This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka , your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans  in Australia and beyond. 2025 වසර සඳහා විදේශ සංචාරක පැමිණීම් මිලියන දෙක ඉක්මවා ගොස් ඇති බව ශ්‍රී ලංකා සංචාරක සංවර්ධන අධිකාරිය (SLTDA) පවසයි. ශ්‍රී ලංකා සංචාරක සංවර්ධන අධිකාරිය (SLTDA)ට අනුව, සඳුදා බ්‍රිතාන්‍ය යුවළකගේ පැමිණීමත් සමඟ මෙම සන්ධිස්ථානයට ළඟා වූ අතර එය යථා තත්ත්වයට පත්වන සංචාරක අංශය සඳහා තවත් ධනාත්මක පියවරක් සනිටුහන් කළේය. වැඩිදියුණු කළ ගුවන් ගමන් සම්බන්ධතා, ප්‍රවර්ධන ව්‍යාපාර සහ ඉන්දියාව, එක්සත් රාජධානිය, චීනය සහ ජර්මනිය වැනි ප්‍රධාන වෙළඳපොළවලින් වැඩිවන උනන්දුව හේතුවෙන් ශ්‍රී ලංකාව වසර පුරා පැමිණීම්වල ස්ථාවර වර්ධනයක් වාර්තා කර ඇත. සංචාරක ව්‍යාපාරය ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ ඉහළම විදේශ විනිමය උපයන එකක් ලෙස පවතින අතර, ශීත ඍතුවේ උච්චතම කාලය තුළ පැමිණීම් අඛණ්ඩව ඉහළ යනු ඇතැයි නිලධාරීන් අපේක්ෂා කරයි. Credit : Newswire Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Sri Lankans .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Early forecasts suggest a damp start to summer for many parts of Australia, with several capitals tipped to see rain throughout December. Here’s what AccuWeather expects for each state and territory — including Christmas Day. New South Wales – Sydney Sydney is set for a cloudy and rainy December, with storms likely before Christmas. Temperatures will range from 19°C to 28°C. Christmas Day is expected to stay dry, with cloud cover and a top of 27°C. Victoria – Melbourne Melbourne will have warm but cloudy days, with highs around 25°C and lows near 13°C. Rain and storms may arrive late in the month. Christmas Day should be partly sunny with a comfortable 24°C. Queensland – Brisbane Brisbane will heat up, with highs of 30°C or more and lows around 21°C. Expect sunny days and scattered summer storms. Christmas Day looks mostly sunny, with some cloud and a high of 28°C. ACT – Canberra Canberra will enjoy mild, pleasant weather with highs near 26°C and lows around 13°C. Christmas Day is currently forecast to bring showers but still feel warm, reaching 28°C. South Australia – Adelaide Adelaide is heading for a hot December, with temperatures climbing into the low 30s and cooling to the mid-teens at night. Christmas Day may be wet, though the forecast high is 27°C. Western Australia – Perth Perth will see classic summer heat, with highs around 31°C and lows near 18°C. Most days will be sunny with the odd storm. Christmas Day is expected to be cloudy and warm at 29°C. Northern Territory – Darwin Darwin will be hot and humid, with highs around 34°C and lows near 26°C. Rain and thunderstorms are expected throughout the month — including on Christmas Day, which could reach 32°C. Tasmania – Hobart Hobart will ease into summer with mild temperatures, sunshine and occasional showers. Highs will sit around 25°C, with lows near 13°C. Christmas Day is shaping up to be cloudy and cool, with a top of just 19°C. Credit :9News More updates to come on AusNewsLanka .

