The Gotabaya Rajapaksa Government appears determined to bring about an immediate and drastic change in Sri Lankan agriculture by replacing the conventional chemicalsbased system to an organic-based one without the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides. Adopting a carrot and stick policy, the import of chemical fertilisers has been banned and assistance to acquire organic fertilisers has been announced.
But this has been done totally disregarding the advice of experts, who had recommended a step by step change-over to avoid losses to the farmer and the country. The Sri Lanka Agricultural Economics Association (SLAEA) had warned that a complete switch-over will result in a 25 per cent fall in paddy yield and the profitability of paddy farming will be reduced by 33 per cent. On the other hand, a mixed conventional-organic system will increase paddy profitability by 16 per cent.
A switch-over will see also tea productivity going down by 35 per cent, and decrease the tea export volume from 279 million kg to 181 million creating a loss of Rs 84 billion. Coconut yield will be down by 30 per cent. The SLAEA recommend that Sri Lanka follow the world trend and opt for a gradual and carefully considered, market-led and voluntary switch-over in place of sudden one.
Global Scene
According to World of Organic Agriculture 2018 Summary, there were 57.8 million hectares of organic agricultural land in 2016, including in conversion areas. The regions with the largest areas of organic agricultural land were Oceania (27.3 million hectares, which is almost half the world’s organic agricultural land) and Europe (13.5 million hectares, 23 per cent ). Latin America had 7.1 million hectares (12 per cent) followed by Asia (4.9 million hectares, 9 per cent), North America (3.1 million hectares, 6 per cent), and Africa (1.8 million hectares, 3 per cent). The countries with the most organic agricultural land were Australia (27.4 million hectares), Argentina (3 million hectares), and China (2.3 million hectares). But globally, only 1.2 per cent of farmland was organic. This, despite the quadrupling of the global organic retail sales reaching US$ 82 billion in 2015.
Lower Yields
In their paper on the world organic farming scene in the journal Review of Resource Economics (October 2018), Eva-Marie Meemken and Matin Qaim of Gottingen University in Germany attributed the minuscule percentage under organic farming to lower yields. Across all crops, the gap in the yield of organic agriculture ranges between 19 and 25 per cent.
However, considerable differences can be observed between different crop species. Legumes (lentils, peas, chickpeas, beans, soybeans, and peanuts) and fruits, show smaller yield gaps than cereals and root and tuber crops.
Lack of Nutrients
Nutrient limitations are an important factor making organic agriculture show lower yields. Organic systems are often found to be limited in nitrogen and phosphorus. The release of plant-available nitrogen from organic sources is slow and can often not keep up with the nitrogen demand during peak crop growth periods, the authors point out. The amount of phosphorus provided in organic systems is also sometimes insufficient to replenish the quantities lost due to harvest.
Explaining the higher yields seen in legumes, Meemken and Qaim say that legumes can fix atmospheric nitrogen and are hence less dependent than other crops on externally added nitrogen. Fruits grow on trees that have longer growing seasons and extensive root systems and are hence better able to absorb nutrients in synchrony with crop demand, they add.
In terms of water availability and use, organic systems tend to have an advantage because soils managed with organic methods show better water-holding capacity and higher rates of water infiltration, the authors point out. This is also one reason why organic systems are often said to be more resilient and have higher yield stability, even under drought conditions,” the authors say.
But organic systems are more susceptible to pest outbreaks because of the ban on the use of chemical pesticides. And since chemical weedicide cannot be used in organic farming, weeding has to be done one manually and that is both labourintensive and expensive. And labour is indeed expensive in Sri Lanka.
Demands More Land
Meemken and Qaim point out that widespread increase or expansion of organic agriculture would need more land, which in turn, will lead to a loss of natural habitats. It is encroachment of forest lands and elephant habitats in Sri Lanka which has led to elephants straying into farm lands and the farmers in turn killing elephants in self-defence. Elephant killing is mounting in Sri Lanka.
Even though, one of the reasons for environmental degradation is chemicals-based agriculture (it causes land degradation, biodiversity loss, water pollution, and climate change), organic cultivation will demand, not just more land, but also more water and other natural resources. But these resources are becoming increasingly scarce, particularly in poorer countries which are going through unplanned and haphazard development.
Price Hikes
Production costs in organic farming being higher, there will be increases in consumer prices, making food less affordable for the poor in developing countries. On an average, organic products are 50 per cent more expensive than conventional products, the authors say. Therefore, the universal goal of giving the masses food security will not be achieved.
According to the FAO, there are still 800 million chronically undernourished people living mostly in Asia and Africa. To feed the hungry, global agricultural production will have to increase by at least 60 per cent and possibly up to 100 per cent by 2050, the authors say. A 100 per cent switch over to organic agriculture will retard progress towards the goal of ensuring food security for all.
Smart Combination
However, Meemken and Qaim recommend a ‘smart combination’ of organic and conventional agriculture. Organic farming could be practised where conditions are suitable and where there is a demand for organic products, which is typically among the health conscious and wealthy sections of society, they say. Further, they point out that the demand for organic products is set to grow. A survey in Germany in 2013 found that 50 per cent preferred organic products. And with world-wide economic advancement and resultant social mobility, the market for organic products will expand to sections of the world which are poor now. Expansion of the market will also make organic farming profitable.
Organic ‘Standards’
Meemken and Qaim recommend the adoption of ‘organic standards’ to ensure uniformity of quality. Today, more than 100 countries publicly support ‘organic standards’ developed by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM). The cornerstones of organic production systems are: balanced crop rotations with legumes, recycling of nutrients (e.g., through mixed farming), and the use of organic fertilisers.
In the developed world, compliance with organic standards is verified on an annual basis through farm inspections undertaken by accredited certification agents. In most of the developing or poor countries, farming is still organic for want of resources to go in for high yielding varieties which need chemical fertilisers, chemical pesticides and a lot of water, which do not come cheap.
But the organic farming in the poor countries is not scientific and is not ‘certified’. Certified organic farming is the hallmark of the developed countries and there has been an increase in certified organic farming. Over 15 years, the global area under certified organic agriculture has increased substantially from 15 million hectares in 2000 to 51 million ha in 2015. But still, in 2016, organic agriculture accounted for only 1.2 per cent of the total agricultural land worldwide.
By Kamanthi Wickramasinghe Courtesy The Daily Mirror
Experts have opined that shifting to organic agriculture overnight isn’t a wise move
Just last October Sri Lanka imported around 180,000 metric tonnes of chemical fertilizer
In Sri Lanka, farmers utilize close to 300 kilograms of fertilizer per hectare
Since farmers don’t have adequate knowledge on the consumption they think much fertilizer needs to be used to increase the yield
Fertilizers have also contaminated most of the island’s waterways due to poor irrigation strategies
The old Sinhala adage, Mada sodagath kala goviya rajakamatath sudusui (when the mud is washed off, the farmer is fit to serve as king) has remained in the language used by the peasant. To date, no farmer has gotten an opportunity to be king; let alone washing off the mud. After a glorious period of agriculture attributed to the various kingdoms of yesteryear, colonial invaders made sure that they not only colonised our land, but our rich soil as well. With independence Sri Lanka thought she was bracing for an independent period to regain its lost heritage when in the 1960s she once again fell victim to the Green Revolution. This not only introduced farmers to chemical fertilisers, but along with it came many hazards, particularly regarding health due to the use of heavy metals. After all these years, the Government recently announced that it would not only ban the import of chemical fertilisers and agrochemicals, but is planning to shift to a 100% organic agriculture system in another 10 years. However, on a practical note, this seems to be something far from doable.
Fertiliser mafia : Farmers back to square one
Back in 1943 a research was done on seeds and the maize crop in Mexico doubled its yield. This is the first research of its kind and it was after that that hybrid seeds were introduced to the market. Along with hybrid seeds came chemical fertilizers. Sri Lanka became part of the Green Revolution after 1965 and while the soil and water got contaminated with the introduction of chemical fertilizers it also provided the environment for the growth of certain weeds,” recalled All Ceylon Farmers Association President Namal Karunaratne.
As a result, local farmers have developed the habit of utilising chemical fertilizer and this practice has passed down generations. Just last October Sri Lanka imported around 180,000 metric tonnes of chemical fertilizers and the Sri Lanka Standards Institution condemned them due to the presence of heavy metals such as Arsenic, Cadmium. But the farmers are currently utilising this condemned stock. Actually fertilizers should be utilised at the rate of one kilogram per hectare. But in Sri Lanka, farmers utilize close to 300 kilograms of fertilizer per hectare. One reason for this is due to poor quality. Since farmers don’t have adequate knowledge on the consumption they think much fertilizer needs to be used to increase the yield,” Karunaratne added.
With the heavy use of chemical fertilizer the texture of the soil and fertilizer use have changed. Fertilizers have also contaminated most of our waterways due to poor irrigation strategies. Karunaratne recalled how the present regime promised to provide organic fertilizers to farmers. Placing their trust on the promise, farmers went and cast their votes. But that was that. Now they have decided to move into organic farming without any proper plan and farmers don’t have access to either chemical fertilizers or organic,” he added.
