Affidavit filed by the Chief Wildlife Warden, Assam in the matter of news item titled "the last feral horses in India" appearing in Mongabay, November 5, 2024. The matter relates to the critically endangered status of feral horses in the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park as well as of smuggling of these …
After experiencing a 10-year low in economic growth, the cash-starved Sri Lanka government has decided to sell its valuable teak trees. This decision has sparked a major controversy with environmentalists criticising the move. A committee, appointed by president Chandrika Kumaratunge, said the government could earn US $35 million by selling …
Sri Lanka plans to hold its first census in 20 years in 2001, the state media has reported. The exercise will cost us $4.7 million. Sri Lanka's last census was in 1981 when the population count was found to be 14.8 million. The government now expects the population to be …
The Sri Lanka government's health department launched an anti-rabies drive on July 31 to prevent deaths caused by the deadly disease. The drive is a result of 20 deaths in the country caused by rabies during the first quarter of 1999. The death toll was 79 in 1998 and 197 …
The Sri Lankan ministry of irrigation and power has decided to explore the possibility of harnessing wind potential to meet the country's growing demand for power. According to the minister for power, Anuruddha Ratwatte, a feasibility study would soon be conducted and would cover the whole island to assess the …
For the first time, schools in Sri Lanka have introduced text books on the environment. Titled Man and Environment: An Introduction to Environmental Studies the book has been published by the Central Environmental Authority (CEA). The aim of the book is to promote environmental awareness and education among the youth. …
A study by the a Sri Lankan-based International Water Management Institute said that nearly 1.4 billion people or a quarter of the world's population lives in regions that would face severe water shortages in the first quarter of the new millennium. The study on the water supply and demand of …
The Sri Lanka government plans to establish a Mangrove Park, the first of its kind in Sri Lanka, to promote conservation of mangrove forests in the country. The 10-hectare park is to be situated at the land-sea interface in Kadolkele, Negombo. It is being promoted by the National Aquatic Resources …
A Japanese man was arrested in Sri Lanka for hunting butterflies in a protected rainforest. The man, who's name was not disclosed, was remanded for two weeks by a magistrate in the central town of Ratnapura. This was reported in the Sinhalese daily Lankadeepa. According to the report, the man …
Nuraicholai, previously a quiet coastal village in Sri Lanka, inhabited by mostly Roman Catholics and Muslims farmers and fisherfolk, has become hot bed of protest. The villagers are opposing governments plan to establish a 900-megawatt power project in their neighbourhood. Residents of Nuraicholai, a rich sweet-water agricultural belt, have formed …
The World Commission on Dams began its first South Asian hearing on large dams and their alternatives in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The hearing was originally scheduled to be held in India. It could not take place because the Indian government refused permission. Chairperson of the commission Kader Asmal said the …
Senadhi, a six month baby elephant, was rescued by Sri Lankan soldiers from the Settikulam army base in the Kallady region after being hit by a bullet. The three-feet-tall elephant was hit by a bullet from a T-56 rifle but the circumstances under which he was injured were not clear. …
The volatile political climate seems to have no effect on eco-tourism which is flourishing in Sri Lanka, famous for its beaches. In what has come to be termed as the new age of eco-tourism, the tourists, mostly from the north are more interested in the culture, tradition and history of …
The Sri Lankan government is introducing legislation imposing levy on all ships entering the Colombo port, says the chairperson of Marine Pollution Prevention Authority (MPPA). This came after a recent oil spill at the port. The levy will cover the cost of the clean-up operations. This new law will enable …
Sri Lanka has ordered a ban on liquor and cigarette advertisements in state-run media from January next year, say officials. President Chandrika Kumaratunga has asked the concerned ministry to even encourage privately-owned radio and television stations as well as newspapers to fall in line by the stipulated time. The decision …
Several farmers in Sri Lanka have committed suicides in recent times largely due to crop failures. Most of the cases have been reported in Hettipola, nearly 80 kilometres from Colombo, which has probably highest suicides rates in the world. Most of the areas in Hettipola have been converted into parched …
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) will provide an assistance of US $ 4.4 crore for phasing out the use of 137 tonne of cholorofluorocarbons (CFCs). The ministry of environment and forests and the UNDP have recently signed an agreement in this regard. Under the 1987 Montreal Protocol, the UNDP …
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Global Environment Facility (GEF) have launched a US $1.8 million project to help Sri Lanka expand its use of renewable energy sources, including wind, water and biomass, and decrease greenhouse gas emissions from thermal power. Much of Sri Lanka's domestic energy needs rely …
A recent analysis of the mean surface air temperature at 14 stations in Sri Lanka over the period 1961-90 carried out by T K Fernando and L Chandrapala of the country's Department of Meteorology has indicated an increase in the surface air temperature at the rate of 0.036
Total fertility rate (TFR) of Sri Lankan women is now estimated to be lower than that of their counterparts in some developed nations. TFR in Sri Lanka has fallen much faster than what was officially projected, reaching the targeted replacement level of 2.1 in 1993, almost eight years before the …
According to the recent surveys conducted in Colombo, Sri Lanka, more than 50 per cent of the city's population suffer from atmospheric pollution caused by carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide and carbon monoxide emitted mostly by the city's vehicles. The municipal council has advised the central environmental authority to take necessary …
