6 ways to uncover Kandy's rich culture – Experience these authentic adventures in Sri Lanka's Hill Capital
A simple and delicious way to explore the local culture is to take a foodie tour. You get a range of eateries, cafes, restaurants and stalls offering local must-try dishes. Sample some rice and curry, which is the most popular meal in the country. Add condiments like dhal curry, tender jackfruit curry, a meat or fish variety, pennyworth salad and papadam to the menu. Other foods you can eat include hoppers (Sri Lankan pancakes shaped like a bowl), string hoppers (steamed noodle cakes), pol roti, milk rice and chilli relish.
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Indian Express
28 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Behind Mazagon Dock's Lanka deal: Eye on China, Colombo bailout plea
A strategic move to contain China's expanding footprint in the region, a Sri Lankan SOS for bailout, and a failing Japanese firm — these were among the factors that led to the Indian government-run Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited's decision to acquire a controlling stake in Sri Lanka's Colombo Dockyard PLC under a US$ 52.96 million deal, officials have told The Indian Express. Announcing its decision on Friday, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) had said: 'Located in the Port of Colombo, Colombo Dockyard PLC (CDPLC) gives MDL a strategic foothold in the Indian Ocean Region — a key maritime corridor.' CDPLC, listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange, is the flagship of Sri Lanka's maritime industry and serves a wide spectrum of commercial and governmental clients across Asia, Middle East and Africa. Officials from both the Sri Lankan and Indian governments worked overtime to conclude this strategic deal on Sri Lanka's largest shipyard, said sources. According to officials, CDPLC has been in dire straits for some time. 'Since it is 51% owned by Onomichi Dockyard Company Ltd, they initially sought relief from the Government of Japan, and thereafter from the Government of Sri Lanka. However, neither government could provide any financial relief to them,' an official said. At the end of November 2024, Onomichi Dockyard exited from CDPLC. At this point, officials said, the Sri Lankan government requested the Indian government to encourage Indian investors to look at Colombo Dockyard. 'A default by CDPLC would be serious for the Sri Lankan government as, out of the remaining 49% stake, around 16% is owned by their Employees' Provident Fund. Sri Lanka's insurance fund owns around 9%, Sri Lanka Ports Authority 5% and so on. A default would also have brought great financial distress and uncertainty for the workers employed in Colombo Dockyard,' the official said. 'A few companies, with strong credentials, expressed an interest in CDPLC. As per the due process followed for a listed company, MDL was shortlisted in view of its prowess in shipbuilding as well as its financial strength. Both these aspects are key for the turnover of Colombo Dockyard,' the official said. MDL's net worth, represented by its market capitalisation, is approximately $15.12 billion as of June 25, 2025. The company is almost debt-free. It has reported a turnover of approximately $1.13 billion, according to officials. MDL's decision is expected to significantly change the shipbuilding and ship repair landscape in the region. With CDPLC its first international venture, it is seen as a major milestone in the company's transformation from a purely domestic shipbuilder into a regional maritime player with global aspirations. 'It demonstrates the appetite by Indian industry, including PSUs, to acquire strategic assets overseas and to build investment-led partnerships,' the official said. On the other hand, MDL's controlling stake will serve as a force multiplier for CDPLC, said officials. MDL will bring an order pipeline for CDPLC from both domestic and international market for repairs, refits and new builds, they said. The move is expected to boost the existing revenue stream from the Indian sub-continent's ship repairs. A number of orders for which potential clients are approaching MDL can be diverted to CDPLC, the official said. On sharing of expertise, the official said both the shipyards possess enormous expertise garnered over the past decades. 'This strength can be leveraged for mutual benefit and can result in a win-win scenario,' the official said. The resources available at both the yards can be shared for mutual benefit. 