(LANKAPUVATH | COLOMBO) – Minister of Agriculture Mahinda Amaraweera cautioned that the country may have to face a food shortage due to the impact of sudden weather changes in the country.
The Minister gave this warning in a discussion regarding the implementation of projects to increase the production of food crops at the Ministry of Agriculture this morning.
About 70,000 acres of paddy cultivation have been destroyed due to the severe drought in the recent past, and hundreds of acres of paddy crops, which were about to be harvested, have also been destroyed due to the torrential rains that are currently falling in several provinces.
Also, the vegetable crops in the low country have been destroyed by the rain.
Around 15,000 acres of mung bean plantations in Hambantota district have also been completely destroyed. About 40 percent of the country’s mung beans requirement could have been obtained through this cultivation, the Minister said.
Emphasizing the possibility of a food shortage due to the destruction of crops, the Minister advised the Agriculture Secretary Mr. Gunadasa Samarasinghe to immediately implement a plan for growing vegetables in the gardens and a food crop plan for the Maha season.
The Minister informed that the food crop cultivation plan prepared accordingly should be jointly implemented by the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Agrarian Development, and steps should be taken to get many other institutions to participate in the plan.
The Minister also mentioned that close attention should be paid in this regard as the Meteorology Department has predicted that the current rainy weather conditions may persist and drought conditions may come again in the next Yala season.
Officials from several institutions including the Department of Livestock and Agriculture participated in this discussion.
