Thursday, 22 May 2014 00:21
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Farmers who are unable to cultivate paddy due to the water shortage are being encouraged to cultivate additional crops that require less water. Some areas in Sri Lanka experienced drought conditions since the beginning of this year, Agriculture Minister Mahinda Yapa Abeywardane said.
“We experienced an unexpected drought this year and farmers are still not able to start paddy cultivation as they do not have sufficient water,” he said.
“The Government has allocated Rs. 300 million to cultivate additional crops. Under this program, the Ministry has paid attention to cultivate peanuts in 2,344 hectares, green gram in 8,806 hectares, big onion in 600 hectares, kurakkan in 25 hectares, sesame in 47 hectares, soya beans in 15,814 hectares, chilies in 3,941 hectares and undu in 425 hectares,” he said.
