Illicit liquor on the rise: Excise CGPlans to allow liquor sales during lockdownBy Dinitha RathnayakeThe continued prohibition on liquor sales due to the existing travel restrictions in the country is resulting in a Rs. 600 million daily tax loss for the Excise Department, The Morning learnt. “We have observed that the production and the demand for illicit liquor and drugs have increased. The Excise Department has received many concerns from members of the public on purchasing liquor during the past month. We are considering this due to the high demand for illicit liquor and drugs.”However, according to Gunasiri, the Excise Department is still conducting discussions about this request.

Sabry further explained that five experts’ committees have been tasked with calculating the main claim which would cover the losses suffered by the country due to the disaster. Therefore, three experts will be arriving in the country by 15 July to advise on further steps. Steps are also being taken to seek help from international legal experts if needed, he added. Meanwhile, foreign media reports last week said a large oil spill is visible around the wrecked MV X-Press Pearl ship. He said that once compensation from the ship’s owners is received, fishing families would also be able to claim their losses.

Rathnayake said that studies which have been carried out have not revealed that the fish are unfit for human consumption. She further said that if the fish are unfit for consumption, the public will be made aware of it. “There are times when people are reluctant to consume fish. For example, during the tsunami disaster and in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, people abstained from consuming fish. Meanwhile, the carcasses of deceased marine life have been washing up ashore on the western coastline in the wake of the disaster, even though no official link has been scientifically found yet to attribute the marine creatures’ deaths to the said marine disaster.

Ahnaf JazeemBy Pamodi WaravitaAttorney-at-Law (AAL) Sanjaya Wilson Jayasekera, the lawyer of detained poet Ahnaf Jazeem, has claimed that the Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) produced the poet in court on 12 June without informing the lawyer, depriving the lawyer of an opportunity to make any submissions before the court in Jazeem’s defence. Jazeem was produced at the Colombo Magistrate’s Court on 12 June, but Jayasekera said he was not communicated the court hearing date beforehand and was only informed about Jazeem’s appearance in court when he had inquired about it. Jayasekera further added that the non-communication of the court date to the lawyers or the family prior to Jazeem being produced in court is unacceptable. Currently, Jazeem is being held at the Colombo Remand Prison and will be produced before Court again on 22 June. Jazeem was arrested in connection to his Tamil language poetry anthology, titled Navarasam (Nine Emotions), which the authorities have alleged promoted “extremist” ideology.

Among these commitments were a number of international conventions and amendments to the notorious Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act (PTA) in order to set it in line with international human rights laws and policies. However, Sri Lanka has not only failed to do so, but has also been enforcing the PTA. For them, the European Parliament seeks one progressive step from Sri Lanka and that is either a fair trial or unconditional release. This is not a situation Sri Lanka can continue to ignore, as the international community remains attentive about what Sri Lanka does. Also, this is not the first time Sri Lanka’s human rights commitments have been questioned.

Vaccination and the elimination of Covid-19 should come above all elseThe next six months will be crucial. That’s a long distance to go before we could consider the pandemic as being decisively a thing of the past. Within these six months a lot could happen. But though the rulers lock down when the doctors sneeze, as if by Pavlovian reflex, and though the economy suffers – what happens if this pattern repeats in the next few months, until the end of 2021? The keyword of these first six months was variant.

A teenage TikTok user is going viral for her videos sharing personal safety tips for women. Ontario-based social media star Spencer Barbosa, 18, shares plenty of advice on her page, from relationship tips to money-saving secrets. In a follow-up clip, she even suggests peeing on the person, telling women to act like a 'demon' and 'be possessed.' For women who are going on a run alone, Spencer suggests not wearing hair up in a ponytail — which most women do, because it keeps hair off their necks as they sweat. In a lesson that many celebrities have learned the hard way, Spencer warns women not to overshare on social media.

Speaking about the latest protocol breach, royal commentator Richard Fitzwilliams told MailOnline today: 'The Queen is supposed to have told Michelle Obama that royal protocol was rubbish. 'President Biden, by revealing that the Queen had asked about the Russian and Chinese leaders, did breach this rule. When Donald Trump also broke royal protocol by revealing he spoke to the Queen about Brexit Donald Trump also broke royal protocol after meeting the Queen in 2018 when he discussed what they spoke about. The Queen and Mr Biden walk together at Windsor yesterdayOn that occasion however, the Queen joined Mr Trump in inspecting the troops. There have been 14 US presidents during the Queen's 69-year reign - from Harry S Truman to Mr Biden.

