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Indoor Cricket Junior World Series 2026: Sri Lanka team departs for South Africa

The Sri Lanka Indoor Cricket Junior team left for South Africa to represent Sri Lanka at the 2026 Indoor Cricket Junior World Series, scheduled to be held from 26 September to 3 October at the Atterbury Action Sports Arena in Pretoria, South Africa.

Member countries of the World Indoor Cricket Federation (WICF), including Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, England, India, Singapore, and Sri Lanka, will participate in this prestigious international tournament, with Sri Lanka competing under the Ceylon Indoor Cricket Association (CICA).

The tournament will bring together some of the finest young indoor cricket talent from around the world, providing an important platform for emerging players to compete at international level, gain valuable experience, and further develop their skills through competition against teams from different countries.

The Sri Lanka squad was selected following a dedicated training and selection program conducted in Colombo. A talented group of young players participated in an intensive preparation process, demonstrating their skills, commitment, discipline, and potential to represent Sri Lanka on the international stage.

Sandil Hirunaka Bandara has been appointed Captain, while Sithumina Chamathke Heendeniya is the Vice-Captain.

Squad: Sandil Hirunaka Bandara (Captain), Sithumina Chamathke Heendeniya (Vice-Captain), Hesanda Siyapath Abayakoon, Venitha Dineth Peiris, Kaushika Nikesh Sanchala, Gaveesha Rashmith Cooray, Kavisha Hemaka Hewathanthri, Vihanga Yethmin Karunatilaka, Malaka Mudith Mihira, Chaneth Nawodhya Wijekoon, Tashane Deuneth Wijekoon, Aawin Senmith Perera

Team officials: Rumesh Perera (Coach), Pradeep Bandara (Manager), Hiran de Mel (Delegate)

Opposition claims grid batteries unlikely to solve rooftop solar woes

New grid batteries will help Sri Lanka absorb surplus solar power nationally, but will not open up rooftop connections where neighbourhood transformers are already full, two Parliamentary Committees heard on 22 and 23 September. Households that can still connect now face either a far less favourable tariff or a battery bill of over Rs. 1 million.

The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) challenged the premise behind the curbs on rooftop solar. ‘If there is no alternative below the marginal cost, prices cannot be reduced,’ it told the Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) last week.

Marginal cost is the cost of the most expensive power the system must buy, typically from oil-fired plants, which CoPF members said still supply about 40% of generation. The PUCSL rejected the argument that surplus solar has little value, saying daytime power is cheap only because of rooftop solar.

A rooftop system feeds into the neighbourhood transformer serving its street. When too many roofs export power at midday, that transformer overloads and the utility refuses new connections.

Separately, officials told the Sectoral Oversight Committee (SOC) on Infrastructure and Strategic Development chaired by MP S.M. Marikkar last week that this is the bottleneck in congested urban areas. Yet the National System Operator (NSO) is placing its batteries at grid substations, several steps up the network. Its tender covers 16 substation batteries of 10 MW and 40 MWh each, a total of 160 MW, of which two have been commissioned.

These can absorb surplus power for the national system, but they cannot relieve an overloaded transformer on a street in Kotte. The tendered sites also appear to lie largely outside the Western Province, where congestion is worst.

Marikkar said the battery build-out would benefit ground-mounted solar farms in the regions where the batteries are being installed, while doing nothing for rooftop households in Colombo. He noted that large-scale producers already enjoy concessions, including duty-free import of megawatt-scale batteries, which household buyers do not receive.

He said adding or upgrading a rooftop system in areas such as Kotte and Kolonnawa was now effectively impossible. He urged that Western Province rooftop users be given priority for battery capacity, and that the Government take responsibility for storage.

Batteries at the neighbourhood level, which could ease the bottleneck, have not yet started. The PUCSL said it approved a Lanka Electricity Company (LECO) proposal for such batteries about three months ago, while one from Electricity Distribution Lanka (EDL) has been delayed.

Households that can still connect will pay more for the same panels. Net metering and net accounting, which let owners offset each unit of solar power against a unit bought from the grid, are closed to new connections.

