<ul><li>OHCHR report to be presented in Geneva on Monday&nbsp;&nbsp;</li><li>SL’s Permanent Representative to the UN to deliver Govt. response</li><li>OHCHR flags custodial violence, continued PTA use&nbsp;</li></ul>&nbsp;The latest United Nations (UN) report on Sri Lanka has warned that the National People’s Power (NPP)-led Government’s commitments to truth, justice, and systemic reform risk stalling, citing severe external shocks, escalating custodial violence, and a failure to dismantle repressive State machinery.&nbsp;The report, released by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), will be presented at the 63rd session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on Monday (7).Foreign Ministry Spokesman and Director General Thushara Rodrigo told The Sunday Morning that while no delegation would travel from Colombo, Sri Lanka’s Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva would deliver the Government’s response. The Permanent Mission in Geneva will respond to the queries raised in line with the Sri Lankan Government’s position.&nbsp;&nbsp;According to the report, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s administration, which assumed office in late 2024, has had its reform agenda severely complicated by successive shocks. Cyclone Ditwah struck on 28 November 2025, affecting 2.2 million people across all 25 districts.&nbsp;By mid-April this year, the Government reported 687 deaths, 147 people missing, and more than 115,000 homes damaged or destroyed, with total recovery costs estimated at $ 3.4 billion. Spillover effects from the armed conflict in West Asia from late February further drove up fuel, fertiliser, and energy prices.&nbsp;By May, Sri Lanka’s poverty rate stood at 22.1%, with deprivation concentrated in the Northern and Eastern Provinces. Electricity tariffs rose twice in early 2026 under International Monetary Fund (IMF)-negotiated cost-reflective pricing, prompting a Rs. 15 billion Government subsidy for low-income households.&nbsp;The 2026 Budget allocated 82.59% of total Government revenue to debt servicing, compared to a combined 6.3% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for health, education, and social protection.&nbsp;The UN raised grave concern over violent incidents inside detention facilities, particularly clashes at the Negombo Prison in July that killed at least 32 people – 22 detainees and 10 officials – which it attributed to prison overcrowding and overcriminalisation of minor offences.&nbsp;The report also detailed custodial deaths at the Welikada Prison, Karadiyanaru Police Station, and Jaffna Prison between 3 and 24 May this year. The Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka documented 18 custodial deaths and 602 torture cases in 2025, alongside 1,125 arbitrary arrests, of which 530 saw no Police action.&nbsp;The report highlighted the widening gap between the NPP’s pledge to abolish the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and its continued use, with 46 cases recorded in 2025 and 12 more by March this year.&nbsp;The draft Protection of the State from Terrorism Act (PSTA), published in December 2025 as a replacement, was found by the OHCHR to reproduce and expand the PTA’s most problematic features, including overbroad criminalisation and risks of arbitrary detention.&nbsp;Civil society organisations and journalists, particularly Tamils and women human rights defenders in the north and east, continued to face surveillance and harassment, the report stated, while a draft NGO (Registration and Supervision) Bill shared in July has drawn alarm for granting the Ministry of Defence clearance powers over independent organisations.&nbsp;On accountability, the report noted developments including the 31 July conviction and death sentence handed to former Inspector General of Police Pujith Jayasundara and former Secretary of Defence Hemasiri Fernando over the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks, and a travel ban imposed on former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in June. The UN, however, voiced concern that the proceedings may not meet international fair trial standards.&nbsp;Separately, exhumations at the Chemmani-Siththuppaththi mass grave site in Jaffna have yielded the remains of more than 477 individuals as of late July.&nbsp;UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk urged Sri Lanka to impose an immediate moratorium on the PTA, repeal the Online Safety Act and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) Act, and undertake security sector reform, including vetting of officers implicated in violations.&nbsp;He also called on member states to consider targeted sanctions, including asset freezes and travel restrictions, against individuals credibly alleged to be responsible for serious rights violations.

