Sri Lanka, Feb. 16 -- The Excise Departmen today announced that the sale of alcoholic beverages will be prohibited islandwide on 19 designated days in 2026, including public holidays and Full Moon Poya days.

Issuing a statement, Deputy Commissioner and Excise Spokesperson A. A. Roshan Perera said the directive was issued on the orders of the Excise Commissioner General.

The 19 dry days comprise 12 Full Moon Buddhist Poya holidays, Independence Day, the Sinhala and Tamil New Year holidays, World Temperance Day and Christmas Day.

The full list of dry days for 2026 is as follows:

Duruthu Full Moon Poya Day - Saturday, January 3 Nawam Full Moon Poya Day - Sunday, February 1 Independence Day - Wednesday, February 4 Medin Full Moon Poya Da...