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| Monday, 08 November 2004 |
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| Growers should produce high quality tea - Minister Wickremanayake (by Milton Dharmasiri, Bulathsinhala special corr.) Acting Minister of Defence, Minister of Buddhasasana, Deputy Minister of Public Security, Ratnasiri Wickremanayake said that the present government had already decided to establish a new Bank named Small and Medium-scale Industry Development Bank for the benefit of persons engaged in agricultural industries, small and medium-scale business enterprises and help in promoting their business ventures. The Minister was speaking at a meeting following the opening of the new Tea Shakthi fertilizer store at, Aramanagolla, Horana put up by All Island Small-scale Tea Growers' Authority with the assistance of Raigam Small Tea Growers' Association, Horana. The new building was ceremoniously declared open by Minister of Plantation Industries Anura Priyadarshana Yapa along with Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake. Minister Wickremanayake also said,"For the good of Small-scale Tea Growers, in 1976 Small-scale Tea Development Authority was started and during that time eleven new tea factories were opened to produce quality tea buying green tea leaves from small tea growers paying high prices. But after 1977, the Tea Authority was closed down by and by and factories too were closed down. Again authority of tea industry was handed over to companies. As a result small tea growers were unable to sell their production at fair prices and they faced many problems. In 1994, when the PA government came into power, Small-scale Tea Growers' Development Authority was re-established and a separate fund (Tea Shakthi Fund) was started and 32 industries were started. They were functioned independently. They became a challenge to large-scale tea factories in estates. However today Tea Shakthi Fund functions satisfactorily providing various facilities to small tea growers. The fertilizer store would provide necessary fertilizers to the farmers at fair prices. I must say that there is a bright future for Sri Lankan's tea industry. There has been a great demand for Sri Lanka tea in Russia. What tea producers should do is to produce high quality tea to protect our name. We should never export low quality tea. Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa said that cultivation of tea has been started in many countries in the world. In order to promote tea industry in the country, replantation of tea cultivation in essential. So after reorganising the Small Tea Growers' Development Authority, every facility could be given to growers. Tea seedlings, fertilizers could be provided. Credit facilities could be given. With the promotion of tea cultivation, new employment opportunities could be provided. Vidura Wicremanayake, Chairman of Land Reform Commission said that the small tea growers in the country had many problems in the past. Messers K.M.B.A. Bandara, Chairman, All Island Tea Development Authority of Ministry of Plantation Industries, Tikiri Kobbekaduwa, Chairman Tea Shakthi Small Tea Development Authority, E.A.L. Edirisinghe also spoke. |
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