The decision has now prompted fertiliser dealers to sell them at black market prices. Therefore a kilo of fertilizers that was priced at Rs. 1500 is now being sold at Rs. 3500 or even more. A farmer would buy it at any cost. Taking advantage of this situation a dealer would say that there are only 10 bags remaining and for them to purchase them quickly. This information spreads through word of mouth and more people come to buy from him even at a higher price. But that stock of 10 bags never finishes.
Imported organic fertilizers would introduce new pathogens to the soil along with invasive species such as giant mimosa and salvinia. These plant species will disrupt the entire ecosystem. Apart from pathogens, chemical, electronic and industrial waste has become another global menace”
Ceylon Farmers Association President Namal Karunaratne
Organic farming given a miss
Karunaratne further opined that shifting to organic farming is a huge process that needs proper planning. Our farmers have adapted to conventional farming methods. There are seven agriculture institutes and all of them teach how farming is done with the use of chemical fertilizers. By changing it overnight, it is going to ruin the entire agriculture system. In fact farmers are now starting to hate organic farming,” he added.
Organic farming also means lesser yields and more challenges with fungi that grow on soil. Scientists who have studied soil claim that crops need around 16 elements to grow and produce a good yield. Three fundamental elements include potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen. Sunlight is important for photosynthesis. Hydrogen and carbon are obtained from water. An important element is nitrogen. The air in earth’s atmosphere comprises 78% nitrogen. Leguminous crops such as Maa karal (long bean) grow in a symbiotic relationship with soil-dwelling bacteria. The role of bacteria is to take gaseous nitrogen from the air in the soil and feed it into the legumes. In exchange, the plant provides carbohydrates to the bacteria. But with chemical fertilizers this nitrogen is provided instantly. In the case of short-term plants the plants are ‘wounded’ from different sides, so that nitrogen will quickly be absorbed to the plant. However, prior to shifting to organic agriculture there’s a need to restore the soil which has been contaminated for over five decades.” he said.
One school of thought is that Sri Lanka can produce organic fertilizers while continuing practices such as using cow dung and glyricidia. When asked if Sri Lanka could produce organic fertilizers Karunaratne said that it would take between 3000-5000 kilograms of compost fertilizers per acre. Speaking about various pathogens on soil he said that many types of bacteria, fungi, algae and protozoan play a huge role on soil. Some viruses are also included. Their role is to loosen the soil thereby allowing soil to retain water. This produces humus and other different textures of soil which are essential for farming practices,” he said.
However the Government recently announced that it would import organic fertilizers. But this is a risky move. Imported organic fertilizers would introduce new pathogens to the soil along with invasive species such as giant mimosa and salvinia. These plant species will disrupt the entire ecosystem. Apart from pathogens, chemical, electronic and industrial waste has become another global menace. Since western countries don’t have adequate space to dump them, these materials are crushed and sent to other regions as it is a potential money spinner as well. These materials could be crushed and sprayed in the guise of urea,” Karunaratne warned.
An illegal process
Importing organic fertilizers violates the regulations of the Plant Protection Act imposed in 1981. This move also violates the National Environment Act since it can contaminate the soil,” opined Centre for Environmental Justice Executive Director Hemantha Withanage during a press briefing. You cannot grow hybrid seeds using organic fertilizers. In order to do that we firstly need to create a seed bank. We can locally produce organic fertilizers from cow dung. The huge number of fish thrown away could be used to replace the nitrogen component. But we can’t move into an entirely organic agriculture system. Introducing organic agriculture has to be a step-by-step process.” said Withanage.
Article 14 of the 1981 regulations states that a small amount of fertiliser could be imported for laboratory research. However, legal experts claim that this cannot be used on land.
Following the claims, Minister of Agriculture Mahindananda Aluthgamage announced that foreign organic fertilizers would be disinfected prior to being imported. It’s not practical to disinfect so many containers of fertiliser,” opined Environmental Lawyer, Attorney-at-law Dr. Jagath Gunawardena.
In case if the Plant Protection Act is violated the fines and penalties should be decided by the magistrate.” said Dr. Gunawardena.
Subsequently the government decided against importing organic fertilizers and plans are afoot to empower local farmers and local authorities to produce organic fertilisers in the country itself.
Dr. Gunawardena however observes inherent shortcomings in the Act. There are some good clauses such as clauses 4, 7 and 12, but 20 years have passed since the Act was amended in 1999. Therefore it needs to be amended again to address challenges that the agriculture sector is likely to face in the future.” said Dr. Gunawardena.
We need to replace wheat with organic rice, Kurakkan and even jackfruit. Home- grown Engily ala, Rathu ala can easily be grown anywhere. For example these could be grown around all the decorative trees that line the roads for anybody to pick the produce free of charge”
Ranjit Seneviratne, former Food and Nutrition Specialist at the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation
The biomass we burn could be exported
An ad hoc shift to organic farming also raises questions about food security, given yield losses and crop failures. Responding to a query on food security, Ranjit Seneviratne, former Food and Nutrition Specialist at the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation said that if we truly want to help our people and our country we need EVERY DOCTOR in Sri Lanka to cooperate and tell everyone to eat healthy. We need to replace wheat with organic rice, Kurakkan and even jackfruit. Home- grown Engily ala, Rathu ala can easily be grown anywhere. For example these could be grown around all the decorative trees that line the roads for anybody to pick the produce free of charge. This is already being done at the Community Garden I grow by the entrance gate in addition to vegetables and spices like Murunga, Gotukola, Mukunuwenna, Curry leaf, Rampe, Sera etc. It is all so easy. No person in Sri Lanka needs to starve as food can be grown everywhere.” said Seneviratne.
He further said that Sri Lanka does not need to import organic fertilisers. We have so much biomass that people all over burn. For example, municipal workers burn leaves and other materials that they have collected, which we could export to countries that are reforesting.” he added.
Impact on export crops
When the Government announced its plan to ban the import of chemical fertilizers it wasn’t only a blow to paddy farmers, but also affected many crop cultivators in the island. For instance, the tea industry thrives on chemical fertiliser and tea planters complained that with organic fertilisers the yield is less and there would be a need to use double the amount of fertilizers. They point out that the texture of plants too have changed, compromising on the quality of the end product.
Organic fertiliser usage and organic tea cultivation are two different aspects,” a source at the Tea Research Institute said while speaking on terms of anonymity. It takes two to three years for a low-yielding tea estate to be converted into an organic tea estate. Around 30-50% yield could be obtained. The TRI has been recommending the use of compost fertilisers since the early ‘90s and it has been encouraging tea smallholders and large entities on integrated nutrient management. But the adaptation has been poor at the grassroots levels. In terms of productivity an average tea field produces around 3500 metric tones of tea per kilogram per hectare per year. But this is not the case in terms of organic tea and with yield losses it is not commercially profitable.
On the other hand stakeholders don’t tend to adapt valuable practices such as soil management, establishing shade trees and adapting to the climate situation. Tea fields are pruned and every three to five years around 12-18 metric tones of dry matter is collected. Back in the day the tea pluckers took them to be used as firewood, but now they have gas cylinders in their kitchens. If this dry matter is chopped and burnt it will provide carbon,” the source added.
The source further said that the Government is looking for a roadmap to move into organic agriculture, but added that it has to be designed properly. The source stated that the Government should consider streamlining the fertiliser subsidy; for instance rather than planning to shift to organic agriculture overnight.
When asked if organic fertilizers would be useful to grow export crops such as cinnamon, Department of Export Agriculture Director General Dr. A. P Heenkenda said that organic fertilisers are used to grow most spices including pepper, cloves and nutmeg. We make use of glyricidia, green leaf manure and these practices have continued since 1998. The plan is to expand them in future and research studies are underway. Already around 20% of our farmers are producing spices via organic methods. We have also established farmer organisations advocating producing organic pepper, cinnamon and other spices. This move by the Government is in fact a blessing in disguise.” said Heenkenda.
Organic agricultural practices improve biodiversity, improves soil and water quality and emit less greenhouse gases. Right now the main issue is whether the soil is ready to adapt organic fertilisers. For this there has to be sufficient microorganisms to change insoluble fertilisers to soluble form”
Prof. Gamini Senanayake, Chairman of Sri Lanka Council for Agricultural Research Policy
Challenges in reversing a 60-year old practice
In a practical sense, shifting to organic agriculture overnight isn’t a wise move. We have used chemicals for almost 60 years and as a result the soil has become toxic, dead and we cannot get a live soil in most parts of the country,” opined Prof. Gamini Senanayake, Chairman of Sri Lanka Council for Agricultural Research Policy. Organic agricultural practices improve biodiversity, improves soil and water quality and emit less greenhouse gases. Right now the main issue is whether the soil is ready to adapt organic fertilisers. For this there has to be sufficient microorganisms to change insoluble fertilisers to soluble form. But chemical fertilisers are already in the soluble form. Since we have continued to add chemical fertilisers, soil degradation has taken place and the earth has become unproductive. This is a golden opportunity, but whether it could be done in a short period of time remains a question.” said Prof.Senanayake.
