A fleet of 17 MI17 helicopters from Sri Lanka's air force has been deployed in South Sudan as part of the UN mission in the (UNMISS).

A total of 104 personnel are deployed in the permanent base of the Sri Lanka aviation unit in Bor, alongside the aircraft.

The UN continues to employ peacekeeping troops from Sri Lanka on its missions, despite the credible reports of mass atrocities committed by the forces during the armed conflict on the island and the reports of sexual abuse during a mission in Haiti.

A UN review recently called for a ban on countries to serve as peace keepers if their troops were involved in the sexual abuse of children.

Sri Lanka has lowered its economic growth rate of 2014 to 4.5 per cent from the earlier 7.4 per cent.

The change in the base year from 2002 to 2010 and the methodology of calculation, according to a release issued by the Department of Census and Statistics (DCS) caused the drop.

Northern Provincial Councillor Ananthy Sasitharan will contest the general election in Sri Lanka independently, after the Tamil National Alliance refused to nominate her.

Ms Sasitharan is reported to have filed her nomination papers for the Jaffna electoral district on Thursday.

The councillor, who won the highest number of votes after Chief Minister CV Wigneswaran in the NPC elections, said she would stand on behalf of those directly affected by the armed conflict.

In an interview with Shakthi TV, the Ms Sasitharan said she attempted to gain a nomination through the main TNA constituent party, ITAK, but that this was rejected by the TNA leadership. The EPRLF, the party of TNA spokesperson Suresh Premachandran offered to give her the nomination, however ITAK chief Maavai Senathirajah rejected this, she further said.

The general secretary of the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) stated that the coalition would not allow a “diaspora festival” to be held, in response to questions about the year ahead.

UPFA General Secretary Susil Premjayantha told The Island that if the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, currently headed by Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, were to come to power, then a festival that was designed to engage with the Tamil diaspora would not be allowed to take place.

"We’ll not allow planned Diaspora festival later this year,” said Mr Premjayantha. “The question doesn’t arise as we’ll be in power."

A new cruise service will travel between Colombo and Kochin in Kerala.

Luxury cruise liners from Colombo-based Herbilan Cruises Lanka Pvt Ltd will commence operations on October 2 and will go on till March 2017.

“The cruise ship will call on the Kochi Port on October 3. and it can carry 590 tourists and 260 staff.” the Chief Executive Officer, HCLPL, Ivan De Almeida, who was in the capital for discussions with the tourism officials, told The Hindu.

The shortest route to the island from India would be between the Tamil Nadu city of Rameswaram and Talaimannar in the Tamil-dominated North-East, however despite repeated demands, including by the Northern Provincial Council, a ferry service has not been started, after it was halted in the 1980s due to the escalating armed conflict between Tamils and the Sri Lankan government.

The UNP will lead a new coalition with the JHU to take on the UPFA in the forthcoming general election on August 17.

The United Front for Good Governance will include several prominent politicians with the SLFP and the JHU and will contest under the elephant symbol of the UNP.

Sri Lanka’s President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces Maithripala Sirisena visited the main base of Sri Lanka’s Airforce at Katunayake.

Photographs: Colombo Page

Observing a guard of honour, Sirisena planted a tree sapling to mark his visit to the military base on Friday.

The victims of the Navaly church bombing were remembered on the 20th anniversary of the attack at a mass in the town’s St Peter’s Church earlier today.

Relatives of those who died were joined by other civilians and politicians in commemorating the dead. A traditional flame was lit and small lamps were placed in front of pictures of the victims by those attending the service.