Mahinda Amaraweera, the minister of agriculture, said that beginning today (June 15), procedures would be done to deliver a bundle of urea fertilizer at a cost of Rs. 9,000.
A bundle of urea fertilizer currently costs Rs. 10,000.
Amaraweera underlined that the availability of this incentive for farmers was made possible by the recent strengthening of the Sri Lankan currency and the decrease in costs.
He further mentioned that farmers were given free access to Triple Super Phosphate (TSP) or Mud Fertilizer for this growing season and that the cost of Muriate of Potash (MOP) fertilizer (Bandi Pohora) has already been cut by Rs. 4,500.
Additionally, he stated that certain officials’ negligence caused the farmers to miss the deadline for receiving fertilizers, adding that the appropriate officials had already been subject to disciplinary action in this regard.
The minister further stated that he would not hesitate to take action against any authorities, whatever of their level, who failed to do their part to effectively serve the farmers in the future.