When asked about producing organic fertilisers in the country Prof. Senanayake said that at present we don’t have the capacity to produce organic fertilisers. Most farmers are smallholders. If we educate them to prepare organic manure on the site most issues will be sorted out. But the problem is that almost all our farmers have a sound knowledge of the use of chemical fertilisers as they started farming after the Green Revolution. Therefore we need to change the mindsets of people as well.” he said.
Prof. Senanayake blamed certain political decisions that have hindered the agricultural process in the country. With decisions to establish the provincial council system all research stations related to agriculture are under the purview of the Central Government while extension services are under the provincial councils. Therefore continuity has broken. Therefore the link through which whatever technological developments were being taught to farmers was broken. Now there is no proper mechanism to disseminate new knowledge to farmers.” the professor said.
We can manage the Yala season with existing stocks of fertilisers, but we assure that we will provide organic fertilisers during the next Maha season,”
Minister of Agriculture Mahindananda Aluthgamage
We will not import any waste:Minister
A series of changes has been made in response to the growing concerns of farmers as well as the agriculture fraternity. The Ministry of Agriculture has not only started registering all organic fertiliser producers, but arrangements have also been made to use modern technology in this process. We can manage the Yala season with existing stocks of fertilisers, but we assure that we will provide organic fertilisers during the next Maha season,” opined Minister of Agriculture Mahindananda Aluthgamage.
Aluthgamage added that a single element liquid for Nitrogen will be brought apart from 70,000 metric tonnes of Potassium. The reason to import nitrogen is because right now the maximum amount in soil is only around 2% but we need to increase this to around 5%. We will also use new technology making use of microbes to create a live soil. This is being practiced in many countries.” the minister said.
Aluthgamage also refuted allegations about government plans to import waste from China in the guise of organic fertilisers. We will not import any waste. In fact there’s a committee of experts including the Vice chancellor of Wayamba University, microbiologists, soil scientists who will assess all products once they have been imported.” he said.
He assured that the organic fertilisers could be matched with existing requirements and that an agri-insurance policy is being designed in case farmers face certain hardships when shifting to organic fertilisers. But even in that case we are ready to purchase harvest at a higher price to reduce the economic burden. In terms of food security we are making arrangements to cultivate 150,000 acres of barren paddy fields with the assistance of the Sri Lanka Army. In the case of vegetables three million families with a 4-perch land will be chosen as beneficiaries to receive seeds. Already 15 government organisations have come forward to produce organic fertilisers. Therefore we won’t have any issue in making compost fertilisers and matching the existing requirements,” the Minister affirmed. In 2015, the Indian state of Sikkim declared itself as the first organic state in the world. But this was a 12-year long process. If Sri Lanka is to adapt organic agricultural practices, the wiser way to do it is perhaps implement a holistic, multi-dimensional approach in terms of research, policy decisions, trials and errors in the field, reviews from farmers, expertise from scientists, biologists, soil experts and various other stakeholders.
As per
the media reports, the Criminal
Investigation Department (CID), under a special team, has been tasked with
investigating those who are misleading the public by spreading false propaganda
on social media. Police Spokesman DIG Rohana has said it is an offence
punishable under Section 98 of the Police Ordinance, that if anyone disturbs
the public by publishing fake news. Minister of Public Security Rear Admiral
Sarath Weerasekara too confirmed this move in his recent speech in the
Parliament describing how false propagandists were misleading public against
him and his close relatives.
There
should not be any argument as to the existence of freedom of expression in a
democratic society. Although citizens have the freedom of expression, but they
also must have a responsibility and respect other people’s rights. The country
is facing a difficult situation due to Corona pandemic similar to all the other
countries in the rest of the World. Country needs the support of its people
more than anything else at this stage to get rid of this pandemic. The current
government was elected by the people just less than 2 years ago with nearly two
third majority and if a politician or an individual believes this is an
opportunity to mislead people to topple the government, that indicates nothing
but his/her extent of stupidity.
No government is perfect any ware in the
world, same as any human being. Every citizen has the right to criticize the
government and its activities, but it needs to be constructive and not
destructive. Law enforcement authorities, in any democracy, may restrict this right if they can show that
their action is lawful, necessary and proportionate in order to protect
national security, territorial integrity, public safety, health, the rights and
reputations of other people, prevent disorders or crimes etc.
Divaina
editorial dated 6th June 2021 under the title which roughly translated
in to English means ‘overthrowing governments and
overthrowing toilet buckets’ too, quite rightly exposed some of the individuals
(by name and giving examples) who are
responsible for spreading politically
motivated rumours, identifying the extent of harm done by them to the country
at large at this crucial stage . Some of these politically motivated mushroom
rumour-mongers are appearing in media as convenors of various citizens’
organisations and similar NGOs organisations which we have not heard before.
Some of them are appearing as so-called journalists, environmentalists,
academics and specialists representing various professions.
We
remember how similar
politically motivated movements with strong evidence having links to LTTE going under various
names, came out with their usual slogans of ‘free’, ‘fair’, ‘abduction’, ‘human
rights’, etc. which were useful to the terrorist outfit and risking the
security of the country and its leaders and attempted to manipulate the
situation to discredit the government during the three decades of war against
terrorism. We also remember how some politicians, parliamentarians, NGO
personal, academics, journalists and even some of the servicemen who were
serving the LTTE in various ways. Some of these personal were said to be in the
payroll of the LTTE. Thus this is not the first time that incidents of
treacherous acts of people were reported.
Unlike
those days, apart from television channels and websites, we have facebook,
various YouTube channels, WhatsApp etc providing information/ communication
which are helpful to the public in general.
Unfortunately, these developments appear to be providing more avenues
for the treacherous elements to enhance their activities via social and other
electronic media.
Thus the
obvious question, that arises after noticing the above activities identified in
the said editorial of the news paper, is, – are we expecting to compromise the future
of a nation, against those who call themselves journalists, environmentalists,
activists, convenors, specialists etc and manage
to get access to the media and engage in deliberately publishing fake news
which are harmful to maintain the public security, religious and communal
harmony, religious believes, public health
etc
causing inconvenience to the country and its people?
The main
charge against Sri Lanka at the UNHRC is that they deliberately killed
thousands of civilians in the last phase of Eelam War IV. Rajiva Wijesinha was
Secretary-General of the Sri Lankan Government Secretariat
for Coordinating the Peace Process (SCOPP) from
2007–2009. In that capacity Rajiva had access to war data.
Rajiva found that
very few allegations of civilian deaths were made to the Peace Secretariat until
the end of January 2009, when for the first time there was allegations of
hundreds killed. In 2008 when forces took Kilinochchi, the total civilian deaths
according to Tamilnet was only 78. It
was only on Jan 26th 2009 that a massive number of civilian deaths
were announced, just after the first No Fire Zone was declared. UN Resident Coordinator Neil Buhne said he
thought most of the firing in the NFZ came from LTTE, said Rajiva.
Analysts
observed that the government’s offensive in the Eastern Province had succeeded without civilian
casualties. The army would have followed
a similar policy in the North. Analysts noted that the international community has been closely watching the
conduct of the war. Had there been any loss of civilian lives the international community would have definitely tried to
stop the offensive.
The intelligentsia
in Sri Lanka took a similar position. If the army had targeted civilians
outside the conflict area, then we would have known, said Lalith de Mel, former
head of Reckitt and Colman. There would have been some information. But there was none. There can be no truth in
this story. (Lalith” p 151-2)
Rajiva
commented on the paucity of civilian casualties in the war. The reports of the
Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission indicated
that there were hardly any civilian casualties. This is almost unique in the
history of this type of military operation. Western nations are much less cautious,
Rajiva observed. In Fallujah, Iraq, in 2004, the US army completely destroyed homes,
schools, hospitals and killed civilians in droves, said analysts.
I have been
able to establish that the armed forces have been concerned only with military
targets. There certainly had not been wanton attacks on civilians, said
Rajiva. Air Force gave me full accounts
of whatever they had targeted, and their record was impressive. In the period
preceding the last phase there has been allegations of just 76 civilian deaths arising
from over air force 500 sorties Air force had refused to take certain targets
saying it would lead to civilian casualties.
We took our
targets in the air force when we were 100 percent certain that they were solely LTTE targets, Air Force
said. We abandoned over 150 targets where we could inflict massive destruction
on LTTE as they were close to civilians. LTTE lasted two years and ten months
only because the Air Force had gone out of their way to avoid civilian
casualties.
IDAG-S [1]
in its book The Numbers Game” , stated that
high resolution satellite imagery of the
second and third No Fire Zones, showed that shells fired by the army, during
the months of February to May, 2009
avoided civilian settlements.
IDAG-S found that the aerial photographs of the zone confirmed this. The Tamil civilian camp,
their ‘tent city’, was vast and stretched for several hundreds of miles. The
tents were so densely packed together that if the area had been attacked by army
mortars, the resulting fires would have destroyed vast swathes of tents. But the photographs show the tents
practically untouched. The majority
of the permanent structures in this zone were also intact.
The majority of
the disappeared are those of combat age. There were very few children or adults
over 40. A very high percentage is in 20-30 age group. This suggests that deaths were due to combat,
said Rajiva. Statistics of the Census Department
also showed that hardly any children or old people were missing. Numbers were
highest at the age when they would have been with the LTTE.
