25,000 irrigation systems dilapidated despite rhetoric of Sri Lankan rulers regarding boost in agri sector

(January 17, Colombo - Lanka Polity) Twenty five thousand small sized irrigation systems of Sri Lanka are in dilapidated state, a study conducted by the Ministry of Irrigation  and Water Management has disclosed.

These irrigation systems include water reservoirs, bunds and canals etc. Most of them have been used by people for centuries.


Most of the dilapidated irrigation systems are under the management of the Provincial Councils. They are vital mainly for the cultivation of rice, the major staple food of Sri Lankans.

The nationalist government of Sri Lanka has launched a programme under the theme 'Let us grow and develop the country' to boost the production of food and to curb the imports. The President and the Ministers were seen in paddy fields for several minutes of photo shoots in the hyped propaganda. However the outcome of this programme is questionable as the import of essential food items escalated sharply while the programme is underway in full throttle.

In November 2008, the Minister of Trade, Commerce, Consumer Affairs and Cooperative Development Bandula Gunawardhana said to the parliament that Sri Lanka imported 90% of its milk powder needs while justifying the high import taxes stating they are for the upliftment of the local milk farmer.

The import of food items like potato, onion, chillie and sugar have increased rapidly under the present government, the Minister said. For instance, in 2005 Sri Lanka imported 89.6 of its sugar consumption. In 2008, the imports rose to 92.7%.

At the moment, Sri Lanka is facing a severe rice shortage and the prices in the markets are unbearable to most of the people in the low income groups.

However, Sri Lanka government boasts of providing fertilizer subsidy to the farmers, the only remarkable service rendered by the government levying high taxes from the people.

Sri Lanka's food imports up despite government rhetoric on self-sustenance

(November 12, Colombo - Lanka Polity)  Rhetoric of the Sri Lanka government to achieve self-sustenance through a a new green revolution named 'Let Us Cultivate and Develop the Country' is highly contrasted with some of the statistics revealed in the parliament last week.

According to information revealed in Sri Lanka Parliament by the Minister Bandula Gunawardane last week in response to a question by People's Liberation Front (JVP) MP for the Anuradhapura district Ranaveera Pathirana, the government imported 52,800,209 kilos of milk food accounting for 89.1 percent of local demand in 2005, but this amount had seen an increase up to 62,518,062 kilos last year.  It was 90 percent of the local requirement.

The country had imported 57 percent of its potato requirement in 2008, and it had been a sharp rise against 33.9 percent imported in 2005. In 2006, the government had imported 37 percent of the country’s potato requirement and 52.6 percent in 2007.

Big onions had recorded an import growth of 71.9 percent in 2008 in terms of local requirement, against 60.4 percent in 2007, 61.9 percent in 2006 and 66.6 percent in 2006.

In contrast to attempts to boost local agriculture, Chillie imports had also registered an increase, as a percentage of the local requirement, from 72 percent in 2007 to 73 percent last year. In 2005, the country had imported only 67 percent of its Chillie requirement and 69 percent in 2006.

However, the Trade Ministry information revealed that the sugar import had declined to 92.7 percent last year from 93.3 recorded the previous year.  The sugar import was 89.6 percent of the local needs in 2005, and 90.4 percent in 2006.

Asked for the reason for this situation, the Minister said the demand had risen locally leading to the increase in imports. He also put the 300,000 plus internally displaced persons from Tamil dominated Northern Province in account of this increase stating that their consumption was restricted earlier when they were in the clutches of the Tamil rebels.