New users must go on ‘Net Plus,’ selling all their output at a feed-in tariff (FiT) of about Rs. 23 per unit for small systems while buying all their power at the retail rate, which is around Rs. 100 per unit above 180 units a month. Contracts are capped at 12 years. A CoPF member warned that new users could end up paying more rather than saving. Existing agreements are unaffected until they expire.

The NSO told the CoPF last week that daytime solar output of over 2,000 MW now matches daytime peak demand of 2,500 to 2,600 MW, so any new solar must come with storage. For a household, that means a battery. Marikkar said a 5 kW household battery with an inverter costs at least Rs. 1 million.

The duty exemption for megawatt-scale batteries was granted around the close of the NSO tender, but household batteries still attract duty. CoPF Chairman MP Dr. Harsha de Silva said the Government had put ‘the cart before the horse’ by ending net metering before storage became affordable.

A PUCSL guideline allows ‘zero-export’ systems, which use solar power on site without feeding it into the grid, and consumers may also go fully off-grid. The PUCSL said solar with a battery pays off at current tariffs, but that upfront capital is the barrier.

The rules themselves are contested. A Cabinet-approved tariff policy restricts new connections to ‘Net Plus,’ while the PUCSL, which now holds the power to set FiTs under the new Electricity Act, determined its own tariffs in August.

The Energy Ministry directed that the Cabinet policy prevail and referred the PUCSL tariffs to the Cabinet, where they await approval. The NSO argued that net accounting gave supernormal returns and that pressure to keep it came from solar companies.

The PUCSL warned that consumption from January to 21 September rose to 14,062 GWh from 11,637 GWh in the same period of 2023. It said that without prompt action, the reserve margin could be breached, bringing shortages or higher prices.

Dr. de Silva said the authorities must come up with a plan.

Separately, the CoPF approved Rs. 17.2 billion for the NSO to cover a deficit from the first quarter, when the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) failed to submit its tariff proposal on time. A targeted subsidy that shielded low-usage households from an 18% tariff increase has ended.

Vidullanka project firms submit winning bids for 93 MWh battery storage at solar plants

Four project companies in which renewable energy firm Vidullanka PLC holds stakes have submitted winning bids to add battery energy storage to their existing solar power plants. Vidullanka’s share of the equity investment is estimated at about Rs. 600 million.

Vidullanka said the bids fell within the winning threshold in a competitive tender for Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS). BESS are large batteries that store electricity for release later. The systems will be integrated with existing ground-mounted solar photovoltaic (PV) plants and developed on a Build, Own and Operate (BOO) basis for 15 years.

The four projects have a combined capacity of 18.7 MW and 93 MWh. The MW figure is the maximum power the batteries can deliver at any moment, and the MWh figure is the total energy they can store.

Solar Universe Ltd., Sooryashakthi Ltd., and DPV Solar Energy Ltd., each 50% owned by Vidullanka, were allocated 4.9 MW/25 MWh apiece. Wholly owned VidulSolar Ltd., which operates the Madampe solar plant, was allocated 4 MW/18 MWh. Based on those stakes, Vidullanka’s proportionate share is about 11.4 MW/55.5 MWh.

The company said its estimated Rs. 600 million equity share for developing and building the four projects could change depending on the final capital structure and cost refinements. It will be funded mainly from cash generated by the solar projects and any progressive capital allocations, alongside debt financing at the level of each project company.

Adding battery storage to the operating solar plants will improve the transfer of solar power to the grid and reduce curtailment, meaning cuts in output when the grid cannot absorb all the power generated. It will also help stabilise the grid over the 15-year power purchase period.

The awards are not yet final. They still require formal Letters of Award (LOAs), regulatory approvals, and definitive agreements with the relevant authorities, including supplementary agreements to the existing power purchase agreements. The company said the announcement should not be read as final confirmation of contract awards.

The company considers this development to be price-sensitive information relevant to its future operational expansion and financial outlook, Vidullanka said, adding that it would make further disclosures once LOAs are received and final contracts signed.

Africa’s credit problem is a lack of reliable data

Africa’s credit market presents a paradox that policymakers and financial institutions can no longer afford to ignore. Banks have capital and liquidity to lend, yet millions of individuals and businesses that need credit remain excluded from formal financing. The experience of South Africa provides a striking illustration. There, consumers submitted 18.5 million credit applications in the second quarter of 2025, but 67 percent were declined.