Speaking of the rescue operation, Army Commander Daya Ratnayake
said, those working for the UN and several other international agencies
involved in humanitarian work, and also those who were used as human shields
during the final stages of the war, came safely to us. Hundreds of clerics from
all religions came out safely. There was not even a scratch on them. Some 4,000
government employees came out. The families of terrorist leaders too came out
safely. So what are these allegations, asked the Army Commander.
Hardly any public servants, school
teachers or principals were killed In Eelam War IV, observed Rajiva. Hardly any
public servants were missing either.
Most had got to government side with family intact during the war. Rajiva had wanted an audit done of all the
public servants in LTTE areas before 2009 and after.
The fact that all UN workers got out safe and sound makes it clear that the army did not engage
in indiscriminate attack on civilians.
All the local employees of NGOs too, had come through safely after the war. This included the ones the LTTE had kept
back. There were no casualties at all among the aid workers whom the LTTE held
back when the UN and NCOs left the Wanni in 2008. The only injury to UN local staff was from a
LTTE landmine, said Rajiva.
In the final
days of the ‘war’, the Government took steps to make the fighting, a war
without witnesses. The UN Agencies, international and local NGOs were ordered
to leave the area, in preparation for the final assault by the Armed Forces.
This
shortsighted policy provided the opportunity for those who wanted to give a
slant to figures of civilian casualties and Armed Forces’ atrocities, the
platform to do so. The absence of independent observers like the UN agencies,
NGOs and the media, prevented accurate and truthful narratives to filter
through, of what was happening on the battlefields, said analysts.
In many wars
fought in different parts of the world, the media and other independent
observers provide accounts of the fighting and suffering of the people in the
battlefield, enabling the public to form a balanced opinion of what was going
on. By removing all third parties from the scene of action, the story of
civilian casualties could be falsified or exaggerated.
Such a scenario
has also helped the pro LTTE sections of the Diaspora keep the issue alive, by
feeding the international community with figures of civilian casualties that
may not reflect the actual ground situation. Information from independent
observers and media would have helped counter the situation in no small measure,
said analysts. .
Though the
western media said that the last days of Eelam War IV was a war without
witnesses, commentators such as Rajiva Wijesinha, pointed out that ICRC had
remained in the conflict zone throughout the entire duration of the war, taking away those in need of medical
assistance until almost the last week of the war. ICRC brought several
shiploads of injured form conflict zone from February to May, 2009. The vast
majority of the wounded civilians were evacuated by the ICRC, starting on 10
February 2009.
According to
Navy Headquarters, the ICRC ship carried out the last evacuations on May 09,
2009, just 10 days before the successful conclusion of the war. The ICRC evacuated 14,000 wounded and their
relatives from Puthumattalan and also delivered 2,350metric tons of food to
Mullivaikkal between Feb 10, 2009 to May 09, 2009.
In total, 16
ICRC ships came to the conflict zone in the final months. The international
ICRC staff that had remained in Puthumattalan left on the first ship, but they
returned and stayed onshore for a few hours each time the ships came back. The
Government did not allow United Nations staff on the ships.”
‘Sri Lanka
Humanitarian Effort’ published by the Presidential Task Force for Resettlement,
Development and Security in the Northern Province (2011) gave the number of people evacuated
from Puthumattalan during Feb-May 2009 as 12,820. Of them only 4,740 were wounded.
An Indian medical team was deployed at Pulmoddai, to receive the
wounded, transferred from Puthumathalan, by the ICRC in via sea. This Indian team received several thousand
wounded civilians during February-May, 2009. The Indian team remained there until
the conclusion of the war, said Shamindra Ferdinando.
Shamindrawas among a small group of journalists
taken by the Navy in late April 2009 to the Chalai-Mullaitivu waters to observe
the ICRC operation and later to Pulmoddai, where the Indian medical team was at
work.
However, it
appears that the media were allowed in during the last phase of the war. Muralidhar
Reddy and Kanchan Prasad had been embedded in the Sri Lanka battlefront since
late 2008. They were taken to the battlefront (Last Redoubt”) every day from
the 14th-18th May, 2009, returning to the SL Army HQ area
by evening-night so that they could file their reports to their respective
Indian offices.
Reddy has
told the world that [t]here were no conditions spelled out on the coverage
from the war zone. We were allowed unfettered and unhindered movement up
to 400 meters from the zone, where pitched battles were fought between the
military and the remaining cadre and leaders of the LTTE . We sent our news
dispatches to our headquarters. No questions were asked” (Reddy, An
eye-witness account of the last 70 hours of Eelam War IV,” Frontline,
Volume 26-Issue 12: June 6-19, 2009).
Michael Roberts observed that While Prasad and Reddy may have been
given a privileged place among reporters in mid-May, they were among a number
of other foreign journalists airlifted to the front on other occasions in the
months January-April 2009. The full list is available at http://www.scribd.com/doc/185693507/SL-ARMY-Media-Accreditation-to-War-Zone-2007-2009
The media agencies allowed into the war zone
in from 2nd to 16th May 2009, included *Aften posten (Norway) *All
India Radio *BBC *BBC New Delhi *Christian Science Monitor *Daily Telegraph *
Danish Broadcasting *Financial times, Mumbai *France 24 *Hindu *Kayodo News Agency,
Japan*Liberation Paris *News X, India * Reuters * Russian Information Agency *ZDF/TV
Berlin. ( continued)
[1] Independent Diaspora Analyst
Group, Sri Lanka . IDAG-S is a think tank of academics,
professionals and analysts from the Sri Lankan diaspora in Europe, North
America and Australia. The lead author is an aerospace engineer who was able to
bring a wide range of multidisciplinary skills to the task. https://groundviews.org/2013/05/28/sri-lankas-numbers-game/
The Gist of the Address by the
Worldwide Head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community the Fifth
Khalifah (Caliph), His Holiness, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad at the
UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, France on 8th October
2019. The event was attended by over 80 dignitaries and guests, including
diplomats, politicians, academics and the representatives of think tanks as
well as business leaders and various other professions.
Hazrat
Mirza Masroor Ahmadsaid:
The
founding objectives of UNESCO are excellent and praiseworthy. Amongst its
objectives are fostering peace and respect, promoting the rule of law, human
rights and education across the world.
UNESCO
also advocates for press freedom and protecting different cultures and
heritages. Another of its stated goals is to eradicate poverty, to promote
sustainable global growth and development and to try to ensure that humanity
leaves behind a positive legacy, from which future generations can benefit.
You
may be surprised to learn that Islamic teachings require Muslims to work
towards fulfilling these same objectives and to continually strive for the
progress of humanity. Such service is based upon the very first chapter of the
Holy Quran, which states that Allah the Almighty is the Lord of all the
worlds.”
In
Islam, the philosophy of punishment or sanction established by God Almighty is
weighted more towards the hereafter, whilst in this life, Allah the Almighty
continues to manifest His Grace and Mercy upon the world. By instructing
Muslims to adopt His ways, Allah the Almighty has instructed them to show
compassion and sympathy to their fellow creation. In light of this, it is a
religious obligation on Muslims to fulfil the requirements of other people,
irrespective of religion, culture or ethnicity and to always be kind and
empathetic to the emotions and needs of others.
Moreover,
the Holy Quran has pronounced that the Holy Prophet of Islam (peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him) was sent to the world by God Almighty as a
source of unparalleled mercy and benevolence for all humanity. He was the
practical manifestation of the compassionate teachings of Islam.
The
Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was elected as the head of state and under his
leadership, the covenant proved to be a magnificent charter of human rights and
governance and it ensured peace between the different communities. The Prophet
of Islam (PBUH) established an impartial judiciary for dispute resolution. He
made it clear that there would be one law for the rich and powerful and for the
poor and weak and all people would be treated equally according to the law of
the land.
For
example, on one occasion, an affluent lady committed a crime and many people
suggested that, given her high standing in society, it was better to turn a
blind eye to her crimes. The Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) rejected their advice
and made it clear that even if his daughter committed an offence, she too would
be subject to the law and no favouritism or nepotism would occur.
In
addition, the Prophet of Islam (PBUH) established an excellent education
system, through which the intellectual standards of that society were raised.
Literate and well-educated people were instructed to teach the illiterate.
Special measures were put in place to provide education to orphans and other
vulnerable members of society. This was all done so that the weak and powerless
could stand on their own two feet and advance.
A
taxation system was established, whereby taxes were levied on wealthier members
of society and the proceeds were used to provide financial aid for disadvantaged
members of society. According to the teachings of the Holy Quran, the Prophet
of Islam (PBUH) established a code of business and financial ethics to ensure
that trading was fair and honest.
In
an age when slavery was rampant and slave-owners treated their slaves
mercilessly, the Prophet of Islam (PBUH) sought to bring about a revolution in
society. Slave-owners were ordered to treat their slaves with compassion and
respect and the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)
repeatedly urged them to free them.
Also,
under the leadership of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), a system of public
sanitation was developed. A city cleaning programme was implemented and people
were educated about the importance of personal hygiene and physical health. The
roads of the city were expanded and improved. A census was conducted to collect
data and to identify the needs of the citizens.
