Laugfs LP gas prices also increased

Laugfs Gas company announced that the prices of its domestic LP gas cylinders has been increased with effect from midnight today (06 February).

Indian Minister and Bangladesh Foreign Minister hold talks in Sri Lanka

Indian State Minister for External Affairs V Muraleedharan on Saturday held a meeting with Bangladesh Minister of Foreign Affairs AK Abdul Momen and held discussions on areas of mutual interest.

Hathurusingha set to return as Bangladesh head coach?

Chandika Hathurusingha looks set to return as the head coach of the Bangladesh national men’s team with Cricket New South Wales confirming that he is leaving the position of assistant coach with them.

COPE raises concerns about practicality of pricing formula for eggs

The Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE), taking issue with the pricing formula introduced for eggs, has instructed the respective officials to revisit the move, on account of various practicality concerns.

Adani Group: Asia’s richest man hits back at ‘con’ allegations

A company owned by Asia’s richest man has hit back at a report which accused the firm of “brazen” stock manipulation and accounting fraud.

The Adani Group, founded by Gautam Adani, called the report by a US investment firm “malicious” and “selective misinformation”.

Cabinet decision on payment of salaries of govt employees

The Cabinet of Ministers has granted approval for a proposal to pay monthly salaries of non-executive government employees on stipulated dates and salaries of executive level employees a few days later based on government revenue for a few months from January.

Parliament to convene from Jan. 17 - 20

The Parliament will meet from January 17 to January 20, as decided by the Committee on Parliamentary Business.

The committee, chaired by Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, met today (Jan. 13).  

Sri Lanka receives first batch of school uniform material donated by China

China has donated school uniform material, worth USD 4.24 million, to Sri Lankan students to meet their requirements in 2023.

Commonwealth Parliamentary Association chief calls on President

Secretary-General of Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Stephen Twigg, who is on an official visit to Sri Lanka, has called on President Ranil Wickremesinghe today (Jan. 13).

Kanchana discusses new tariff & renewable energy with CEB DGMs

Minister of Power and Energy Kanchana Wijesekera met with officials of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) yesterday (11 Jan.), and discussed several matters of concern, including the proposed electricity tariff revision.

Plantation Min. signs MoU with France’s KSAPA for rubber capacity building in Sri Lanka

The Ministry of Plantation Industries of Sri Lanka has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a French expert in the rubber industry, KSAPA, for capacity building of Rubber Smallholders in Sri Lanka.

No change in fuel quota for candidates

It has been decided not to increase the fuel quota for candidates during the campaign period for the upcoming Local Government (LG) elections.

CPC reduces Lanka Auto Diesel, Lanka Kerosene prices effective today

The Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) has decided to reduce fuel prices with effect from tonight.

 

A litre of Lanka Auto Diesel has been reduced by Rs. 15 and a litre of Lanka Kerosene by Rs. 10.

In 20 Colombo and Gampaha locations, Amarweera sells eggs for 55! In other places, the egg is 70!

In some locations, consumers report that an egg is being sold for 70 rupees.

According to the dealers who sell eggs at this pricing, they retailed eggs at this price based on prices collected from wholesalers.

Thousands of people apply for dual citizenship

It was reported that 5,401 people have submitted requests to the Immigration and Emigration Department to obtain dual citizenship last year.

Jaffna Kings thrash Colombo Stars to claim third consecutive LPL title

Defending champions Jaffna Kings beat Colombo Stars by two wickets in the final encounter of 2022 Lanka Premier League (LPL) on Friday (Dec 23) to secure the title for the third time.

Free admission for C&D Lower stands to watch LPL knockout games

The Lanka Premier League 2022 will open the C and D Lower Stands of the R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium for spectators to witness the knock-out stage games, free of charge.

Complaint filed at Bribery Commission against Diana Gamage’s diplomatic passport

Social activist Oshala Herath has filed a complaint at the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) seeking an investigation into the issuance of a diplomatic passport to State Minister Diana Gamage by the Department of Immigration and Emigration today (Dec. 20).

Accepting applications for President’s Fund A/L scholarships program ends on Friday

Accepting of applications for the scholarship award program by the President’s Fund for students affected by financial difficulties who have successfully completed the G.C.E. O/L examination in 2021 and will be sitting for the G.C.E. A/L examinations in 2024 will end on December 23.

