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Locally produced potato seeds for farmers

by Uditha Kumarasinghe

The Agriculture and Livestock Ministry has taken steps to produce potato seeds required by farmers locally within the next three years.

According to this program, the Government will provide potato seeds to farmers at concessionary rates from the next cultivation season, a Ministry spokesman told the Daily News.

"At present, private traders import low quality potato seeds and sell them to farmers by presenting various false documents to mislead farmers. As a result farmers have to cultivate low quality potato seeds damaging their cultivation."

On the directive of Agriculture and Livestock Minister S.B. Dissanayake, the Ministry has taken immediate measures to implement this program to provide high quality potato seeds to farmers to minimise the damage caused to their cultivation, he said.

The spokesman said the seed manufacturing centres in Badulla and Nuwara Eliya will be utilised for this purpose. In future, arrangements will be made to distribute and produce potato seeds to farmers under the supervision of the Agriculture Department.

Minister Dissanayake conducted discussions with the Agriculture Department officials and potato farmers in Badulla and Nuwara Eliya districts on June 1 to educate them on this program and implement it in a more productive manner.

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