The message is that Africa does not necessarily have a shortage of money to lend but a shortage of reliable information with which lenders can confidently determine who should receive it.

This distinction is important because the consequences extend well beyond banking. The International Finance Corporation estimates that $331 billion in yearly SME financing demand goes unmet in sub-Saharan Africa. That financing gap represents businesses unable to purchase inventory, acquire equipment, employ more workers or expand production. It represents households unable to build homes or acquire productive assets at a reasonable pace.

For too many Africans, economic progress has consequently become an exercise in saving first and building later. A family builds a house one room at a time because mortgage finance is unavailable. A small trader expands only after accumulating enough cash to purchase additional stock. A manufacturer delays acquiring equipment until retained earnings can finance it.

While this may appear prudent, it has a substantial economic cost. When productive investment depends almost entirely on accumulated savings, economic growth becomes slower than it needs to be. Businesses cannot respond quickly to opportunities, employment creation is constrained, and assets take years to build.

The problem is particularly serious because much of Africa’s economic activity takes place outside the formal financial system. Informal businesses may have customers, turnover and reliable suppliers but lack the payslips, audited accounts, extensive banking histories or conventional credit records demanded by traditional lenders.

The consequence is a damaging mismatch, as people can be economically active without being financially visible.

This is where the continent’s financial institutions need to rethink how creditworthiness is assessed. The answer is not for banks to lower their lending standards or abandon risk management. That would merely create another problem through rising defaults and weakened financial institutions. The objective should instead be to widen the evidence upon which responsible lending decisions are based.

Regular rent payments, utility bills, mobile-money transactions, school-fee savings, supplier payments and other consistent financial behaviours can reveal valuable information about an individual’s or business’s capacity to repay. The challenge is converting these scattered signals into reliable, transparent and usable credit intelligence.

This is increasingly possible through alternative-data analytics and modern credit-scoring systems. Evidence from emerging lending models suggests that expanding the pool of information available to lenders can bring previously excluded borrowers into the formal credit system without necessarily producing a corresponding explosion in bad loans.

That should encourage African banks to move beyond the traditional definition of a bankable customer.

The ideal situation is an African credit market in which credit decisions are based on demonstrated economic behaviour rather than simply on formal documentation. A trader should not be automatically considered a poor credit risk because she lacks a conventional payslip if her transaction history demonstrates consistent income and repayment behaviour. A small business should not be excluded simply because it has no lengthy audited history when alternative data can provide credible evidence of its cash flow and obligations.

Banks, however, must also confront an internal problem. Innovation can become trapped within layers of product, risk, technology, compliance and management approval. While these safeguards are necessary, excessive institutional caution can prevent financial institutions from responding quickly to an enormous market opportunity.

The way forward therefore requires collaboration among banks, fintech companies, credit bureaus, telecoms operators, payment platforms, regulators and data providers. Regulators should establish clear rules governing responsible use, privacy, consent and accuracy of alternative data, while financial institutions should invest in the technology and skills required to interpret it.

Governments also have a role in accelerating financial formalisation by improving digital identity, business registration, address systems and data-sharing frameworks. These are not merely administrative reforms but foundations for expanding access to productive credit.

Eventually, Africa’s credit challenge is an economic development challenge. Every viable business denied financing represents potentially lost jobs, production and tax revenue. Every household unable to finance productive assets loses years of economic opportunity.

The continent does not need to manufacture capital that already exists within its financial system. It needs to build the infrastructure and confidence required to deploy that capital more intelligently.

Kavanthissa: National treasure we must protect

Kavanthissa is not just another elephant. He is widely recognised as Sri Lanka’s largest and tallest living wild tusker, a magnificent animal with exceptionally long tusks and one of the very few great tuskers remaining in our country.

Since 2025, I have been asking a simple question: Why can we not establish a dedicated protection team for elephants like Kavanthissa?

Today, after Kavanthissa has reportedly been shot and seriously wounded again, that question has become even more urgent. Veterinary teams may treat his injuries, but treatment is not protection. His life remains at risk.

