Daily News Archives

Former Editor-in-Chief of ‘Daily News’, Senior Journalist, Diplomat Bandula Jayasekera passes away ( He also served as the Consul General of Sri Lanka in Toronto, Canada and in Sydney Australia) Source:-Daily News Senior Journalist, Newspaper Editor and Diplomat Bandula Jayasekera passed away at the age of 60 this morning. He was the Editor-in-Chief of the Daily News in 2006–2007. He also served as Director General, President’s Office Media Unit for some time during President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s tenure and Director General (Public Communication) at the External Affairs Ministry. His last foray in media was at Sirasa\MTV where he worked until recently as a talk show host, including for the popular ‘Pathikada’ programme. As a diplomat he served in Australia, Canada and also as Sri Lanka’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN in New York. Bandula Jayasekera was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic Syndrome, a type of blood cancer in July 2019. His ...

A Journey to Mannar and the ‘Dancing Islands’ – 2 – by Nimal Chandrasena Pearl Fishing Recording my recollections and reflections about what life would have been like in Mannar, centuries ago, I digressed. My attention was drawn to perhaps the most important and interesting aspect of life in Mannar and the north-central coastline for thousands of years (I learnt that later!). It is Pearl Fishing. Pearl oysters, from whom pearls are obtained, are a group of ‘bivalves’ (type of Mollusc), mainly of the Genus Pinctada (Familiy: Pinctodae); and several species, including the one common in the Gulf of Mannar: Pinctada radiata. Pearls are formed when an irritant, such as a tiny stone or bit of sand gets inside the mollusc’s shell. The bivalve secretes a lustrous substance called ‘nacre’, around the object to protect its soft internal surface. As layer upon layer of nacre coats the irritant, a pearl is ...