Moving
on, in terms of the teachings of Islam, it is a cause of profound sadness that
in today’s world, the Holy Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings of Allah be
upon him) has been grievously mischaracterised. He has been branded as a
belligerent leader, when nothing could be further from the truth.
The
reality is that the Prophet of Islam (PBUH) spent every moment of his life
championing the rights of all people and through the teachings of Islam, he
established an incomparable and timeless charter of human rights. For example,
he taught that people should respect the beliefs and feelings of one another.
They should abstain from criticising what others held sacred.
Once,
a Jewish person came to him and complained about the conduct of one of his
closest companion. The Prophet of Islam (PBUH) summoned him and asked what had
transpired. He said that the Jew had claimed that Moses (peace be upon him) was
superior in rank to the Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon
him) and he could not tolerate this. He had strongly refuted it and said that
the Holy Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was of a
higher rank.
Upon
this, the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) expressed his displeasure with his
closest confidant and said that he should not have argued with the Jew and
should instead have respected his religious sentiments. These were his peerless
teachings and in my view, it is deeply regrettable that the principle of mutual
respect, which is the means of establishing love and unity, has been sacrificed
in the modern world in the name of so-called freedom and even in the name of
entertainment.
In
terms of fulfilling the rights of the weak and poor, the Holy Prophet of Islam
(PBUH) established various schemes and projects to raise their standards of
living and to ensure that they were not deprived of their dignity. He said that
whilst most people afforded a high status to those who were wealthy and
powerful, a poor person who was moral and considerate had far greater value,
than a rich person who cared not for the feelings of others and merely lived
off his name.
Even
in small matters, the Holy Prophet of Islam (PBUH) paid great attention to
ensuring that the feelings of underprivileged people were protected. For
example, he instructed Muslims to always invite the poor and needy to their
dinner parties or social gatherings. If less affluent people were exploited by
the rich or powerful, the Prophet of Islam (PBUH) instructed his followers to
help the weaker party attain justice.
Another
issue often raised is of women’s rights and it is often alleged that Islam
denies women’s rights. Nothing could be further from the truth! Rather, Islam
established the rights of women and girls for the first time. At a time when
women and girls were discriminated against and often looked down upon, the Holy
Prophet of Islam (PBUH) instructed his followers to ensure that girls were
educated and respected.
Indeed,
he said that if a person had three daughters, whom they educated and guided in
the best way, they would be sure to enter paradise. This is contrary to the
extremist’s claim that a violent Jihad and the slaughter of non-Muslims will
take a person to heaven. The Prophet of Islam (PBUHs) taught that the way to
enter heaven was by educating and instilling moral values within girls.
Based
upon these teachings, Ahmadi Muslim girls across the world are educated and are
excelling in various fields. They are becoming doctors, teachers and architects
and entering other professions through which they can serve humanity. We ensure
that girls are given equal access to education as boys. Hence, the literacy
rate of Ahmadi Muslim girls in the developing world is at least 99%. Besides
education, Islam was the religion that first gave women the right to
inheritance, the right to divorce and many other human rights.
Furthermore,
the Holy Prophet (PBUH) emphasised the rights of one’s neighbours and said that
Allah the Almighty had placed such great emphasis upon their rights, that he
came to think that neighbours would be classed amongst a person’s rightful
heirs. Thus, the Prophet of Islam (PBUH) established universal human rights
that were due to each individual, irrespective of their beliefs, social status
or ethnicity.
I
have just spoken about how the Holy Prophet of Islam (PBUH) focused a great
deal on the importance of education. This was reflected in the aftermath of the
first battle in the history of Islam. Despite being extremely ill-equipped they
were able to defeat the much stronger Makkan army with the help of Allah the
Almighty.
In
reality, if the early Muslims engaged in warfare it was always defensive and
fought for the sake of establishing long-term peace and to protect the right of
all people to live with freedom. If countries adopt unjust and extreme
policies, their goals are invariably linked to gaining geo-political benefit
and asserting their dominance over others. Their conduct has nothing to do with
Islam.
The
Holy Quran states very clearly that there should be no compulsion in matters of
faith.
Another
allegation levelled against Islam by certain critics is that it is a backward
and archaic religion or one that does not promote intellectual advancement.
This is a lazy stereotype that is based on fiction rather than fact. It is a
baseless allegation. The Holy Quran itself has signified the importance of
education by teaching the prayer: O my Lord, increase me in knowledge.”
Where
this prayer is a source of great help to Muslims, it also inspires them towards
learning and advancing the cause of human knowledge.
The
truth is that the Holy Quran and the teachings of the Holy Prophet of Islam
(PBUH) inspired the works of generations of Muslim intellectuals, philosophers
and inventors in the Middle Ages. Indeed, if we look back more than a
millennium, we see how Muslim scientists and inventors played a fundamental
role in advancing knowledge and developing technologies, which transformed the
world and remain in use today.
For
example, the first ever camera was developed by Ibn Haytham and his
revolutionary work was recognised by UNESCO, when he was declared as a ‘pioneer
of modern optics.’ It is also interesting to note that the word ‘camera’ is
derived from the Arabic word ‘qamara’.
In
the 12th Century, a Muslim
cartographer produced what was regarded as the most extensive and accurate
world map of the medieval times, which was used for centuries by travellers.
Furthermore,
in the field of medicine, many Muslim physicians and scientists made great discoveries
and pioneered many inventions that remain in use today. Many of the surgical
instruments were pioneered by the Muslim physician Al-Zahrawi in the 10th Century.
In
the 17th century, an English
physician, William Harvey famously carried out what was considered as
ground-breaking research regarding blood circulation and the functioning of the
heart. However, it was later discovered that more than 400 years before
Harvey’s research, Ibn Nafees, an Arab physician, had already detailed the
basics of pulmonary circulation in an Arabic textbook.
In
the 9th century, Jabir ibn
Hayyan brought about a revolution in the field of chemistry. He invented many
of the basic processes and apparatus still in use today.
The
principles of Algebra were first developed by a Muslim, as was much of the
theory of Trigonometry.
In
the modern world, algorithms are the basis of modern computing technology and
they too were first developed by Muslims.
The
contribution of Muslims to intellectual enlightenment is still recognised.
Hence,
from the outset, Islam emphasised the immense value of learning and pushing the
boundaries of human knowledge.
Since
it was founded in 1889, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has always promoted
education amongst its members. With the Grace of Allah, the very first Muslim
Nobel Laureate was an Ahmadi Muslim, Professor Dr Abdus Salam, an eminent
physicist who won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1979. Throughout his life,
Professor Salam spoke of how Islam, and the Holy Quran in particular, was the
inspiration and guiding light behind his work. In fact, he used to say that
there were around 750 verses in the Holy Quran directly related to science and
which enhanced our understanding of nature and the universe.
Certainly,
we believe that access to education is key to breaking the cycle of poverty
that has plagued economically weak countries for generations. We learn this
from the Holy Prophet of Islam (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) who
urged Muslims to fund the education of vulnerable members of society, such as
orphans.
He
taught that spiritual advancement was intrinsically linked to serving humanity and
so a Muslim could not attain the love of God Almighty just through worship and
prayer, rather the love of God Almighty required Muslims to serve humanity.
Thus, in chapter 90, verses 15 to 17 of the Holy Quran, Muslims are instructed
to work to eradicate hunger and poverty, to fulfil the needs of orphans and to
educate vulnerable and poor children, so that opportunities open up for them to
develop.
In
all parts of the world, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community acts upon these noble
teachings to the best of our abilities. We believe that Islam is a religion of
love and compassion and so we serve humanity without making any distinction
based on the religion or ethnicity of those who we help.
These
are all basic human rights and so until we help people flee poverty and
destitution, we will not see true peace in the world.
At
the end, I pray with all my heart that mankind forsakes greed and forgoes the
pursuit of narrow self-interests and instead focuses on relieving the pain and
anguish of those who are suffering in the world.
By Darshani Kumaragamage, PhD d.kumaragamage@uwinnipeg.ca
Banning the import and use of synthetic chemical fertilizers:
I read with interest and concern the conflicting and controversial views expressed by many experts and stakeholders, regarding the Sri Lankan government’s decision to ban the importation of agrochemicals, including synthetic chemical fertilizers. Undoubtedly, some have genuine concerns regarding the negative impacts of synthetic chemical fertilizers on the environment and human health, while others see the potential threat of a food shortage if synthetic fertilizers are totally replaced by organic sources. Any action adopted in a quest to do the right” thing should be guided by careful analysis of the expected outcomes as well as the unintended consequences, which are often difficult to foresee.
Based on my training and experience in Sri Lanka and in Canada over the last three decades as agriculturist, soil scientist, and environmental scientist, I will attempt to provide a balanced analysis both from an agronomic and environmental point of view. My hope is that these arguments perhaps could shed more light on different thought processes expressed and guide the momentous decisions that are being made.
Organic farming has its benefits and is gaining global popularity. The demand for organically produced food is steadily increasing, particularly in the developed world. Certain aspects of organic farming such as the avoidance of pesticides, have potential benefits in producing food with less negative impacts on the ecosystem health. However, to date, there is no evidence to support that total replacement of synthetic chemical fertilizers with natural organic sources is better for the environment and human health. I am using the term natural organic fertilizer” in this article, since urea, the most common chemical fertilizer used in Sri Lanka, is also an organic fertilizer, but synthetically produced. While synthetically manufactured urea is not considered an ‘organic’ fertilizer, manure containing naturally produced urea as a metabolic by-product of animals is an approved ‘organic’ fertilizer in organic farming systems.
