Hon. Namal Karunaratne - Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Livestock

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson of Committees, many figures were placed on record about affected lands, houses, families, canals, anicuts, and paddy areas. I will not repeat them. I emphasize that in disaster management, priority must be given to preparedness. We usually manage after the disaster—talking about how it happened, compensation, and assessments. The real importance is to create an environment in which such disasters are less likely, through pre-planning. The National Council for Disaster Management, chaired by the President, should meet. As former Minister Hon. Rauff Hakeem said, it did not meet under the previous government; that is a lapse. Without that, scientific management does not occur.

¶ 02 We know where bund breaches can happen and what collapses; pre-emptive rehabilitation is management. But preparedness has been neglected.

¶ 03 Regarding compensation: not only crops but houses were damaged, and there were 18 deaths. The Government has decided to increase death compensation from Rs. 250,000 to Rs. 1,000,000 in such natural disasters. Further decisions will follow.

¶ 04 On the Rs. 40,000 per acre compensation: after the 2016 drought—the lowest recent harvest year—farmers fought for compensation; leaders of that struggle include T.B. Sarath, Susantha Kumara Navarathna, Wasantha Piyathissa, Sudath Balagalla and Hasalaka E.M. Basnayake, who are today in this House. As a result, in 2017, a circular introduced the Rs. 40,000 per-acre rate for total losses. This rate is inadequate and must be revised; we can decide that going forward. Compensation is paid by stage: planting, mid-stage and harvesting; Rs. 40,000 is for harvesting-stage losses. In practice, payments have lagged.

¶ 05 Some in the Opposition question why we once demanded Rs. 100,000 per acre. We did so in Udawalawa where 65,000 acres were destroyed not by nature, but because water was withheld from Udawalawa fields despite available storage in Samanalawewa; only after protests in Embilipitiya was water released—too late, killing over 60 per cent of crops including mint (pudina). That was man-made and should have been paid from Cabinet responsibility at the time—not taxpayers. Justice must be done to farmers for such inflicted losses.

¶ 06 We will also fix deficiencies in the Agricultural and Agrarian Insurance Board, moving to insure every cultivated plot so that insurance pays after disasters, and establish a bank to provide low-interest, fair collateral-free loans to farmers. These are in our programme.

¶ 07 As to past wrongs: in 2018, 2,044,000 kg of potatoes were purchased from farmers at a promised Rs. 95/kg in six locations (Boralanda, Boragaswewa, Uva Paranagama, Welimada, etc.), yet not a cent was paid to many; we had to protest and even surround the Ministry to recover dues—still about Rs. 300 million unpaid. Similarly, big onion seed purchased in Dambulla, Ibbagamuwa, Galewela at Rs. 9,000/kg was not paid. We took successive state ministers to Dambulla to resolve; still unpaid. Farmers were driven to desperation. These are the “disasters” inflicted on farmers by policy.

¶ 08 [Time warning]

¶ 09 I will conclude. When a farmer took a Rs. 200,000 loan, Rs. 16,000 was deducted for insurance via the Agrarian Insurance Board; yet when crops failed (big onion, chillies), indemnity wasn’t paid. In Ampara alone, chillies compensation due is about Rs. 320 million—still unpaid. We agitated for this with Hon. Wasantha Piyathissa and others. The mint crop under Liyanagastota anicut also failed; a farmer leader, Sunil Rathnayake, received only Rs. 20,000, in Hambantota District itself. In 2012 the then government abolished the farmer pension; contributions of 950,223 registered contributors and 130,000 pensioners were disregarded, calling the fund insolvent. We fought and restored it, but two years of arrears remain unpaid.

¶ 10 Despite delays, about 800,000 hectares of paddy have been established this season; fertilizer payments will reach farmers in the coming days. We recognize procedural delays and will reform these systems. We pledge to build a fair environment for farmers and reduce imports by strengthening domestic production.

¶ 11 Thank you.