2015 Sri Lankan Budget bag-full of election goodies

2015 Sri Lankan Budget bag-full of election goodies
The Sunday times Sri Lanka
By Bandula Sirimanna


With the Presidential election around the corner, Treasury officials headed by Dr. P.B.Jayasundera are fine-tuning the 2015 Budget on the directions of the President enabling him to unveil it in Parliament in two weeks.

Officials of the Department of National Budget and Department of Treasury Operations are under pressure in compiling final amendments to the draft Budget estimates, annexure and tables as well as making direct and indirect tax revisions to find money for election goodies.
The Treasury has to incur a sum of over Rs. 120 billion to increase the salary of public sector employees and the officials of National Budget Department were burning the midnight oil to meet the expenses for the salary hike and other concessions to be granted to the people in the 2015 budget.

The possibility of revising the salary of government servants numbering 1.3 million is also under consideration on recommendations made by the National Pay Commission appointed by the President in November 2013, informed sources said. According to Treasury estimates the total revenue receipts and grants amounts to Rs. 1,713 billion. The Appropriation Bill presented in Parliament last week estimates the total government expenditure for 2015 at Rs.1.812 trillion.

The President is expected to deliver his budget speech onTuesday, October 21st. But this date will be confirmed after his traditional consultation with astrologers and its finalisation at the party leaders meeting in parliament scheduled for Tuesday, October 7, high ranking government sources revealed.

The Government is focusing on the Medium Term Budgetary Framework 2015 – 2017 mainly to ensure development by creating more livelihood and employment opportunities, food security, energy security and environmental safety with particular emphasis on low income and poor families, these sources said.

The 2015 budget accords high priority to defence and urban development, education, drinking water in districts which are below the national average in social development, health, employment opportunities, basic infrastructure facilities and economic indices.

It has been planned to reduce the budget deficit to 4.4 per cent and increase the economic growth rate to 8.2 per cent during next year. In 2015, government investment is expected to be increased to 6.5 per cent of the GDP and maintain inflation at 5.5 per cent. As a percentage of the GDP the current government debt which is around 75 per cent is expected to be reduced to 71 percent.

Treasury officials made clear that government borrowings both locally and internationally including the raising of bonds overseas through state owned banks will be utilised for infrastructure development projects and improvement of the rural economy as well as to bridge the budget deficit and service foreign debt.

With the aim of winning the confidence of rural voters, the 2015 budget will make some populist announcements including a new crackdown on tax evasion with punitive fines, revision of corporate tax, streamlining the revenue collection process and provide concessions for farmers, fishermen, self-employed and small businesses.

With a drought affecting many farmers, the government will direct banks to suspend interest payments and delay loan recoveries under a special loan rescheduling scheme.

Under the initiative of protecting local producers and promoting import substitution, the commodity levy and cess on essential items, including maize, onions, potatoes and dairy products will be increased. Concessions will also be provided to improve the poultry industry encouraging exports.

Sri Lanka Chamber welcomes budget 2015

Sri Lanka Chamber welcomes budget 2015
27 Oct, 2014 16:00:48
Oct 27, 2014 (LBO) –Sri Lanka’s Ceylon Chamber of Commerce welcomes the ‘National Budget of 2015’ which is presented to the parliament last week, the chamber said in a media release.

The Media Release by Ceylon Chamber of Commerce

The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce welcomes the commitment to continued fiscal consolidation in the Budget 2015, particularly the projected lowering of the deficit to 4.6%, which is supportive of macroeconomic stability.

Whilst there is a proposed 15% increase in government expenditure, given the slack in demand in the market recently, a degree of fiscal stimulus can be accommodated without substantial over-heating of the economy.

However, the Chamber encourages the authorities to act quickly and decisively if there are signs of significant deviation from the government’s commendable targets for inflation and the current account of the balance of payments.

Given the proposed changes in VAT, NBT and PAYE taxes and the fact that nearly two-thirds of the proposed new revenue for 2015 has been estimated to come from the refinance facility for collection of tax arrears, meeting the proposed revenue targets may remain a challenge.

It is encouraging to note the gradual shift in the nature of tax incentives away from blanket, long-term tax holidays towards alternatives that are more targeted, such as accelerated depreciation, tax holidays with defined time horizons, and tax concessions that are directly linked to the amount and type of new investments undertaken.

The Chamber welcomes the new initiatives to better link revenue and other state agencies and stronger integration of ICT in revenue collection.

It also supports the proposal to have a one-stop-shop service center at Sri Lanka Customs, which will contribute to improved trade facilitation. These measures will improve the ease of doing business in Sri Lanka, which is often more important than granting tax concessions.

The Chamber acknowledges the positive measures which have already been undertaken to promote exports, including entering into Free Trade Agreements (FTAs).