Chronic kidney disease of unknown etiology (CKDu) and agrochemicals
The alarming rate of chronic kidney disease incidences among farming populations in some regions of Sri Lanka is a grave concern. The decision to ban agrochemicals is undoubtedly taken with the best intention of protecting farming communities against this deadly disease, considering that agrochemicals are the root cause, even though this is yet to be proven. I would like to make three arguments against banning inorganic fertilizer and its replacement with organic sources in relation to CKDu prevention. Firstly, the incidences of CKDu are not from the regions in Sri Lanka where farmers use heavy inputs of inorganic fertilizers such as the Hill Country, which leaves us with an uncertainty whether CKDu is indeed linked to fertilizer. Secondly, even if CKDu is linked to fertilizer, replacing synthetic inorganic fertilizer by natural organic fertilizer will not solve the problem as both these sources have similar impacts on ecosystem and human health. Thirdly, unlike pesticides which are toxic by design (since the intention is to kill an organism), fertilizers are not toxic at recommended rates. Therefore, any environmental or health impacts with fertilizers (inorganic or organic) could be better addressed by importing fertilizers with higher standards (with low impurities), combined with efforts to increase awareness to farmers on the use and management of fertilizers.
Based on current knowledge research findings from Sri Lanka and elsewhere, total reliance on natural organic sources to supply nutrients in crop production systems is likely to cause a serious food shortage with negligible benefits to the environment. Below, I am listing some of the challenges in using natural organic sources, and the major concerns regarding the total replacement of chemical fertilizers with organic sources for mass crop production in Sri Lanka.
Low inherent soil fertility. Despite our unsubstantiated belief that Sri Lanka is blessed with fertile soils, the majority of agricultural soils in Sri Lanka exhibits serious fertility limitations for crop production. This is not unique to Sri Lanka, but common to most tropical countries. The soils are much older (highly weathered) than in temperate regions and high temperature decomposes organic matter rapidly while heavy rainfall removes nutrients from the soil system. Therefore, unlike soils of temperate regions, tropical soils have low organic matter, low supply of nutrients, and low ability to retain nutrients. Even if a shift to complete reliance on natural organic sources for nutrients could be sustainable in temperate soils, it is not a sustainable approach for mass production of crops in the tropics.
Nutrients not available at critical stages. Unlike synthetic chemical fertilizers, nutrients in natural organic sources are in a form not readily available to crops until the material is decomposed, which takes time. When organic material is added to soils, activity of microorganisms increases, resulting microorganisms and crops competing for nutrients that are in limited in supply in tropical soils. This may cause an initial deficiency of nutrients at the early, but very critical, stage of the crop.
Food security at a time of pandemic. It is well established that crop yields are usually reduced when nutrients are provided with only natural organic sources, compared to synthetic sources or a combination of them. The most serious and immediate consequence of shifting to total reliance on natural organic sources for crop production in Sri Lanka would be a significant reduction in crop yields, which will threaten the country’s food security particularly at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has interfered with the international food supply chain.Such a move will also have a devastating effect on livelihoods of vulnerable farmers and will impact foreign exchange earnings through plantation agriculture and horticulture.
Myth of healthier and better-quality food. The belief that foods produced through natural organic sources of nutrients are healthier and are of better quality is a myth. Whether we supply nutrients through synthetic chemical fertilizes or natural organic sources, the crop plants take up nutrients primarily in the same chemical forms, i.e., as inorganic cations and anions. On the other hand, recent studies conducted by researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the USA has shown increasing incidences of disease outbreaks, which the authors linked to Salmonella and E. coli contamination from animal waste used in the production of organically grown food (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28221898/ ). As such, a cautious and careful assessments of such risks should precede a shift towards 100% organic farming for an entire nation, which is quite a gigantic step.
Bulk quantities required. One of the main challenges in supplying plant nutrients through natural organic sources is the requirement of bulk quantities due to their low nutrient concentrations, which makes it costly and inconvenient to use. While synthetic chemical fertilizers are required in rates no greater than a few hundreds of kilograms per hectare (few bags), natural organic sources are required in a few tons per hectare (truck loads) to meet the crop requirement of nutrients. The economic and environmental cost of long-distance transportation offsets the environmental benefits of organic farming unless the organic material is locally available in adequate quantities.
Pollution of freshwater bodies.
A more serious and long-lasting threat with continuous application of natural organic sources for crop production is the buildup of certain nutrients in soil that eventually ends up in water bodies polluting aquatic environments. Natural organic sources such as animal manure have low nitrogen to phosphorus ratio, and their use to meet the crop nitrogen requirement result in over application of phosphorus to crop lands. This has resulted in P-laden soils polluting surrounding water bodies. Many regions across the world are experiencing algal blooms in freshwater lakes (e.g., Great Lakes in North America, Lake Winnipeg in Canada), with phosphorus from intensive agricultural lands contributing to aggravate the problem. Therefore, regulations for restricting manure applications exist in several provinces and states across North America as well as other parts of the world.
Potentially toxic metals. Potentially toxic metals present in some inorganic fertilizers as impurities (e.g., cadmium in triple superphosphate), poses a threat to human health through polluting drinking water or contamination of food sources, particularly when low quality fertilizers are used. These potentially toxic metals are naturally present in rocks and soils and can remain in the fertilizer after processing of rocks (e.g., rock phosphate), used as raw material. Natural organic sources also contain appreciable quantities of potentially toxic trace elements. Accumulation of toxic metals such as arsenic, cadmium, nickel, selenium, and lead in agricultural soils have been well documented with the application of manure and manure-based composts, which can lead to phytotoxicity and a threat to human health. In this regard, a total shift to natural organic fertilisers could make the situation worse.
My intention is not to undermine the benefits of organic farming, but to caution that more needs to be considered before taking such a huge step as banning all agrochemicals for the entire country. Research findings have shown that the potential environmental and human health threats through the nutrient inputs in agriculture exist even with organic sources. It should also be noted that the early arguments for excluding inorganic chemical fertilizers in the organic farming movement are now being debated by scientists. A concluding statement in a recent review by an eminent Swedish Professor in plant nutrition and soil fertility published in Outlook for Agriculture reiterates that The decision to ban inorganic fertilizers in organic farming is inconsistent with our current scientific understanding.” (https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/00307270211020025 ).
What then is the best approach?
Integrating synthetic and natural sources – middle path?
The best approach in my view is to continue taking the middle path avoiding the two extremes. Thanks to the many years of excellent research conducted by scientists at the Department of Agriculture and various Research Institutes in Sri Lanka for various crops in different parts of the country, most of the current fertilizer recommendations takes an integrated approach (or the middle path) combining inorganic fertilizer with organic sources that are locally available. The benefits of adding organic sources to soil is unquestionable; not only do they improve soil properties and soil health but sequester carbon and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions in combating climate change. Combining synthetic inorganic fertilizers with natural organic sources provides the flexibility of adjusting the rates as required to supply nutrients in sufficient quantities while improving the soil organic matter and soil health, thus ensuring greater productivity while protecting the environment. It is however important that we address the non-compliance of farmers in the correct use of chemical fertilizers. This can be achieved through comprehensive farmer education and training on the 4R concept of nutrient management (applying the right source at right rate at the right time to the right place) . http://www.ipni.net/article/IPNI-3255 This will improve the fertilizer use efficiency, reduce waste, and minimize nutrient losses to broader environment, which will ensure the most economical outcome, while providing desirable social and environmental benefits essential to sustainable agriculture. Regular soil health assessments and environmental monitoring for pollutants and corrective actions would also be needed.
I have no doubt that the decision to ban the use of synthetic chemical fertilizers in crop production in Sri Lanka, if implemented, will be reversed possibly after a few seasons of cultivation, but that may be too late for the most vulnerable farmers and consumers, and for the maintenance of soil health. I am hoping that professional advisors promoting and supporting the decision to ban the import and use of chemical fertilizers in Sri Lanka, most of whom were my former colleagues, would give more thought to this important decision considering the facts I presented as well as views expressed by other scientists at various forums. If the decision to make Sri Lanka the first country in the world with 100% organic farming remains unchanged, my final appeal is to do it in stages, targeting only the regions that are affected by CKDu as a trial, before implementing it to the whole country without knowing the consequences of such a decision.
About the author:
Dr. Darshani Kumaragamage is a Professor in Environmental Studies and Sciences at the University of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, and a former Professor in Soil Science at the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. She has a BSc in Agriculture from University of Peradeniya, M.Phil. in Agriculture from the Postgraduate Institute of Agriculture, Sri Lanka and a PhD in Soil Science from University of Manitoba, Canada. She served the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Peradeniya as a faculty member for 23 years. She currently teaches courses in Environmental Impacts of Agriculture”, Environmental Sol Science” and Human-Environment Interactions” at the University of Winnipeg. Her current research focuses on assessing and mitigating environmental impacts of agricultural activities with emphasis on fertilizer and manure use in crop production. She continues to actively collaborate in agricultural research activities in Sri Lanka and is involved in training students and early career researchers from Sri Lanka at the University of Winnipeg.
by Professor W. A. J. M. De Costa -Senior Professor and Chair of Crop Science Department of Crop Science, Faculty of Agriculture University of Peradeniya
Why use fertiliser on crops?