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka , your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans  in Australia and beyond. පොලිස් මාධ්‍ය ප්‍රකාශක සහකාර පොලිස් අධිකාරී එෆ්. යූ. වූට්ලර් මහතා මතක් කර දී ඇත්තේ වලංගු ජාත්‍යන්තර රියදුරු බලපත්‍රයක් (IDP) හෝ තම මව් රටෙන් දේශීය රියදුරු බලපත්‍රයක් නොමැති විදේශීය ජාතිකයින්ට ශ්‍රී ලංකාව තුළ කිසිදු වාහනයක් පැදවීමට අවසර නොමැති බවයි. නීති විරෝධී ලෙස ත්‍රිරෝද රථ ධාවනය කරන සංචාරකයින් පොලිසිය විසින් වැඩි වැඩියෙන් නිරීක්ෂණය කර ඇති බව ඔහු පැවසීය. “බොහෝ විදේශිකයන් ත්‍රිරෝද රථ භාවිතා කරන ආකාරය අපි දැක ඇති අතර එය නීති විරෝධී ය. මෙම වාහනවල හිමිකරුවන්ට එරෙහිව පොලිසිය දැඩි පියවර ගෙන තිබේ,” ඔහු පැවසීය. විදේශීය සංචාරකයින් සහ දේශීය සංචාරකයින් යන දෙදෙනාම රට තුළ වාහන භාවිතා කරන විට ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ මෝටර් රථ ප්‍රවාහන පනතේ දක්වා ඇති රෙගුලාසි පිළිපැදිය යුතු බව සහකාර පොලිස් අධිකාරී වූට්ලර් මහතා පැවසීය. බොහෝ විදේශීය ජාතිකයින් වලංගු බලපත්‍ර නොමැතිව රිය පැදවීම සොයාගෙන ඇති බවත්, එමඟින් බලාත්මක කිරීම වැඩි වී ඇති බවත් ඔහු පැවසීය. පොලිසියට අනුව, වලංගු ජාත්‍යන්තර රියදුරු බලපත්‍රයක් ඇති විදේශීය ජාතිකයින්ට ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ නීත්‍යානුකූලව රිය පැදවිය හැකිය. තම මව් රටවල නිකුත් කරන ලද දේශීය රියදුරු බලපත්‍ර ඇති අයටද රිය පැදවිය හැකි නමුත් මෝටර් රථ ප්‍රවාහන දෙපාර්තමේන්තුවෙන් සහතිකයක් හෝ අනුමැතියක් ලබා ගැනීමෙන් පසුව පමණි. Credit : Dailymirror More updates to come on AusNewsLanka .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australia’s student accommodation sector is set for a major clean-energy upgrade, with the Albanese Government and the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) backing the country’s biggest apartment-electrification project — and it’s happening across student housing. Through a $50 million CEFC investment into The Living Company’s Scape Australia Core Fund, up to 20 large student accommodation buildings in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide will transition to fully electric systems. Gas connections will be removed, and new energy-efficient technologies will be installed. The upgrades will benefit more than 17,000 students by improving comfort and cutting emissions. This marks the first Commonwealth-funded electrification project of this scale for residential apartments — a significant step for both student living and Australia’s broader push toward net zero. Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy Josh Wilson said the project delivers the practical climate solutions Australians expect. He highlighted that electric buildings are cheaper to run, better for the environment and more comfortable for residents. The upgrades support the Government’s Built Environment Sector Plan and national Net Zero strategy. Scape buildings will also receive insulation improvements, advanced metering and trials of “grid-interactive” technology to help shift energy use to times when renewable power is most abundant. In another milestone, the CEFC has become the first Australian institutional investor to join TLCo.’s $6 billion Scape Australia Core Fund. The fund now has more than $300 million in new equity in just six months, representing the country’s largest institutionally owned residential portfolio and aiming to grow beyond $10 billion in the next five years. TLCo. leaders say the CEFC partnership reflects growing confidence in Australia’s living-sector platforms and a shared commitment to sustainability and community impact. Scape’s executives say electrification is both a climate responsibility and a long-term advantage for students. The investment follows strong sustainability results, with TLCo.’s development funds ranked #1 globally for residential sustainability performance and Scape’s Core Program scoring second in its category. TLCo.’s portfolio is on track to reach Net Zero Carbon by 2030 through electrification, renewable energy and climate-focused design. CEFC Property Executive Director Michael Di Russo said the project sets a new benchmark for residential climate action and is the largest apartment-electrification initiative the CEFC has supported. The upgrades will deliver: Modern, all-electric student apartments Reduced emissions and lower energy bills Smarter, more efficient building performance Housing designed for a net zero future As demand for sustainable, affordable student housing grows, this nationwide electrification program positions Australia as a global leader in clean, modern student living. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Australians .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Elite Cricket Centre officially opened its doors to the public on 8 November 2025, offering a world-class indoor facility designed for players of all levels. The centre features eight long run-up, international-standard training lanes with premium synthetic turf, four JUGS bowling machines, one Bola machine with auto-feeder and one leather ball machine to enhance precision and performance. Complementing the training experience are the Elite Power Hub gym, recovery rooms, cutting-edge video analysis and speed-tracking technology, along with a dedicated coaches’ room and a comfortable parent viewing lounge; creating a complete environment for cricket excellence in Victoria. Several cricketing stars graced the grand opening ceremony held in Hallam, Victoria. Founded by Prabath Nissanka; former Sri Lankan international fast bowler and Cricket Australia- Australian Accredited high-performance coach, together with Ashane Hewawasam; Cricket Victoria Premier Umpire, Australian entrepreneur and lifelong cricket enthusiast, ECC was born from a simple yet powerful vision; to give every cricketer, no matter their age or skill level, the chance to grow, learn and truly enjoy the sport. What began as a small coaching initiative has evolved into one of Victoria’s leading cricket development centres. Combining Prabath’s elite-level experience with Ashane’s leadership and business expertise, ECC has become a space where innovation, professionalism and genuine community spirit come together to create cricketing magic. Our purpose-built indoor facility features eight international-standard training lanes with premium synthetic turf, cutting-edge video analysis, speed tracking and a dedicated Elite Power Hub gym for strength and conditioning. We’ve also designed recovery zones, a coaches’ room and a parent viewing lounge, because we believe everyone should feel part of the action. At ECC, we offer coaching pathways for every stage, from junior development and one-on-one sessions to high-performance programs, holiday camps and club partnerships. Each program is structured, age-appropriate and designed to build confidence, discipline and a lifelong love for the game. More than a coaching facility, we are a community. a place where players, parents and coaches feel supported, inspired and proud to be part of something bigger. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Australians .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. More than a dozen Canberra schools and one Brisbane school have temporarily closed after a popular craft sand was found to contain traces of chrysotile asbestos. The ACCC this week recalled three products — Kadink Sand, Educational Colours Rainbow Sand and Creatistics Coloured Sand — after testing confirmed contamination. The sand had been used in some ACT public schools for sensory play and arts activities, prompting the closure of 16 schools and partial closures at others. Federal Assistant Minister for Health Rebecca White said each state and territory would decide how to respond, but stressed that removing the products from circulation was essential. She also called on Officeworks, a major retailer of the sand, to take responsibility. In Brisbane, Mancel College shut its campus after finding the product in its junior and senior classrooms. The school, which supports students with language disorders, asked parents to collect their children immediately. Indooroopilly OSHC also notified families that the sand had been used in its program. The centre initially announced an afternoon closure, but later reversed the decision after updated advice confirmed it was safe to remain open since the product was not used that day. Queensland authorities said no state schools had closed. Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek said most schools had already confirmed they were unaffected, with checks continuing at around 66 sites. He stressed the need for caution without unnecessary disruption. Other states and territories — Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory — reported no school closures. Their education departments advised that the health risk from the products is considered low but instructed schools to remove any recalled sand immediately. NT education officials said the risk of airborne asbestos was unlikely, but they were working closely with schools, childcare centres and safety regulators to ensure appropriate action. Consumers who have purchased the recalled coloured sand are urged to stop using it and follow ACCC advice on safe disposal. Credit : ABC News More updates to come on AusNewsLanka .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Melbourne is set for its biggest Sri Lankan celebration yet as Lankan Fest marks its 10th anniversary this Sunday, 16 November, at Crown Riverwalk.The milestone event celebrates a decade of culture, unity, and community pride — and honours the Sri Lankan Australians who continue to inspire the next generation. This year introduces the Luminary Awards , recognising ten outstanding Sri Lankan Australians for their leadership, service, and achievements: Professor David de Kretser AC  – Former Governor of Victoria and respected medical researcher. Shemara Wikramanayake  – Macquarie Group CEO and global business leader. Peter Kuruvita  – Celebrated chef who has taken Sri Lankan flavours to the world. Distinguished Professor Buddhima Indraratna AM  – Leading engineer and academic shaping global infrastructure. Dr. Nithi Kanagaratnam  – Cultural icon whose music has inspired generations. Mr. Victor Melder  – Founder of Melbourne’s Sri Lanka Library and champion of literary preservation. Dr. Lionel Bopage  – Advocate for justice, equality, and community empowerment. Dr. Bandu Dissanayake  – Former Honorary Consul General dedicated to strengthening bilateral ties. Dr. Mohamed Mohideen OAM JP  – Humanitarian and multicultural leader in Victoria. Shanaiah Fernando  – Emerging golf talent representing the next wave of Sri Lankan Australian excellence. Festival Highlights The Wild Cookbook Returns – Charith Silva brings his high-energy live cooking demos. Authentic Sri Lankan Food & Culture – Traditional dishes, cultural showcases, and heritage displays. Expanded Kids Zone – Face painting, games, treats, and all-day fun for families. Live Entertainment – Dance Troupe, Live bands & DJs. Lankan Fest ’25 is more than a festival — it’s a celebration of identity, connection, and community strength. Join the festivities on 16 November at Crown Riverwalk for a full day of culture, food, music, and inspiration as the Sri Lankan Australian community celebrates 10 remarkable years of Lankan Fest. Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Australians .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Australia’s jobless rate fell to 4.3% in October, down from 4.5% in September, signalling a steady and resilient labour market. The latest ABS data showed 42,200 new jobs were created last month, while unemployment dropped by 17,000 people. Economists say the rebound confirms September’s spike was just a temporary blip. Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers called it “a very positive result,” highlighting that 1.2 million jobs have been created under the current government, including 55,000 new full-time positions in October alone. The participation rate held steady at 67%, while underemployment fell slightly to 5.7%. However, analysts say the strong figures mean no early interest rate cuts are likely from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA). “Today’s report confirms the labour market remains tight, giving the RBA little reason to lower rates soon,” said BetaShares chief economist David Bassanese. Experts agree that while job growth has slowed from last year’s pace, the economy remains stable. The RBA expects unemployment to hover around 4.4% through 2026, reflecting a soft landing rather than a downturn. Australia’s jobs market remains strong, but interest rate relief still looks distant. More updates to come on AusNewsLanka .

