Southern Province Divisional Secretariats with outstanding performance in decentralising President’s Fund services recognised

Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, Minister of Education, Higher Education and Vocational Education, stated that one of the Government’s primary objectives is to build an education system that enables every child to receive the maximum benefits of education. She further noted that, despite the existing economic constraints and challenges, the Government has commenced this process by allocating substantial financial resources to the education sector.

The Prime Minister made these remarks on Saturday ( 24 October 2026) while attending the ceremony to hand over the newly constructed two-storey building at Vijitha Primary School in Polonnaruwa to the students.  Constructed with an investment of approximately Rs. 55 million from the Government, the new building comprises eight primary classrooms.

Following the official handover, the Prime Minister engaged in a friendly interaction with the students and inspected the facilities in the new classrooms. The Prime Minister also directed her attention to the academic and welfare issues affecting the conduct of teaching and learning activities at the school.

Elaborating further, the Prime Minister stated that implementing education reforms requires more than merely revising curricula. It is equally important to develop the necessary infrastructure, provide teacher training and establish a suitable school environment.

Accordingly, she noted that the Government would implement the new curricula in stages, taking into consideration the preparedness of the school system. She further emphasised that the Government’s objective under the new education reforms is to create a quality school environment where children can learn freely and happily, teachers can teach effectively, and the safety of children is ensured.

The Prime Minister also stated that particular attention would be given to improving infrastructure in primary education, including classroom space, furniture and equipment. She noted that, as the country’s economic stability improves, the Government expects to place greater emphasis on sectors such as education and healthcare. She further stated that the Government intends to allocate more funds for the implementation of education reforms in the coming year than it has allocated this year.

The Prime Minister also highlighted that legal proceedings had commenced towards the establishment of an Education Council to ensure professionalism and quality in the education sector. She added that both school curricula and teacher education curricula at National Colleges of Education were being revised to produce teachers equipped to meet the requirements of the new education reforms.

Pointing out that the Government aims to transform the entire education system by addressing institutional issues, infrastructure deficiencies and human resource shortages, the Prime Minister stressed that a key responsibility of the education system is to nurture citizens equipped with knowledge, skills and positive values. Emphasising that the dedication of teachers, together with the support of parents and the wider community, is essential to achieving this goal, the Prime Minister stated that all stakeholders must work together to protect village schools and ensure that children have access to quality education.

The occasion was attended by Deputy Minister of Housing, Construction and Water Supply T. B. Sarath, Polonnaruwa District Member of Parliament Padmasiri Bandara, the Chairman and members of the Lankapura Pradeshiya Sabha, education officials, including the Additional Provincial Director of Education of the North Central Province, principals, teachers, parents and students.

(Prime Minister’s Media Division)

MONETABRIEF —Strictures issued against Inspector-General of Police Priyantha Weerasooriya by Gampaha Magistrate Bandula Gunaratne have underscored the sharp practices allegedly used by local law-enforcement authorities to frame suspects — a tactic that is widely known but rarely addressed by the criminal justice system.

Gampaha Magistrate Bandula Gunaratne may have spoken for the silent majority when he pulled up the Inspector-General of Police over his alleged failure to issue fresh instructions to his subordinates to clean up their act, particularly in drug-related cases.

At the root of the magistrate’s controversial remarks was the Gampaha Anti-Narcotics Unit’s prosecution of the same suspect twice on the same day for the same offence, apparently in an attempt to inflate the number of drug-related prosecutions.

The magistrate had ordered three police officers of the Anti-Narcotics Unit and the Police Department to pay Rs. 200,000 in compensation to a suspect who had been wrongfully charged.

He had also ordered the IGP to issue a circular informing all officers under his command that proceedings should not be instituted without justification against innocent members of the public.

Alleging that Weerasooriya had failed to comply with the order, the magistrate told the court on Wednesday that he was reporting the police chief to the Court of Appeal for contempt proceedings.

The Officer-in-Charge of the Anti-Narcotics Unit had instituted proceedings against Chamara Chathuranga Marasinghe on a charge of possessing 130 milligrams of “ice” and 500 milligrams of heroin on 6 May 2026. He pleaded guilty and was fined. He was then charged under another case number on the same day for the same offence.

After the magistrate pointed out that there were two prosecutions, the police sought to withdraw the second case, but the matter was escalated. The magistrate took exception to the IGP’s failure to issue clear instructions to his officers on the handling of prosecutions.

Sri Lanka’s police force has long been accused of introducing small quantities of narcotics, weapons or explosives in order to frame suspects and have them prosecuted and, in some cases, wrongfully convicted.

The demand for an independent police commission to exercise disciplinary authority over the 85,000-strong police force was fuelled in part by the illegal acts of corrupt police officers.

Official sources said the latest strictures against the IGP had been discussed by the independent National Police Commission (NPC), which felt that the magistrate may have overstepped his authority.

While there has been justifiable criticism of the police, questions have also been raised as to whether the magistrate had the power to report the IGP for contempt.

“The NPC had several issues with IGP Weerasooriya because he had ignored some orders of the Commission,” a source close to the outgoing NPC said. “But in this case, the NPC has sided with him.”

Colombo High Court Judge Buddhika C. Ragala on Friday observed that the court had no authority to order the reinstatement of the robe of Bodu Bala Sena General Secretary Ven. Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thera, which was removed by prison officials.

The observation was made when the case against Gnanasara Thera over alleged derogatory remarks concerning Islam was taken up before the High Court.

Appearing for the accused, Senior Counsel Asoka Weerasooriya said the Kotte Mahanayake Thera had made a written request to prison authorities seeking the ceremonial reinstatement of the robe in accordance with Buddhist traditions without violating prison regulations. However, the authorities had not responded to the request.

Weerasooriya said the request was reasonable from the perspective of Buddhist religious practices and stressed that his client was not an organised criminal.

The Judge noted that prison authorities had informed court that Gnanasara Thera would be produced via electronic means due to tensions arising from the incident and concerns over possible disturbances.

The Thera was accordingly produced through a WhatsApp video call after the required electronic equipment could not be obtained.

Questioning the relief sought by the defence, Judge Ragala said the court could not issue an order regarding the reinstatement of the robe. He also noted that granting such relief could have wider implications for other Buddhist monks serving prison sentences.

The court directed the parties to make submissions at the next hearing on the possibility of reaching a plea agreement under the Code of Criminal Procedure (Amendment) Act No. 50 of 2024.

The case was fixed for January 29.

The Attorney General had filed the case under the Penal Code, alleging that remarks made by Gnanasara Thera concerning the Holy Quran had insulted Islam.

Senior Counsel Weerasooriya, with counsels Sanjay Marabe and Pasan Karunarathna, appeared for the accused, while State Counsel Supun Ranasinghe represented the Attorney General.