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Even though there are more than 3,000 Sri Lankans awaiting deportation by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) has not yet been contacted regarding any deportations.

However, more than 100 Indian citizens were deported from the United States on Tuesday in a military aircraft under President Donald Trump’s mass deportation programme for illegal immigrants.

Nothing has been communicated to the MFA or to the Sri Lanka Embassy in Washington regarding the deportation of Lankans so far.

Meanwhile, those who are on the deportation list have recourse to appeal under the US system if they are seeking protection under the Convention Against Torture and several other grounds.

Krrish fire: Water buckets rescue ill-equipped fire brigade

High-rise fire: Residents urged to keep water buckets

The fire on the 35th floor of the Krrish building last week exposed how ill-equipped the Colombo Fire Brigade is in dealing with high-rise fires.

The only way the firefighters could reach the floor on ablaze was through the stairway, and the firemen were seen carrying buckets of water in a bid to put out the fire.

The fire in the partially completed 60-storey building is a warning to people living/working in buildings more than 33 metres high to be extra cautious with fire, given that the Sri Lanka Fire Brigade doesn’t have the equipment to reach any floors higher than that. Hence, those in occupation of high-rise properties should take special precautions and maybe keep a few buckets of water around in case of a fire.

An ill-equipped fire brigade cannot do much if you live too many floors higher than their ladders can reach.

Said, done: Govt. won’t eat its words

The parliamentary canteen has started selling food items at the increased prices.

The revised prices are Rs. 600 for breakfast, Rs. 1,200 for lunch, and Rs. 200 for tea.

Minister and House Leader Bimal Ratnayake shared on social media screenshots of the receipts based on revised prices with the caption “said, done,” meaning the Government has delivered on its promises to cut privileges for MPs.

While the cost-reflective revised food prices are welcome, it must be said that all MPs get a Rs. 2,500 sitting allowance on days they attend the House, and this amount more than covers the meal costs. So it’s public money that goes anyway to feed the lawmakers, and though prices have been increased, the meals are still subsidised.

Humidity board out of order

The “Humidity Board” erected for the benefit of the public in Kandy town has been out of order for the last three years, and no action has been taken.

A project of the central Environmental Authority, the digital signboard is located at the George de Silva Park.

Italy applies brakes on Lankan driving licences

The renewal of the agreement between Sri Lanka and Italy on converting the Sri Lankan driving licence to an Italian driving licence is being delayed due to regular changes being made to the format of the local driving licences.

While the Sri Lanka government is ready to renew the agreement, the Italian authorities have expressed concern that with the format of the Sri Lanka driving licences changing at least three times in the recent past, they are unable to process them to establish their authenticity.

This has left many Sri Lankans who are hoping to get jobs as drivers in Italy in a quandary, and they have appealed to the Foreign Ministry to intervene.

Foreign Affairs and Foreign Employment Minister Vijitha Herath said the government is working to resolve the issue and is also trying to negotiate a job quota system like the one with South Korea so that Lankans who wish to seek employment in Italy can do so legally without tryin g to enter that country illegally.

Students occupying the abandoned MPs’ hostel, Sravasti

The scramble to occupy Sravasti

Visual and Performing Arts university students staged a sit-in protest on the premises of Sravasti, the former hostel for Member of Parliament in Colombo. It remains unoccupied for many years in a state of neglect.

The students said they have no hostel facilities and are demanding that the building be handed to them, both for use as a hostel as well as for lectures.

However, they are not the only ones eager to get access to the building. It is reported that 400 other institutions have sought the use of the building to carry out various businesses. For now the building is a shell of its former self, a neglected and abandoned building in need of a major overhaul.

Strong language: You can’t unring a bell

Repeated use of strong language by MPs during proceedings this week put paid to any hope that the Tenth Parliament of Sri Lanka will be different in upholding the “dignity and decorum” of the House.

Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa withdrew a comment he directed at Deputy Speaker Rizvie Salih after the latter expressed his strong disapproval over the comment.

Meanwhile, certain words used by opposition MPs Ramanathan Archchuna and Dayasiri Jayasekara were ordered to be expunged from the Hansard. At one point, Deputy Speaker Salih said he would have to ask the Serjeant-at-Arms to remove Dr. Archchuna from the chamber if he continued to speak aggressively. The MP subsequently calmed down.

However, given that this is the digital age and that proceedings of Parliament are now telecast live over television and online, the damage to Parliament’s reputation has already been done, as pointed out by House Leader Bimal Ratnayake. He noted that the offending comments will still be played over and over.

Pakistan savours Lanka’s tilapia

Fisheries Ministry officials were quite surprised to know that there is a huge demand in Pakistan for Sri Lanka’s tilapia, a freshwater fish species, when a Pakistani delegation led by High Commissioner Faheem Ul Aziz met Fisheries, Aquatic and Ocean Resources Minister Ramalingam Chandrasekar recently.

Pointing at the growing demand for fresh water fish in Pakistan and Sri Lanka’s potential to supply them, the High Commissioner noted that the Sri Lanka-Pakistan Free Trade Agreement could be utilised further for mutually beneficial trade relationships.

The delegation also touched on Pakistan’s advanced expertise in biotechnology and the scope for sharing the knowledge with Sri Lanka to support innovation and sustainability in the fisheries sector as well.

Being an island nation, there is little demand for tilapia fish varieties in the local markets

The minister advised the officials to look into the possibility of exporting tilapia to Pakistan.

Angry tuk-tuk driver dashes gadgets, bashes Clean Sri Lanka

Motorists, particularly tuk-tuk drivers, have been up in arms since last month after the government launched the ambitious ‘Clean Sri Lanka’ initiative, forcing them to remove what they called “unauthorised modifications” on vehicles.

Tuk-tuk drivers in particular used to spend thousands of rupees to decorate their vehicles inside and out with crossbars, stickers, logos with catchy phrases, and paintings.

Earlier, the police said vehicle owners had been given a grace period until March 12 to remove the modifications that did not pose an immediate threat to road users.

In this context, an argument between a tuk-tuk driver and traffic police at Vairavapuliyankulam in Vavuniya on Friday, after the driver was handed a fine ticket, caught the attention of passersby.

The tuk-tuk owner had fixed an upper crossbar fitting to carry the additional load on top of the vehicle. After handing over the fine ticket, the traffic police personnel gave a deadline to remove other unauthorised parts in the vehicle.

The angry tuk owner immediately started to remove the modifications on the vehicle with his hand, and when he found it difficult to remove some of them, he kicked at them and broke them into pieces as police looked on.

Not only the police but also motorists passing by also stopped to see what was happening as he removed the modifications and threw them along the road, bashing the initiative and complaining that “he doesn’t even have the freedom to keep the vehicle the way he wanted.”