Sri Lanka s largest PCR testing facility commences operations
The largest PCR testing laboratory built in Sri Lanka officially commenced its operations yesterday (September 26). Accordingly, 53 persons who arrived in Sri Lanka from Dubai were tested for COVID-19 infections at the facility yesterday. The passengers had arrived on an Emirates flight at around 6.30 pm and foreign tourists had been among them. The laboratory is built jointly by the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA), Airport and Aviation Services (Sri Lanka) (PVT) Limited, and a private company, at the cost of USD 05 million. Accordingly, this laboratory will carry out PCR tests on fully vaccinated local and foreign air passengers.
Source:The Nation
September 26, 2021 04:18 UTC
Kayla Itsines gets handsy with mystery new boyfriend in Adelaide
Fitness queen Kayla Itsines has made quite the debut with her new boyfriend - weeks after splitting from her videographer ex Mitch 'G'. Fitness guru Kayla Itsines, 30, (right) put on a very tactile display with her mystery new boyfriend (left) in Adelaide on ThursdayClearly enjoying the tactile display, Kayla was seen smiling as the pair made their way through the parking lot arm-in-arm. Kayla showed off her svelte frame in a pair of black high-waisted leggings and a white cropped T-shirt that revealed a glimpse of toned torso. Meanwhile, her buff companion dressed down in black Nike sweatpants, a baggy white T-shirt and white sneakers. While Kayla stopped short of revealing the mystery man's identity, it is believed the man to whom she was referring was Mitch.
Source:The Nation
September 26, 2021 03:00 UTC
Realme GT Neo2 confirmed to launch in India next month
Realme announced the GT Neo2 a few days ago in China and said it would launch the smartphone globally without providing a timeframe. Later, on Twitter, Mr. Madhav Sheth - VP of Realme and CEO of Realme India, Europe, and Latin America - confirmed that the GT Neo2 will come to India, and now Mr. Sheth tells us that the GT Neo2 will launch in the company's biggest market in October. The Realme GT Neo2 is a successor to the GT Neo, introduced in India in May as the X7 Max 5G. But it won't arrive in India as an X series smartphone since the X lineup is replaced by the GT series. The GT Neo2 also features an in-display fingerprint reader, stereo speakers, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Source:The Nation
September 26, 2021 03:00 UTC
Meghan wears $4,500 designer dress while preaching about vaccine equity
The website selling the dress says, 'The gentle structure of the crepe silhouette is signature Valentino.' She paired the dress with black heels and wore her hair in a low ponytail. During Meghan and Harry's joint, coordinated speech, Meghan said, 'Every single person on this planet has a fundamental right to get this vaccine. For the solemnity of her World Trade Center Memorial visit, Meghan wore a black polo, heavy black wool £1,368 Emporio Armani coat with matching $889 black trousers and $615 Aquazzura heels. Meghan was spotted wearing the ring on the first day of her trip – but since then it has not been seen.
Source:The Nation
September 26, 2021 03:00 UTC
Tory crackdown on 'online harms' puts Red Wall seats at risk
The campaign group Index on Censorship is highlighting the potential impact on free speech by sending ‘saucy’ seaside postcards to MPs to highlight the ‘risks to humour’. Matthew Lesh, head of research at the Adam Smith Institute, said: ‘This polling should frighten the Government – the Online Safety Bill is a political train wreck waiting to happen. A policy to censor legal speech online is simply not why people voted Conservative in 2019. The polling shows that Brexit voters, who were key to delivering the Conservative Party its land-slide majority in the Red Wall, dislike the Online Safety Bill’s attack on free speech. It shows that voters value free speech and don’t want the state to require censorship of legal speech.
Source:The Nation
September 26, 2021 01:18 UTC
Lockdown: A foodie experience comes to your home
Lockdown: A foodie experience comes to your home By Ruqyyaha Deane View(s): View(s):Sri Lanka has always been a melting pot of exciting cuisines and flavours and theSri Lankan appetite for good food is well known. “At the start, it was indeed a new transition, as we never thought food delivery would be one of the key revenue-generating means for our restaurants. From meals, platters, and family meals to desserts and beverages, there is a staggering choice of some 470+ dishes available. People don’t really order bakery goods through PickMe and other online delivery platforms unless for breakfast,” he shares with us adding that these are “on-the-go” items. Even if most are looking forward to the opportunity of dining out again post lockdown, ordering food home has definitely come to stay.
Source:Sunday Observer
September 26, 2021 00:56 UTC
The Land of the Blind and Dumb
The Land of the Blind and Dumb View(s):I was reminded this month about that old Sinhala saying ‘In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king’ – and musing about the fact that this observation is so true in our own country today. It is not that we citizens of Sri Lanka are simply blind – we are blind as well as dumb. Our country could ill afford the political mismanagement and gross lack of responsible governance that went by the name of Yahapalanaya. Today, politicians disregard the dignity of us ordinary citizens and show scant respect for the rule of law in this country. Almost all his cabinet ministers were quite affluent – rich enough in their own right to afford to be honest.
Source:Sunday Observer
September 26, 2021 00:56 UTC
The maturing Madushanka’s misfortune
The maturing Madushanka’s misfortune By Pranavesh Sivakumar cricket View(s): View(s):Exactly when Lahiru Dilshan Madushanka’s T20 career was about to take off with the biggest and the best ticket to the T20 World Cup, an injury sidelining him for three more weeks, has distanced his dream of featuring in the showpiece tournament. The right-arm fast-bowling all-rounder, with only three international outings in the same format, had made a successful case in earning a call to the World Cup. “It has always been a big hope in my cricket life to feature in a World Cup. Though he is armed with an Under-19 World Cup exposure, he still feels this time itself is a period to forget. After appearances in the domestic and against the Proteas, the maturing Madushanka was also all set for his first major national duty- the World T20.
