Agriculture Minister pledges to make large scale paddy purchases from next season

By Saman Indrajith

Agriculture Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage had said that beginning from the next harvesting season, 1,000 kilos of paddy per hectare would be purchased at a guaranteed price of Rs. 50 per kilo from every farmer who received the fertilizer subsidy.

The minister has said that Rs. 100 million was allocated to the Paddy Marketing Board to restore the storage complexes in order to carry out the paddy storage process efficiently and safe.

Minister Aluthgamage said so while addressing the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Agriculture in the Parliament complex on Tuesday.  

The minister said that steps would be taken to eradicate the existing monopoly on paddy to keep the price of the vital commodity under control.

Labour Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva, who attended the Consultative Committee meeting, pointed out most of post-harvest lossess occurred due to wild animals and during transportaion. 

Minister Aluthgamage said that discussions were being held with the Wildlife Department on the issue and it was expected to take immediate action.

It was also revealed that chemical fertilizers were increasingly used in the country and they led to serious envisionmental and health issues.

Aluthgamage said that to control the situation, soil testing kits would be provided to all Agrarian Service Centres and fertilisers would be issued only according to the soil conditions in the area.

Each Agrarian Service Centre would be equipped with agricultural machinery and personnel trained to handle them for the benefit of the farming community, Minister Aluthgamage said. stressing that a database covering the entire country would be set up, containing information about agriculture.

Issues such as the recultivation of abandoned paddy fields, the restoration of economic centres, the revival of Agrarian Service Centres, and the recruitment of personnel to handle the distribution of fertiliser were also discussed at the consultative committee meeting.

State Minister of Production and Supply of Fertilizer and Regulation of Chemical Fertilizer and Insecticide Use, Mohan Priyadarshana de Silva, State Minister of Backward Rural Areas Development and Promotion of Domestic Animal Husbandry; Minor Economic Crop Cultivation S. Viyalanderan , State Minister of Livestock, Farm Promotion and Dairy & Egg Related Industries D.B. Herath, Members of Parliament, Director General of the Department of Agriculture, Commissioner of Agrarian Services and other government officials were present at the meeting.