivithuru Hela Urumaya). The new alliance would be launched at the National Youth Services Council, Maharagama, at 3 pm with the participation of rebel members. The CP, LSSP and Yuthukama Jathika Sanvidhanaya, too, are members of the coalition. They are all constituents of the SLPP grouping.The rebel group consists of 12 lawmakers, including one National List member Gevindu Cumaratunga, all elected /appointed on the SLPP ticket. The SLPP won 145 seats, including 17 National List slots at the last general election.

In addition to them, Ven. Atureliye Rathana thera, appointed member of the Our Power of People Party (OPPP) has joined the grouping.The SLPP rebel group said that they would press President Wickremesinghe to call an early general election challenging the government claim of inability to hold polls as the country continued to experience political instability. The much-touted All-Party Government (APG) seemed nothing but a dead horse, the group said, urging President Wickremesinghe and the SLPP to give up the idea.

The group acknowledged that some of those who had been involved in the original protest campaign launched against the Yugadanavi deal finalized in Sept last year wouldn’t be joining the new coalition for the moment.The 14-member SLFP parliamentary group and lawmakers A.L.M. Athaulla, Tiran Alles and Asanka Navaratne representing different political parties backed the high profile anti-Yugadanavi deal campaign. Since then Alles (SLPP National List) has accepted a ministerial portfolio.

At a recent meeting of the rebel group held at the CP office at Borella, NFF leader Wimal Weerawansa emphasized the need for a wider national programme to address the grievances of the public. The former minister said that the new alliance should redirect the country on the right path. Among those present on the occasion was SLPP MP Premanath Dolawatta, convenor of Sathya Gaweshakayo.In the wake of SLPP Chairman Prof. G.L. Peiris declaring in parliament last Friday (Aug 31) that a group of 13 SLPP members, including himself would function as an independent group, PHU leader Gammanpila said that they could now enter into talks with 13 rebels to explore ways and means of reaching a consensus.

The 13-member group consist of Prof. Peiris, Dullas Alahapperuma, Dilan Perera, Dr. Nalaka Godahewa, Prof. Charitha Herath, Prof. Channa Jayasumana, K.P.S. Kumarasiri, Dr. Gunapala Ratnasekera, Wasantha Yapa Bandara, Tilak Rajapaksa, Lalith Ellawela, Udayana Kirindigoda and Upul Galappatti.

Responding to The Island query, the Attorney-at-Law Gammanpila said: “Our group backed Dallas Alahapperuma at the presidential contest conducted on July 20. We couldn’t initiate talks as they remained members of the SLPP. With the announcement made by Prof. Peiris, that obstacle has been removed. We have prepared a common programme. Therefore, we can now enter into talks based on that programme.”

The SLPP rebels and the main Opposition party the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) voted for MP Alahapperuma, who polled 82 votes. The winner Wickremesinghe secured 134 votes in spite of the UNP with just a single vote of his. The SJB won 54 seats at the last general election. Of them, Manusha Nanayakkara and Harin Fernando have accepted ministerial portfolios against the wishes of the party.

Political sources said that the SLFP has been deeply divided over its strategy due to two seniors Nimal Siripala de Silva and Mahinda Amaraweera accepting ministerial portfolios regardless of a party directive. Both ministers have indicated that they wouldn’t quit the government under any circumstances.

Political sources said that though the group led by Prof. Peiris –Alahapperuma had a far bigger group at the onset of the crisis that forced Gotabaya Rajapaksa to give up presidency, some of them later reverted much to the dismay of the group, possibly due to unprecedented violence unleashed by the agitation, while claiming to be non-violent and non-partisan.Sources pointed out that of the 145-member SLPP group, about 20 had now distanced themselves from the party and were exploring the possibility of taking a new path. However, the SLPP still retained a clear simple majority in Parliament therefore didn’t expect any serious challenge at the moment.

The Staff-Level Agreement on an Extended Fund Facility (EFF) arrangement worth USD 2.9 billion for Sri Lanka would serve as a credible device in its negotiations with multiple creditors for receiving financing assurances to make its debt restructuring process a success, but the country had to move expeditiously with all other good-faith moves to avoid the crisis becoming worse, Peter Breuer, Senior IMF Mission Chief for Sri Lanka said in Colombo, yesterday.

“The IMF staff-level agreement is a signal from the Sri Lankan authorities of their commitment to implement comprehensive economic reforms; a package now they have committed to the IMF, which will be monitored by the IMF going forward, once the programme is in place. So, this is a credible device for Sri Lanka to show to its creditors that Sri Lanka is serious about engaging in reforms and the country is preparing the ground for economic recovery and is promoting sustainable and inclusive growth,” he said.

” The country can, in fact, refer to the IMF’s EFF programme in its discussions with its creditors because it will show them that Sri Lanka is doing everything it needs to be doing to restore its payment capacity to the international community, through this programme,” he noted.

Breur observed that Sri Lanka was in a special situation because much of its official debt is outside of the Paris Club which is a well-established process that has evolved over many years, and has routines in terms of how to deal with a situation where one sovereign defaults on its debt to other sovereigns.

“However, in the case of Sri Lanka, all of its creditors are not from the Paris Club, and therefore, one needs to think about how to deal with the rest of the debt. A common framework was put in place by the IMF during the course of the Covid crisis because it was thought there would be more defaults in situations like that, but it was limited to low-income countries and Sri Lanka, being a middle-income country, didn’t belong to that common framework. This is why Sri Lanka is a special case to some extent. So solutions appropriate to this situation need to be found. From our perspective, it’s important to move expeditiously from this point onwards. That’s the key here because we want to avoid the crisis becoming worse. So having some kind of forum is important where the debtor and creditors can discuss where the debtor can explain how it got into this situation, and what it is doing to get out of it. At such a forum, creditors would be able to listen and see how other creditors are being treated in the process of debt restructuring. That really is an important step in moving forward and we encourage that process to move forward expeditiously.”

Responding to a question from the media, the IMF said that it had prescribed Sri Lankan authorities to implement major tax reforms including higher personal Income tax and a Wealth Tax – which is generally levied from wealthy asset owners, based on the market value of their assets, minus liabilities.

IMF’s tax prescription includes broadening the tax base for corporate income tax and VAT to reach a primary surplus of 2.3 percent of GDP by 2024. The IMF highlighted the critical need for implementing and expediting major tax reforms to raise fiscal revenue to support fiscal consolidation, Sri Lanka being a country with one of the lowest revenue levels in the world. The IMF said it was looking forward to continuing their engagement in support of Sri Lanka and its people.

Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who is currently in Thailand might return to Sri Lanka on Saturday (03), political sources said.Rajapaksa left the country on 13 July as protesters stormed the Presidential Palace among other key government buildings to oust him, and the government. He first went to the Maldives before leaving for Singapore. From the city-state he left for Thailand a few weeks later.

Sajith tears into govt. over mega corrupt deal

Response to economic revival plan pathetic: Harsha disappointed

‘Chinese missile tracker ship prospecting Indian Ocean bed south of SL’

Ruination of CEB blamed on yahapalana minister

SriLankan Airlines ready to sell stake in its ownership

ComBank revolutionises Lankan banking with ‘wearable banking’ via Flash Digital Account

Fitch unit warns Adani Group may be careering into a debt trap

Copyright © 2020 Upali Newspapers (Pvt) Ltd. Solution by LankaCom Privacy Policy