Source:Sunday Observer
September 26, 2021 00:56 UTC
Post COVID-19: Re-booting your immune system
Post COVID-19: Re-booting your immune system By Dr. Maduka de Lanerolle Dias View(s): View(s):Good nutrition is the pillar of good health. The body’s immune system responds by attacking the foreign virus or bacteria. Rebuilding the immune system is also very important. A person in recovery requires proteins and micronutrients (Vitamins and Minerals) for the process of healing and to strengthen their immune system once more. Fruits and vegetablesFresh fruits and vegetables are essential for building up the immune system.
Source:Sunday Observer
September 26, 2021 00:56 UTC
‘Open schools with all preventive measures in place’
‘Open schools with all preventive measures in place’ By Kumudini Hettiarachchi and Ruqyyaha Deane Benefits of getting children back to class far outweigh the risks – Prof. Pujitha Wickramasinghe View(s): View(s):It is time to open the schools as soon as possible, reiterated a senior academic and child specialist this week. “When the risk-benefit ratio is considered, the benefits of throwing open the gates of schools with all precautions in place far outweigh the risks. Therefore, the stress should be on preventive measures and opening of schools, he adds. The breakdown is: v 5,184 schools have fewer than 200 children (total of 470,451students) v 2,660 schools have between 200-500 children (total of 853,728students) v 1,390 schools have between 500-1,000 children (total of 962,494 students) v 642 schools have between 1,000-2,000 children (total of 880,607 students) v 203 schools have between 2,000-3,000 children (total of 490,161 students) v 91 schools have between 3,000-4,000 children (total of 312,290 students) v 50 schools have more than 4,000 children (total of 245,041 students) Meanwhile, another important point he raises is that in 7,940 schools of the 10,175 schools, a meal is provided to nearly 1.1 million children, while nearly 400,000 children in 932 schools are covered by the milk programme. “Sadly, when schools are closed, nearly 1.5 million children are deprived of this valuable nutrition,” laments Prof. Wickramasinghe.
Source:Sunday Observer
September 26, 2021 00:56 UTC
OLIVER HOLT: AJ was schooled by Oleksandr Usyk
They had risen up out of Seven Sisters tube station in a steady stream and sauntered abreast in groups through the vibrant hum of the Tottenham High Road. Those critics had felt this – his 11th straight world title fight - would be the fight that would undo him. Time and again in the fifth round, Joshua threw and missed. Usyk sensed his chance but Joshua dug in courageously and took the fight back to Usyk. The fight's final seconds felt like a scene from Raging Bull as Usyk pummelled Joshua with punch after unanswered punch.
Source:The Nation
September 26, 2021 00:00 UTC
Sports headlines in brief: Warwickshire clinch County Championship plum
* Warwickshire clinch County Championship plumWarwickshire’s Liam Norwell (on right) celebrates with Captain Will Rhodes after taking the wicket that sealed the 2021 County Championship titleWarwickshire have won the County Championship Division-I for the first time since 2012 after a 118-run demolition of Somerset at Edgbaston. The 18-year-old de Silva has previously represented Sri Lanka at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics and the 2019 World Championships. * Lando Norris on pole position as Hamilton spinsMcLaren’s Lando NorrisMcLaren’s Lando Norris took pole position in a thrilling rain-affected qualifying at the Russian Grand Prix yesterday (25). Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Williams driver George Russell took advantage of Hamilton’s error to vault into second and third places. McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo took fifth ahead of Alpine’s Fernando Alonso.
Source:The Nation
September 25, 2021 22:18 UTC
Amazon to launch a new 15-inch, wall-mountable Echo device
There is another hardware announcement event on the horizon, officially set for September 28. A Bloomberg report claims to offer a potential insider scoop on the hardware Amazon is likely to unveil. A large, 15-inch Amazon Echo display device is likely to be headlining the event. Last, but not least, we can probably expect to see an updated version, second-generation Echo Auto device at the event. We are also not likely to see new versions of the Echo Show devices, since Amazon already launched a new Echo, Echo Dot, and Echo Show 10 last year and then updated the Echo Show 5 and 8.
Source:The Nation
September 25, 2021 21:00 UTC
Hooda under Anti-Corruption radar at IPL
Four hours before the start of the match against Rajasthan Royals, Deepak Hooda had posted this picture with the phrase, “Here we go”The Anti-Corruption Unit of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is keeping a keen eye on Punjab Kings (PBKS) batsman Deepak Hooda’s social media post on Tuesday (21), ahead of their match against Rajasthan Royals in Dubai. Around 2 p.m., four hours before the start of the match against Rajasthan Royals – where the latter’s pacer Kartik Tyagi gave away just one run in the last over to script a miraculous win – Hooda had posted a picture (seen here) with the phrase, “Here we go”, only to violate, according to officials, the anti-corruption guidelines of the BCCI-organised tournament.
Source:The Nation
September 25, 2021 21:00 UTC
Motorists can sell their unwanted vehicles for a bumper profit
This price boom is due to an acute shortage of new vehicles – and a plethora of buyers, armed with spare money they did not spend on a foreign holiday. 'Used car prices have gone up ridiculously since showrooms opened in April – and they are ramping up again.' He says: 'More motorists are turning to used cars as supply shortages continue to impact adversely on the new car market.' 'Used car supply is tight,' he says, 'so we're travelling further and paying more to get cars we can sell. There are downsides to the used car boom.
Source:The Nation
September 25, 2021 20:48 UTC