Scene from http://www.elakiri.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1432549&page=2 .. and not in the book as far as i know
Launch of The National Trust Book CEYLON RAILWAY HERITAGE By K.A.D. Nandasena & Vinodh Wickremeratne will be held on the 25th May 2017 at 6.15 pm followed by our Monthly Lecture No.95 at 6.30 pm at the HNB Auditorium
Michael Roberts
Perinbanayagam 
Peiris 
GunatillekeIn coming across one of my old essays on the Vijaya myth reproduced and questioned within my website Thuppahi recently, I circulated it (ITEM TWO below) once again by email – perhaps too hastily. Both responses to this email and the original commentary signal sharp reactions. Besides they involve eminent Sri Lankan scholars in the person of Professor Robert S. Perinbanayagam of Hunter College in New York and Professor Gerald H. Peiris of Peradeniya University, besides enabling me to bring in the incisive intervention of Godfrey Gunatilleka and to hark back to a ‘line’ from the economist VK Wickremasinghe (son of the noted author Martin Wickremasinghe). Continue reading
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Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh greet and are greeted by the Diyawadana Nilame of the Dalada Maligawa
Fr. Sheron Dias, Oourtesy of Asian Tribune, Rome 11/5/17 with title as “20th Annual National Rally Of The Sri Lankan Catholic Migrants At Padova In Italy”
For the 20th consecutive year the Sri-Lankan Catholic migrants living in Italy gathered at the hallowed Shrine of St. Anthony of Padova on the 1st of May 2017. Thousands of Srilankans took part in the Festive High Mass followed by the Solemn Procession and the Blessing with relic of St. Anthony of Padova. This Annual National Rally of the Sri-Lankan Catholic migrants was organized under the guidance of Rev. Monsignor Neville Joe Perera, the National Coordinator to the Sri-Lankan Catholic migrants in Italy in collaboration with the Chaplain Priests.
Sajiv Panditha, courtesy of RoarLanka where the title is “Beyond Ella: Two Of Sri Lanka’s Greatest Railway Marvels”
Ella was once a quiet village in the Uva Province. In recent times however, the town has transformed into one of the island’s upcountry hotspots. The influx of tourism has seen Ella morph into a backpacker hub, effectively positioning itself as the “Hikka of the Hills”. Travellers flock here for the cool climes, stunning views, and adventurous hikes, but many may not be familiar with the stories along its railway line. Undoubtedly, the most scenic route to Ella is by train. After Nawalapitiya, the train begins its ascent into the central highlands, snaking through tea plantations as it reaches Pattipola, the highest broad gauge railway station in the world. Onwards, the line begins an acute descent into the Uva Province, terminating at Badulla. Ella is the last major stop before Badulla, but just beyond, lay two historic marvels of railway engineering. Continue reading
Shenali D Waduge, reproducing here an old article in Lankaweb from 22 December 2013 which I had not seen even though I had interacted closely with Murali in Colombo in May-June 2009 (as well as subsequently) and been commissioned to write pieces for Frontline; while also been privileged to chat with Kanchan Prasad in mid-2010 after Murali introduced me to her, after which I gained access to her invaluable snaps of the Nandikadal war zone. These I placed in a special site, viz. http://www.flickr.com/photos/thuppahi/sets/72157626797805167/ et seq.