UN sounds alarm over stalling reform drive

<ul><li>CIABOC alleges payments linked to SriLankan Airlines aircraft procurement</li><li>Businessman claims $ 800,000 received in Singapore; equivalent handed to Rajapaksa</li><li>Airbus officials prepared to testify in SL: CIABOC</li></ul>&nbsp;&nbsp;SLPP National Organiser MP Namal Rajapaksa was remanded until 18 September by Colombo Chief Magistrate Asanga S. Bodaragama on Friday (4), after being arrested by the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) over allegations that he had accepted Rs. 100 million in bribes linked to an aircraft procurement deal involving SriLankan Airlines.Rajapaksa appeared before the CIABOC on Friday morning in connection with the investigation and was arrested by the commission’s investigating officers at around 2.15 p.m. the same day after providing a five-hour statement.According to the CIABOC, the investigation concerns funds allegedly paid as bribes in connection with the purchase of aircraft for SriLankan Airlines. The commission alleges that € 1,454,651.24 was received as a bribe into an account maintained at Standard Chartered Bank in Singapore under the name Biz Solutions Inc.&nbsp;Of that amount, $ 800,000 was allegedly transferred to an OCBC Bank account in Singapore held under Sabre Vision Holdings Ltd., a company owned by a Sri Lankan businessman. The commission alleges that, corresponding to those funds, Rajapaksa received a total of Rs. 100 million from a Sri Lankan businessman on several occasions during 2014 and 2015.The CIABOC said that the arrest followed an investigation based on a statement from the Sri Lankan businessman, statements provided to the commission by officials of France-based Airbus, and documents and other information gathered during the probe.In court, the CIABOC presented key evidence, including an affidavit and a statement from Australian-based businessman Nimal Perera. According to Perera’s statement, Airbus sent funds to the account of Sabre Vision, a Singapore-based company, which were then distributed to three accounts: those of Kapila Chandrasena, Shamindra Rajapaksa, and Nimal Perera.&nbsp;Perera, according to the CIABOC, stated that he received $ 800,000 in two tranches of $ 400,000 each and subsequently handed over this money to Namal Rajapaksa in Sri Lankan Rupees.&nbsp;The CIABOC also informed the court that Airbus representatives had already cooperated with the investigation by providing emails and bank details, and that their officials were prepared to travel to Sri Lanka to testify during the trial.Rajapaksa’s lawyers strongly contested the allegations and requested bail, arguing that there was no solid proof of the bribe other than Perera’s statement.&nbsp;The defence argued that Perera was an unreliable witness, pointing out that he had previously changed his statements during the Krrish court case, as noted by the commission itself.&nbsp; They urged the court to treat the witness’s lack of credibility as a ‘special circumstance’ warranting bail.&nbsp;Rajapaksa’s lawyers did not present any health condition as a reason for seeking bail.The prosecution countered by submitting a certificate under Section 149 of the Bribery Act, which restricts the court from granting bail unless highly exceptional special circumstances are proven.&nbsp;The Magistrate rejected the defence’s application, ruling that the credibility of a witness could not be considered a special circumstance for bail at this stage, and noting that the witness’s trustworthiness was a matter to be determined during the trial in the High Court when he is summoned to give evidence. Rajapaksa’s bail was accordingly denied and he was remanded until 18 September.Section 149 of Sri Lanka’s Anti-Corruption Act No.9 of 2023 governs bail and pre-trial detention for major corruption offences. Under the provision, individuals accused of soliciting or offering bribes above Rs. 100,000 or of causing Government losses or gaining advantages exceeding Rs. 500,000 face restrictions under which bail may be granted only in exceptional circumstances by the High Court.The case forms part of a wider CIABOC investigation into the SriLankan Airlines-Airbus aircraft deal.&nbsp;The commission earlier told court that funds allegedly received as bribes had been distributed by former CEO of SriLankan Airlines Kapila Chandrasena to former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and former Minister of Civil Aviation Piyankara Jayaratne, with part of the funds also allegedly transferred to an account belonging to Shamindra Rajapaksa, a former member of the SriLankan Airlines Board of Directors.&nbsp;Chandrasena, who died on 8 May, had earlier told investigators that he had handed over Rs. 60 million to former President Rajapaksa in three instalments in 2015, a statement that formed the basis for summoning the former President, who appeared before the CIABOC on 12 May.The broader probe concerns allegations that Airbus used intermediaries to secure long-term aircraft purchase and leasing contracts with SriLankan Airlines between 2011 and 2015, though the manufacturer is alleged to have ultimately paid only a fraction of the sums agreed upon.Friday’s arrest is the fourth time Namal Rajapaksa has faced arrest in connection with financial and protest-related investigations since 2016, including the 2016 Krrish Transworks case, over which he was later indicted, and the HelloCorp/Gowers Corporate Services money laundering case, in which he was acquitted by the Colombo High Court in November 2023.

Anti-corruption: Namal remanded over alleged Airbus-linked bribe 

<ul><li>Court direction needed to seek foreign assistance, says Chair</li></ul>&nbsp;&nbsp;With recommendations from the Office of the United Nations (UN) High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) urging Sri Lanka to seek international forensic and technical assistance for ongoing mass grave exhumations, the Office on Missing Persons (OMP) has said that it is considering seeking such external support.&nbsp;When contacted by The Sunday Morning, OMP Chairman Mahesh Katulanda said that although it was being considered, no dialogue or concrete steps towards involving foreign technical experts had been made at this stage. According to him, the process remains strictly limited under judicial directions.“We are only sampling now,” he said. Katulanda said that all exhumed materials were currently being processed locally through the Jaffna Magistrate’s Court.Addressing the UN recommendation specifically regarding the adoption of international frameworks such as the Minnesota Protocol, he also said that, despite the consideration, there were no discussions in motion to consult external experts from countries with advanced forensic infrastructure at present.The Chairman further noted that specialised testing was generally conducted in foreign jurisdictions, referencing facilities in Switzerland, Japan, or US states like Florida and Texas. Katulanda emphasised that the OMP could not proactively seek or initiate foreign assistance without explicit instructions from the Judiciary.“Everything has to be followed step by step. We are awaiting the court’s directions,” he stated.In its latest assessment on the situation of human rights in Sri Lanka, the UN Human Rights Office states that exhumations at the Chemmani-Siththupaththi mass grave site in Jaffna have yielded skeletal remains corresponding to more than 400 individuals (including children) as of late July.Following a seven-month hiatus due to seasonal rains and funding constraints, the Jaffna Magistrate’s Court ordered the resumption of digging at the Chemmani site in April, permitting diplomatic observers to monitor proceedings.&nbsp;The report reads: “While welcome, the office urges the Government to build on this progress by seeking international forensic and technical support to ensure exhumations meet international standards, including the Minnesota Protocol, and that they are accompanied by impartial criminal investigations, including into possible command responsibility.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