Fertilisers are used for two purposes.
One purpose is to provide essential plant nutrients that are required for crops to produce an economically-important product (i. e. food for humans, feed for animals, a variety of industrial products, etc.). Just as people require food, crops require nutrients for producing what is expected from them.
When a crop is harvested and its yield taken away, a large amount of nutrients is taken out of the system (i. e. the soil). Therefore, continuous cropping of a land leads to the depletion of nutrients in the soil. Application of fertilisers to such a soil replenishes its nutrient pool and makes continuous cropping possible. This is the second purpose of using fertilisers.
A natural ecosystem like a forest does not require an external input such as fertiliser because nutrients are not taken out of the system. Nutrients in dead leaves, branches, trunks and roots are recycled back to the soil. It is a ‘closed’ nutrient cycle, as opposed to the ‘open’ system in an agricultural crop.
Inorganic vs organic fertilzers
Inorganic fertilisers (normally called chemical fertilisers) contain nutrients in a concentrated form (i.e. fraction of the nutrient in a unit weight of the fertiliser is high). They are produced via industrial processes or by refining mined minerals containing the nutrient. Three major plant nutrients, viz. nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium are supplied as inorganic fertilisers, either individually (‘straight fertilisers’) or in a mixture (‘compound fertilisers’).
Organic fertilisers (organic manures) are raw materials of plant, animal or human origin. When applied to the soil, they decompose and release their nutrients. In comparison to inorganic fertilisers, the fraction of nutrients in a unit weight of organic manure is much lower. Therefore, to give a crop/soil the same amount of a nutrient, a much greater quantity of organic manure than inorganic fertiliser has to be applied. All organic fertilizers are ‘compound fertilisers’ in the sense that they contain a mixture of nutrients though in a diluted form.
When applied to the soil, the inorganic fertilizers release their nutrients quickly. In recent times, nano-scale materials have been used to slow down the release of nutrients from inorganic fertilisers (i.e. called ‘nano-coated slow-release fertilisers’). When applied to the soil, organic fertilisers release their nutrients slowly, because the organic raw material has to decompose to release its nutrients. Natural decomposition is done by naturally-occurring soil microorganisms. Formulations of microorganisms are used to accelerate decomposition and nutrient release from organic fertilisers.
Why ‘modern’ agriculture uses large quantities of inorganic fertiliser?
Global population currently stands at ca. 7.7 billion and is projected to reach 8.5 billion by 2030 and 9.7 billion in 20501. Land area suitable for growing crops is shrinking continuously because of a variety of reasons. Some of the productive lands are lost for urbanisation (i.e. population pressure) while some are converted to alternative non-agricultural uses (e.g. industrial purposes). On the other hand, a portion of lands available for crop production is gradually, but continuously, lost because they become unproductive and economically non-viable due to climate change (e.g. temperatures becoming too warm, rainfall becoming insufficient, etc.) and soil degradation (e.g. loss of fertile top soil due to erosion, loss of soil fertility due to continuous cropping and removal of nutrients without adequate replenishment, development soil problems such as salinity, acidity and accumulation of toxic material).
Increasing population and decreasing arable land area means that we are continuously challenged to increase crop yields per unit land area (usually called ‘crop productivity’) to fulfil the increasing demand for food, feed and the variety of products from agricultural crops. To produce a greater amount of yield from the same unit of land, a crop requires a greater quantity of essential nutrients—there is no such thing as a free lunch in nature— in particular nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium (K). A crop has to obtain this increased nutrient requirement either from the soil (which may contain some amount of nutrients naturally) or via fertiliser applied to the soil. Except the soils in virgin lands, soils in the large majority of agricultural lands do not contain naturally the amounts of essential nutrients in quantities required by crops to achieve the productivity levels to meet the continuously increasing demand. Hence, the need to add large quantities of nutrients to the soil. This has to be done every season as most nutrients added during the previous season are removed as crop yield. Because inorganic fertilizer contains nutrients in a concentrated form, the required quantities of the three major nutrients can be supplied with a manageable quantity of inorganic fertiliser. Supplying of the same requirement with organic fertiliser would require substantially larger quantities, which are either not possible to find due to insufficient raw material or difficult to manage. Hence, the widespread use of inorganic fertiliser in commercial agriculture. Organic agriculture where crops are grown exclusively with organic fertilisers represents a small fraction of global agriculture (a very optimistic estimation would put it at < 5%).
Why the drive towards reduction of inorganic fertiliser use in agriculture?
While providing the required amounts of the three major plant nutrients to sustain crop yields to ensure food security and maintain soil nutrients at levels required for continuous cropping, application of inorganic fertilisers has caused adverse environmental and human health impacts.
Because nutrients are released readily from inorganic fertilisers, a considerable fraction of those added to the soil gets leached into groundwater and water bodies (i.e. rivers, lakes, reservoirs etc..). The consumption of water from such polluted sources has been linked to a variety of human health issues.
Inorganic fertilizers have been shown to contain toxic substances (e.g. heavy metals such as lead, arsenic, mercury, etc.) as impurities remaining in them after their mining and industrial manufacturing process. The accumulation of these toxic substances in the soil and water sources has been linked to certain human health issues. However, it should be noted that organic fertilizers, especially those of plant and animal origin, are not entirely free from toxic substances.
Alteration of the soil environment by adding concentrated nutrients alters the naturally-occurring community of soil microorganisms who perform many important functions in the soil to ensure its fertility.
In economic terms, inorganic fertilisers, most of which are produced in industrialised developed countries by multi-national companies, are prohibitively expensive to farmers in the developing countries.
Because of the above reasons, there has been a drive towards reduction of the use of inorganic fertilisers and a part-replacement of them by organic fertilisers. Such movements have begun in developed countries (as well as in some developing countries) since the1980s and gathered momentum during the last two decades. During certain periods, some countries and regions of countries have been forced to produce their crops largely on organic fertiliser because of circumstances (mainly political) (e.g. Cuba, Northern Province of Sri Lanka during the ethnic conflict).
Current situation in Sri Lanka
The present situation in Sri Lanka has arisen following a gazette notification by the government to ban the import of inorganic fertilizer and synthetic agrochemicals (i.e. insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, etc.) with immediate effect. The pollution of the water bodies and perceived links to human health issues, such as the Chronic Kidney Disease of Unknown Aetiology (CKDU) are cited as the reasons for the ban. While there have been a longstanding discussion at many levels of the Sri Lankan society on the role of inorganic fertilizers (and agrochemicals) in causing the above issues and calls for ‘toxin-free food’, the total and immediate ban came ‘out of the blue’ without any consultation (to my knowledge) with any of the relevant stakeholders (e.g. the Department of Agriculture, academia, the plantation sector research institutes, farmer organizations, growers of a wide range of crops or their organizations, private sector organizations in the supply and marketing chain etc.). Apparently, the President/government was acting on the advice of a few university academics (who are either advisors or political appointees as heads of public-sector institutions) and longstanding activists (e.g. Ven. Athuraliya Rathana, Dr. Anuruddha Padeniya et al).
Currently, all relevant public sector institutions have been directed to seek how alternatives to inorganic fertilizer (i.e. organic fertilizer) could be produced and supplied to farmers and growers in adequate quantities required during the Yala season which is already started and beyond. It has been stated in the media that any shortfall for the current season (and probably beyond until adequate quantities can be produced locally) will be provided through imported organic fertiliser. A similar strategy has been proposed for synthetic agrochemicals for which the principal alternative is pesticides of biological origin (i.e. Biopesticides).
Possible impacts of an absence of inorganic fertiliser in Sri Lanka
It is highly likely that in the absence of inorganic fertilisers, the productivity (i. e. economic harvest per unit land area) of some of the major crops in Sri Lanka (e. g. rice and tea), which are crucial to national food security and economy, will decline significantly leading to a decline in the total production (i.e. productivity × cultivated area). At present, Sri Lanka does not have sufficient sources of readily-available organic fertiliser nor does it not have the infrastructure in place to produce organic fertilizers in adequate quantities to fulfil even the minimum nutrient requirement of these two major crops considering the scale on which they are grown.
The prognosis would be the same for a majority of the other annual crops (e.g. cereals, pulses, vegetables, industrial crops, etc.) and floriculture plants (i.e. cut flower and foliage), which are grown on a smaller scale. Some crops such as rubber and coconut may not show an immediate decline in their harvest but will begin to show declines in the medium-term, depending on the existing fertility status of the soils on which they have been established and the overall management status of the plantation and its trees.
Why is Sri Lankan agriculture so reliant on inorganic fertiliser?
