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An Article published in The DailyFT.

An article published in The DailyFT.

President Maithripala Sirisena on Tuesday inaugurated Dilmah Conservation's One Earth Arboretum. In the capacity of Minister for the Environment, President Sirisena has been a strong advocate of environmental protection. He was joined by Dilmah Founder Merrill J. Fernando, who shares the same commitment to environmental stewardship, in declaring open the unique and far reaching project.

Turning over the pages of a Dilmah Conservation publication on traditional communities in Sri Lanka, I recollected how, as young boys in the early 1940s, we were fascinated by young men and women clad in colourful clothes going from door to door.

The Ranaviru Sevana Sports Club Ragama overcame Monaragala Shakthi Sports Club by two wickets in the final of the Dilmah National Blind Cricket Tournament at the Royal College Cricket ground.

Kiwi cricket legend Sir Richard Hadlee was in Sri Lanka on a flying visit to spend a day with the Cricket Live Foundation, of which he is the patron. The Foundation is a joint collaboration between the Merrill J. Fernando Charitable Foundation and Cricket Live New Zealand formed to help children from underprivileged backgrounds develop life skills for a successful future.

"What is more important for a fast bowler; line or length?" asked Sir Richard Hadlee from a line of awestruck teenage fast-bowler aspirants. They looked up at the towering Sir Hadlee and hesitantly volunteered their answers. About half of them were right but all of them had to demonstrate the answer before one of the best fast bowlers in history.

The Sri Lanka National Blind Cricket team is currently preparing for a Pakistan tour, in which they will be playing three T-20 and three one day matches from 3 to 10 April. The team received their official uniforms sponsored by Dilmah yesterday.