Issuing a press release in this regard, the President’s Media Division (PMD) said that duly completed applications obtained from the school principals should be submitted to the respective school principals on or before 23rd December 2022.
 

The Grama Niladhari Officer is required to recommend the income status of the applicants’ families. The application forms will be handed over to the President’s office through the zonal education offices.

However, due to the lack of understanding of the application submission process, a large number of applications were directly sent to the President’s Fund, the PMD said, urging all scholarship candidates to hand over the application forms to the respective principals instead, in order to facilitate the scholarship awarding process without delay.

To be eligible for the scholarship, the monthly income of the applicant’s family should not exceed Rs. 75,000 and the applicant should be a student of a government school or in a private school that does not charge fees.

The applicant should be a student who has completed the G.C.E. O/L examination for the first time in 2021 and should be fully qualified to follow the G.E.C. A/L examination in 2024.

The number of scholarships per educational zone is 30, and the selected scholarship winners will receive a bursary of Rs. 5,000.00 each for a maximum period of 24 months.

Sri Lankan twins become University of Melbourne’s first twin PhD graduates

For the first time in its 168-year history, the University of Melbourne has awarded simultaneous PhDs to identical twins.

Nadeesha and Thejani Gunaratne commenced PhDs with the University in 2016 following studies in Food Science and Technology at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura in their home country of Sri Lanka.
 

Both received their doctorates on Saturday 17 December in Melbourne, one day before International Twins Day.

During their PhD, both twins researched new ways to measure and analyse consumers’ emotional and sensory responses to chocolate in complementary research, with Thejani focusing on the impact of chocolate flavour and Nadeesha on the impact of packaging.

Their PhD research topics were:

Nadeesha Gunaratne – Implementation of non-invasive biometrics to identify effects of chocolate packaging towards consumer emotional and sensory responses

Thejani Gunaratne – Development and implementation of novel sensory evaluation procedures of consumer acceptability towards chocolate based on emotions and biometric responses.

Their graduation ceremony was originally planned for March 2020 but delayed due to the pandemic.
Thejani is now a Senior Experimental Scientist – Sensory and Consumer Science at CSIRO in Melbourne and Nadeesha is a Research Scientist – Sensory and Consumer Products at Amway in Los Angeles.

“Being born twins, we have a unique bond that’s hard to explain to other people,” Thejani said.

“The fact that we have completed all important milestones together, primary school, high school and now university, has made our lives even more enjoyable. We were eagerly waiting to attend the PhD graduation together as it means a lot to us.”

Although the twins now live on opposite sides of the world, Nadeesha says they’re closer than ever.

“We still talk multiple times a day whether it’s by text, over the phone or on Zoom,” she said. “The fact that we’re finally together and were able to graduate together in person is a dream come true for both of us and our family.”

Under the supervision of Professor Frank Dunshea, Associate Professor Sigfredo Fuentes and Dr Damir Torrico, during their individual PhDs the twins used technology developed in the University of Melbourne’s Sensory Lab to apply biometrics – including skin temperature, facial micro-expressions and heart rate – to develop machine learning models and an evidence-based understanding of how consumers respond to both chocolate and its packaging, consciously and unconsciously.

They achieved seven academic journal publications in their PhDs, all with both twins as co-authors.
Their research highlights that our enjoyment of chocolate products and other foods – and our decisions to purchase them – are driven by far more factors than taste alone.

“When we buy food based on its packaging and labels, we expect it to both taste good and match what that packaging tells us,” Nadeesha said.

“In the past, sensory research relied heavily on what participants said or did, which provides useful information on how consumers consciously respond to products, but limited on scientific data such as unconscious and emotional responses, which have a major impact on their experience and whether they’ll buy the same product again.”

Professor Dunshea said the biometric techniques applied by Nadeesha and Thejani in their research at the University has added to our ability to conduct data-based sensory science research in recent years.

“For the food industries, particularly small and medium sized enterprises in Australia with an export focus, this allows greater certainty that new foods will appeal to consumers and are more likely to result in repeat purchases.

For consumers, it means more enjoyable foods that live up to the promise of what the packaging communicates,” Professor Dunshea said.