Chemmani: OMP eyes int’l expertise? 

<ul><li>Special audit reveals Rs. 9.8 b expenditure on MPs</li><li>Recurrent costs more than double from 2015 to 2024</li><li>Nearly Rs. 900 m spent on food, uniforms in 5 years</li><li>1,800 lunches prepared on Parliament sitting days&nbsp;</li></ul> Nearly Rs. 28 billion was spent on recurrent and capital expenditure for the operations of Sri Lanka’s Eighth and Ninth Parliaments between 2015 and 2024, with expenditure attributed to Members of Parliament (MPs) alone amounting to nearly Rs. 9.8 billion, a special audit has revealed.&nbsp;According to the special audit report, seen by The Sunday Morning, recurrent expenditure under the expenditure head of Parliament during the 10-year period amounted to approximately Rs. 26.19 billion, while another Rs. 1.80 billion was incurred as capital expenditure.&nbsp;The audit has placed particular focus on expenditure incurred under Parliament’s three main projects – the Office of the Speaker, parliamentary staff, and MPs.&nbsp;Of the approximately Rs. 28 billion spent under these projects between 2015 and 2024, the largest share – Rs. 16.52 billion – was attributed to parliamentary staff, while Rs. 9.77 billion was spent under the project covering MPs. Another Rs. 1.69 billion was spent under the Office of the Speaker.&nbsp;The figures also show a sharp escalation in the annual cost of running Parliament, with recurrent expenditure more than doubling over the decade. Annual recurrent expenditure increased from Rs. 1.67 billion in 2015 to Rs. 3.46 billion in 2024, representing an increase of approximately 107%.&nbsp;The highest recurrent expenditure was recorded in 2023, when it reached Rs. 3.57 billion, compared with Rs. 3.20 billion in 2022 and Rs. 2.71 billion in 2021.&nbsp;Expenditure attributed specifically to MPs also increased considerably during the period. The MPs’ project cost approximately Rs. 460.48 million in 2015, before increasing to Rs. 545.04 million in 2016 and Rs. 926.70 million in 2017.&nbsp;It subsequently stood at Rs. 960.4 million in 2018 and crossed the Rs. 1 billion mark in 2019, reaching Rs. 1.02 billion. After declining to Rs. 769.30 million in 2020, expenditure rose again to Rs. 1.05 billion in 2021, Rs. 1.29 billion in 2022, and a decade-high Rs. 1.46 billion in 2023. In 2024, expenditure under the MPs’ project stood at approximately Rs. 1.29 billion.&nbsp;Meanwhile, the special audit has revealed that Rs. 894 million was spent on food and uniforms between 2020 and 2024 under the three parliamentary projects. Such expenditure increased from Rs. 95.74 million in 2020 to Rs. 111.86 million in 2021 and nearly doubled to Rs. 193.71 million in 2022. It climbed further to Rs. 254.61 million in 2023, before declining slightly to Rs. 238.09 million in 2024.&nbsp;Of the five-year total, approximately Rs. 873.70 million was recorded under the parliamentary staff project, Rs. 10.72 million under the Office of the Speaker, and Rs. 9.59 million under the MPs’ project.The audit has also highlighted the scale of Parliament’s catering operation, noting that lunch is generally prepared for around 1,200 people on non-sitting days and 1,800 people on days when Parliament is in session. Four cafeterias operate within the parliamentary complex – separately catering to general staff, executive staff, MPs, and guests of MPs.&nbsp;The report further states that 234 staff members were deployed for catering and housekeeping work as of 31 December 2025.It has also raised an accounting issue concerning expenditure on food, beverages, and uniforms, noting that no separate allocations had been made for these categories under the three projects in 2020, 2021, and 2022.&nbsp;According to the audit, allocations specifically for food and beverages could be identified only from 2024 onwards. Capital expenditure during the decade amounted to approximately Rs. 1.80 billion, fluctuating from Rs. 58.79 million in 2015 to a high of Rs. 397.74 million in 2017. It subsequently declined significantly, falling to Rs. 48.57 million in 2022 and Rs. 42.10 million in 2023, before increasing to Rs. 117.85 million in 2024.The audit findings offer a consolidated account of the public funds spent on operating the Eighth and Ninth Parliaments over the decade, including a period in which Sri Lanka underwent its worst economic crisis since independence and subsequently embarked on a stringent fiscal consolidation programme.