And we must ask another very uncomfortable question:

Where is the law? Where is the deterrent?

Sri Lanka already has laws protecting elephants. The Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance makes it an offence to shoot, kill or injure an elephant, to use electric wires to kill or injure one, or to use any device to harm an elephant.

Yet elephants continue to be shot, electrocuted, poisoned and killed using illegal methods.

Based on reported figures, more than 200 elephants have already been killed in Sri Lanka in just the first nine months of 2026. More than 200 lives lost in nine months, how many more must we lose before we act?

So what is happening to the law?

We need arrests. We need proper investigations. We need prosecutions. And, where guilt is established, we need the law to be enforced and meaningful sentences imposed.

Without consequences, what is the deterrent?

And we are living in the 21st century.

We do not need to reinvent the wheel.

Kenya has demonstrated how individual ‘Super Tuskers’ can receive dedicated monitoring through specialised teams, working with wildlife authorities. Ground teams, aerial surveillance, tracking and technology are used to know where these precious elephants are and to respond when they are at risk.

South Africa has adopted a similar principle for rhino conservation through Intensive Protection Zones, concentrating security resources, technology and intelligence in areas where particularly vulnerable wildlife needs greater protection.

Why can’t Sri Lanka do the same?

We could establish a small National Tusker Protection Unit under the Department of Wildlife Conservation, beginning with Kavanthissa and other identified high value tuskers.

Sri Lanka can develop its own version.

For Kavanthissa and other identified national-treasure tuskers, we could have GPS/radio monitoring, camera surveillance, drones where appropriate, night patrols, rapid-response teams and a central database tracking their movements, health and threats.

And we do not have to do this alone.

There are professionals, scientists, veterinarians, conservationists, technology experts and ordinary citizens who are willing to volunteer their knowledge, time and resources to save our elephants. Let us bring these people together with the Department of Wildlife Conservation, the Police and other relevant agencies.

This is not about giving one elephant privileges over another.

It is about recognising that when an animal is exceptionally rare, genetically significant and irreplaceable, losing that individual is a loss to the entire nation.

Kavanthissa should be the beginning.

Are we going to wait until the remaining great tuskers of Sri Lanka disappear from this earth before we recognise what we have lost?

These are our national treasures.

The Government has a responsibility to protect them. We, as citizens, have a responsibility to demand that protection.

Kavanthissa has survived once before.

Now he is wounded again.

Let us not wait for his death to recognise that he was a national treasure. Let us protect him while he is still alive.

Amnesty, Correctional Service Differ As Cholera Kills Inmates In Kano Prison

Conflicting accounts have emerged over the cholera outbreak at Kurmawa Medium Security Custodial Centre in Kano State, with Amnesty International alleging six inmate deaths while the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) insists only two fatalities were recorded.

Amnesty International, in a statement on Friday, accused authorities of failing to protect inmates from preventable deaths, citing overcrowding, poor sanitation, and inadequate healthcare as factors that worsened the outbreak.

The rights group warned that the deaths amounted to ‘arbitrary deprivation of life,’ a violation of international human rights law.

But in a statement issued on Saturday, the NCoS countered Amnesty’s claims, confirming that only two inmates died.

According to the Service, one inmate died inside the facility and another at the Kano State Infectious Diseases Hospital.

The Service said emergency medical protocols were activated immediately after the first case was detected on September 17, and that the outbreak was contained by September 23.

According to the NCoS, joint interventions by prison medical staff and Kano State public health officials helped stabilise the situation.

Senior medical personnel were also deployed from Abuja to monitor conditions and prevent further spread.

Meanwhile, an official at Kurmawa prison who spoke to Daily Trust on condition of anonymity confirmed that there are currently no cholera patients at the facility.

‘Presently, there is no other cholera patient in the facility,’ he said, adding that authorities are still gathering more details.

He noted that the prison service intends to corroborate its findings with Amnesty’s report, with full details expected to be released on Monday.

The incident occurred days after about 37 suspected illegal miners died at a Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) facility in Niger State.

The Niger incident is currently under probe.

