The Hon. Rohana Bandara

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson, I move, as a Private Member’s Motion, that arrangements be made to maintain a Government rice reserve.

¶ 02 “Since the rice market in Sri Lanka is currently under the grip of a few private traders, the Parliament urges the Government to make suitable arrangements to maintain a Government rice reserve so that rice prices can be controlled.”

¶ 03 As in previous cycles, the new Government soon faced a major rice crisis due to monopoly control. The Government failed to manage this, blaming the absence of a paddy reserve for its inability to confront the market. That led to rice imports, which still did not satisfy consumers.

¶ 04 Rice is our staple. Farmers toil to produce it, yet remain poor. Alongside building a reserve, we must protect farmers—balancing both sides. The Government must intervene; otherwise, a few will always feast. If we pay high farmgate prices in the name of farmer welfare, consumers suffer from unaffordable rice. The Government’s role is to manage both.

¶ 05 Why did costs soar? In 2020, a four-wheel tractor cost about Rs. 1.7 million; today it exceeds Rs. 5 million. Harvesters rose from Rs. 1.5–2 million to over Rs. 7 million or even tens of millions. A combine blade that was Rs. 950 now retails at Rs. 2,950. All inputs have surged.

¶ 06 Most farmers transact on credit with local agro-dealers rather than using savings or bank loans. The same dealer buys their paddy, creating asymmetry and unfairness. Price labelling of agrochemicals is inconsistent: for example, BPMC, Marshal 20, and Roundup show printed prices of Rs. 4,000, but sell for Rs. 2,500—or in Roundup’s case, for Rs. 1,000—if paid in cash. Farmers buying on credit never get these concessions; they are charged at the printed price and burdened with interest. Meanwhile, Indian-made Roundup is preferred as it is perceived to be more effective, highlighting quality issues with local-market products. Government must ensure standards for agro-inputs and regulate prices properly; printed prices must be realistic and enforced.

¶ 07 We must also supply quality seed. The only sustainable way to reduce production cost is to increase yield. Even if first-generation seed is not possible, at least certified second-generation seed should reach every farmer to guarantee better germination and higher harvests. Today, many use leftover or poor-quality seed, resulting in poor stands and low yields.

¶ 08 High duties on agricultural inputs and machinery further inflate costs. You pledged to remove such taxes. I propose eliminating all tariffs and taxes on inputs for producing our staple rice, to reduce costs for farmers and allow fair consumer prices.

¶ 09 You now speak of paddy storage, but you delayed setting a guaranteed price and were compelled—under farmer pressure—to announce one recently. Farmers are still dissatisfied, and rightly so. Only the farmer who toils knows the true cost structure, which is affected by many factors—climate, weather, and others. A proper costing must be done, and yields raised to reduce unit costs.

¶ 10 Therefore, the Government should set a fair buying price and build a paddy reserve—paying slightly above market to protect farmers now. We are not asking the Government to make losses; previously, during rice imports, over Rs. 10 billion was collected in duties. Allocate that money directly to farmer protection; establish a Rs. 100 billion fund for this purpose. Without such a fund, every harvest season the Treasury is asked for ad hoc releases.

¶ 11 Create the reserve and the fund. Bring together the Paddy Marketing Board, farmer organizations, SANASA, and the Consumer Affairs Authority under a single fund and run operations cyclically—not through a single institution alone.

¶ 12 Paddy warehousing does not inherently incur losses; Government can then release rice at affordable prices. With proper management, reserves can be profitable. In the past, when I questioned the then Agriculture Minister Mahinda Amaraweera about prices, he said, “Give me money and I will buy paddy.” Today, the same problem persists. You allocated about Rs. 30 billion via the interim account, but have now set aside Rs. 58 billion—leaving around Rs. 25 billion still to be found, which burdens the Treasury.