Cabinet Spokesman, Minister Ramesh Pathirana says that the cabinet has decided to reduce and then stop the import of rice gradually.
“There was a long discussion regarding the purchase of paddy. The Minister of Agriculture Mahinda Amaraweera presented his views. It is a clear fact that in some places the farmers are getting less money than what they were hoping to buy from the government and because of that, there has been an uncomfortable situation among them. Several decisions were discussed there. Especially the matter of buying rice through Sathosa and selling it through Sathosa stores. The second thing is that due to the fear that there will be a shortage in the country’s food reserves, we have imported some amount of rice from abroad. We also decided to gradually reduce and stop importing that amount of rice. The Paddy Marketing Board has once again asked the banks for funds. A problem has also arisen regarding the credit limit of the banks. Those matters are also discussed again in the sub-committee on the cost of living. We will be able to solve the problem of the farmers by providing a quick solution.”
Mr. Ramesh Pathirana said this while addressing the press conference to inform the cabinet decisions held yesterday (13).
