The Turtle Conservation Project (TCP) of Sri Lanka established in the early nineties by a group of young volunteers with the aim of conserving marine turtles is also helping a number of community based projects.

With the assistance of UNDP

A new venture is to commence operations in Sri Lanka to help businesses minimise their environmental footprint and take advantage of carbon gains.

Matara Chief Magistrate Udesh Ranatunga, on Monday (20), fined two suspects Rs. 100,000, when they were produced before him for killing a turtle and selling its eggs.

The Matara police told the Magistrate that the suspects, who earned a living as fishermen, had been killing turtles for meat.

In a ceremony held on September 14, 2010, the High Commission of India handed over to the Government of Sri Lanka a project on Artificial Recharge of Ground Water Resources at the Export Processing

The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) distributed Non Food Relief Item (NFRI) kits to 350 flood affected families in Colombo yesterday.

The kits were provided in response to a general request from the government for assistance for those affected by the recent floods.

The United Nation Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) says Sri Lanka is emerging into economic prosperity. While many economies the world over are facing difficulties, many companies in the country are prepared for the next level of development, and it is high-time for the country to rebrand itself in the global market.

UNIDO Director General Dr.

Minister of Technology and Research Professor Tissa Vitharana said that his ministry would establish a task force to protect biodiversity and traditional knowledge and prevent bio piracy.

"Sri Lanka is a country which is rich in biodiversity, but some countries have recently obtained the patents for some of our products," he said adding that foreigners had smuggled out Sri Lankan biodiversity.

AMBALANTOTA - The first ever solar power generation projects will be launched in Hambantota district.

The two units will be set up at Buruthakanda on a 50-acre plot of land. The projects costing US Dollars 13.5 million will be funded by the governments of Korea and Japan.

They will provide 900kw of power.

Seven people have died of attacks by wild elephants while five wild elephants have been shot dead by cultivators and poachers in the North Western Wildlife Zone during the last three weeks. The Wildlife Department reported two deaths from Karuwalagaswewa, two from Anamaduwa and one from Ritigala from wild elephant attacks.

The Health Ministry has pledged to eradicate Malaria completely by 2014. Last year there had been five hundred cases.

The spokesman for the Ministry said yesterday that from the beginning of January to date, there had been only fifty patients diagnosed with malaria.