Rising price of rice/Rice miller blames minister
The main reason for the price of rice rising is that the Rural Economic Affairs Minister does not release the paddy stocks held by the government into the market in a systematic manner, a major rice miller said yesterday.
Mr. Dudley Sirisena, the rice miller, said that, although the President and the Prime Minister had given instructions to issue the paddy belonging to the Paddy Marketing Board, the minster had not followed the correct tender procedure and had sold the paddy to his friends and the friends of other politicians, and that they sold the paddy at exorbitant rates to the rice millers, including himself. Therefore, the rice millers had to sell the rice at high prices, he said.
He said the rice millers had stocks of Samba and Keeri Samba that would suffice till April but that there were insufficient stocks of Nadu. He said the government had a large stock of Nadu.
He said it was unfair to blame the rice mill owners for the rise in the price of rice.
He expressed these views at a media briefing, yesterday (27) at the Hilton Colombo Residences.
He said he had decided to meet the media, as a responsible rice producer and rice buyer and a person with a political background, because a large number of allegations had been made against him.
I am the main person who is blamed for the rise in the price of rice. As a responsible businessman I have to explain the situation to the public. I will fight until the authorities implement a proper programme, he said.
(Source: Daily Mirror)
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This man with a political remain ficticious until some such time he comes out with facts something that he is not capable of doing. He nor the rest of the millers will not declare their stocks for the obvious reason that they would be liable for added taxes. The PMB at one time had a network of warehouses to store the paddy that was bought at guaranteed prices of which few remain.
Dudley sirisena being the brother of the president has the monopoly of milling in Polonnaruwa, he should come out with facts to substantiate his claims. The other millers in the fray are CCC, hayleys, cargills and their operations are just as mysterious. The purchases made by the PMB is just as mysterious. Why cant the PMB do its own milling as opposed to contracting private millers to do the job
One the main problems associated with agriculture is that they do not have a policy and whatever policy that they have cannot be implemented for they work in collusion with the millers. Farmers are frustrated and they drop out of farming and thos who do so produce enough to sustain there economy. The results are reflected by the declining area under irrigation.
The millers are in panic mode for the import of 50000 tons of paddy would mean that the New Year coup that they were planning would fall flat on their face. imagine the 100 percent mark of paddy prices during new year
will sisisena the president let it happen