8th and 9th P’ments:  Taxpayers foot Rs. 28 b bill 

&nbsp;The 50% surcharge on Customs import duties for motor vehicles, currently set to expire on 31 December, may not be extended if the rupee continues its current path of appreciation, a senior Government source has revealed.&nbsp;This, as the compounding tax burden has pushed the automotive sector into a critical state, according to warnings from industry stakeholders.&nbsp;The surcharge, imposed under Extraordinary Gazette No.2501/88 issued by Finance Minister Anura Kumara Dissanayake on 13 August, was originally introduced as a defensive measure to protect the currency rather than to meet a severe fiscal requirement.&nbsp;“This decision was taken based on pressure to discourage [imports]. It was not done due to a severe requirement,” the Government source told The Sunday Morning, noting that the measure was temporary.&nbsp;With the exchange rate showing positive trends at the moment, the source expressed optimism that the surcharge could be allowed to lapse. “Since the currency is appreciating now, it might not be necessary to carry it forward.”&nbsp;However, the Government intends to determine the matter situationally, based on the impact on foreign currency reserves, with a formal review scheduled for December. The source cautioned that unforeseen geopolitical developments could still derail any move to lift the surcharge.&nbsp;If it expires as scheduled, the surcharge will revert to base Customs Import Duty (CID) rates. Letters of Credit (LCs) opened on or before 15 May 2026 remain exempt from the surcharge only if the shipped-on-board date falls on or before 15 November and the LC remains unamended.&nbsp;According to the Central Bank of Sri Lanka’s External Sector Performance – July 2026 report, released on 31 August, expenditure on motor vehicle imports reached $ 241 million in July alone, bringing total vehicle import spending to approximately $ 1.5 billion for the January–July period.&nbsp;Separately, the Director General of Customs informed Parliament’s Committee on Ways and Means last week that actual Customs revenue collected by 30 June 2026 stood at Rs. 1,379,084 million against an expected Rs. 1,060,559 million – a 130% achievement rate, with monthly targets exceeded consistently through the year.&nbsp;Officials said that 316,000 vehicles had been imported as of 30 June, generating Rs. 512,547 million in tax revenue, with petrol motor cars under 1,000 cc the single largest contributor at Rs. 137.4 billion, or 9.96% of total Customs revenue.&nbsp;Meanwhile, Vehicle Importers Association of Sri Lanka (VIASL) Vice President Arosha Rodrigo told The Sunday Morning that a significant price correction was already underway as importers and consumers accepted that the surcharge would remain in place for the rest of the year.&nbsp;He cited sharp increases across popular models, with a Suzuki Wagon R rising by up to Rs. 500,000, a Toyota Raize by up to Rs. 1 million, and a Honda Vezel by as much as Rs. 1.5 million.&nbsp;Rodrigo said he doubted the surcharge would actually be allowed to lapse in 2027, noting that “temporary taxes introduced in Sri Lanka have a strong tendency to become permanent features of the tax regime”.&nbsp;He pointed out that December –&nbsp; a traditionally high-import month – would leave authorities protective of reserves.&nbsp;Rodrigo further described consumer purchasing power as plummeting, with importers now cutting prices simply to preserve cash flow rather than profit, while a reduction in the Loan-to-Value (LTV) ratio for vehicle financing from 50% to 40% had locked many ordinary buyers out of the market entirely.&nbsp;He also flagged unfair competition from seasonal importers who brought in vehicles under relatives’ names to avoid corporate and income taxes, disadvantaging registered importers facing higher compliance costs.&nbsp;The VIASL called on the Government to replace the surcharge with a cash margin requirement on LCs, raise the LTV ratio back to at least 50%, shift to a unit-rate tax structure based on engine capacity, introduce a withholding tax at the point of port clearance, set a minimum duty valuation for electric vehicles, and create a separate commercial classification for dual-purpose vans such as school vans, which are currently taxed at luxury rates.

