September 17

This is 17th of September. It is day 261 of the year. As of today, there are 105 days left until the end of the year. If you are curious about the historical footprint of Sri Lanka, let us delve into more On This Day events to uncover fascinating tidbits from the nation's history that covers for 365 days.

Today’s Highlight

• 1762 – Jan Schreuder ended his service as Governor of Dutch Ceylon and was succeeded by Lubbert Jan Baron van Eck.
• 1858 – Deep-sea telegraph cables (submarine cables) between India and Sri Lanka were laid between Thanakkai Point and Thalaimannar.
• 1873 – HMS Magpie, a 4-gun Magpie-class schooner of the Royal Navy, struck the Mahamodara rock while entering Galle Harbour.
• 2000 – Sri Lankan military commenced Operation Kinihira I.
• 2004 – Tamil, one of the official languages in Sri Lanka, was declared a classical language in India.
• 2006 – The Pottuvil massacre in the southern part of the Ampara District resulted in the deaths of 10 people.
• 2021 – The total number of COVID-19 positive cases in Sri Lanka surpassed 500,000, and COVID-19 deaths exceeded 12,000.