Sri Lankan New Year

Ranil Wickremesinghe, Sri Lanka's new prime minister, who has been in Parliament for 45 years, has made a remarkable come back nearly two years after his United National Party (UNP) was routed and failed to win a single seat.

Mr Rajapaksa, who arrived in India on Friday on his first overseas tour after being appointed as Sri Lankan prime minister in November last year, had visited Varanasi, Sarnath and Bodh Gaya after his engagements in New Delhi.

Calling India a "long-standing friend", Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on Saturday thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for visiting his country in the aftermath of last year's Easter Sunday terror attacks and outlined that New Delhi has always helped Colombo in its fight against terrorism.

Sri Lankans trickled into polling centres early on Saturday to choose a new president for the island-nation still struggling to recover from Easter Sunday attacks on hotels and churches in April this year that have heavily weighed on its tourism-dependent economy.

Since Mahela Jayawardene stepped down from Test cricket in 2014 and Kumar Sangakkara followed him into retirement earlier this year the Sri Lankans have struggled.

Sri Lanka continues to violate human rights of its religious and ethnic minorities, six years after the end of civil war in the country that resulted in the defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), according to a new independent report.

Sri Lanka's President Maithripala Sirisena today wished for unity between the country's Sinhala majority and its Tamil minority on the occasion of Sinhalese New Year, which is celebrated by both communities.

The new makeshift tournament has been announced in place of Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL), which will not take place this year due to non payment of guarantee fees by the respective franchises.

Australia today said that it was stepping up its refugee intake to 20,000 from 13,750 annually - the "biggest" increase in 30 years - under new changes to its humanitarian programme which would focus on accepting more Afghans and Sri Lankans as well as Burmese who are in India.

Deprived of hosting international matches since a deadly attack on the Sri Lankan team bus three years ago, Pakistan hopes a high-profile new Twenty20 league can lure back overseas players.

Deprived of hosting international matches since a deadly attack on the Sri Lankan team bus three years ago, Pakistan hopes a high-profile new Twenty20 league can lure back overseas players.

A Bangladesh delegation arrived on Saturday to assess security for their team's proposed tour to Pakistan, three years after attacks on Sri Lankan players saw international cricket suspended in the country.

As a new year approaches, there is usually a desire to reflect on the one that is about to come to an end. For the Sri Lankan cricket team, that reflection has been both a want and a need.

Pakistan faces a "huge challenge" to bring international cricket back to the country after play was suspended following a terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team two years ago, new cricket chief Zaka Ashraf said on Monday.

Former Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene has urged his one-time teammate Hashan Tillakaratne to come out with substancial proof about the allegations of fixing matches since 1992 including the team composition for this year's World Cup final.

Ranil Wickremesinghe, Sri Lanka's new prime minister, who has been in Parliament for 45 years, has made a remarkable come back nearly two years after his United National Party (UNP) was routed and failed to win a single seat.

Mr Rajapaksa, who arrived in India on Friday on his first overseas tour after being appointed as Sri Lankan prime minister in November last year, had visited Varanasi, Sarnath and Bodh Gaya after his engagements in New Delhi.

Calling India a "long-standing friend", Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on Saturday thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for visiting his country in the aftermath of last year's Easter Sunday terror attacks and outlined that New Delhi has always helped Colombo in its fight against terrorism.

Sri Lankans trickled into polling centres early on Saturday to choose a new president for the island-nation still struggling to recover from Easter Sunday attacks on hotels and churches in April this year that have heavily weighed on its tourism-dependent economy.

Since Mahela Jayawardene stepped down from Test cricket in 2014 and Kumar Sangakkara followed him into retirement earlier this year the Sri Lankans have struggled.

Sri Lanka continues to violate human rights of its religious and ethnic minorities, six years after the end of civil war in the country that resulted in the defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), according to a new independent report.

Sri Lanka's President Maithripala Sirisena today wished for unity between the country's Sinhala majority and its Tamil minority on the occasion of Sinhalese New Year, which is celebrated by both communities.

The new makeshift tournament has been announced in place of Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL), which will not take place this year due to non payment of guarantee fees by the respective franchises.

Australia today said that it was stepping up its refugee intake to 20,000 from 13,750 annually - the "biggest" increase in 30 years - under new changes to its humanitarian programme which would focus on accepting more Afghans and Sri Lankans as well as Burmese who are in India.

Deprived of hosting international matches since a deadly attack on the Sri Lankan team bus three years ago, Pakistan hopes a high-profile new Twenty20 league can lure back overseas players.

Deprived of hosting international matches since a deadly attack on the Sri Lankan team bus three years ago, Pakistan hopes a high-profile new Twenty20 league can lure back overseas players.

A Bangladesh delegation arrived on Saturday to assess security for their team's proposed tour to Pakistan, three years after attacks on Sri Lankan players saw international cricket suspended in the country.

As a new year approaches, there is usually a desire to reflect on the one that is about to come to an end. For the Sri Lankan cricket team, that reflection has been both a want and a need.

Pakistan faces a "huge challenge" to bring international cricket back to the country after play was suspended following a terrorist attack on the Sri Lankan team two years ago, new cricket chief Zaka Ashraf said on Monday.

Former Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene has urged his one-time teammate Hashan Tillakaratne to come out with substancial proof about the allegations of fixing matches since 1992 including the team composition for this year's World Cup final.