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka , your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans  in Australia and beyond. බණ්ඩාරනායක ජාත්‍යන්තර ගුවන්තොටුපළේ (BIA) අලුතින් ඉදිකරන ලද මාකිය තුළ අත්හදා බැලීමේ පදනමක් මත නව චෙක්-ඉන් කවුන්ටර 14 ක් හඳුන්වා දී ඇති බව ගුවන්තොටුපළ සහ ගුවන් සේවා (ශ්‍රී ලංකා) (පුද්ගලික) සමාගම (AASL) නිවේදනය කර ඇත. මාසයක් ඇතුළත නිම කරන ලද මෙම පහසුකම, ශ්‍රී ලංකා සංචාරක සංවර්ධන අධිකාරිය (SLTDA) සහ ප්‍රධාන කර්මාන්ත පාර්ශ්වකරුවන් කිහිප දෙනෙකු අතර සහයෝගීතාවයේ ප්‍රතිඵලයකි. AASL ට අනුව, මෙම මුලපිරීම අරමුණු කර ඇත්තේ සුමට ගුවන්තොටුපළ මෙහෙයුම් සහතික කිරීම සහ ශීත සංචාරක සමයේදී මගීන්ගේ ගමනාගමනය සාමාන්‍යයෙන් වැඩි වන විට මගීන්ට කරදරයකින් තොරව පහසුව සැපයීමයි. ශ්‍රී ලංකාවට පැමිණෙන සහ පිටත්ව යන අමුත්තන් සඳහා සමස්ත සංචාරක අත්දැකීම් වැඩිදියුණු කිරීමේ සැලකිය යුතු පියවරක් සනිටුහන් කරමින් මගී ඉල්ලුම අනුව මෙහෙයුම් පුළුල් කිරීමට සූදානම් වෙමින් පවතින බව සමාගම තවදුරටත් පැවසීය. Credit : Dailymirror More updates to come on AusNewsLanka .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Children as young as 14 could soon face adult court trials and life sentences in Victoria under a new state government plan to tackle rising youth crime. Premier Jacinta Allan confirmed the proposal, titled “Adult Time for Violent Crime,” saying the move would target serious and violent offenders. The laws mirror Queensland’s tough youth justice model introduced in 2024. The announcement comes amid a 15.7% surge in statewide crime, driven by home invasions, thefts, and repeat youth offences. Police say more than 1,100 youths aged 10–17 were arrested around 7,000 times over the past year. Critics, however, have condemned the plan as harsh and counterproductive. Former Law Institute of Victoria chair Mel Walker called it “extraordinary and bad policy,” arguing that many young offenders are victims of trauma, neglect, and family violence themselves. “They don’t yet have the capacity for adult reasoning,” she said, warning that sending children to adult prisons would cause lasting harm. Human rights and Indigenous advocates also voiced strong opposition. Monique Hurley from the Human Rights Law Centre said, “Children deserve care, not cages,” warning the proposal would cause “irreversible harm.” Nerita Waight, CEO of the Victorian Aboriginal Legal Service, criticised the government for “signing away kids’ futures” while claiming to champion reconciliation. The state opposition, meanwhile, accused the premier of chasing headlines without a clear plan, while the government insists the new laws will help protect communities from violent youth crime. The announcement follows the government’s decision to soften its proposed protest mask ban, which now allows police to order face coverings removed only if a crime is suspected. Credit : The Guardian Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Australians .