However, realizing the full potential of these would not be possible without a concerted effort at improving Sri Lanka’s export competitiveness. In this connection, we cannot overstate the importance of encouraging export-oriented foreign direct investment (FDI) into Sri Lanka.

The reduction of electricity tariffs is welcome given that high energy prices are a key factor affecting competitiveness of Sri Lankan enterprises. Moving forward, the Chamber recommends the implementation of a transparent and market-reflective energy pricing mechanism, rather than ad-hoc adjustments.

We also recommend that attention is placed on addressing the quality of electricity supply, particularly issues of power brown-outs and fluctuations, and efficiently meeting the emerging needs of industries.

The Chamber is encouraged by the increased attention to education contained in the Budget 2015, and its emphasis on strengthening Sri Lanka’s potential as a knowledge economy.

The Chamber particularly welcomes the proposals to invest a further Rs. 15 billion in school laboratories; to introduce a scheme of school-based teacher recruitment; to expand skill development and vocational training; and to establish new faculties and degree programmes in science, technology, management and multi-disciplinary studies across several universities in the country.
The Chamber observes that while many of the spending proposals on education are focussed on enhancing access and affordability, a stronger focus on improving the quality and relevance of education at all levels is a critical pre-requisite to increase productivity and competitiveness in order to achieve the ‘Vision 2020’. In this regard, we emphasize the importance of taking a pragmatic approach of public, mixed and private provision of education, training and skills development.

Measures for further public investment in irrigation and reservoir development contained in the budget are welcome, particularly in light of difficulties faced by communities across Sri Lanka during the recent drought.

Additionally, the proposal to improve the availability of water in areas affected by the kidney disease ‘CKDu’ will contribute to the longer-term health and well-being of these communities, which in turn strengthens their economic potential.

Given the changing demography of Sri Lanka’s population and the associated challenges in expanding social safety nets, the Chamber recognises the need for introducing pension schemes as envisaged in recent budgets including Budget 2015.

However, the Chamber cautions against pension systems that are non-contributory and that are occupation-specific, as they could lead to fragmented schemes that experience difficulty in making steady payments, and are expensive and unwieldy to administer. A pension scheme that is professionally managed and sufficiently robust to meet the financial obligations of an ageing population is desired. While recognizing the hardships faced by senior citizens in a low interest environment, we urge the authorities to exercise caution in implementing the proposal for offering a 12% interest on deposits in state banks, to avoid creating distortions that could have a negative impact on the financial sector. Moving forward, the financial needs of senior citizens should be addressed through the development of pension products.

While substantial new financial allocations have been made for various government institutions and development programmes, the Chamber emphasizes the need to accompany them with reform of the operating structures of the institutions utilizing these funds so that the envisaged outcomes can be better realized.

Overall, while acknowledging that any budget must be seen in a policy continuum, and is one in a series of ongoing measures to reach national economic goals, the Chamber observes that the proposals contained in the Budget 2015 must be complemented with measures that help achieve the economic transformation envisaged by the government in its ‘Vision 2020’ and ‘Five Hubs’ strategies.

To achieve this transformation it is also important to avoid the current over-emphasis on subsidies and welfare transfers that have the unintended consequence of keeping people in low productivity and low income-generating economic activities.

Finally, the Chamber encourages the initiation of work towards an accrual-based accounting system for government finances, with a view to full implementation by the year 2020, in line with best practices adopted by other middle-income countries.

Foreign direct investment in to Sri Lanka doubles to US442mn in 1Q

Foreign direct investment in to Sri Lanka doubles to US442mn   in 1Q

29 May, 2014 12:31:17

May 29, 2014 (LBO) - Foreign direct investments into Sri Lanka doubled from a year earlier to 442 million US dollars in the first quarter of 2014, investment promotion minister Lakshman Abeywardena said.

He said 36 percent of the investments came into tourism, 26 percent into utilities, 15 percent into infrastructure, 7 percent into industry and 4 percent into apparel.

In the first quarter 40 new projects were approved, and 38 agreements signed.

During the first quarter 27 have begun construction and 26 firms have started operations, Abeywardena said.

In 2013 Sri Lanka had attracted 1,398 million US dollars worth investments.

This year Sri Lanka is expecting 1.5 billion US dollars Minister Abeywardena said.

Sri Lanka outlines 12% defence budget increase

Sri Lanka outlines 12% defence budget increase

Jon Grevatt, Bangkok - IHS Jane's Defence Industry 
28 September 2014
 
The Sri Lankan government proposed on 26 September a 2015 defence budget of LKR 285 billion (USD2.18 billion), a 12% increase over military spending in 2014.

The allocation - contained in the government's 2015 appropriation bill - amounts to about 16% of the total expenditure for the year and about 2% of national GDP.

