WHO names COVID-19 variants found in India as 'Kappa' and 'Delta'

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday 31 May 2021 announced news labels, using Greek alphabets, for various variants of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), also giving names to the two variants that have been first found in India thus far. Covid variant first found i…

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NATO Conduct Steadfast Defender 21 war Games.

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) is organising “Steadfast Defender 21 war games” military exercises in Europe as tensions with Russia increases. These war games are being organised with the aim of simulating the response of a 30-nation military organisation for the…

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US hands over key military base in Kabul to Afghan forces.

The top NATO Commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Scott Miller, on Friday 28 May 2021 oversaw handing over of a key military base in the capital Kabul to the Afghan forces as the US continued with the withdrawal amid surging violence in the country. The ‘New Kabul Compound’ was su…

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Indian Cricket legend Ravi Shastri's debut book 'Stargazing' to release this year

Cricket legend, commentator and one of Team India's most successful coaches, Ravi Shastri has penned a book titled 'Stargazing: The Players in My Life'.  The news was announced by publisher HarperCollins India on Ravi Shastri's birthday on May 27, 2021. In …

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Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson wins 2020-21 Kia NBA Sixth Man Award.

Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson has been named 2020-21 NBA Sixth Man of the Year award after averaging a career-high 18.4 points, four rebounds and 2.5 assists through 68 games, as well as posting two of the five 40-point games off the bench in franchise history. This is the firs…

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S&P affirms CCC-plus/C on Sri Lanka ratings with stable outlook.

S&P Global Ratings on Monday affirmed its long-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings on Sri Lanka at CCC-plus. It also affirmed short-term foreign and local currency credit ratings at C. The transfer and convertibility assessment is CCC-plus. The outlo…

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Stock Market Buoyant in 2021.

The Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) has recorded 9.3% growth in Year-to-Date (YTD) All Share Price Index (ASPI) within the first 05 months of 2021. The S & P SL 20 Index fared even better with YTD growth of 13% The market also saw record breaking YTD Market Turnover volume…

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CCPI based Inflation increased to 4.5 per cent in May 2021.

Headline inflation, as measured by the year-on- year (Y-o-Y) change in the Colombo Consumer Price Index (CCPI, 2013=100)1, increased to 4.5 per cent in May 2021 from 3.9 per cent in April 2021. This was driven by monthly increases of prices of items in both Food and Non-foo…

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ICC expands men's world events: ODI WC to 14 teams, T20 WC to 20 teams.

The 2027 men's ODI World Cup will feature 14 teams after the ICC Board decided to expand the quadrennial tournament in its next cycle of events. The decision came after a meeting on Tuesday amid a raft of significant changes to the ICC events calendar from 2023-2031, in…

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Naomi Osaka withdraws from French Open.

Naomi Osaka’s decision to withdraw from the French Open, after revealing her battle with depression and anxiety, has thrown the tournament into turmoil and cast a harsh light on the mental health of the sport’s superstars. The 23-year-old world number two, and four-time majo…

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China announces three-child policy to boost falling birth rate.

Married Chinese couples may have up to three children, China announced on Monday 31 May 2021, in a major shift from the existing limit of two after recent data showed a dramatic decline in births in the world's most populous country. Beijing scrapped its decades-old one-…

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Global Day of Parents - 01 June.

The Global Day of Parents is observed on the 1st of June every year. The Day honors parents throughout the world. The day provides an opportunity to appreciate all parents in all parts of the world for their selfless commitment to children and their lifelong sacrifice towar…

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World Reef Awareness Day - 01 June.

World Reef Awareness Day on June 1st serves as a call to action for consumers, businesses and organizations to reflect on the delicate ecosystem of our ocean’s coral reefs. The day brings together the general public, influencers and opinion leaders to create active change t…

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World Milk Day - 01 June.

Real milk takes the spotlight on World Milk Day, always on June 1. The day is intended to bring attention to activities connecting the dairy sector. The annual observance is marked with events across the globe: milking demonstrations and farm visits; games and competitions; …

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World Narcissistic Abuse Awareness Day - 01 June.

World Narcissistic Abuse Awareness Day on June 01 dedicates the day to education, support and effective change. Unlike physical abuse, narcissistic abuse leaves no physical marks. A form of Psychological and emotional abuse, it is invisible and difficult to prove. Yet, its e…

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China to Send 3 Male Astronauts to Its Space Station in June 2021.

