Govt spends Rs. 998 m for paddy purchases

Nadira GUNATILLEKE

The government has purchased 35,528 metric tons of paddy from farmers spending Rs 998 million, acting Media Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said.

Addressing the weekly Cabinet press briefing at the Government Information Department Auditorium yesterday, he said that the total number of kilograms of paddy

purchased so far is 3,552,215. The percentage of paddy purchased is five per cent. Arrangements have already been made to purchase all paddy produced by farmers.

Storage facilities are available to store paddy buy from farmers. The paddy harvest of Sri Lanka is significantly high this time. Meanwhile, Corporatives and Internal Trade Minister Johnston Fernando told the Daily News that the farmer is now using new technology.Farmers harvest hundreds of acres within a short period. In the past, human labour was required for this purpose. The farmers stated that the price they receive for wet paddy from the government is more than enough and reasonable.

Minister Fernando stressed that the paddy farmers made this comment because they had to spend a lot of money to dry paddy. No farmer complained of low prices for wet paddy.