Return of Glyphosate for plantations, ban lifted
Glyphosate, a key weed killer required in producing Ceylon Tea to the world, is now staging a comeback as Cabinet approval was granted last month to lift the ban for the next three years for use on plantations alone. But the gazette is still pending and authorities are uncertain whether the state has cash to import it.
Cabinet approval was granted on June 20 to lift the existing ban on Glyphosate to apply it on tea and rubber plantations and also for coconut and sugar cane requirements, a Plantations Ministry official told the Business Times.
The approval was granted under the previous conditions where the weedicide is to be imported only by the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and limited to a few agricultural sectors and to be renewed after a period of three years, officials said.
“We feel that the CPC will not have funds to import Glyphosate,” the official said adding that under the conditions it has been approved it cannot be imported by anyone else either. Sri Lanka is already facing a foreign exchange shortage to purchase essentials including fuel and fertiliser.
The gazette has to be issued by the Controller of Import and Export that will provide the license for the CPC to carry out the necessary imports.
It is learnt that Parliamentary approval required has been delayed as a result of the current political issues taking centre stage.
At present only 18,000 litres of Glyphosate is available in the country that was imported for the use on the coconut and sugar cane plantations.
In the meantime, it is also learnt that the government is having discussions to decide whether to open up the use of Glyphosate to all agricultural sectors.
Sri Lanka Tea Board Chairman Niraj De Mel told the Business Times that they are working with producers to ensure Glyphosate is provided to the estates and noted that in this respect the authorities are trying to ensure that the stocks currently available are released.
The tea industry has been seeing an 18 per cent loss of crop in the first six months of this year as a result of the ban on fertiliser.
In a bid to boost production, Mr. De Mel explained they have extended a low interest loan scheme for producers of both regional plantations and smallholders since the beginning of this month. As a result about Rs.1 billion has already been given out to the sector that would ensure they could make the required purchases of fertiliser to increase production.
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