The government provided no comment or supporting information about the defence budget, although unidentified official sources cited in local media said the increase was the first step of a drive to boost the defence budget to LKR370 billion by 2017.

ANALYSIS
While this pledged increase is significant, Sri Lanka's military will not be the sole beneficiary of investment.

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2015 தமிழீழ ஆக்கிரமிப்பு இராணுவ வரவு செலவுத் திட்டம்

அனந்தியின் ஐ.நா.குறித்த பலகணி

அனந்தியின் ஐ.நா.குறித்த பலகணி

300 நாட்கள்: Free AJ Staff

தர்மபுரி: நத்தம் காலனி 144 தடை

தர்மபுரி: நத்தம் காலனி 144 தடை 

2013 ஆம் ஆண்டில் தர்மபுரியில்  நத்தம் காலனி இளவரசன் - செல்லன் கொட்டாய் திவ்யா ஆகியோர் காதலித்து கலப்புத் திருமணம் செய்துகொண்டனர். 

இதைப் பொறுக்காத ராமதாஸ் தலைமையிலான சாதி வெறிக் கும்பல் நத்தம் காலனியில் சாதி வெறித்தாண்டவம் ஆடியது.

இதன் உச்சமாக இளவரசனை படுகொலை செய்து  2013, ஜூலை 4 ஆம் தேதி அன்று ரெயில்வே தண்டவாளம் அருகில் தூக்கிவீசி எறிந்து விட்டு ``தற்கொலை`` என்று கூறி தன் கொலைக் குற்றத்தை மூடி மறைத்தது.

நத்தம் காலனி ``சாதிக் கலவரத்துக்கும்``, இளவரசன் படுகொலைக்கும் பொறுப்பான, ஜனநாயக, தேச விரோத, சாதி வெறிப் பயங்கரவாத, சமூக விரோத ராமதாசுக்கு எதிராக சட்டம் எந்த நடவடிக்கையும் எடுக்கவில்லை.

இந்தப் பின்னணியில் நத்தம் காலனி மாரியம்மன் திருவிழாவை ஒட்டி மாவட்ட ஆட்சியர் விவேகானந்தன், தர்மபுரியில் 144 தடை உத்தரவைப் பிறப்பித்துள்ளார்.

இந்த உத்தரவானது, நாயக்கன் பாளையம், நத்தம் காலனியைச் சுற்றி 5 கிலோ மீட்டர் வரையிலான சுற்றளவில் 20 நாட்களுக்கு அமலில் இருக்கும் என்றும் மாவட்ட ஆட்சியர் விவேகானந்தன் உத்தரவிட்டுள்ளார். 

ISIS: We've Got the Weapons U.S. Meant to Kill Us With

எங்களைக் கொல்ல அமெரிக்கா கொட்டிய ஆயுதப் பொதிகள் சில  எம்வசம்!

A new ISIS video purports to show weapons airdropped by U.S. forces intended for Kurdish fighters in the hands of the very militants the munitions were meant to destroy.

ISIS: We've Got the Weapons U.S. Meant to Kill Us With

The U.S. on Sunday said it had dropped weapons, ammunition and medical supplies for the first time to Kurdish fighters defending the Syrian town of Kobani from ISIS. A day later, U.S. officials said one of the six airstrikes it carried out near Kobani intentionally struck a bundle of supplies to keep it from falling into the wrong hands.

ISIS propaganda material in the past has shown fighters flaunting what appear to be U.S.-made weapons, tanks and Humvees seized from retreating Iraqi forces.

Still, the seizure of emergency arms dropped by the U.S. for Kurdish forces would be a troubling development mixed with a dose of embarrassment for the American-led anti-ISIS coalition. One of the main sticking points against arming moderate rebels battling to unseat Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad was the idea weapons could fall into the wrong hands.

A new video released Tuesday by Aamaq News — an ISIS affiliated media unit — shows hand grenades and RPGs which a fighter in the video says were dropped from U.S. aircraft.

Rifling through a crate, a fighter fiddles with rusty-looking munitions and explains “this is some of the military equipment that was dropped by American forces.” A box with metal cannisters is opened and the man cracks open the case: “These are the bombs that the American forces dropped for the Kurdish parties,” he says. “They are spoils of war for the Mujahideen.”

While the video could not be independently verified by NBC News, analysts and experts said it appeared likely the arms on display came from the U.S. airdrop. Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby told reporters Tuesday analysts were still analyzing the video, but the arms shown are the kind being dropped to Kurdish forces.

"So it's not out of the realm of the possible in that regard. But, again, we're taking a look at this, and we just don't know," Kirby said. "We are very confident that the vast majority of the bundles did end up in the right hands."

