Government will acquire uncultivated land - PM

Rasika SOMARATHNA

‘The government would not hesitate to acquire uncultivated paddy land in order to bring them under the plough,’ Prime Minister D.M. Jayaratne said yesterday.

He said that there were large extents of uncultivated paddy lands in the country and stressed that it was a national crime to keep them barren.

The Prime Minister said so while participating in the cultivation of Ratmalkaduwa paddy field in Gampola yesterday, which was not cultivated for a long period.

The barren paddy land came under the plough as a part of the ‘Divi Neguma’ programme.

The Prime Minister said that the government was prepared to provide maximum assistance, including financial support to those who were prepared to cultivate their barren paddy lands. He urged all paddy land owners to cultivate their lands and contribute to the national cause.

The Prime Minister noted that the government had given pride of place to uplifting local agriculture and its aim was to achieve self sufficiency in food crops. The cultivation of barren paddy lands is a major part of this process, the PM explained.

He noted that under the ‘Divi Neguma’ programme the government aims to develop one million domestic economic units. By 2012, the programme would help 3.5 million families to become self-sufficient in their food needs to a large extent, he added.

He also noted that the countries paddy production would be further boosted due to the cultivation of lands in the North and East which were barren for a long period due to the conflict. He asserted that the government’s aim was not only to become self-sufficient in its paddy production, but, also to promote it as an export crop within the next two years.

A large number of people participated in the cultivation of the Ratmalkaduwa paddy field yesterday.