Waduge’s article is entitled “Sri Lanka’s War had Witnesses : Indian Journalist B. Murali Reddy”. In the reproduction below, the highlighting in red [as distinct from black] is my imposition as Editor, Thuppahi. Also see my SPECIAL NOTE at the end
Murali at entrance to LTTE bunker hospital at Last Redoubt –Pic by Kanchan Prasad
Firstly Sri Lanka’s war did have witnesses. The witnesses were however NOT – Gordon Weiss, Francis Harrison, Channel 4, the Darusman Panel, Charles Petrie and a whole list of others who have promoted themselves as witnesses when they are not because they were never inside the war zone. They were only passing between themselves a version they have contrived that fits well within a different agenda that has nothing to do with what they claim it is. Questioning their credibility further is their sources – who happen to all be pro-LTTE. However, there was a witness throughout. He was foreign and his name is B. Muralidhar Reddy, an Indian journalist working for The Hindu/Frontline and his account “Final Hours – An eyewitness account of the last 70 hours of Eelam War IV’ gives a real eyewitness account of what he himself saw. http://www.frontline.in/static/html/fl2612/stories/20090619261200900.htm Continue reading
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Avani Dias, courtesy of ABC Net, May 14 May 2017, where the title runs “Border Girls: Women in Sri Lanka take on male roles to help recovery from brutal civil war,” http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-07/border-girls-help-sri-lanka-recover-from-civil-war/8499728
Women and girls whose male relatives were killed in Sri Lanka’s brutal civil war are now helping the country recover, taking on roles formerly reserved for men and heading to schools and universities to complete their education. The so-called “Border Girls” mostly come from towns and villages which formed a human buffer zone between the opposing sides during the 27-year conflict, which ended in 2009 and left tens of thousands of civilians dead, many of them killed in the war’s bloody final phase. The majority of border girls, who are from the Tamil, Sinhalese and Muslim ethnic groups, lost their partners, fathers, and brothers in the war, which pitted government troops against Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) guerrillas, also known as the Tamil Tigers. Now these resilient women want to independently lead a change in Sri Lanka by pursuing their education and altering community attitudes so women have a leadership role in the traditionally male-led society.
Saroja Dilrukshi, 16, lost most of her family during the Sri Lankan civil war
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C. A .Chandraprema, introducing “God’s Secret Agent” by Herman Gunaratne, … courtesy of The Island
The launch of Malinga Herman Gunaratne’s latest book ‘God’s Secret Agent’ at Misissa Hills a boutique hotel in Mirissa on 16 April was well attended. Among the guests were the former editor of The Island Gamini Weerakoon, the editor of The Sunday Times Sinha Ratnatunga, and the head of the Derana media network Dilith Jayaweera. There were as many foreigners as locals in the audience. Ashok Ferry who discussed the book with Herman G asked him whether it was a work of fiction to which the latter answered in the negative stating that this was a book which was based on his own experiences with a Christian ‘holy man’ by the name of Nissanka Wimalasuriya. This ‘holy man’ who according to Herman G, worked with the Holy Spirit had performed virtual miracles for him as well as many of his friends, curing physical or mental ailments, solving career problems and the like. This book was Herman G’s way of paying homage to this ‘holy man’ whom he had known for decades and also the unseen force that helped him to do what he did
Muralidhar Reddy in Video Interview = https://newsroom24x7.com/straight-talk-inside-pakistan/
Muralidhar Reddy is Associate Editor of India’s national newspaper, The Hindu. Earlier from 2000 to 2006, he was the Islamabad Correspondent for the same newspaper. In an interview earlier this week (8 May 2017) with Lalit Shastri, Editor-in-Chief of Newsroom24x7.com, Reddy did some straight talk and spoke with conviction backed by experience gained while reporting from the ground in Pakistan and especially from the Pakistan side of Kashmir. He talks of factors responsible for a lot of bitterness towards the US among not only the radicalised Muslims but also seasoned academicians, thinkers and poets in Pakistan, who believe that the US has used Pakistan, -its people, soil and the military – for its own ends but dumped their country when they needed help.
In this photo US President Jimmy Carter stands by smiling as Pakistani dictator General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (Centre) shakes hands with the US national security adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski 
SPECIAL FOREWORD: The Timeless Classics Concert raised $35,000 in net returns to the Foundation. We are planning to repeat the concert in Colombo at the time the newly elected Rotary International Director visits Sri Lanka in November 2017. The event will be organised by two Rotary Clubs in Colombo spearheaded by our own Trustee, Rotarian Indrajith Fernando. The artistes have agreed to donate their services and their talent to help us raise funding for the hospital.
Dear Members of our Project Interest Group,
These pictures were taken during a site visit on 6th April 2017. We were thrilled to see the progress and the sheer size of the super structure. The contractor CECB is confident of finishing on schedule, 15th November 2017 but I would add another six weeks for the prospect of rain, material delays and so forth.
thuppahi
