UNP to lead good governance coalition
To sign agreement with JHU today:
Coalition be registered after elections:
Parties to contest under Elephant symbol:
Prime Minister and United National Party (UNP)
Leader, Ranil Wickremesinghe, declared that a UNP led coalition will
contest the August elections under the Elephant symbol and invited
political leaders, who backed good governance to join the coalition
in the next few days. He was addressing the UNP Special Convention
at Campbell Park, Colombo.
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SLFP split in two, CBK to lead Progressive Front:
UPFA stalwarts in new Front
UPFA stalwart, Land Minister M.K.A.D.S.
Gunawardena yesterday confirmed the formation of a broad political
front with the UNP, named the United Front for Good Governance, to
rally forces against those determined to reverse what he called the
January 8 silent revolution. The new political front which is still
to be formed will use the UNP’s Elephant symbol until it is
registered as a political party.
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Foreign teams to observe polls
Teams from three international bodies, the
European Union, the Commonwealth and Federation of Election
Monitoring Bodies of South Asia (FEMBoSA) will send missions to
observe the forthcoming parliamentary election, Deputy Elections
Commissioner M.M. Mohamed told the Sunday Observer yesterday.
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Elections Dept receives 111 nominations
The Elections Department has received 111
nominations from registered political parties and independent groups
to contest the forthcoming general election. According to unofficial
sources, only five political parties and three independent groups
had handed over nomination papers by Friday.
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TPF on UNP ticket
The Tamil Progressive Front (TPF), the three
party alliance of the Indian origin community, is contesting on the
UNP ticket under the Elephant symbol in Nuwara Eliya, Kandy and
Badulla, Colombo, Ratnapura and Gampaha electoral districts.
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President Maithripala Sirisena is in Thailand making a three-day official visit and attending the second Asia Cooperation Dialogue Summit. The Dialogue Summit that brings together 34 nations in the Asian region takes place from October 8 -10 in Bangkok under the theme "One Asia, Diverse Strength".
Official level discussions have commenced between Sri Lanka and Iran on reviving trade agreements that were signed between the two countries and will be put into operation soon after ironing out technicalities, Minister of Industry and Commerce, Rishad Bathiudeen said. 
Pakistan on Friday (September 30) officially postponed the 19th SAARC Summit scheduled to be held in Islamabad on November 9 and 10. A new set of dates for holding the Summit will be announced soon through the Chair of SAARC (Nepal), reports said. 
Due to the prevailing drought, water levels of the main reservoirs have dropped to half its capacity, with authorities warning that drastic measures may need to be taken if water is to be continuously released from the reservoirs for power generation. 
To avert a possible dengue outbreak in the next three months, when the number of mosquito breeding sites are likely to surge with the monsoon rains, the Dengue Control Unit of the Health Ministry will launch an island-wide Dengue Control Week starting on Tuesday, September 27 to Monday, October 3.
Sir Richard Jolly, former Deputy Executive Director, UNICEF, and Special Adviser to the Administrator, United Nations Development Programme (1996 to 2000), and Principal Coordinator of the widely-acclaimed Human Development Report will deliver a lecture on, “Development: Can Sri Lanka be a model for implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs)?” on September 28 at 5 pm at the BMICH Committee Room D, on the invitation of the Gamani Corea Foundation. 
Richmondite Charith Asalanka joined the elite band of school cricketers by winning the coveted Schoolboy Cricketer Of The Year 2016 title for the second year in succession emulating the feats of former Sri Lankan greats Arjuna Ranatunga, 1980/82' ( Ananda) Roshan Mahanama, 1983/84'(Nalanda) Thilan Samaraweera 1994/95' ( Ananda) 'Lahiru Peiris 2004/2005 (St.Peter's) and Bhanuka Rajapaksa 2010'2011 (Royal) who had also won the award twice .
Cricketing legend and former Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene will grace the occasion at the 38th Observer-Mobitel Schoolboy Cricketer of the Year awards night scheduled to take place at the Galadari Hotel on September 20. 
Stern action will be taken against traders who sell sugar above the controlled price of Rs. 95. Instructions have been given to the relevant authorities to launch island-wide search operations, a press communique from the Minister of Finance Ravi Karunanayake said. 
Refuting speculations, Power and Renewable Energy Minister Ranjith Siyambalapitiya said, no decision has been taken to impose power cuts on account of the current dry spell in the country. 
