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| Sunday, 25 July 2004 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Drought, debt and despair Lack of rain, silted tanks, poor harvests and heavy debts have forced farmers in Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa to abandon their paddy fields, sell their farming equipment and move to the city in search of jobs. Real estate dealers capitalising on the farmers' plight have moved in. And Sri Lanka is in danger of losing some of its most fertile fields to housing schemes. by Jayantha Sri Nissanka and Anura Maitipe Sri Lanka is a nation dependant on rice production for centuries. That was why the farmer was hailed as a king who fed this nation. If a king valued the crown, the farmer's crown was the mammoty. The Sunday Observer visited the ancient cities of Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa early this week to meet some of these rice producing 'kings' and discovered their sorry plight. Many had sold even their mammoties and the ploughs to feed their families. The unfolding stories, and the sight of paddy fields, once lush with crops now lying fallow, told its own tale of misery, with many farmers making track to city centres in search of jobs. The main reason for all this upheaval was the acute shortage of water for agriculture, aggravated by the non-maintenance of tanks. Farmers put the blame on politicians who promised them heaven during polls campaigns and forgot such pledges after being elected to office. These small households of poor farmers, had no farming equipment, as they had sold them to feed their families. Like in many cities, Land Developers have taken advantage of the situation to buy the valuable agricultural land by the roadway for a pittance, only to fill them up and build luxury resorts for holiday makers. Rich 'mudalalis' in the two districts have now turned land developers and the poor farmers have become scapegoats as they feel that giving away the land outright was reasonably profitable than becoming debtors to state banks by borrowing to cultivate. Some had mortgaged their lands to these 'mudalalis' earlier and were now unable to redeem them. These 'mudalalis' seem to have a field day over the land owned by these poor farmers who sweat to feed the nation. There is no doubt that these paddy lands will soon be converted into holiday resorts with the state being compelled to import more rice to feed the people. Farmers who spoke to the Sunday Observer alleged that claims by politicians about bountiful Yala and Maha seasons that made the country self-sufficient in rice was a myth to mislead the people. They were of the view that such statements were meant for election propaganda and not for the benefit of the country. "What have these politicians done for us", asked farmer P. Gunapala (52), from Kammalakkulama off Medawachchiya, where 300 farmer families lived. He said the Kammalakkulama tank had been last repaired when he was twelve and that was forty years ago. What was constantly seen was bulldozers and excavators brought on the pretext of repairing tanks during election time. "But they are taken back immediately after the elections with no work done," he said. At the Halmillawa village off Kammalakkulama, four hundred families depend on one well for their drinking water. The well, has less than a foot of water. "When we don't have water to drink how can you expect us to cultivate", the villagers asked. Some areas in Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa get little water, thanks to the Mahaweli project, but farmers say that it is not enough for paddy cultivation. Therefore, some farmers have resorted to cultivating vegetables. But they get a very low price from the Mudalalis. A majority of farmers in these two Districts who are totally dependent on rain water have not cultivated for years. Samel Appuhami, Ayurvedic physician, said that 20 families left Halmillawa to settle in Sattambikulam because they were unable to bear the agony. He says that Halmillewewa could be fed with water from Mahakanadara Wewa and Eru Wewa but no action has been taken so far to rehabilitate these tanks. When asked how they were living without any work he said about 85 families receive Rs. 250 Samurdhi benefits, while the men in other families have secured jobs as labourers elsewhere. Though statistics claim bumper paddy harvests every year, only a few farmers have excess paddy for storage. Mills are not filled to capacity as the owners have to pay high (21%) interest. Another factor is the uncertainity that prevails due to the import of rice. W. M. Karunasuriya, Supervisor, of 'Ariya Sahal' a major mill in the area said that they have the capacity to store 33,000 packs of rice worth Rs.40 million in their stores, but they stock only one third of the capacity. He said only statistics showed that Sri Lanka is self-sufficient in rice. But reality is far different. He said they could mortgage their properties and purchase paddy from farmers at a higher price, but did not want to do so due to the uncertainty in the rice market. " We don't know at what time the Government will import rice", he pointed out. He said 15 of the 60 paddy mills in the Anuradhapura town have already closed business. The 'Camel Samba Mill' was one of them. The owner had started a firewood business. Most of these mills are working under capacity. Many of them work only a day or two for a week. According to them profit bargain has dropped to Rs. 4000 to 6000 per acre in the season. This clearly shows the unprofitability of paddy farming in Sri Lanka. They said their children were not willing to work as farmers and they were moving to cities expecting other employment where their monthly earnings would be more than what their fathers earned for a season. When asked why the farmers were selling their fields to Mudalalis, they said that it is much more profitable to sell off paddy lands without becoming permanent debtors. However, farmers urged the Government to take early action to rehabilitate tanks and reservoirs to increase their storage capacity enabling farmers to cultivate during the drought. |
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