23 January – Sri Lankan Test cricketer Dimuth Karunaratne is included in the ICC Test Team for the Year 2023.[9] Women's cricketer Chamari Athapaththu is included in and appointed as the captain of both the Women's ODI Team and T20I team for the Year 2023.[10][11]
3 February – Following his arrest, Minister of Environment Keheliya Rabukwella resigns from his ministerial post following public pressure.[19]
23 February
A Russian-owned cafe in Unawatuna schedules a controversial "white only" party to be held on 24 February, where a face control policy would be employed to restrict entry solely to white individuals and attendees. The Russian DJ hosting the party elaborates by saying the party was open only to "white people, no locals." Following public backlash, the event is cancelled. The DJ later says on Instagram that he left Sri Lanka with his family.[20][21]
The Department of Immigration and Emigration issues a notice granting 14 days, starting from 23 February, for Russian and Ukrainian tourists living long-term in Sri Lanka to leave the country. Many of these tourists had been residing in Sri Lanka on periodic extensions of their tourist visas since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.[21][22] The notice is passed without prior approval from the Cabinet of Sri Lanka, thus prompting president Wickremesinghe to order an investigation into the announcement.[23][24]
30 March – Notorious drug trafficker “Location Kudu Malli” is arrested by Badalgama Police and is caught with 6,120 milligrams of drugs.[42]
April
3 April – Sri Lanka is ranked as the best destination for solo female travelers in 2024, according to the London-based global magazine Time Out.[43]
4 April – Actress Damitha Abeyratne and her husband are arresrted and remanded over alleged financial fraud.[44][45]
5 April – The special luxury tourist train titled ‘Dunhinda Odyssey’ is launched, to mark the centenary of the inception of train services on the Colombo–Badulla line.[46]
8 April – International cricketer Kamindu Mendis wins the ICC Men’s Player of the Month Award for March 2024.[47]
18 April
Sri Lanka breaks the record for the highest-ever successful run-chase in women’s ODIs by chasing 302 runs against South Africa.[48]
Piyumi Wijesekara is selected among NASA’s new crew for the next simulated Mars journey and goes to the Human Exploration Research Analog, or HERA.[49]
17 May – W.A. Chulananda Perera, a Retired Special Grade officer of the Sri Lanka Administrative Service (SLAS) is appointed as the first-ever Sports Ombudsman of Sri Lanka.[64]
17 May – Actress Dinara Punchihewa is included in the ninth edition of the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list.[65]
21 May–2 June – 2024 Sri Lanka floods: At least 16 people are killed in flooding and mudslides caused by monsoon rains across the country.[67]
25 May – Sprinter Yupun Abeykoon wins the gold medal in the Men’s 100m event at the 2024 Anhalt Athletic Championship in Germany with a timing of 10.16 seconds (wind+0.3).[68]
30 May – The film Sheysha directed by Isuru Gunathilake wins the award for the Best Dance Film at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.[69]
June
1 June – Sprinter Aruna Darshana wins the gold medal in the Men’s 400m event at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships with a timing of 45.82 seconds. Meanwhile Tharushi Karunarathna wins the gold medal in the Women’s 400m event with a timing of 52.48 seconds. On 2 June, she wins the gold medal in the Women’s 800 meters event with a timing of 2.05.74 minutes.[70][71]
3 June – All the schools nationwide are closed due to prevailing adverse weather conditions.[72]
4 June – Hemali Kothalawala, Director General of the Department of Animal Production and Health is appointed as Vice President of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) Regional Commission for Asia and the Pacific.[73]
5 June – A 45-year-old man and two women are arrested for brutally assaulting a four-year-old child in a viral social media video.[74]
13 June – International women's cricketer Chamari Athapaththu wins the ICC Women’s Player of the Month for the month May 2024.[76]
15 June – Rumesh Tharanga wins the Gold medal in the Javelin Throw event at the Asian Throwing Championships with a new Sri Lanka record of 85.45m.[77]
21 June – The Sri Lanka women's cricket team wins the ODI series against West Indies 3-0, for the first time in 16 years.[78]
26 June – The Sri Lankan government reaches an agreement with external lenders to restructure $5.8 billion in public debt.[79]
28 June – Former MP Hirunika Premachandra is sentenced to three years of rigorous imprisonment by the Colombo High Court after being found guilty of being involved in the abduction of a youth in the Dematagoda area in 2015.[80]
29 June – Four fishermen are reported dead aboard a vessel after drinking liquids from bottles found floating off the coast of Tangalle.[81]
July
7 July – Thirteen people are injured after a panicked elephant chases a crowd during a Hindu religious procession at the Kataragama temple.[82]
10 July – Members of the Station Masters’ Union go on strike over administrative and human resource issues, resulting in the cancellation of hundreds of scheduled train journeys nationwide.[84]
16 July – Sri Lankan-born award winning celebrity baker Tharshan Selvarajah becomes the first Sri Lankan to carry the Olympic Torch, carrying it out at the 2024 Paris Olympics.[85]
