Saturday, 28 March 2015 01:36
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Lanka Sathosa Chairman Kiran Atapattu yesterday denied several reports that alleged that expired rice which was unsafe for human consumption were found at the Lanka Sathosa storage facility.
He made his denial in a statement where he said that media reports had focused on stocks that were earmarked to be discarded rather than the fresh quantities kept for consumption. The following is his statement.
Lanka Sathosa, under the Ministry of Industry and Commerce notes with concern of some news reports by certain media on 27 March alleging that expired rice unfit for human consumption was found at a Lanka Sathosa storage and the storage sealed - certain facts here are incorrect and require immediate clarification.
The reports said that “LakSathosa storage in Bollegala, Kelaniya, sealed. 10,700 M-tonnes of rice suspected to be unfit for consumption found” but this is far from the correct picture.
The Government of Sri Lanka, as a result of a Government-to-Government agreement entered into with (the Government of) Bangladesh in December 2014, imported 25,000 MT of ‘nadu’ rice from Bangladesh during the first week of January 2015 for the domestic market.
The 25,000 MT rice volume was officially guaranteed to be consumable and fit for consumption till January 2017. Of this volume, 12,656 MT were despatched to Bollegala storage (in the Kelaniya area) with the balance sent to Lanka Sathosa’s ‘Kelaniya’ storage. Of the 12,656 MT consumable rice at Bollegala storage, 783 MT had been sold already.
Also stored at the Bollegala storage are two tonnes of ‘swept rice’ which is not for sale. These stocks were created as a result of spilling out from main stocks and are separately stored for later disposal.
It is these two tonnes of rice waiting to be discarded that appear to have been publicised by media as “rice unfit for consumption.” Therefore the 10,700 M-tonnes of rice unfit for consumption is clearly a wrong statement and misleading.
The two tonnes of ‘swept rice’ cannot be discarded without permission from the officers of the Board of Survey of Lanka Sathosa.
Since the Board of Survey is not appointed yet, these two tonnes were left at Bollegala storage till these appointments are made so that inspections would begin.
Lanka Sathosa, with the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, is currently working towards formulating the next Board of Survey team.
Once this team is appointed, it will inspect the two tonnes of rice and arrive at an appropriate decision.
Lanka Sathosa shall make its representation at the Mahara Courts next week, possibly on Monday 30 March to request an order to re-open the storage sealed by MOH.