At AusNewsLanka , we aim to keep the Australian community informed with timely updates. Victoria has been named Australia’s hardest state to do business in for the second year in a row, according to the Business Council of Australia’s 2025 report. The state ranked eighth overall, with the report pointing to high property and payroll taxes and heavy licensing rules as major hurdles for businesses — despite recent planning reforms aimed at speeding up housing approvals. In contrast, South Australia topped the rankings for the third straight year, praised for low payroll taxes, simpler approvals, and consistent planning regulations. The report assessed all states and territories across 10 key areas, including taxes, trading hours, insurance, business licensing, and planning processes. Victoria performed reasonably well in retail trading hours and workers’ compensation, but those gains were outweighed by the state’s tax and regulatory burden. The report highlighted Victoria’s nation-leading commercial stamp duty and high land tax rates, including new COVID-related surcharges and absentee owner taxes introduced in 2024. Premier Jacinta Allan defended her government, arguing Victoria continues to attract investment and build more homes than any other state. “The Business Council doesn’t understand what’s important to Victorian businesses and workers,” she said. Backing her stance, tech entrepreneur Bevan Slattery praised the government’s support, calling it “outstanding” during the launch of a $500 million subsea fibre optic cable project connecting Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Perth. The Business Council warned that Victoria’s weak performance could hurt national competitiveness, with CEO Bran Black urging the state to cut taxes and red tape to encourage private investment. Despite the criticism, Allan stood firm: “I’ll always back Victorian businesses and workers — no matter what commentators from Sydney say.” Credit : Theage Stay tuned with Aus News Lanka  – the leading platform for news for Australians .

This is a developing story brought to you by Aus News Lanka , your trusted source for news for Sri Lankans  in Australia and beyond. ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ සංචාරක කර්මාන්තය ශීත සෘතුව සඳහා ශක්තිමත් ආරම්භයක් වාර්තා කර ඇති අතර, 2025 නොවැම්බර් මාසයේ මුල් දින නවය තුළ සංචාරකයින් 61,890 ක් පිළිගෙන ඇත. මෙය 2024 දී එම කාලය තුළ පැමිණි ආසන්න වශයෙන් සංචාරකයින් 54,686 ට සාපේක්ෂව වසරින් වසර සියයට 13.2 ක වර්ධනයක් නියෝජනය කරයි. දිනපතා පැමිණීම් 6,877 ක සාමාන්‍යයක් සහිතව, කර්මාන්තය දැනට 'පහළ අවස්ථාව' මාසික ඉලක්කය වන 203,259 ට වඩා තරමක් ඉදිරියෙන් සිටී. කෙසේ වෙතත්, වර්තමාන පැමිණීමේ අනුපාතය නොවැම්බර් සඳහා වඩාත් අභිලාෂකාමී 'කොන්සර්වේටිව් අවස්ථාව' මාසික ඉලක්කය වන 232,176 සපුරාලීමට ප්‍රමාණවත් නොවන අතර, ඒ සඳහා මාසයේ ඉතිරි කාලය සඳහා දෛනික ගලා ඒම්වල සැලකිය යුතු වැඩි වීමක් අවශ්‍ය වේ. නොවැම්බර් මස මුලදී ප්‍රධාන වර්ධනයක් වන්නේ ශීත සෘතුව ආරම්භ වන විට ඉහළම මූලාශ්‍ර වෙළඳපොළවල් අතර දෙවන ස්ථානය ලබාගෙන ඇති රුසියානු සංචාරකයින්ගේ වැඩිවීමයි. රුසියානු සමූහාණ්ඩුව දින නවයක් තුළ සංචාරකයින් 8,220 ක් දායක වූ අතර එය මුළු පැමිණීම් වලින් සියයට 13.3 කි. ඉන්දියාව සංචාරකයින් 15,541 ක් (සියයට 25.1 ක කොටස) සමඟ පෙරමුණ ගෙන ඇති අතර, ජර්මනිය (පැමිණීම් 4,740) සහ එක්සත් රාජධානිය (පැමිණීම් 4,450) වැනි සාම්ප්‍රදායික ඉහළ කාර්යසාධනයක් සහිත වෙළඳපොළවල් පිළිවෙලින් තුන්වන සහ සිව්වන ස්ථාන කරා තල්ලු කර ඇත. සමුච්චිත පදනමක් මත, 2025 ජනවාරි 1 සිට නොවැම්බර් 9 දක්වා ශ්‍රී ලංකාව සංචාරකයින් 1,952,577 ක් පිළිගෙන ඇත. මෙය පසුගිය වසරේ එම කාලයට සාපේක්ෂව සියයට 16.5 ක ශක්තිමත් වර්ධනයක් සනිටුහන් කරයි. Credit : dailymirror More updates to come on AusNewsLanka .