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Tax on Motor vehicles which include cars, vans, trishaws and motor bicycles have been increased with immediate effect. The Ministry of Finance and Planning announced today that the increase was made to ensure a drop in the vehicles imported to the country in order to reduce the high traffic congestions prevalent. The Ministry also said that this move will help bring down the use of fuel by motorists.

The classifications of the Tax have been made to correspond with the engine capacity of the vehicles. Hybrid vehicle production taxes below 1000CC have been increased by 14 % with tax for all hybrids above 3000CC being increased by 57%.

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The Saudi government paid SR72, 000 (approximately 2.5 million rupees) in compensation to a stranded Sri Lankan housemaid whose Saudi sponsor had not paid her wages for the last 17 years, the Arab News reported.

Kusuma Nandini, 57, who had come to Riyadh in 1994, was kept a virtual slave in the house of her employer.  She was not paid her wages and was not allowed to contact anyone including her relatives back home.

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The late Professor Allama M M Uwise was a catalyst among the Muslim-Sinhala communities in creating a new literary culture in the promotion of a close relationship between both communities. He was also the doyen in the field of Tamil literature, said A H M Azwer, MP addressing the 16th memorial meeting of Dr M M Uwise at Colombo Tamil Sangam, Wellawatte, on Sunday.

Making the keynote address on the late Professor, Azwer said Dr Uwise was a great emissary of peace and had he lived today, he would have been the happiest person regarding the historical role played by President Mahinda Rajapaksa in eradicating terrorism and consolidating peace despite unpatriotic elements conspiring to harm the motherland.

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The US sponsored resolution on Sri Lanka at the 19 session of the UNHRC in Geneva was adopted short while ago with 24 countries voting for & 15 against 8 abstained

India voted in favour of a resolution backed by the United States at the UNHCR sessions conducted today. The UN's top human rights body has passed a resolution calling on Sri Lanka to properly investigate alleged war crimes during its 26-year conflict with the Tamil Tigers.

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Indian External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna referring to the US sponsored resolution against Sri Lanka at the 19th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, yesterday said that Sri Lanka is engaged with all parties in an effort to achieve a forward-looking outcome based on reconciliation, accountability rather than deepening confrontation and mistrust between the concerned parties.

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The time given to voters to register only in one district to prevent dual-registration will lapse on March 20th and the Elections Commissioner will take legal action against those who ignore the reminders to do so by the department, a senior official said.

Additional Elections Commissioner U. Amaradasa said the Elections Commissioner has informed voters who have been registered in several district to register only in one district. These voters were asked to inform the commissioner about their preferred district for registration on or before March 20th.

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Sri Lanka has requested Bangladesh to use the seaport at Hambantota, Bangladesh Finance Minister A M A Muhith said. “Let’s explore the benefit, since Hambantota port users wouldn’t need to go inside Colombo. That will help save time,” the Bangladesh minister said at the conclusion of the fourth round of Bangladesh - Sri Lanka Joint Economic Commission (JEC) meeting which ended in Dhaka on Thursday with a call to further expand cooperation between the two nations.