Govt. mulls ending 50% vehicle import surcharge

<ul><li>Oil-fired generation rises to 26.2% of power mix</li><li>Fresh 60,000 MT coal shipment arrives in Puttalam&nbsp;</li><li>Minister rules out power cuts, expects generation to normalise&nbsp;</li></ul>&nbsp;&nbsp;Sri Lanka’s coal-fired electricity generation dropped to just 11.7% of the country’s total power generation as of Thursday (3), as declining coal stocks forced authorities to restrict generation at the Lakvijaya Coal Power Plant in Norochcholai.Since January, The Sunday Morning has reported on the looming coal shortages in the wake of the substandard coal shipments scandal, which saw the then Minister of Energy resign. The matter is now under investigation.The latest daily electricity generation statistics show a significant change in the country’s generation mix, with coal – normally a key source of baseload electricity – contributing only around one-tenth of total generation.&nbsp;&nbsp;In comparison, hydropower accounted for 33.7% of electricity generation on Thursday, while oil-fired thermal generation accounted for 26.2% and solar power contributed 21%.The figures show that the contribution from oil-fired generation was more than double that of coal during the day, as the electricity system compensated for reduced output from Norochcholai.Total net electricity generation on Thursday stood at 58.08 gigawatt-hours (GWh), while gross electricity generation amounted to 59.26 GWh. Auxiliary consumption was recorded at 1.18 GWh.The decline in coal generation comes amid reduced coal stocks at the 900 MW Lakvijaya Power Plant, which prompted authorities to curtail output in order to conserve the remaining stocks until fresh supplies reached the country.Minister of Energy Anura Karunathilaka acknowledged that the reduction in coal stocks had resulted in limited generation at Norochcholai.However, the Minister maintained that the reduction in coal-fired generation would not result in power cuts, as sufficient hydropower was currently available to meet the shortfall.Karunathilaka said that coal-fired generation would return to normal once fresh coal consignments were unloaded and made available to the power plant.According to him, the immediate pressure on coal supplies is expected to ease following the arrival of a fresh shipment in Puttalam on Friday (4).The coal carrier IVS Trader, carrying approximately 60,000 MT of coal, arrived in Puttalam on Friday, with the authorities moving to commence unloading after completing the required quality inspections.Karunathilaka visited the Lakvijaya Power Plant on Friday morning to inspect the prevailing coal situation and said that the plant had sufficient stocks to continue operating over the next few days.The Minister subsequently expressed confidence that there was little risk of power cuts due to insufficient coal stocks, stating that arrangements were in place to ensure a continuous supply of coal to the country’s only coal-fired power station. The approximately 60,000 MT consignment that arrived on Friday is a replacement for an earlier shipment that was rejected due to quality concerns under an emergency coal procurement process.Meanwhile, the first shipment under the new procurement arrangement for the 2026/’27 coal season is expected to reach Norochcholai by 12 September.The Government has completed procurement for 2.28 million MT of coal, subject to a 10% variation, for the 2026/’27 period.The latest generation figures nevertheless underline the impact the temporary coal supply constraint has had on the country’s electricity generation mix.As learnt by The Sunday Morning, the increased dependence on oil-fired generation is significant because prolonged substitution of coal generation with oil-based thermal power could increase overall electricity generation costs. For the moment, relatively strong hydropower generation has provided the national grid with sufficient capacity to compensate for the reduction in coal-fired generation.The arrival and unloading of the new coal shipment, followed by the next consignment expected on Saturday (12), would therefore be critical to restoring normal generation levels at Norochcholai and reducing the country’s temporary dependence on oil-fired electricity generation, a senior official attached to the National System Operator (NSO) told The Sunday Morning.&nbsp;

Coal shortage: Coal power contribution drops to 11.7%

<ul><li>NWSDB keeps 120 bowsers on standby&nbsp;&nbsp;</li></ul> Nearly 100,000 people across six districts are facing drinking water shortages as the prevailing El Niño-related dry conditions continue to affect water supplies, according to the latest situation report issued by the Disaster Management Centre (DMC).&nbsp;The DMC reported that 96,056 people belonging to 30,011 families had been affected by drinking water shortages across 28 Divisional Secretariat (DS) divisions in the Ampara, Badulla, Batticaloa, Monaragala, Polonnaruwa, and Ratnapura Districts.&nbsp;Emergency drinking water distribution is currently underway in 27 of the 28 affected DS divisions, covering 29,584 families comprising 94,356 people.&nbsp;The figures indicate that emergency water supplies are now reaching the vast majority of those affected by shortages as authorities respond to the continuing dry conditions.&nbsp;The shortages come amid concerns over the impact of El Niño-related weather conditions on water availability, particularly in areas dependent on rainfall and local water sources.&nbsp;Authorities are continuing to monitor the situation as the dry conditions persist, with emergency drinking water distribution being maintained in affected areas.&nbsp;Despite the scale of the emergency, the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) stated that it had sufficient bowser capacity at present to respond to the shortages, with Chairman Chandana Bandara stating that the board had around 120 bowsers available islandwide.&nbsp;“We have about 120 bowsers, but we are currently operating only a few of these depending on demand. All our bowsers are on standby,” Bandara told The Sunday Morning.&nbsp;He added that bowsers were currently being used in areas including Monaragala and Batticaloa, while the remainder were stationed at NWSDB plants around the country and could be deployed according to demand.&nbsp;Meanwhile, addressing the media, Director General of Meteorology A.L.K. Wijemannage said that rainfall was expected to gradually increase towards the end of September, with the second inter-monsoon period in October and November expected to bring more widespread showers.“Over the coming days, we expect moderate to heavy evening showers in areas that experienced hot, dry weather recently, such as Monaragala, Badulla, Ampara, Batticaloa, and parts of the Eastern Province,” Wijemannage said.El Niño conditions are projected to increase rainfall in October and November, continuing into December with the northeast monsoon.According to Wijemannage, however, the longer-term outlook could again turn drier, with higher temperatures and reduced rainfall expected from around February to April next year.“The World Meteorological Organization announced with nearly 100% probability that this El Niño condition will persist through February next year. Sea surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean have risen significantly, and the resultant warming has spread towards our region as well.&nbsp;“The El Niño condition is growing stronger and is forecast to peak between October and November with near-certain probability, developing into a very strong El Niño event,” he further stated.Wijemannage added that as a South Asian country, Sri Lanka would see changes in its rainfall patterns, along with a general rise in global temperatures.

