- Amidst mounting island-wide protests by farmers demanding fertiliser following the federal government’s sudden resolution to go absolutely natural and ban chemical fertiliser utilization, two Indian Air Force planes have airlifted a consignment of nano nitrogen fertiliser to help Sri Lanka.
- Sri Lanka is facing a severe shortage of fertilizers after the ban after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa decided to ban chemical fertilizer imports.
- President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had in May decided to impose a total ban on agrochemicals saying he wanted to make Sri Lankan farming 100% organic.
Indian Air Force delivers Nano Nitrogen fertilizer to Sri Lanka`s Fertiliser Crisis.
“On the request of the Government of Sri Lanka, the two IAF C-17 Globemaster aircraft arrived at Bandaranaike International Airport with 100,000 kg of nano nitrogen. The deployment was essentially to support the Government of Sri Lanka’s initiative towards organic farming and to expedite availability of nano nitrogen fertiliser to the Sri Lankan farmers,” the Indian High Commission in Colombo stated in an announcement.
“The Government of India has continued to support Sri Lanka in times of critical requirement as part of its ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy and has repeatedly demonstrated its capacity and role as the ‘First Responder’ in the region,” it stated.
The High Commission added that the C17 a Aircraft operations have been coordinated in shut liaison with Sri Lanka Air Force and the fast deployment of IAF plane and expeditious disembarkation in a single day was indicative of shut coordination between the 2 providers.
Sri Lanka Air Force’s Chief of Staff, AVM Prasanna Payoe, who acquired the plane crews, had thanked the IAF for his or her immediate response and continued assist in important issues.
Since June hundreds of famers are on streets on each day foundation demanding that fertiliser be offered for paddy cultivation throughout the North-East Monsoon season or Maha season, the key paddy cultivation interval ranging from September/October within the island nation.
The protests got here following President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s sudden resolution in April to ban import of chemical fertiliser claiming that agrochemical has extreme well being hazards, together with a mysterious kidney illness inflicting hundreds of deaths yearly. However, the opposition claimed that the true cause for the fertiliser ban was due to the continuing monetary crisis due to lack of overseas reserves and drop in overseas foreign money. The nation’s annual expenditure for fertiliser import is $400 million.
Sri Lanka is dealing with one of many greatest monetary blows in her historical past following the Easter Sunday assault in 2019 and Covid-19 pandemic that had been occurring for final two years. The terrorist assault and the pandemic in flip had hit main overseas revenue earners like tourism.
Sri Lanka receives first consignment of non-harmful Nano Nitrogen liquid fertiliser from India to boost paddy, maize cultivation.
Sri Lanka has received the first consignment of 3.1 million litres high quality non-harmful Nano Nitrogen liquid fertiliser from India to help the island nation’s Eastern province in the cultivation of maize and paddy, country’s Agriculture Secretary Prof Udith Jayasinghe
The import of Nano Nitrogen liquid fertiliser came months after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s decision in May to stop chemical fertiliser imports sparked anger and widespread protests in the farmland districts of the country.
“This is the first lot of the full lot of 3.1 million liters and the use of these are not harmful,” Prof Jayasinghe said while speaking to reporters in Colombo.
“This is a high quality Indian product which has come for praise from the Indian Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi,” Mr. Jayasinghe said. He said they will further dispatch as a priority to cultivation areas in the Eastern province for maize and paddy cultivators’ use.
Sri Lankan`s Calls to reconsider ban:
Even some members within the ruling coalition have urged the government to reconsider the ban on the chemical fertilisers as the production of crops is going down.
Giving a hearing to the tea industry, the government a few weeks ago relaxed the ban allowing certain kinds of chemical fertilisers.
“Considering the fact that there has been a quality drop in tea that was produced in factories, the government has taken the decision to import sulphate of ammonia,” the government spokesman and Minister Ramesh Pathirana said earlier this week.
President Rajapaksa had decided to impose a total ban on agrochemicals saying he wanted to make Sri Lankan farming 100% organic.
He opted for the local production of organic fertiliser.
Analysts said the decision was primarily caused by the dearth of foreign reserves in U.S. dollars to pay for the import.
Sri Lanka’s annual fertiliser imports cost 400 million U.S. dollars, President Rajapaksa said.
SOURCE: http://www.indiandefensenews.in/2021/11/india-delivers-100-tons-of-nano.html
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