It is, Basnayake et al., emphasised, a chronic and relapsing disorder with patients exhibiting compulsive drug seeking and drug taking behaviour. During heroin withdrawal, the symptoms according to N.S. Seizures due to heroin withdrawal are however, Basnayake et al., point out, less common than in the case of withdrawal from sedatives like barbiturates. Basnayake et al., reported a patient experiencing heroin withdrawal who presented with newly onset recurrent attacks of seizure episodes. In conclusion, Basnayake et al., emphasised that the management of the heroin withdrawal syndrome requires a multidisciplinary approach including the provision of pharmacological therapy and psychosocial support, and continuous monitoring and follow up.

Just a few days after the alignment of the moon and mars, NASA is launching Northrop Grumman’s Minotaur 1 rocket from the space agency’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia on Tuesday morning, carrying a payload on behalf of the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). Here’s what you might expect from NASA’s forthcoming mission to outside of our planet’s atmosphere. When is NASA’s Northrop Grumman’s Minotaur 1 launch? NASA is launching Northrop Grumman’s Minotaur 1 rocket at 7 a.m. After that, the lunar calendar swings back into motion, with a Strawberry Moon scheduled to greet revelers on June 24.

An ambulance service commander has agreed 'no leadership' was provided by him on the night of the Manchester Arena terror attack, an inquiry has heard. Deputy director at North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) Neil Barnes was the on-call Gold commander, the most senior NWAS officer, on the night suicide bomber Salman Abedi detonated explosives at an Ariana Grande concert in May 2017. Mr Greaney said: 'Just sitting at home, waiting for information... does not seem like leadership, let alone strategic leadership.' Mr Barnes was subsequently awarded the Queen's Ambulance Service Medal as part of the Queen's Birthday Honours in 2018. The inquiry is looking at all the circumstances of the terror attack, carried out by Abedi.

June 14, 2021 10:59 pmThe Director-General of Health Services confirmed that Sri Lanka has reported 57 more deaths related to the COVID-19 pandemic. As per the Department of Government Information, the reported deaths had occurred on June 13. Among the deceased are 32 male patients and 25 female patients. Accordingly, the total number of deaths due to Covid-19 infection in Sri Lanka has risen to 2,260.

June 14, 2021 09:07 pmThe Epidemiology Unit of the Health Ministry reports that another 479 persons have tested positive for COVID-19 in Sri Lanka, moving the daily total of new cases to 2,259. This brings the total number of confirmed cases of coronavirus reported in the country to 225,922. As many as 190,464 recoveries and 2,203 deaths have been confirmed in Sri Lanka since the outbreak of the pandemic. The Epidemiology Unit’s data showed that 33,255 active cases are currently under medical care.

Discussions are currently underway to look into the possibility of using the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine as the second dose for the individuals who obtained the first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine. State Minister of Production, Supply, and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals Prof. Channa Jayasumana has requested the Director-General of Health Services Dr. Asela Gunawardena inform him of the opinion of the Advisory Committee on Communicable Diseases whether the Pfizer vaccine could be used for this purpose. Prof. Jayasumana also pointed out that Professor Alejandro Cravioto, Chair of World Health Organization (WHO) Strategic Management, had said at an online question and answer session that the Pfizer vaccine could be used instead of the AstraZeneca second dose.

His back legs were wonky and his eyes misaligned, and Natalia decided to take in the orphaned animal, gradually nursing him back to health with the help of her neighbour's cat, Handsome. Adorable cat Fedya with a facial condition which makes him appear permanently-startled has taken the internet by storm. Natalia decided to take in the orphaned animal, gradually nursing him back to health with the help of her neighbour's cat, Handsome. Fedya is pictured with HandsomeNatalia says the cat was 'very weak and was dying' before she nursed him back to health as a kitten. Fedya is now a healthy adult at one year and nine months and his owner says the cat is still best of friends with the neighbour's cat.