Dry spell: Nearly 100,000 hit by water shortages 

The Government has no immediate plans to import rice despite concerns over the possible impact of the prevailing dry conditions and El Niño on the upcoming Maha cultivation season, according to the Ministry of Trade, Commerce, Food Security, and Co-operative Development.&nbsp;Media Secretary to the Minister of Trade Sameera Prabhash Wijesinghe told The Sunday Morning that the Government saw no need at present for additional rice imports due to the availability of sufficient stocks in the country.&nbsp;“There are no plans to import rice given the current situation because there is an adequate surplus,” he said.&nbsp;Meanwhile, Ministry of Agriculture Secretary D.P. Wickramasinghe said it was too early to determine how much land would be affected or whether there would be any production losses, as a final decision on Maha cultivation had yet to be made.According to Wickramasinghe, a meeting involving water and irrigation officials as well as farmers from across the country is scheduled for 18 September, when authorities are expected to make a final decision on water allocation and the commencement of the Maha cultivation season.&nbsp;He added that potential production losses were yet to be calculated, stressing that the decision would depend on the amount of water available and how it could be distributed among cultivation areas.&nbsp;“The decision on starting cultivation for the upcoming season will be made after the meeting on the 18th, where we will discuss how water will be distributed, how much water is available, and other details,” he said.&nbsp;However, he said that the country was unlikely to face a major water shortage for Maha cultivation, noting that there was water in the Mahaweli reservoirs at present.“We will probably not face a huge problem, as there is water in the Mahaweli reservoirs at present,” Wickramasinghe opined, adding that recent rainfall in areas such as Bandarawela could also contribute to water availability.&nbsp;Director of Irrigation – Water Management Eng. P.S.D. Herath stated that the water currently available was sufficient to complete the ongoing Yala cultivation season, with harvesting progressing across the country’s major irrigation schemes.Speaking at a media briefing, Herath said that the harvesting in lands managed by the Irrigation Department had reached around 75%, adding that cultivation-related activities in almost all major irrigation schemes were expected to be completed within the next two weeks.&nbsp;“This current water percentage is sufficient for cultivation in the ongoing Yala season. It is also expected that this volume of water will be adequate for the areas obtaining drinking water from these reservoirs until the rainfall arrives,” he noted.&nbsp;Addressing concerns over the upcoming Maha season, Herath said that the authorities expected to commence cultivation on nearly 400,000 acres across 302 schemes before the arrival of the monsoon rains.&nbsp;However, National Agrarian Unity President Anuradha Tennakoon warned that farmers could face considerable risks if they were encouraged to commence Maha cultivation before adequate water was available in the irrigation system.&nbsp;According to Tennakoon, farmers generally require major and medium-scale reservoirs to be at around 60% water capacity before water allocation for the Maha season can begin. He claimed that over 2,000 small tanks had already dried up completely, with many others remaining below 20% capacity.&nbsp;He said that the situation could particularly affect rain-fed and irrigation-dependent farming communities in districts including Kurunegala, Anuradhapura, and Monaragala, as well as areas of the Northern Province.&nbsp;“The targeted cultivated area is roughly around 850,000 hectares,” Tennakoon said, noting that farmers could normally cultivate around 880,000 hectares during Maha when rainfall permitted.&nbsp;He also warned that without a guarantee of adequate water, farmers were reluctant to begin ploughing and other field preparations as they could face additional costs if cultivation had to be restarted.&nbsp;Tennakoon argued that the accumulation of silt in reservoirs over decades had damaged the country’s irrigation capacity, claiming that many reservoirs had not undergone proper desilting.He also criticised what he called an over-reliance on El Niño to explain the current situation, contending that long-standing flaws in Sri Lanka’s irrigation infrastructure and changing rainfall patterns were also responsible for the country’s water-related challenges.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Food security: Govt. rules out rice imports 

