A cost report on paddy cultivation in the Yala season has been prepared, said Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation K.D. Lal Kantha. The Minister stated this at a special farmers’ meeting held in Anuradhapura.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Agrarian Development, Department of Agriculture, Post-Harvest Technology Institute and Hector Kobbekaduwa Agricultural Research and Training Institute have jointly prepared this latest cost report.
Accordingly, the cost of production per kilo of Red Nadu paddy is Rs. 76. The cost of production per kilo of White Nadu paddy is Rs. 87 and the cost of production per kilo of Samba paddy is Rs. 97, according to the relevant report. Similarly, the cost of production per kilo of Keeri Samba paddy is Rs. 119, according to the relevant report.
The Minister stated that, in response to a long-standing request by farmers’ organizations, the government has implemented the policy of fixing a fair guaranteed price for the harvest by adding a profit of thirty percent to the cost of a kilo of paddy.
It is stated that the government has also included a fertilizer subsidy of Rs. 30,000 per hectare in the calculation of the cost of paddy cultivation.