The following lists notable events that took place during the year 2024 in Sri Lanka.
Incumbents National Anura Kumara Dissanayake(Age ) Harini Amarasuriya(Age ) Jagath Wickramaratne(Age ) Murdu Fernando(Age ) Sajith Premadasa(Age ) National People's Power(since 23 September) National People's Power(since 24 September) National People's Power(since 17 December) Independent(since 10 October) Samagi Jana Balawegaya(since 3 January 2020)
Former Ranil Wickremesinghe(Age ) Dinesh Gunawardena(Age ) Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena(Age ) Jayantha Jayasuriya Asoka Ranwala(Age ) United National Party(until 23 September) Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna(until 23 September) Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna(until 24 September) Independent(until 10 October) National People's Power(21 November – 13 December)
Provincial
Governors Central Province – Sarath Abeykoon Eastern Province – Jayantha Lal Ratnasekera North Central Province – Wasantha Kumara Wimalasiri Northern Province – N. Vedanayagam North Western Province – Tissa Kumarasiri Sabaragamuwa Province – Champa Janaki Rajaratne Southern Province – Bandula Harischandra Uva Province – Kapila Jayasekera Western Province – Hanif Yusuf
Events 2019–present Sri Lankan economic crisis 2023–2024 mpox epidemic 2024 Sri Lanka floods Cyclone Fengal Operation Yukthiya Red Sea crisis Operation Prosperity Guardian
Events by month January 9 January – Red Sea crisis: The Sri Lanka Navy announces it will join a US-led operation in the Red Sea against attacks by Houthi rebels. President Ranil Wickremesinghe and other government officials defend this decision. 13 January – 897 more suspects are arrested under Operation Yukthiya, during a 24-hour window which ended at 12:30 am. 18 January – A lorry driver is shot and killed by a plainclothes police officer during a stop-and-search in Narammala. 21 January – Jaffna District parliamentarian S. Shritharan is elected as the new leader of the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi, the main constituent party of the Tamil National Alliance, defeating M. A. Sumanthiran and S. Yogeswaran and succeeding Mavai Senathirajah. 22 January – Five people are shot dead near the Beliatta exit of the Southern Expressway, including leader of the Our Power of People's Party Saman Perera. 23 January – Sri Lankan Test cricketer Dimuth Karunaratne is included in the ICC Test Team for the Year 2023. 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. 24 January – The controversial Online Safety Bill is passed by the Parliament of Sri Lanka by a 108–62 vote. The bill is widely criticised by human rights groups, journalists and opposition politicians as a means of stifling freedom of speech in Sri Lanka. 25 January – Sri Lankan women's cricketer Chamari Athapaththu wins the ICC Women's ODI Cricketer of the Year award at the ICC Awards. 28 January – The International Cricket Council lifts the provisional suspension on Sri Lanka imposed last year.
February 2 February – Minister of Environment Keheliya Rambukwella and former Secretary to the Ministry of Health Janaka Chandragupta are arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department in Colombo and produced to Maligawatta courts following their connection to a scandal over the importation of substandard immunoglobulin injections that saw around Rs. 130 million misappropriated. Rambukwella is ordered to be remanded until 15 February. 3 February – Following his arrest, Minister of Environment Keheliya Rabukwella resigns from his ministerial post following public pressure. 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. 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. The notice is passed without prior approval from the Cabinet of Sri Lanka, thus prompting president Wickremesinghe to order an investigation into the announcement. 24 February – Red Sea crisis: The Sri Lanka Navy confirms that one of its ships has completed its maiden patrol in the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and is set to return to the country. The vessel is later revealed to be SLNS Gajabahu and the Sri Lankan government confirms that patrols would continue.