'For instance, the detailed design capabilities possessed by both the yards can be leveraged for projects at MDL as well as at CDPLC,' the official said. CDPLC, which is currently under financial distress, can benefit from MDL's strong financial capabilities, thereby expediting the turnaround process. CDPLC will now be in a position to secure contracts which it missed earlier due to poor financial health, the official said. In a regulatory filing, the Mumbai-headquartered shipbuilder said the proposed acquisition would enable the company to strengthen its position in the ship repair and shipbuilding industry by unlocking operational synergies, enhancing research development capacities and expanding market reach. 'It supports the company's long-term growth vision in the shipbuilding and ship repair industry,' it said. The move comes amid concerns in New Delhi over Beijing's persistent attempts to expand its strategic influence in the island nation. China Merchants Port Holdings holds an 85% stake in Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG) and secured a 99-year lease on the Hambantota International Port (HIP) in Sri Lanka in 2017. In July 2024, CDPLC and HIPG signed an agreement to set up a full-fledged workshop at HIP. Shubhajit Roy, Diplomatic Editor at The Indian Express, has been a journalist for more than 25 years now. Roy joined The Indian Express in October 2003 and has been reporting on foreign affairs for more than 17 years now. Based in Delhi, he has also led the National government and political bureau at The Indian Express in Delhi — a team of reporters who cover the national government and politics for the newspaper. He has got the Ramnath Goenka Journalism award for Excellence in Journalism '2016. He got this award for his coverage of the Holey Bakery attack in Dhaka and its aftermath. He also got the IIMCAA Award for the Journalist of the Year, 2022, (Jury's special mention) for his coverage of the fall of Kabul in August 2021 — he was one of the few Indian journalists in Kabul and the only mainstream newspaper to have covered the Taliban's capture of power in mid-August, 2021. ... Read More
India Gazette
37 minutes ago
- India Gazette
"A lot of matches are like knockouts for us...": SL skipper Dhananjaya rues lack of international red-ball cricket
Colombo [Sri Lanka], June 28 (ANI): After their side's series win, which marked the new ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 cycle, Sri Lankan skipper Dhananjaya de Silva said that the championship has become more competitive and with less Tests under their belt, a lot of matches become a 'knockout' fixture for them. Sri Lanka started their WTC 2025-27 campaign with a 1-0 win over Bangladesh. SL will be playing only a two-match series throughout their cycle, as the schedule stands right now. The important statistic in WTC is 'percentage of points won', which means that teams that play far fewer games than others can still finish in the top two. But it is important for them to win a lot of games and not miss a step. After the win, Silva stated, as quoted by ESPNCricinfo, 'The WTC is like other World Cups- a lot of matches are like knockouts for us. We have talked about how we win when we make the fewest mistakes, and we need those wins to get those extra points. In the last cycle, we made a few mistakes, and that is what cost us. Hopefully, we can correct that this cycle.' 'It is become a competitive trophy. Even, we have started thinking about our run rates in light of what's happening. The Championship is a great thing for Test cricket,' he added. During the last cycle, SL was in contention for the final till the late stage, but finished sixth with five wins and eight losses. They played far fewer Tests as compared to the 'Big Three', England (22), India and Australia (19 each). Sri Lanka is not scheduled to play Tests till May next year, but they face the task of keeping their red-ball game on point in these times without proper international Test match cricket. In this situation, the team has requested Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) for more Tests. 'We only have domestic matches. Right now, there is a one-day tournament, and after that, there will be a three-day tournament. There's also the National Super League. That's how we will have to keep our form. Unfortunately, there are no Tests,' Silva said. 'We have made requests to the SLC to play more Tests. I think they are talking about it with other teams. Even if we can play three or four extra Tests, we will be able to continue the good things we are doing,' he added. Dhananjaya said that in addition to scoring quickly, the team is also focusing on bowling a lot of maidens. During the Colombo Test, they bowled 18 maidens out of a total of 123.5 overs - roughly 15 per cent. 