The Hon. Dayasiri Jayasekara, Attorney-at-Law
Hon. Dayasiri Jayasekara challenged the Minister’s response on rice prices, citing Central Bank and market figures showing retail prices above the stated maximum retail prices for Samba, Nadu and Kakulu rice. He argued that the Government’s paddy purchasing prices are below farmers’ costs, with farmers demanding at least Rs. 140 per kilogramme, and questioned the refusal to buy wet paddy. He asked whether the Government would revise the rice MRP in line with actual costs or strictly enforce the existing MRP through the Consumer Affairs Authority, including action against retailers.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Hon. Minister, the reality differs from your answer. As per the Central Bank’s 3rd-quarter report, the MRP for Samba should be Rs. 240, yet it is sold at Rs. 250; Nadu should be Rs. 230, yet Pettah retail is Rs. 250; in Dambulla, MRP shows Rs. 240 but sales are at Rs. 243; Kakulu shows Rs. 220 but sells at Rs. 223.
¶ 02 We are entering harvest time. Though you say you buy at Rs. 130 per kg of paddy, you currently purchase at Rs. 120: Samba Rs. 125; Keeri Samba Rs. 132. You do not buy wet paddy. With production costs and the 30% addition stated by State Minister Namal Karunaratne, the cost to the farmer reaches around Rs. 140, but you fix Rs. 120. Farmers demand at least Rs. 140.
¶ 03 Further, even at Rs. 120 paddy and Rs. 60 milling cost per 1.5 kg paddy per kg of rice, the base becomes Rs. 180; add production overheads of around Rs. 54, the wholesale should be about Rs. 234–244, and then retail around Rs. 249. So will you raise the MRP, or enforce the existing MRP rigorously through the CAA, including action against small retailers?
Provenance
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- Hansard, Thursday, 6 February 2025 ·No. 1739271735020022 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. Dayasiri Jayasekara, Attorney-at-Law. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 6 February 2025. No. 1739271735020022. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/669