Govt.’s unwillingness to have certified price for paddy is to protect middlemen & businessmen – All Ceylon Farmers’ Federation

MONDAY, 11 MARCH 2013

The price of a kilo of paddy should be made Rs. 40, as farmers have not been able to sell their paddy harvest for prices the government had stated states the National Organizer of All Ceylon Farmers’ Federation Namal Karunaratne adding that the present administration has made farmers slave labourers.

Speaking at a media conference held at Hotel Nippon today (1th) Mr. Karunaratne said, “The farmers have been severely inconvenienced as they are unable to sell their paddy harvest. The harvest in small scale irrigations schemes has been completed by now and gathering of harvest in paddy fields that are in large scale irrigation schemes has started. The price of paddy has drastically come down. According to government’s own estimates the cost of producing a kilo of paddy is Rs.31. However, the government’s certified price for a kilo of ‘Nadu’ is Rs.32 and a kilo of ‘Samba’ is Rs.35.

There are only 82 paddy buying centers in the whole island. This is not adequate. Normally the annual paddy production in Sri Lanka is about 6.5 million metric tons. The government buys only about 3% to 4% of the production. The rest is bought by middlemen. Despite the government publishing full page advertisements in newspapers and boasting on the TV, it is the reality.

At present the price of paddy in Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Ampara, Hambantota districts range from Rs.17 to Rs.26 a kilo. Paddy is bought at government’s buying centers under various conditions. In Anuradhapura District only 2500 kilos are bought from each farmer. At Kurunegala it is 5000 kilos and the number differs in other districts. Normally a farmer would produce between 12,000 to 15,000 kilos of paddy. Where could he sell the rest of his harvest?

The farmer is confronted with another issue. In government’s buying centers the moister level should be under 14%. How can the farmer dry his paddy? Paddy bought by farmers is rejected at the government center when it is not under this moister level. Farmers stay in the queue the whole day, pays lorry hire and then when the paddy is rejected has to take his production back home paying another lorry hire. As such, the farmer is scared of going to government’s buying centers. Only businessmen sell their paddy to government centers for Rs.32. The farmer is unable to sell his paddy and middlemen and businessmen buy it for Rs.17 or Rs.18 and sell it to the government for Rs.32. They get a profit of Rs.12 per kilo within a few days while the farmer who has toiled for months spending Rs.31 to produce a kilo of paddy has to sell it for a pittance.

Government officials too are involved in this racket. They get commissions through brokers. The 14% moister condition is not relevant to paddy brought by businessmen. Drying machines should be made available if the government is truly concerned regarding the farmer and his product should be bought at a certified price. However, the government doesn’t think of the farmer. The produce the farmer gets after struggling with the land, weather and other elements is plundered by middlemen, businessmen and officials. The government doesn’t take any action. We call on the government to be fair by the farmer.

Despite the government making a big hullabaloo stating facilities have been made for farmers to sell their produce, it merely protects a few such as ‘Nipuna’, ‘Araliya’ and middlemen. We say it because the farmers have taken to the streets, carry out agitations, put up posters and have written letters to the President demanding a certified price of Rs.40 for a kilo of paddy; to make it a law. It doesn’t cost the government anything. It could be passed with a majority in parliament. However, the government doesn’t take this step. If such a law is passed in parliament the farmer doesn’t have to sell his produce for a pittance. The middlemen won’t be able to buy paddy at a lower rate. As it is a law in the country the farmer can take legal action. We can’t understand why farmers are treated in this manner by a person who boasts that he is a man of the land. Why are the middleman and the businessman allowed to plunder the produce of the farmer? The middlemen have been given the right to exploit the farmer. We demand the government to bring a law that gives a certified price for paddy.

We can’t allow the government to neglect the farmer community that has been battered repeatedly for two years. We would rally farmers throughout the island and carry out a massive agitation programme. We would also ask eh government not to blame the farmers for setting fire to paddy, burning tyres of blocking roads.”