Reed Foster, head of the military capabilities desk at IHS Jane's, told NBC News that the video featured what appeared to be disassembled munitions from RPG-7 — probably sourced from an eastern European country — and an older type of DM41 fragmentary grenades of German origin.

“Unsurprisingly perhaps, many of these munitions are likely European in origin,” he explained. “Probably surplus stocks from NATO countries, which would potentially be much easier to procure … and fly them into theater than sourcing all the way from the U.S.”

A senior administration official told reporters earlier this week that the weapons dropped by the U.S. had been provided by Kurdish authorities, which would help explain the origins and why some of the weapons in appearing in the video appear aged and/or Soviet.

==============

EUROPE

Turkish President Says Airdrop By U.S. Aided Islamic Militants

By CEYLAN YEGINSU OCT. 22, 2014 NYT

ISTANBUL — President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey criticized on Wednesday an American airdrop of supplies and weapons near the Syrian town of Kobani, saying the United States had mistakenly aided the militants besieging the town instead of the Kurdish fighters defending it.

“What was done here was wrong,” Mr. Erdogan said at a news conference in Ankara, the capital. “Why? Because some of the weapons they dropped from the C-130s were seized by the Islamic State.”

American military aircraft dropped ammunition, small arms and medical supplies into Kobani on Sunday. Before the airdrop, Mr. Erdogan said he opposed any United States assistance to the Kurdish fighters affiliated with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, a separatist group in Turkey that Ankara and Washington regard as a terrorist organization.

An explosion in Kobani, Syria. Turkey said it would let Iraqi Kurds cross into Syria to fight the Islamic State there.Turkey to Let Iraqi Kurds Cross to Syria to Fight ISIS OCT. 20, 2014

“It would be wrong for the United States, with whom we are friends and allies in NATO, to talk openly and to expect us to say yes to such a support to a terrorist organization,” Mr. Erdogan said on Sunday, according to the semiofficial Anadolu news agency.

Video images circulated on Monday that appeared to show Islamic militants with some of the airdropped supplies. The Pentagon said the vast majority of the airdrops had reached the Kurdish fighters defending Kobani, but on Wednesday a Pentagon spokesman said some supplies might have fallen into the hands of the militants.

Turkey announced on Monday that it would start to allow Iraqi Kurdish forces, known as pesh merga, to cross into Kobani from Turkish territory to help defend the town. Mr. Erdogan said on Wednesday that he had proposed the idea in a recent conversation with President Obama.

“I have difficulty understanding why Kobani is so strategic for them, because there are no civilians there, just around 2,000 fighters,” Mr. Erdogan said.

The Turkish foreign minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, said on Tuesday that the logistical arrangements for the pesh merga to pass through Turkey into Syria were still being worked out.

மன்னாரில் மரக்கறி வியாபாரத்தில் மிலிற்றறி!

மன்னார்: மரக்கறி வியாபாரத்தில் மிலிற்ரறி

மன்னார் நுழைவாயிலில் படையினர் கடந்த டிசம்பர் மாதம் மரக்கறி விற்பனை நிலையம் ஒன்றை திறந்து குறைந்த விலையில் மரக்கறிவகைகளை விற்பனை செய்து வருகின்றனர்.

இதனால் மன்னார் மரக்கறி விற்பனையாளர்கள் தொடர்ச்சியாக பல்வேறு பாதிப்புக்கு உள்ளாகியுள்ளதாக கவலை வெளியிட்டுள்ளனர்.

மன்னாரிலுள்ள வர்த்தகர்கள் தம்புள்ள உள்ளிட்ட இடங்களில் மரக்கறிகளை கொள்வனவு செய்தே மன்னாரில் விற்பனை செய்து வருகின்றனர்,

குறிப்பாக இடவாடகை,வரி,செலவுகள் என்பவற்றை கருத்தில் கொண்டே விலைகளை தீர்மானித்து விற்பனை செய்து வருகின்றனர்.

ஆனால் படையினர் திறந்துள்ள மரக்கறி நிலையத்தில் மிகவும் மலிவான விலையில் மரக்கறிகள் விற்பனை செய்யப்படுவதால் தமது வியாபார நடவடிக்கைகள் பாதிக்கப்படுவதுடன் தமது வாழ்வாதாரமும் பாதிக்கப்படுவதாக வியாபாரிகள் குற்றஞ்சாட்டியுள்ளனர்.

தற்போது இராணுவத்தினர் உற்பத்தி செய்கின்ற மரக்கறி வகைகளை கொண்டு வந்து குறைந்த விலைக்கு விற்பனை செய்வதாகவும்,இராணுவம் விற்பனை செய்யப்படும் மரக்கறி வகைகளுக்கு ஒருவகை மருந்து தெளிக்கப்படுவதாகவும் தெரிய வருகின்றது.