March 1 March – The first-ever semi-transparent solar photovoltaic (PV) powered agrivoltaic pilot project of Sri Lanka, funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), is commissioned in Hanthana, Kandy. 5 March – S. C. Muthukumarana of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) is sworn in as a Member of Parliament to fill the seat left vacant after the resignation of MP and actor Uddika Premarathna. 6 March – 2024 Ottawa stabbing: A family of Sri Lankan Canadians are fatally stabbed in their residence in Barrhaven, a suburb of Ottawa, Canada. Six are killed, including four children, the mother, and a family friend, while the father is injured. The culprit is 19-year old Febrio De-Zoysa, a Sri Lankan Algonquin College student. 14 March – Former cricketer Lahiru Thirimanna is hospitalized with minor injuries following a road accident in Thirappane, Anuradapura. 19–21 March – After a three-day debate in the Parliament of Sri Lanka, a no-confidence motion against Speaker of the Parliament Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena is defeated, with 75 votes for and 117 votes against. The motion is filed by the Samagi Jana Balawegaya, the main opposition party, over his approval of the controversial Online Safety Bill. Abeywardena is the fifth speaker in Sri Lanka's history to face a no-confidence motion. 27 March The largest maternity hospital in South Asia, the “German-Sri Lanka Friendship New Women’s Hospital” in Karapitiya, Galle is inaugurated. Singer Windy Goonatillake wins the award for the "Sensational Song of 2023" at the 16th Edison Awards in India for her song Ayyo Saami. 30 March – Notorious drug trafficker “Location Kudu Malli” is arrested by the Badalgama Police and is caught with 6,120 milligrams of drugs.
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. 4 April – Actress Damitha Abeyratne and her husband are arresrted and remanded over alleged financial fraud. 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. 8 April – International cricketer Kamindu Mendis wins the ICC Men’s Player of the Month Award for March 2024. 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. 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. 21 April – 2024 Fox Hill Supercross race crash: Seven people are killed and 18 others are injured after a racecar plows into spectators at a racing event organised by the Sri Lanka Military Academy in Diyatalawa. 22 April – The Sri Ramayan Trails project, an Indo-Sri Lankan cultural and religious bond, is officially launched. 23 April – Female cricketer Chamari Athapaththu becomes the top-ranked batter in the ICC Women’s ODI batting rankings. 24 April Weerasena Gamage of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) is sworn in as a Member of Parliament to fill the Anuradhapura District parliamentary seat after the death of MP K. H. Nandasena. The Uma Oya Multipurpose Development Project is jointly inaugurated by president Ranil Wickremesinghe and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi.
May 1 May – 2024 Sri Lankan presidential election: Minister of Justice Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe announces he will run for president. 4 May – Sri Lanka wins the Asian Rugby Division 1 Championship by defeating Kazakhstan 45-7 in the final. 6 May – The 2023 G.C.E. Ordinary Level examinations commence with 452,979 candidates at 3,527 centers across the island. 8 May The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka rules that SJB MP Diana Gamage holds no Sri Lankan citizenship, and is thus disqualified from her parliamentary seat. The Sri Lanka women's cricket team is selected for the 2024 ICC Women's T20 World Cup after winning the 2024 ICC Women's T20 World Cup Qualifier final against Scotland. 10 May – Mujibur Rahman is reappointed to parliament as a National List MP, replacing the unseated Diana Gamage. Rahman had previously resigned from his seat in 2023 to run for Mayor of Colombo. 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. 17 May – Actress Dinara Punchihewa is included in the ninth edition of the Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list. 20 May – The Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) arrests four Sri Lankan ISIS militants at Ahmedabad Airport, India. 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. 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). 30 May – The film Sheysha directed by Isuru Gunathilake wins the award for the Best Dance Film at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival.
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. Tharushi Karunarathna wins the gold medal in the Women’s 400m event with a timing of 52.48 seconds, and the following day wins the gold medal in the Women’s 800 meters event with a timing of 2.05.74 minutes. 3 June – All schools across the island are closed due to adverse weather conditions. 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. 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. 11 June – The Foreign Ministry of Sri Lanka says it has received assurances from Russia that the country would no longer be recruiting Sri Lankan citizens to fight in Ukraine. 13 June – International women's cricketer Chamari Athapaththu wins the ICC Women’s Player of the Month for the month May 2024. 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. 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. 26 June – The Sri Lankan government reaches an agreement with external lenders to restructure $5.8 billion in public debt. 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. 29 June – Four fishermen are reported dead aboard a vessel after drinking liquids from bottles found floating off the coast of Tangalle.
July 7 July – Thirteen people are injured after a panicked elephant chases a crowd during a Hindu religious procession at the Kataragama temple.