Malaysia’s Ng, Subramaniam book LA28 Olympics berth with Asian Games gold

Malaysia’s Eain Yow Ng and Sivasangari Subramaniam have made history by becoming the first squash players to qualify for the 2028 Olympics after winning gold medals at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.

The defending champions won the men’s and women’s singles finals on Sunday and earned a ticket to the 2028 Los Angeles Games, where squash will make its Olympic debut.

Squash is among a handful of sports at Aichi-Nagoya where a gold medal serves as automatic qualification for the next Olympics.

Both Ng and Subramaniam successfully defended their titles without dropping a single game in their campaigns. Their victories gave Malaysia its fifth and sixth gold medals.

World number 18 Ng thrashed India’s Abhay Singh 11-9, 11-5, 11-5 in 33 minutes at the Nagoya Kinjo Futo Arena and became the first Malaysian to qualify for the Olympics.

World number five Subramaniam joined her compatriot soon after when she made quick work of the women’s final against India’s Anahat Singh.

She demolished Singh, ranked 17th in the world, 11-4, 11-4, 11-7 in just 23 minutes to clinch gold.

700,000 suffering under Bangkok floods

Severe flooding in Bangkok was affecting about 329,000 families, about 700,000 people, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration said on Monday.

Deputy city governor Tavida Kamolvej said the hardest hit part of the capital was Lat Krabang district with 30,000-40,000 flood victims.

In Bang Kapi district, which includes Khlong Chan flats and nearby communities in Khlong Chan sub-district, there were about 20,000 affected people. There were another 30,000-40,000 victims in Khannayao district and about 10,000 in communities near canals in Laksi, Saphan Sung and Suan Luang districts.

About 1,500 bed-ridden people had been moved from their flooded homes to BMA hospitals.

The BMA is, meanwhile, seeking donations of dried food and drinking water. ‘We need hundreds of thousands of bottles of drinking water, right now,’ Ms Tavida said.

City Hall also needs mobile kitchens, vehicles with high road clearance and small flat boats to reach householders in deeply flooded areas, she said.

The BMA is receiving calls for help on the 1669 and 1555 hotline numbers.

Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt said flood drainage continued and water levels should start to subside in canals.

‘Flooding in communities will recede slowly because canal levels must drop first. Pumps will be installed in low-lying communities to speed up drainage,’ he said.

Many streets remained deep under floodwater on Monday morning.

Sunshine Medical Devices supports Sri Lanka’s first national suture championship

Sunshine Medical Devices (SMD) has partnered with the Sri Lanka Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons (SLAPRAS) to support Sri Lanka’s first national suturing competition for undergraduate medical students, reinforcing its commitment to developing the country’s future healthcare workforce through education, clinical excellence and industry collaboration.

The Master of Precision Suturing Championship brought together fourth-year medical students from 11 medical faculties across Sri Lanka, creating a national platform to identify emerging talent while strengthening practical surgical competencies at an early stage of medical training.

Sunshine Healthcare Lanka Ltd., Executive Director and Sunshine Medical Devices and Lina Manufacturing CEO Dr. T. Sayandhan, said the partnership reflects Sunshine Healthcare’s broader vision of strengthening Sri Lanka’s healthcare ecosystem through long-term investment in both technology and people. ‘Healthcare transformation is driven not only by innovation, but by the capability of the professionals delivering care. By partnering with SLAPRAS on this pioneering initiative, we are investing in future Surgeons by providing opportunities to learn from experts, strengthen practical skills and aspire to higher standards of clinical excellence. Developing healthcare talent today is essential to delivering better patient outcomes tomorrow,’ he said.

Designed as both a competition and a learning experience, the program provided participants with direct mentorship from leading plastic and reconstructive surgeons while exposing them to the standards, discipline and precision expected in modern surgical practice. Competitors were assessed on key aspects of suturing, including tissue handling, instrument control, precision, knot security, consistency and overall technique.

Plastic and Reconstructive Consultant Surgeon and SLAPRAS President Dr. Yasas Abeywickrama said: ‘This initiative is about far more than recognising technical skill. It is about cultivating the craftsmanship, discipline and professional standards that define surgical excellence. By providing students with early exposure to structured skills development and specialist mentorship, we are helping prepare the next generation of surgeons to meet the evolving demands of healthcare.’

