'Sri Lanka self-sufficient in rice'

Priyanka KURUGALA

The country has enough stocks of rice for the next eight months, Agriculture Minister Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena said.

Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena

"The country will have rice sufficient for the next year after harvesting the Maha season and will be able to continue exporting rice, he said.

He was addressing a press conference at the Information Department yesterday. The Agriculture Ministry has been allocated Rs 700 million from the budget to develop the agricultural sector and to stabilize food preservation in the country, the minister said.

About 90 percent of land in the Northern and Eastern areas has been cultivated, he said.

The agriculture sector faced challenges in the recent past. Many cultivated acres have been affected due to unsystematic rain.

However, after 122 years since the inception of the Agriculture Department, the agricultural sector has been able to achieve its targets.

The country is self-sufficient in maize, peanuts, green grams, gingerly, black grams.

"The ministry will expand the cultivation of paddy, vegetables, onions, gingerly, peanuts, grapes in the North, he said.

"The government will also introduce organic fertilizer for farming. This will help reduce the use of fertilizer and increase production, he said.

"The government will increase the export of rice. It will also introduce indigenous varieties of rice to the international market, he said.