The Hon. (Prof.) Ruwan Ranasinghe - Deputy Minister of Tourism
Deputy Minister Ruwan Ranasinghe disputed Opposition claims about fertilizer shortages, stating that fertilizer is available for the Yala season and arrangements, including discussions with Russia, are being made for Maha supplies, while alleging some stocks have been hoarded. He challenged claims of poor-quality fertilizer by asking the Opposition to present laboratory evidence and testing criteria. He also rejected claims that health services in Polonnaruwa had collapsed, citing government efforts to secure 16 new catheterization laboratories through the ADB and donors, and referred members to the Central Bank report as evidence of progress.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson of Committees, before addressing today’s topic, I must note that the Opposition Leader and others are turning Parliament into a place of falsehoods—claiming “no fertilizer.” Our surveys show fertilizer is available for Yala; for Maha we are arranging supplies and even discussed with Russia. Some have hoarded large stocks—this is coming to light. If the Opposition claims poor quality, let them table which lab tested it and the criteria.
¶ 02 They also said the Polonnaruwa health sector has collapsed. Our government, within this year and a half, secured 16 new cath labs via the ADB and donors; for 70 years, only 10 existed nationwide, which is why queues were so long. This progress is reflected in the Central Bank report—please read it carefully.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Wednesday, 20 May 2026 ·No. 23618 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. (Prof.) Ruwan Ranasinghe - Deputy Minister of Tourism. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 20 May 2026. No. 23618. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/19294