The Hon. Kins Nelson

¶ 01 I did not say that as a fault. Hon. Chair, I did not say that as a fault. Hon. Deputy Minister, you took paddy sheaves into your hands and demonstrated how to thresh, and you also asked why money is not being given for this paddy.

¶ 02 You did that. I did not say it as a fault, Hon. Deputy Minister. I said it in a good way. Therefore, please implement it.

¶ 03 Hon. Chair, these people have taken cultivation loans. But now they have no way to repay those loans. Hon. Minister, even if you cannot write off 100 percent of the cultivation loans, at least waive 50 percent as a relief to these people, because they have no way to repay now. With the recent rains in the Maha season, I believe we will not be able to obtain the expected harvest. Therefore, I propose that at least 50 percent of these cultivation loans be written off to provide relief to our farmers.

¶ 04 Speaking about our seed farms, in today’s market the retailers are charging skyrocketing prices, so the farmer receives only eight “eggs” worth of seed (meaning small packets) at exploitative prices. Not only paddy seed, but almost all seed varieties are like that now. Seed prices have climbed to unimaginable levels.

¶ 05 In the Polonnaruwa District, our seed farm has about 498 acres. From that, we can cultivate about 300 acres of paddy, Hon. Minister. However, speaking about the workers and watchmen at this farm, for 10 years now no permanent workers have been recruited. Therefore, the existing watchmen are working seven days a week, but they are never given any additional allowance. If this continues, our seed farms in the country will be forced to close. We talk about paddy seed; we talk about seeds in general. We must protect the resources owned by the Government. With this level of expenditure, I specifically say we must protect our seed farms.

¶ 06 On fertilizer subsidies, the current President, as Minister of Finance, has allocated Rs. 35,000 million. It is good to allocate Rs. 35,000 million. But, taking the entire farming community of our country, farmers have never asked for fertilizer free of charge, Hon. Minister. Those who come to power, those who were in power in the past are the ones who fixed prices for fertilizer. I remember President Mahinda Rajapaksa said he would give fertilizer for Rs. 3,500. Afterwards, Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa came to power saying fertilizer would be given free. But the farmer never asked for free fertilizer. Therefore, I propose we can give a quality fertilizer sack to the farmer for Rs. 5,000 through Agrarian Service Centres. If pesticides are given with a controlled price and reduced cost, and fertilizer is provided through Agrarian Service Centres, we can immediately stabilize the price of paddy. Then paddy will have a proper price, and the rice-eating consumer will also get a fair price.

¶ 07 Minister Lal Kantha said there is no shortage of rice in the market. But today there is no Keeri Samba available anywhere. Even though a concessionary price was declared for Keeri Samba, the top-tier traders now say, “Yes, we can give Keeri Samba at Rs. 260.” When there is a controlled price, how will traders sell to the consumer at that price? There is a Government in this country and also a Ministry of Agriculture with two good Ministers. Therefore, do not let rice and paddy prices be controlled by the mill owners. We say this all the time. We can do it. Why can’t we?

¶ 08 If we have Agrarian Service Centres, a Ministry of Agriculture, and Rs. 35,000 million allocated for fertilizer subsidy, why can’t we give a high-quality fertilizer sack to the farmer at Rs. 5,000?

¶ 09 At one time we gave a fertilizer sack for Rs. 350. Therefore, I propose that if we give a high-quality fertilizer sack to the farmer, the price of paddy will immediately stabilize.

¶ 10 Hon. Minister also spoke about maize cultivation. In the village of Kaju Watta in the Dimbulagala Divisional Secretariat, people live purely by cultivating maize. Although around 8,000 acres of maize were cultivated, their fertilizer subsidy has been completely cut off. About 2,000 acres are now affected by a fungal disease, yet no officer has visited the village to look into it. Their sole livelihood is maize. Once, the Sena caterpillar devastated maize in Kaju Watta. Now this fungal disease has spread beyond 2,000 acres and will spread to the rest. Therefore, I request your special attention to this matter.

¶ 11 Hon. Chair, Rs. 38,500 million has been allocated for the Maduru Oya Right Bank Project, started in 2021. Out of 34 kilometres of canals to be constructed, only about one kilometre has been completed, and the project has been halted. If the Right Bank Project is commenced, about 17,000 hectares can be brought under cultivation for farmers. This is a good programme; therefore, I propose to commence it urgently.

¶ 12 Now, as the Maha harvest comes home, we must again talk about the human-elephant conflict. Property gets damaged, people die, and elephants die. Therefore, I repeat a proposal I made during the last Budget debate. Implement it. Farmers do not have separate storage; they stack the harvest at home. Elephants are now accustomed to breaking into houses if paddy is stored inside, eating it, and leaving. Then from one side the farmer loses the harvest, and from the other side, houses are destroyed. Therefore, allocate some funds to identify farmers who store paddy, through discussions with farmer organizations, and select them. It is not possible to do this for every farmer.

¶ 13 If we identify the farmers who store paddy and provide them with containers, this problem can be solved. Elephants cannot break containers. They will keep them at the edge of their plots. Thus, to stop property damage and the human-elephant conflict, I propose to provide containers so that farmers can safely store their paddy.

¶ 14 Finally, I must say this regarding the Dimbulagala Divisional Secretariat. Along with the Maduru Oya Project, fishermen were settled in the Maduru Oya Reservoir Sanctuary. They have lived there for over 35 years. About 50 to 60 families live there. Together with the human-elephant conflict, fishermen constantly face serious problems because they have no permits for the land and cannot even put up elephant fences.

¶ 15 Hon. Minister, I request that proper permits be given for the lands of fishermen who have lived in that reservoir sanctuary for over 30 years. Similarly, fishermen living in Namankadawa town have the same problem. Please focus your attention and grant permits to their lands too so that they can legally live and continue their livelihood.

¶ 16 Thank you for the opportunity, Hon. Chair.