21 July – Asanka Abeygunasekara, former Director General of the Institute of National Security Studies of Sri Lanka (INSSSL) is arrested over a case filed by the Inland Revenue Department and later granted bail.[87]
22 July – International women's cricketer Chamari Athapaththu becomes the first centurion in the history of the Women’s Twenty-20 Asia Cup, after smashing an unbeaten 119 runs (69 balls) with 14 boundaries and 7 sixes against Malaysia.[88]
28 July – The Sri Lanka women's cricket team becomes the Asia Cup champions for the first time after beating India in the final.[89]
29 July – Colombo Port is ranked as the world’s fastest-growing port in the first quarter of 2024 with a 23.6% growth rate according to Alphaliner, a research publication in the shipping industry.[90]
August
1 August – Underworld figure Sujeewa Ruwankumara alias "Loku Patty" is arrested in Belarus, who is the main suspect in the killing of "Club Wasantha" at Athurugiriya.[91] Further, notorious criminal figures and large-scale drug traffickers known as “Kanjipani Imran” and Amila Sepala Ratnayake alias “Rotumbe Amila” are arrested in Russia.[92]
7 August
Sri Lanka defeats India in an ODI series after 27 years, after winning the third and final ODI by 110 runs.[93]
Sprinter Aruna Darshana finishes in 5th place in the 2nd semifinal of the Men’s 400m event at the 2024 Summer Olympics, with a time of 44.75 seconds, a new personal best. However the time is disqualified due to a lane infringement.[94] He previously qualified for the semifinals of the Men’s 400m event after finishing third in the 5th Heat race with a timing of 44.99 seconds, which is his personal best.[95]
8 August – International cricketer Praveen Jayawickrama is charged with three counts of breaching the ICC Anti-Corruption Code after allegedly failing to report without delay to the Anti-Corruption Unit, that he was approached to carry out fixing during International matches and in the 2021 Lanka Premier League.[96]
30 August – Former Sri Lanka Test cricketer Dulip Samaraweera faces investigations by Cricket Australia over allegations of serious misconduct towards a female player.[107]
11 September – South Asian U20 Athletics Championships: Sri Lankan athletes win a total of nine medals: three gold, three silver and three bronze. In the Men’s 100m final, Merone Wijesinghe wins gold with a timing of 10.41 seconds and Dineth Weeraratne wins silver with a timing of 10.49 seconds. In the Women’s 800m final, Tharushi Abeyshika wins the gold medal and Sansala Himashini wins bronze. Savindu Avishka wins the gold medal in the Men’s 800m final, whereas Shanella Anne Wijetungage wins bronze with a timing of 12.04 seconds in the Women’s 100m final. Meanwhile, Jayavi Ranhidha wins the bronze medal with a distance of 15.62m in Men’s shot put.[113]
22 September – 2024 Sri Lankan presidential election: The second round concludes, with NPP candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake being declared as president-elect of Sri Lanka. Dissanayake receives 55.89% of votes, defeating Sajith Premadasa with 44.11%.[116]
26 September – Sri Lanka batsman Kamindu Mendis becomes the first-ever player to score fifty-plus scores in eight consecutive Test matches in history.[124]
8 October – The Matale High Court issues an arrest warrant against former Sri Lankan cricketer and current Chairman of the Selection Committee at Sri Lanka Cricket Upul Tharanga over failure to appear before the court pertaining to a match-fixing case during the 2024 Legends Cricket Trophy.[126]
Arjun Aloysius, Director of W.M. Mendis Distilleries, and two others are sentenced to 6 months in prison for defaulting a payment of Rs. 3.5 billion in Value Added Tax (VAT) by Colombo Magistrate’s Court.[129]
Cricketer Kamindu Mendis wins the ICC Men’s player of the Month award for a second time.[130]
All schools in the Colombo, Gampaha, Kelaniya, Kolonnawa and Kaduwela Education Zones are closed for two days due to adverse weather conditions.[131]
15 October – “Cinnamon Life at City of Dreams Sri Lanka”, a 687 room luxury hotel is officially declared open in Colombo by the John Keells Group.[132]
17 October – Sri Lanka wins the maiden T20I series victory over the West Indies after winning the third T20I by 9 wickets.[133]
18 October – A train carrying fuel collides with a herd of elephants in Minneriya, killing two of the animals, derailing the train and causing a major leakage.[134]
20 October – Sri Lankan formula racer Yevan David wins the Euroformula, becoming the first ever Sri Lankan to participate in this category having advanced from F4 racing with a 1m43.444s.[135]
24 October – Three people are arrested on suspicion of involvement in a plot to attack Israeli nationals in the country.[137]
31 October – Former State Minister Lohan Ratwatte is arrested over an incident of discovering a car without number plates at his wife’s house in Mirihana, Nugegoda.[138]
^The Gazette Extraordinary (24 September 2024). "Proclamation by the President"(PDF). Department of Government Printing. Archived(PDF) from the original on 24 September 2024. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
^Balasuriya, Darshana Sanjeewa (24 September 2024). "General election on November 14". Daily Mirror. Archived from the original on 24 September 2024. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
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