Arundathie Abeysinghe

Of the 21 newly elected members, 19 are from the National People's Power (NPP); some also come from Tamil plantation communities. This is a record for female representation in a country that in 1960 elected the first woman head of government in the world, Sirimavo Bandaranaike. Current Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya was re-elected in the capital with a record number of votes.

The phenomenon, already recorded elsewhere, happened for the first time in the port city where the Mahaweli River flows. The affected species is odonus niger, found decomposing in shallow bays. Dr Sujeewa Athukoorala: ‘Oxygen deficiency and gill obstruction’. Scientists: algae proliferation favoured by ‘sunlight, warm water, carbon dioxide and fertilisers’.

Several samples of a free, ready-to-eat, cereal- and legume-based food meant to "eradicate malnutrition" in Sri Lanka have been recalled. The Health Sciences Institute in Kalutara detected the mycotoxins above permitted levels last August. The lack of suitable storage is among the main causes.

One of the top five global producers, the country saw a 40 per cent drop in production due to a fertiliser ban and the ravages from the insect. In Colombo and its suburbs people, have to queue up to buy coconuts. This is a hard blow to the economy, with exports to the United States, Germany and the Netherlands already penalised by higher shipping costs due to the turmoil in the Red Sea.

The accidents involving the MT New Diamond and X-Press Pearl have exposed "delays and inadequacies" in the country’s environmental protection system. Ocean waters are crucial for the fishing sector. Legal and regulatory frameworks also have serious shortcomings.

Sri Lanka’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID) carried out raids in the Western Province, shedding light on a system operating out of hotels and private establishments, according to a same scheme already present in several Southeast Asian countries. The most common frauds are financial and fake investments.

The government has so far taken no action on production. Relief is needed to calm prices and meet the needs of households, who spend on average almost 374 on food. Internal capacity must be increased to meet needs. Today there is a monopoly in the hands of a few private mill owners, linked to prominent politicians.

After the choice of anti-system President Dissanayake, the country's political and ruling class is looking ahead to the snap elections on 14 November. The role of the smaller forces that together make up 25% of the electorate will be decisive. In the background the international dynamics and the framework of relations with China and India (and the West).

The completion of a 96-kilometre water conveyance project in the North Central Province is one of the challenges facing Sri Lanka's new government. Key for local communities, it will benefit up to 100,000 families. One of its main objectives is to promote the fishing industry, livestock farming, and tourism.

The UN-backed World Restoration Flagship project seeks to restore 10,000 hectares by 2030. Coastal forests are vital to protect the country from natural disasters such as storm surges and tsunamis, playing a crucial role in resisting climate change. For environmentalists Dissanayake and Semasinghe, mangroves also provide “sustainable livelihoods for rural communities.”

The introduction of a new and complex visa system is forcing tourists at Colombo airport to wait two and a half hours before they can enter the country. With a petition to the Supreme Court and an imminent strike, operators are calling for a return to the old online system, stressing that too much red tape risks compromising the season and the post-pandemic economic recovery.

The country's most marginalised peoples continue to struggle for recognition. Despite the UN call in 1996 and the 2007 Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, governments have failed to provide a legal and policy framework to protect this community. The establishment of the Maduru Oya National Park has devastated their habitat, forcing them to give up millennia-old traditions and a self-sufficient life maintained for generations.