News
Bandula flays officials of Finance Ministry, CBSL for blocking development work
by Saman Indrajith
Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardena has found fault with the officials of the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) for what he calls their callous disregard for implementing the policies of the political leadership.
Participating in the third reading stage debate on Budget 2022 under the expenditure heads of the Ministry of Trade, Minister Gunawardena said that the country would not be able to achieve progress as long as the officials of the Finance Ministry and CBSL
Bandula were allowed to work according to their own agendas.
“It is high time we told the public the truth. People think that the Cabinet ministers are doing nothing to develop the country. It is the officials of the Finance Ministry and the Central Bank who block everything. This problem is not limited to one two ministries. These officials sabotage even the projects initiated by the person holding highest office in this country,” the minister said.
“This group of officials are misleading the country’s leadership,” Minister Gunawardena said.
The Paddy Marketing Board has approximately 115,000 metric tonnes of paddy stocks purchased from farmers, which are currently stored in the Board’s warehouses, and it has been planned to retain a sufficient buffer stock from these reserves and sell the remaining quantity in order to provide the necessary storage space and financial resources for the purchase of paddy from farmers during the upcoming Yala season.
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the resolution furnished by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation to sell the aforementioned paddy stocks
following a formal tender procedure.
The Promotion of Export Agriculture Act, No. 46 of 1992 provides the legal provisions for regulating and promoting the export agriculture sector in this country.
Taking into consideration administrative changes and sectoral developments that have taken place over time, approval was granted at the Cabinet Meetings held on 2023-09-04 and 2025-08-11 to amend the said Act, which has not been updated for over 30 years.
The proposed amendments are intended to amend the designations of the Head of the Department of Export Agriculture and other officials, and to provide a clearer definition of the term “the export agricultural crop.”
Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers has approved the resolution furnished by the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Land and Irrigation to publish in the Government Gazette the Draft Export Agriculture Promotion (Amendment) Bill, prepared in all three languages by the Legal Draftsman to amend the Export Agriculture Promotion Act, No. 46 of 1992, and thereafter submit the same to Parliament for its concurrence
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