'Whenever we come into a Test series, we have some key performance indicators,' Dhananjaya said. 'One of the things we analysed this time was that our maiden percentage needed to be higher. So that's what we planned to do. We have to keep some pressure on the opposition in Tests to get some wickets at the other end. I think our bowlers did that very well,' he concluded. Sri Lanka won the second Test by an innings and 78 runs and wrapped the series 1-0, claiming some valuable points in the World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle on Saturday. Sri Lanka needed just 28 minutes of the morning session of the fourth day to wrap up the entire series and secure their ninth-innings victory over Bangladesh. Left-arm ball tweaker Prabath Jayasuriya did the bulk of the damage and returned with figures of 5/56, his 12th five-wicket haul. Jayasuriya weaved his magic just three deliveries into his first over of the fourth day. Litton Das tried to negate the threat with forward defence but edged it to wicketkeeper Kusal Mendis (14) behind the stumps. He stung Bangladesh again in his next over by having Nayeem Hasan stumped on 5(8). He completed his five-wicket haul by pouching a return catch to his right from Taijul Islam. Tharindu Ratnayake got into the thick of the action and trapped Ebadot Hossain in front of the stumps in the next over to pull the curtain down on Bangladesh's innings in just 34 deliveries into the morning session. Jayasuriya spun his best against Bangladesh and found his lost mojo after going wicketless in the first innings and striking once in Galle. In the second innings, a total of nine wickets fell to spin, with Tharindu and captain Dhananjaya de Silva sharing two apiece apart from Jayasuriya's five-for. Earlier in the Test, Bangladesh won the toss and opted to bat, just as they had done in the series opener in Galle. However, they failed to replicate their previous success and turned out to be pale shadows of their former self. They finished with 247 on the board, and in reply, Sri Lanka notched 458 on the board, courtesy of Pathum Nissanka's flamboyant 158(254), Dinesh Chandimal's resilient 93(153) and Kusal's quick-fire 84(87). Bangladesh attempted to conjure an inspired performance but fell short in their efforts. Jayasuriya tore through Bangladesh's batting order and forced them to pack on 133 in 44.2 overs, sealing a 1-0 series win for the hosts. Brief Scores: Bangladesh 247 and 133 (Mushfiqur Rahim 26, Prabath Jayasuriya 5-56) vs Sri Lanka 458 (Pathum Nissanka 158, Dinesh Chandimal 93, Kusal Mendis 84, Taijul Islam 5-131). (ANI)
The Hindu
3 hours ago
- The Hindu
BJP bringing up Katchatheevu issue to divert attention from Centre's failure to secure T.N. fishermen's rights: TNCC chief
Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president K. Selvaperunthagai on Saturday said the BJP was raking up the 50-year-old Katchatheevu issue to divert attention away from the Union government's failure to ensure Tamil fishermen don't face violence and harrassment from the Sri Lankan Navy. In a statement, Mr. Selvaperunthagai said External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar was trying to cover-up the actions of the Sri Lankan Navy against Tamil Nadu fishermen over the last 11 years of BJP rule at the Centre. He also clarified that Katchatheevu was not ceded to Sri Lanka during Emergency. 'The External Affairs Minister has made factually incorrect statements. Emergency was not in effect when the agreement [to cede the island] was signed on June 26, 1974. On July 23, 1974, the then External Affairs Minister Swaran Singh tabled a report in the Lok Sabha and addressed Parliament. All political parties, including the BJP, participated and voiced their opinions,' he said. 'After the Congress government, did Prime Minister Vajpayee, during his six-year tenure, or Prime Minister Modi, during his 11-year rule, ever hold talks with the Sri Lankan Prime Minister about reclaiming Katchatheevu? If Katchatheevu was truly the root cause of the fishermen's problems, the Indian government should have raised this with Sri Lanka,' Mr. Selvaperunthagai added. He said: 'Tamil Nadu fishermen are not arrested near Katchatheevu. Instead, they are arrested when they unintentionally cross the maritime boundary into Sri Lankan waters, especially during nighttime fishing. Therefore, the BJP government must hold talks with Sri Lanka to secure fishing rights in those waters based on the livelihoods of Tamil Nadu's fishermen.'
