The Sri Lanka Army has decided to appoint a special investigation committee consisting of 07 senior officers chaired by a Major General to probe the accident that occurred during the Diyatalawa Fox Hill Supercross.

Army Spokesman Major General Rasika Kumara said that this committee appointed by the Army Headquarters is tasked with reporting the incident to the Commander of the Army. The investigators will utilize existing videos and photographs related to the accident.

The spokesman outlined several areas of inquiry for the committee, including determining the causes of the accident, identifying responsible parties, confirming the safety measures for spectators, assessing the track's quality assurance processes and recommending preventive measures for future accidents.

The Fox Hill Supercross 2024 was held on 21 April 2024 at the Fox Hill Supercross track.

Seven individuals including an eight-year-old child were killed and 20 others hospitalized with injuries when two racing cars lost control and collided with a group of spectators during the 17th race of the 1500cc Ford Laser Mazda 323 category.

The injured were admitted to the Diyatalawa Base Hospital, with 10 later transferred to the Badulla Teaching Hospital for further treatment.

Two racing drivers who participated in the racing event have been arrested by the police over the accident and remanded till April 30 by the Bandarawela Magistrate's Court.

Final preparations are underway for the Presidential elections tomorrow to elect the 9th Executive President of the country. Ballot boxes are being dispatched to polling stations along with election officers to 13,421 polling centres across the country.

Founder of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) and former Minister Basil Rajapaksa left for Dubai from the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) this morning, the airport Duty Manager said. He left for Dubai on Emirates Airlines (EK-649) at 03.05 a.m.

The scrutiny of answer scripts for the 2024 Grade 5 Scholarship Examination has been suspended due to the ongoing investigations into the leak of the first paper in Anuradhapura, Education Ministry Secretary J.M. Thilaka Jayasundara said.

The Commonwealth Election Monitoring delegation, led by former President of Seychelles, Danny Faure, met President Ranil Wickremesinghe at the Presidential Secretariat this morning, the President's Media Division (PMD) said. The delegation discussed the progress of their current tour, including their deployment plan around the country.

A 45-year-old man was shot and killed this morning near the Nedimala Cricket Ground in Dehiwala by two unidentified men on a motorcycle.

The Sri Lankan Mission in Lebanon has issued a safety alert for Sri Lankans residing in the country following a series of blasts targeting Hezbollah militants' communication devices, resulting in numerous casualties.

The National Security Council, chaired by President Ranil Wickremesinghe, held a meeting today (19) at the Presidential Secretariat to discuss preparations for the 2024 Presidential election.

Canada announced Wednesday it was slashing international student permits next year, and tightening foreign worker rules to further bring down the number of temporary residents in the country.

Three persons, including the invigilator, who were on duty at the examination centre of the Rathmale Thissa Maha Vidyalaya in Anuradhapura were to be suspended over the leakage of a Grade 5 Scholarship Examination question paper, North Central Provincial Education Director S.M.W. Samarakoon said.

The Examinations Department and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) have launched an investigation into concerns raised over the first paper of the recently held Grade 5 Scholarship examination.

Sri Lanka has reached agreements with external commercial creditors to restructure approximately USD 17.5 bn of external debt, achieving a 40.3% Net Present Value (NPV) concession, the President’s Media Division said.

The Education Ministry today announced the closure of all schools tomorrow (20) as requested by the Election Commission. The schools will reopen on Monday (23).

The Government Medical Officers' Association (GMOA) has announced a trade union action tomorrow (18), targeting hospitals across the country, GMOA spokesman Dr. Chamil Wijesinghe said.

Six teachers, including a school principal in an examination centre in Anuradhapura, who had allegedly shared the first question paper of the Grade Five scholarship examination using a mobile phone, were taken into custody by the officials of the Examinations Department.

Over the past 76 years, politics in the country has turned into a massive business, causing widespread hardships, Presidential candidate Janaka Rathnayaka said.

SJB presidential candidate Sajith Premadasa, addressing a rally, pledged to provide targeted fuel subsidies to essential workers, including farmers, fishermen, three-wheeler drivers and school van/bus operators.

Anura Kumara Dissanayake, the presidential candidate of the National People’s Power (NPP), has pledged to completely remove VAT on essential sectors such as food, education, and healthcare.

PAFFREL has received reports from the Nuwara Eliya area over a group distributing boxes of matches featuring a Presidential candidate's picture and election symbol on either side. Executive Director of PAFFREL, Rohana Hettiarachchi, said he has informed the Assistant Commissioner of Elections for the Nuwara Eliya district about this issue.

The Public Security Ministry said that there are currently no plans to impose a curfew on election day and that all security measures are in place, with the armed forces on standby if necessary.

NPP MP Vijitha Herath hinted that the Prime Minister could be a female in a National People's Power (NPP) government. Speaking at a meeting in Minuwangoda, he said after the victory on September 21, a new Cabinet will be appointed with the powers vested with the President under Article 47.3 of the Constitution and parliament will be dissolved.