The Hon. (Dr.) Nalinda Jayathissa - Minister of Health and Mass Media
The Minister tabled a response identifying SLBC and ITN-operated Lak Handa and Wasantham FM as state-owned radio stations, with employee numbers and profit/loss data since 2015 placed in the Library. He stated that SLBC recorded losses from 2015 to 2023 and that a special expert committee has been appointed to recommend measures to make it self-financing. He also noted that strategic short-, medium- and long-term plans are being prepared to sustain profitability and increase revenue for Lak Handa and Wasantham FM.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Speaker, I table the answer.
¶ 02 State-owned radio stations: 1. Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation (SLBC) 2. Lak Handa and Wasantham FM (operated by the Independent Television Network)
¶ 03 Employee numbers and annual profit/loss (Rs. million) since 2015 are detailed in the tabled document. In brief, SLBC recorded losses each year 2015–2023; Lak Handa and Wasantham FM under ITN show annual figures as tabled, with recent improvement noted.
¶ 04 Measures: - For SLBC: A special committee of sector experts has been appointed to propose measures to transition from loss to profit and make SLBC self-financing. - For ITN’s Lak Handa and Wasantham FM: Strategic plans are being prepared to maintain profitability, with short-, medium- and long-term programmes initiated to enhance revenue.
¶ 05 (b) Not applicable.
¶ 06 (Answer tabled; placed in the Library.)
Provenance
- Source
- Hansard, Thursday, 9 January 2025 ·No. 1738229262040729 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. (Dr.) Nalinda Jayathissa - Minister of Health and Mass Media. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 9 January 2025. No. 1738229262040729. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/23689