A three-man crew of astronauts will blast off in June for a three-month mission on China’s new space station, according to a space official who was the country's first astronaut in orbit. The comments by Yang Liwei, the manned space program’s deputy chief designer, to st…

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Chinese climber becomes 1st blind Asian to scale Mount Everest.

A Chinese climber who became the first blind Asian to scale Mount Everest says he aims to climb the highest peaks on all seven continents and then travel to the North and South Poles. Zhang Hong, 44, is also the third blind climber internationally to reach the world's hi…

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Grammy winning American Singer B. J. Thomas Passes away.

Following a battle with stage-four lung cancer, B.J. Thomas, whose musical career endured for over 50 years, died May 29 at his home in Arlington, Texas. He was 78. Thomas was a chart force beginning in the 1960s. He logged 26 hits, including two No. 1s among five top 10s, o…

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EDB Supports Farmers and Processors to obtain Sri Lanka Organic Certification.

The Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) is implementing an assistance scheme to enable farmers and processors in Sri Lanka to obtain organic certification as per the Sri Lanka Organic Standard – SLS 1324:2018. The certificates will be issued by the certification instit…

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World Bank and European Union Support Sri Lanka’s Agriculture Modernization and Job Creation.

The Ministry of Finance and the World Bank recently signed a new grant from the European Union to support the Agriculture Sector Modernization Project (ASMP). This grant is part of the EU’s EUR 25 million support to the US$ 125 million project and will be administered by th…

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The French to Explore Sri Lankan Markets in Maritime Economy, Renewable Energies and Mineral Resources.

Following the high-level webinar on Maritime Economy organised by the Mouvement Des Entreprises de France (MEDEF), and the International Maritime Task Force together with Sri Lanka Embassy in France in March 2021, a virtual meeting was organized on 21 May 2021 to consider t…

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“Ceylon Cinnamon Tea” launched in Oman coinciding with International Tea Day.

Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the Sultanate of Oman Ameer Ajwad launched a new brand “Ceylon Cinnamon Tea” at AI Meera Hypermarket in Muscat, Oman on 21 May 2021 coinciding with the International Tea Day. He also distributed “Ceylon Tea” dyed Face Masks which were recently deb…

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Google Photos ending free storage on June 01.

Google Photos will end its unlimited free storage policy for photos and videos next week. After June 1, any new photos and videos you upload will count toward the free 15GB of storage that comes with every Google account. But don’t worry, any photo or video you’ve uploaded …

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‘Tarzan’ actor Joe Lara among 7 killed in plane crash.

Investigators on Sunday 30 May 2021 continued searching for the bodies of seven people believed killed in the crash a day earlier of a small jet into a Tennessee lake, including an actor who portrayed Tarzan in a 1990s television series. Rutherford County Fire Rescue Capt. J…

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Chelsea beats Manchester City to win Champions League 2020-21.

Chelsea clinched the Champions League title on Saturday 29 May 2021 after beating Manchester City 1-0 in the all-English final. A first-half goal from summer signing Kai Havertz, the most expensive player in Chelsea's history, was enough to earn Thomas Tuchel's side …

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Members appointed to Port City Economic Commission.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa today (May 31) appointed members to the Colombo Port City Economic Commission. President’s Counsel Gamini Marapana has been appointed as the Chairman of the Commission. Remaining members of the Commission are: S. R. Attygalle - Secretary to the Tre…

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US says it will not rejoin Open Skies treaty with Russia.

The United States told Russia on Thursday 27 May 2021 it will not rejoin the Open Skies arms control pact, which allows unarmed surveillance flights over member countries, a US official reportedly said. Citing unnamed US officials, The Associated Press reported that Deputy S…

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Vietnam detects a new UK-Indian coronavirus variant.

Vietnam has detected a Covid variant that appears to be a combination of the Indian and UK variants and can spread quickly by air, officials say. Vietnam's Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long described the latest mutation as "very dangerous". Viruses mutate all th…

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Exercise Steadfast Defender 2021 is underway.

NATO’s largest military exercise since 2018, Exercise Steadfast Defender 2021, has begun with a maritime operation off Portugal, a logistics exercise in southern Germany and a rapid reaction exercise in central Romania. Exercise Steadfast Defender 2021, which is designed to …

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EU approves Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for 12-15 year old.

The EU's medicines agency (EMA) has approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for 12-15 year olds, the first jab allowed for this age group in the bloc. Individual member states must now decide if they will offer the vaccine to children.  The US and Canada approved the Pfizer …

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