The initiative was spearheaded by Plastic and Reconstructive Consultant Surgeon Dr. Gayan Ekanayake with the objective of creating a structured national platform to complement undergraduate medical education through practical skills development, mentorship and performance-based learning.

SLAPRAS intends to establish the championship as an annual national program, expanding opportunities for undergraduate medical students to benefit from structured surgical skills training, specialist mentorship and practical assessment.

Cabinet to decide on Rs. 41 b worth fuel subsidy today

A proposal for a fuel subsidy of Rs. 41 billion covering the next three months will be presented to Cabinet today (28), with a decision expected, as world oil prices climb again following a renewed escalation of the US/Israel-Iran war.

The Government said Rs. 41 billion had been allocated for fuel subsidies for the next three months so that the burden of high world market prices would not be passed fully on to the public.

The new allocation is smaller than the previous scheme. After the prices of all petroleum products rose rapidly in March, the Government said it spent Rs. 57 billion subsidising diesel by Rs. 100 a litre and petrol by Rs. 20 a litre in April, May, and June. The Rs. 41 billion works out to about Rs. 13.7 billion a month, compared with about Rs. 19 billion a month under the earlier subsidy.

According to the Government, the world market price of diesel, which rose 115% in March compared with February, eased to 39% above February levels by the end of June. That relief was passed on to consumers in July, when the diesel price was cut by Rs. 25 a litre without a Government subsidy. World petrol prices, which rose 71% in March, fell back to 43.2% above February levels by the end of June, and the relief was likewise passed on. Domestic petrol prices were cut again as world prices fell further in July and August.

However, the Government said world prices of petrol, diesel, and crude oil had risen rapidly since August as the war in the Middle East escalated seriously. Diesel is now 92% higher than in February, petrol 78%, and Murban crude 66%, while domestic petrol and diesel prices are only 36.2% and 35.9% higher, respectively, it said.

Price data reviewed by the Daily FT show the same trend. The average Singapore price of 92-Octane Petrol for September to date is $ 134.50 a barrel, 21.3% higher than August, 78.7% above February’s pre-war average of $ 75.28, and the highest monthly average this year. Singapore prices are ‘free on board’ (FOB), meaning they reflect the cost of fuel loaded onto a tanker, before freight, and are a regional benchmark for fuel import costs. A barrel is about 159 litres.

Diesel benchmarks show a similar gap. Gas oil with 500 parts per million (ppm) sulphur averaged $ 170.99 a barrel in September, up 10.9% from August and 92.5% above February. Higher-grade 10 ppm gas oil averaged $ 178.48, 98, 5% above February. Jet fuel was up 90.2% at $ 169.32.

Local pump prices have risen far less. Following the last revision on 31 August, Lanka Petrol 92 Octane sells at Rs. 399 a litre, 36.2% above the pre-war price of Rs. 293. Lanka Petrol 95 Octane is Rs. 475, up 39.7% from Rs. 340. Lanka Auto Diesel is Rs. 382, up 35.9% from Rs. 281. Lanka Super Diesel is Rs. 478, 45.3% higher than Rs. 329.

The 31 August revision cut Petrol 92 to Rs. 399 from Rs. 414, and Petrol 95 to Rs. 475 from Rs. 495, while diesel prices were unchanged. Since then, Singapore petrol benchmarks have risen by more than a fifth.

Pump prices were raised in several steps after the war began, with increases of 7% to 8% on 10 March, a second round on 22 March, and further hikes on 3 May and 31 May. The 31 May revision took Petrol 92 to its peak of Rs. 434 a litre, 48.1% above pre-war levels, and Auto Diesel to Rs. 407, up 44.8%. The 30 June revision cut Auto Diesel by Rs. 25 to Rs. 382 and Petrol 92 by Rs. 20 to Rs. 414.

Benchmark prices peaked earlier. Singapore gas oil and jet fuel more than doubled in March and April, with 500 ppm gas oil averaging $ 191.73 a barrel in March, 115.8% above February. They fell back to about 40% above pre-war levels in June, before rising again from July.