<h1> </h1><h1>Death toll from floods surpasses 1,200</h1>More than 1,200 people have died and over 4,700 others are unaccounted for in Nepal and China as of Thursday (3) after massive flash floods and mudslides struck the border region of the two countries on 26 August.Nepali authorities say 1,204 people have been confirmed dead and the whereabouts of more than 4,200 people are unknown. China’s State-run media report that 21 people were killed and more than 540 are missing on the Chinese side. The combined death toll from both sides is 1,225.Military personnel, Police, and others are engaged in search and rescue operations in Nepal. But as roads, power, and communications remain disrupted over wide areas, rescuers are facing an uphill struggle.Many people who have lost their homes remain evacuated. Authorities face the challenge of finding ways to deliver relief supplies and of maintaining hygiene in shelters to prevent the spread of infectious diseases.Meanwhile, local media outlets reported that Nepali Prime Minister Balendra Shah had told Parliament on Wednesday that “the time has come for us to strongly present to the international community the disasters we are facing because of climate change”.Some experts say the flood was caused by a glacier that collapsed due to global warming.Local media also reported that Nepali Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal had said that China, the US, and India, as the top emitters of greenhouse gases, had a historical responsibility to compensate vulnerable nations like Nepal. Accordingly, he indicated that his country would seek compensation.(Source: NHK) <h1>Nepal renews push for Chinese data, early warnings</h1>Three months before a wall of water, mud, and rock <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/china/china-identifies-countries-261-foreigners-missing-himalayan-mudslide-2026-08-30/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">killed hundreds</a> when it hurtled down a Himalayan valley bordering Nepal and China, experts and officials from both countries met in Kathmandu to discuss the risk of such disasters.At the 27 May meeting in Nepal’s capital, 10 officials from Nepal and about a dozen from China, including the Tibet region where the disaster struck, discussed strengthening cooperation to monitor and respond to floods, weather, and glacier-related hazards, according to an ​agenda prepared by the Nepali side.The participants called for joint risk-reduction measures, including inventories of glacial lakes and hazard mapping. But two Nepali officials told Reuters they had not received as much information as they wanted from China on glacier risks and water levels after the meeting. They feared that insufficient data sharing could hamper their ability to anticipate and prepare for major disasters.“What we actually wanted from them, and still want, is if there are early movements of glaciers and early movements around that area, we would want to know a bit early,” said Sauhardra Joshi, a hydrologist at Nepal’s Flood Forecasting Division, who was at the May meeting.No officials or experts have blamed either side for the natural disaster, which <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/china/nepal-needs-least-4-billion-rebuilding-finance-minister-says-2026-08-29/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">will cost</a> an estimated 10th of Nepal’s annual economic output to recover from. Nepali officials say the priority is to deepen cooperation with China.China’s Foreign Ministry said that the two sides had maintained “sound cooperation in the fields of meteorology, water resources, and disaster prevention and mitigation”.“China will continue to strongly support Nepal’s disaster relief efforts, strengthen cooperation in disaster prevention and mitigation, and safeguard the common interests of the two peoples,” the ministry told Reuters.(Source: Reuters) Hopes of finding survivors dim&nbsp;&nbsp;Rescue teams raced on Wednesday (2) to reach dozens of workers believed to be trapped inside hydropower tunnels in Nepal’s mountains, offering one of the last hopes of finding survivors a week after a Himalayan flood killed more than 1,200 people.Rescue efforts have increasingly centred on hydroelectric project tunnels where authorities believe workers may have survived after being cut off by floodwaters and debris.Some tunnels contain chambers with air supplies, and rescuers were trying to reach about 900 missing workers.“We are very confident that there is life in there because there is food and water in the building; that was likely built for communication purposes and as a resting place,” Amshu Kiran Shahi, a Board member of the Nepal Electricity Authority, told Reuters.The chance of finding survivors elsewhere was fading, authorities said, but there was no let-up in rescue operations as teams scoured the mountainside along the border with China where floods tore through towns and valleys.“The hope of finding survivors is decreasing,” Phanindra Paudel, a senior official at Nepal’s National Emergency Operation Center (NEOC), said. “We pray and are hopeful. Hope is hope!”Prime Minister Balendra Shah told Parliament the search would continue. “Our priority remains clear: to continue our search and rescue operations, find those who are still missing, and continue supporting everyone affected,” he said.Major rescue operations were underway or planned at tunnels at four projects, and two of them with a total of nearly 100 people missing offered the strongest hopes of finding survivors because of the presence of air inside, Shahi said.At Trishuli 3A, one of the two projects, officials believed there was a dry space inside and expected oxygen to be flowing through the tunnel, with pipes also being used to push oxygen inside, Shahi said.Specialised rescue teams from India, China, and the US were involved in the tunnel rescue attempts.Across the border in Tibet, China’s official toll increased, with at least 21 dead and 541 missing.The update came after Beijing fully reopened the road leading to the Gyirong border crossing, which was obliterated by the giant wall of water and debris that crashed through the area, allowing heavy machinery to reach the core disaster zone for the first time.Chinese State broadcaster CCTV showed excavators, rescue teams, search dogs, and life-detection equipment being deployed in a narrow mountain gorge where rain, unstable cliffs, and a fast-flowing river have hampered operations.Rescuers are focusing on structures including the inspection building, parking lots, and dormitories in the now flattened area as they conduct a ‘deep search’ for survivors, local newspaper Tibet Daily reported on Wednesday, citing a media briefing by the Government.Beijing will send more DNA identification experts and emergency supplies including temporary Bailey bridges, mortuary refrigerators, and communications equipment to Nepal to help with the relief efforts, according to the Foreign Ministry.Residents in Nepal’s affected areas walked around the remains of what were once bustling villages and towns, trying to salvage whatever they could of their belongings.