The Ministry of Agriculture stated that although the prices of chemical fertilisers including urea may increase as a result of the ongoing conflicts between Russia and Ukraine, and Palestine and Israel, the prices of fertilisers provided to farmers in the country will not be increased.
Speaking to the media in Anuradhapura, Agriculture Minister Mahinda Amaraweera said that the prices of chemical fertilisers including urea may increase due to escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine, and Palestine and Israel. However, he said that the Government would take steps to maintain the local fertiliser prices at the current rates.
“A total of 21,000 metric tonnes of urea fertiliser that was previously imported has already been distributed. In addition, tenders have been called for the importation of another consignment of urea. The fertilisers that are in the possession of State owned fertiliser companies will be provided at the existing rates, and the newly purchased urea fertilisers will also be sold at the current rate of Rs. 9,000 per bundle,” he said, and added that price of a bundle of Muriate of Potash fertiliser would be reduced from Rs. 14,000 to Rs. 12,000.
Speaking further, Amaraweera said that the Government had decided to provide farmers with an allowance to purchase chemical or organic fertilisers at their choice. Accordingly, a sum of Rs. 15,000 will be deposited to the farmers’ bank accounts, and the Government has allocated a sum of Rs. 12 billion for the said purpose. He assured that all possible steps would be taken to provide all types of fertilisers to farmers without any shortage.
The Ministry has assured a continuous supply of fertilisers while there are predictions that the country would have to face a food shortage due to crop damage caused by weather related factors. In order to prevent such, the Minister recently instructed the Ministry Secretary, Gunadasa Samarasinghe to immediately formulate and implement a plan for promoting home gardening and cultivating food crops in the Maha cultivating season.