News
Puttalam’s paddy farmers forced to put up with a pittance
View(s):By Hiran Priyankara Jayasinghe in Puttalam
Having battled wild elephants and many other odds for over three months to protect their paddy produce, the farmers are now faced with a new problem of not being able to sell their paddy harvest at a reasonable rate. The farmers allege that brokers for private buyers are approaching them in a bid to buy their produce at a low rate while there is no relief from the government either.
D.M.M. Karunaratne
Farmers allege that they have been in an extremely helpless situation this year with the Yala season harvest as the government is not buying unhusked rice which has high moisture content while private sector traders are offering low rates for purchasing their stocks.
Agriculture Department officials said that 18,166 hectares of paddy have been cultivated in Puttalam district targeting the 2025 Yala season and it is in the process of being harvested. A harvest of 70,000 metric tons is expected.
Around 18,166 hectares have been cultivated under large reservoirs including Thabbowa, Iginimitiya, Maha Uswewa, Siyambalankotuwa, Kottukachchiya, and around 200 small-scale reservoirs in the district.
Sebastian Fernando
Farmers say that they are unable to cover the expenses they spent to cultivate the paddy given the low purchasing rates on offer.
Most of the farmers do not cultivate their own paddy fields but are tenant farmers and will be penniless if they do not get a proper rate for their produce.
Farming in these areas has become a high-risk activity with farmers having to regularly battle wild elephants while also safeguarding them from other pests. Many farmers spend sleepless nights protecting their paddy fields, even at the risk of their lives. Some have been killed by wild elephants in the past.
However, despite their efforts, they are unable to obtain a reasonable price for their produce.
Farmers say that the damage caused to the paddy fields by wild animals including wild elephants is immense.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture Namal Karunaratne announced that Rs. 102 would be paid for unhusked rice but the private mill owner only paid Rs. 85.
Commenting on this, D.M.M. Karunaratne, a farmer from the Amakuliya paddy field in Puttalam, said:
“We are not farming with money in hand. We are doing all this by taking loans. After doing that, in the end we have to sell at very low prices. That is what happened to the farmer every day. We thought that the new government’s mechanism would be better. When the harvest is done, the private paddy traders who come to the paddy fields charge a price of 85 to 95 rupees and buy the paddy. It is really sad because after coming to the paddy fields in the morning and evening for more than three months, we cannot make a profit,” he said.
Another farmer W. Sebastian Fernando expressed his views on the problematic situation he found himself in.
Paddyland destroyed by elephants
“This government has also put us in trouble. Today, there is no one to sell our paddy at a good price. Since the government is not buying wet paddy, private traders come and buy it from us for a pittance. We should have at least a price of more than Rs. 110 per kilo,” he said.
When asked about this, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation Namal Karunaratne said the government has allocated Rs. 600 crore in the first phase for purchasing paddy. At the same time, steps have been taken to start purchasing paddy in the paddy warehouses that were renovated by the government. “If the money provided is not enough, we will take steps to provide more money,” he said.
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