Pass Govt concessions to the masses - President
The Government has granted all necessary concessions to uplift and
improve the rice mill industry. Owners of the rice mills should make
good use of this to upgrade their industry while passing the maximum
benefit to the masses, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said.
President gave these instructions to them when members of All Ceylon
Rice Mills Owners met him at Temple Trees last Friday. These
representatives submitted their problems at this meeting.
The President said the Government is not ready to burden the people
with unnecessary taxes and stressed that everybody has a duty to rebuild
the country while facing the challenges from global economic crisis. The
President also stressed the point that the responsibility to bequeath
the future generation with a developed country was as important as the
responsibility we had already fulfilled by passing onto our people a
completely freed nation.
He also requested the mill owners not to increase the price of rice
in future adding that steps have been taken to provide tax free modern
equipment for rice mills. Therefore the President called upon them to
increase their production by using new technology and cost effective
methods and pass on the maximum benefits to the consumers without
fleecing them earning big profits.
All the previous governments used to import food items instead of
developing the national agricultural economy. This affected moves to
strengthen future agricultural development efforts. The Government is
successfully facing these challenges by launching massive irrigation
projects and food production programs, the President said.
President Rajapaksa also instructed the officials of the Finance
Ministry to reduce the Nation Building Tax of 3 percent levied on Rice
Mill industry to 1.5 percent and also instructed relevant officials to
introduce a program through the Lanka Puthra Bank to provide loan
facilities to those rice mill owners who have not obtained rice drying
implements under a concessional program.
I expect all these concessions granted to you being resulted in a big
relief to the masses, the President said.
Minister Bandula Goonewardane, and Ministry Officials were also
present at the occasion. |