“My husband and I were able to escape safely. But we could not pick up anything,” said Shanta Sunar, 45, a shopkeeper and survivor from Nuwakot. “We have lost whatever we had. But we are lucky nothing happened to us.”(Source: CBC) <h4>Families hold symbolic funerals in Nepal</h4>Some families in Nuwakot, one of Nepal’s worst-affected districts, have held symbolic funerals for relatives still missing, hoping to free their souls after they were presumed dead.In Hindu tradition, cremation is an important final rite, and for some families, performing the ceremony even without the bodies of their loved ones provides a sense of spiritual release.Mukunda Rijal said that his cousins and their daughters had not been found, prompting the family to perform a symbolic funeral for them.Along the banks of the Trishuli River, a priest placed straw effigies representing the missing family members and covered them with small piles of wood before setting them alight. The symbolic funeral pyres were surrounded by offerings to Hindu deities as relatives gathered to perform the final rites.Authorities in Nepal have also been burying recovered bodies in temporary graves until they can be identified. They are preserving DNA samples, photographing distinguishing facial features, and recording other identifying details to help match the remains with missing people and eventually return them to their families.(Source: Chicago Tribune) The Principal who evacuated 900 studentsRajendra Dawadi was inside his classroom when a colleague rushed in with a warning: floodwaters were racing through <a href="https://apnews.com/hub/nepal" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Nepal’s</a> Trishuli valley, tearing apart homes, bridges, and entire villages.Then a teacher received another warning by phone. Moments later, a parent arrived to take her child home. The danger had not yet been confirmed, but Dawadi, the Principal, had little time to act. He rang the school bell and ordered his students and staff out of the building and towards higher ground.“I immediately decided to stop school” and get the children out, he told AP.As he followed them to a nearby hill, the floodwaters rose behind him. From the safety of the hillside, he turned to watch the school where he had once been a student – and where he had spent years teaching – disappear beneath a torrent of water, mud, boulders, and debris. Two staff members could not make it and remain missing.Dawadi’s decision to evacuate the school saved at least 900 students from the devastating flash floods in Nepal, unleashed after a <a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-change-nepal-tibet-glacier-collapse-floods-b3eda9410f9941f69add384944047bc3" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">glacial collapse</a> in the Himalayas.&nbsp;His quick thinking and swift response during the disaster have been hailed as an act of heroism. When he returned to the site of the school days later, parents embraced him as they thanked him for saving their children. “Their parents hugged me, they cried with me,” he said. “They were emotional.”Student Suvina Tamang, 14, said that the building had been swept away shortly after the students had been evacuated. “I will thank him when I see him [for saving my life],” she said.(Source: AP) <h1>Mother reunited with 8-year-old survivor</h1>Zoyal Ghale, who ran into a forest and climbed trees to escape <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/rescuers-scour-nepal-flood-debris-risk-fresh-flooding-grows-2026-08-28/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Nepal’s deadly floods</a>, was reunited with his mother after she had begun to fear ​he and his brother had both perished in their school.A day earlier, eight-year-old Ghale had been airlifted alone from the devastated northern district of Rasuwa with a ‌broken leg and cuts on his face, while his mother, Matti Maya Tamang, 28, moved from one shelter and collection point to another looking for her two missing children.“At the fourth place too, my children’s names were not on the list, and they were not there,” Tamang told Reuters. “I had come to accept that both my children were no more. All I could do was weep. I couldn’t hold myself together at all.After more unsuccessful searching, Tamang obtained the telephone number of Reuters ​journalist Sahana Bajracharya, who had met Ghale several hours earlier at a small hospital in the neighbouring Nuwakot District.Bajracharya and a Reuters team had gone to the hospital after hearing about a young boy ​who had been taken there and the authorities did not know where his family was. After speaking to Ghale before he was airlifted for more treatment, Bajracharya said he had agreed to be filmed in the hope of finding his family.Bajracharya left her number at the hospital and Tamang called her some hours later. When Bajracharya told her that Ghale was alive and had been transferred to Kathmandu, Tamang said she could barely believe it. She had already found her younger son alive as well.When Reuters encountered Ghale at the 15-bed Chakra Dev Hospital in Nuwakot, nobody there appeared to know where his family was. His right leg was broken ​and his face was scratched and bruised. In his left hand, however, he tightly clutched two 10-rupee notes. Police officers who had rescued him ​had given him the ⁠money to persuade him to go to hospital with them.He said he had been studying at school when the flood struck. Suddenly, “it was so, so black,” he recalled. He said he had run from the school into the forest with a friend and climbed into the trees to escape. Asked whether he had been frightened, he shook his head. “No.”After days of frantic searching, his mother finally stood quietly beside his bed. Ghale’s father, a construction labourer in Japan, was also on his way, Tamang said.The recent floods have transformed life in Rasuwa. But for Tamang, at least a degree of normality ​had already returned. “Oh, he is always a mischievous kid,” Tamang said. “This is not his first broken bone.”(Source: Reuters)

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