Sri Lanka’s Railway Delays: Why the System Is Slowing Down and What Must Change
Sri Lanka’s railway network, once a proud symbol of affordable connectivity and scenic travel, is now increasingly defined by delays, derailments, and disrepair. A recent audit revealed that nearly half of all train journeys in 2024 were delayed, with over 5,000 cancellations and 660 derailments recorded between 2020 and 2024. For passengers across the country, […]
Sri Lanka’s Plastic Bag Levy: A Promising Start to Curbing Single-Use Waste
In a nation long plagued by the scourge of plastic pollution where beaches once pristine are now littered with discarded “sili-sili” bags Sri Lanka has taken a decisive step forward. Effective November 1, 2025, the government has banned the free distribution of plastic shopping bags in retail outlets, introducing a modest levy to discourage their […]
Aadhaar Data Breach: Why India’s Digital ID Dream Turned Nightmare and What Sri Lanka Must Avoid
Imagine a single 12-digit number that promises to unlock welfare, banking, and voting for 1.4 billion people. That was Aadhaar in 2009. Sixteen years later, the world’s largest biometric database is a cautionary tale of over-promised efficiency, under-delivered security, and millions left behind. As Sri Lanka races toward its own SL-UDI rollout in 2026, India’s […]
Sri Lanka’s Lifeline Abroad: Rethinking Migration and Remittance Policy
For decades the outflow of Sri Lankan workers and the inflow of their remittances have been crucial to the country’s external stability. Today this reality merits a deeper policy overhaul: the flows are large, evolving, and carry both economic benefits and social costs. The Economic Importance Workers’ remittances into Sri Lanka remain a major source […]
Sri Lanka’s Economic Crossroads: Resetting the Trajectory
After one of the deepest economic crises in its post-independence history, Sri Lanka is now entering a fragile phase of recovery. Inflation has cooled, foreign reserves have stabilised, and GDP growth has returned to positive territory. But beneath the surface, structural vulnerabilities remain. The question is no longer whether the country has survived the worst […]
Port City Colombo Now: Rules Tightened, Utilities Live, Proof Point is Speed
Port City Colombo is closer to “investment-ready” than at any time since 2021. The rulebook has been clarified, phase-one utilities are complete, and Cabinet has green-lit amendments to sharpen the regime. The next question is simple: can the zone deliver fast, predictable approvals and real operating tenants over the next 12 months? Governance: same backbone, […]
Why Your Grocery Bill Feels High – The Everyday Mechanics Behind Food Prices in Sri Lanka
Grocery Bill or Food prices are not random. They reflect a stack of policy choices and costs: VAT and para-tariffs at the border, a volatile rupee, fuel and electricity prices, weak logistics, market opacity, and post-harvest losses. When small frictions compound across the chain, the final shelf price jumps. Durable relief comes from cleaner taxes, […]
Media Freedom and Disinformation: Balancing Rights, Responsibility, and Resilience
Media freedom protects the public’s right to know Disinformation exploits the same openness to mislead. The tension is real but solvable with clear principles, strong institutions, and practical tools. A robust information space is not built by censorship; it is built by transparency, accountability, and media literacy that makes falsehoods unprofitable and hard to scale. […]
Sri Lanka’s Public Service Pension: How It Works, Where It Came From, and What Comes Next
What the scheme is Sri Lanka’s Public Service Pension Scheme (PSPS) covers permanent central-government employees who complete the qualifying service and retire under the stipulated rules. It is defined-benefit and pay-as-you-go: benefits are set by regulation and paid from current revenues rather than from an invested fund. Separate regulations govern teachers, police, and the armed […]
Sri Lanka’s Road Safety: A Clearer Picture Through Data
Sri Lanka’s Road Safety | Understanding how, when, and why crashes happen is key to reducing fatalities and serious injuries. This article uses a demonstration dataset for Jan 2024 – Sep 2025 to show how regular crash reporting can drive faster, smarter interventions. Monthly Crash Trends Crashes hover around 2,200–2,600 per month. This pattern reflects […]