The scientific reasons
Soils in Sri Lanka are, by nature, relatively poor in the amounts of essential nutrients (i. e. the three major nutrients, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium plus magnesium, sulphur and calcium, which are also needed in relatively large quantities) that they make naturally available for crops growing on them. The natural supply of nutrients from a soil comes when the parent material of the soil (i.e. rocks and minerals) undergoes a very slow, gradual decomposition process called ‘weathering’. The plant nutrients are part of the minerals contained in the parent material and are released to the soil when the minerals weather due to the action of rain and other climatic factors such as temperature. Because of the high rainfall and temperature regime associated with the tropical climate in Sri Lanka, its soils have been highly-weathered over a long period of time (over several millennia) so that the existing soil minerals (the source of natural supply of nutrients) are considerably (if not severely) depleted of nutrients. Because of the high rainfall regime (especially in the wet zone and the Central Highlands and to a lesser extent in the dry and intermediate zones), a substantial portion of the nutrients that are released from minerals via the weathering process are leached and lost to the soil, further depleting its natural fertility.
Furthermore, most of the lands on which crops are currently cultivated in all climatic zones of Sri Lanka have been under cultivation for a long period of time. As explained earlier, long-term cultivation of a soil leads to depletion of its nutrient reserves.
Soils in the Central Highlands and those on sloping terrain in other parts of Sri Lanka are further degraded due to soil erosion caused by high-intensity rainfall. Erosion takes away the top layer of the soil and a substantial amount of nutrients naturally available along with it.
Because of the reasons outlined above, neither the grain yield levels of rice that are required to fulfil the annual national demand nor the green leaf yield levels of tea that would bring the expected level of foreign exchange could be sustained on Sri Lankan soils without providing the required quantities of the three major nutrients via inorganic fertilisers.
It is likely that in the absence of the recommended inorganic fertiliser (especially nitrogen fertilizer) inputs, yield reductions would become detectable in the current Yala season in rice and within a matter of a few months in tea. This is because of the specific physiology of these two crops. Nitrogen is critically-essential for early growth of rice and the leaf growth of tea. Therefore, a shortage of nitrogen to these crops would be felt almost immediately as a retardation of early growth of rice (which would be reflected as a substantial reduction in grain yield) and the weekly green leaf harvest in tea.
Similar to what happens in rice and tea, the retardation of growth and yield is likely to happen with a shortage of nitrogen fertilizer in all short-duration annual crops and commercial plants. Leguminous pulse crops (e. g. soybean, mung bean, cowpea, black gram, common bean, etc.) could be an exception because of their ability to utilise atmospheric nitrogen.
Impacts of a shortage of nitrogen fertiliser are likely to be delayed for a few years (as stated earlier) in coconut and rubber because of their specific physiology where the nut yield or latex (rubber) yield is not as dependent on an immediate nitrogen supply as the grain and leaf yields of rice and tea respectively. However, a shortage of nitrogen will cause a reduction in the internal processes of these plants, which will be reflected in a few years’ time, as a reduction in the processes leading to the production of nuts and latex in coconut and rubber respectively. Recently-planted and younger coconut and rubber plantations will show a retardation of tree growth which will delay the commencement of nut and latex production.
A basic scientific fact which should have been noted by the advisors to politicians, if not the politicians, is that a shortage of nitrogen affects the fundamental plant process, photosynthesis, which is responsible for growth and yield formation of crops2. Shortage of nitrogen, along with shortages of phosphorus, potassium and magnesium, decreases the rate of photosynthesis, which is translated in to a reduction of growth and yield of any crop, which may happen over different time scales in different crops. It is unlikely that in the absence of inorganic fertilisers, organic fertiliser applications would be able to prevent the resulting decrease in growth and yield of a large majority of commercial crops in Sri Lanka.
A few spice crops such as cloves, cardamoms and nutmegs, but not cinnamon and pepper, may escape yield reductions due to a shortage of inorganic fertilizer because they are largely present in homegardens in the Central Province which are generally not fertilized.
Out of the three major fertilizers, containing nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, a shortage would be most immediately felt for nitrogen fertilizer. The impact would be delayed for phosphorus fertilizer and it would be intermediate for potassium fertilizer. The scientific reasons are that nitrogen is the nutrient that is most critically-needed for a large majority of plant processes and is the most mobile nutrient in the soil, which makes it the most susceptible for leaching losses; phosphorus is the least mobile nutrient and therefore, can remain in the soil for
2 Evans, J. R., & Clarke, V. C. (2019). The nitrogen cost of photosynthesis. Journal of ExperimentalBotany, 70(1), 7-15.An expert review that was publishedina highly-recognized scientific journal inplant sciences. Although most of its content is aimed at specialists in Plant Physiology, there are a few paragraphs (highlighted) from which an educated ‘layman’ reader could gather useful insights in to why nitrogen fertilizer is of such crucial importance for crops. a reasonable period of time and can be released to plants slowly; potassium is a nutrient which is intermediate in terms of its mobility in the soil and criticality of its need for plant processes.
What has been the response of the stakeholders?
This is only a snapshot from my perspective based on discussions with professional colleagues and contacts. An overwhelming majority of academics, research officers, extension officers, commercial growers and farmers do not agree with this immediate and total ban of inorganic fertilizers. A minority of stakeholders in the agriculture sector and an overwhelming majority of environmental activists (who unfortunately have no clear idea of how large-scale agriculture to feed a nation differs from growing a few pots of plants at home) have welcomed the ban. A powerful argument of this minority of stakeholders in the agriculture sector is that organic agricultural products (e.g. organic tea) fetches a higher price in the global market and will offset any loss of foreign exchange due to reduced total production. This argument ignores the decline in yield and total production of locally-consumed food (including the staple food, rice), the wide-ranging implications of which cannot be compensated by a higher price (which is unlikely to happen in the highly-volatile local market for agricultural produce).
Where do we go from here?
While disagreeing with a total and immediate ban on inorganic fertilizer, a majority of academics, research officers and extension officers, but not commercial growers and farmers, acknowledge that there is scope for an appreciable reduction in the quantities of inorganic fertilizer (relative to the levels that have been in use before the ban) without incurring a yieldreduction. Farmers have been applying the inorganic fertilizers at rates which are above thoserecommended by the Department of Agriculture, because inorganic fertilizers had been made available to them at a highly-subsidized price.
Research on a range of different crops over several seasons across a range of locations carried out by my research group has shown that 25% of the recommended amount of nitrogen fertilizer can be reduced without incurring a yield reduction.
Therefore, a phased-out reduction of inorganic fertilizer along with a gradual increase of the contribution of organic fertilizer to supply the nutrient requirement of crops is a viable pathway that a majority of stakeholders agrees on. Increasing the contribution of organic fertilizer requires: (a) up-scaling of organic fertilizers that have been developed in Sri Lanka using microorganisms isolated from local soils; (b) developing infrastructure to produce such organic fertilizers at commercial scale; (c) changing farmer/grower perceptions and attitudes on the total dependence on inorganic fertilizers and start using organic fertilizer as a part-replacement via a concerted extension effort. (The agricultural extension service in Sri Lanka, which was acknowledged as one of the best in Asia in the 1980s, have been severely downgraded during the last three decades); (d) initiating a concerted programme to increase the organic matter content of Sri Lankan soils, which would enable them to retain a higher fraction of the nutrients applied to them via both inorganic and organic fertilizers and thereby minimize leaching losses.
Even if all the above are successfully implemented (which will take time especially in the current context), an agriculture sector, which is totally based on organic fertilizer—the first such country in the world according to the President—is unlikely to produce enough food (e. g. rice) to ensure food security in Sri Lanka or generate other agriculture-based products that fetch foreign exchange and support local manufacturing industries (e. g. rubber). Therefore, it is inevitable that a balance needs to be struck between the reduction of inorganic fertilizer (from the levels that were practiced before the ban) and a viable level of organic fertilizer as a part-replacement to provide the full nutrient requirement that a higher crop yield demands.
As a medium-term solution, research on a more balanced form of agriculture (i.e. an optimum combination of inorganic and organic fertilizer) within the climatic and soil conditions that are prevalent in Sri Lanka (while taking in to account their possible changes as part of global climate change) needs to be encouraged via increased funding. Currently, Sri Lanka invests only 0.11% of its GDP in Research and Development (in all disciplines including agriculture), which is one of the lowest even in Asia. Therefore, there is little room for optimism in this regard.
Importation of organic fertilizers
Importation of organic fertilizers is being promoted as a short-term measure to supply the nutrient requirement to agricultural crops during the period when Sri Lanka is expected develop its local capacity to produce organic fertilizers in quantities sufficient to meet the full nutrient demand of the crops. It is said that the quality of imported organic fertilizer will be assured via strict quality control procedures which conform to, for example, the EU Standards. Only time will tell whether this will actually materialize and provide a solution. A few points of major concern are as following:
Quantity
Experienced Soil Scientists and fertilizer experts are of the opinion that concentration of nutrients in organic fertilizers is such that large quantities need to be imported (subsequently transported to fields and applied) to fulfil the nutrient demand to produce the crop yields at the required levels to ensure food security and sustain foreign exchange earnings.
Environmental concerns
Almost all organic fertilizers, being material of plant, animal or human origin, retain a diverse population of microorganisms. Unlike inorganic fertilizers, which are inert material, organic fertilizers are live material. Microorganisms, whether in soils, plants or any other location or entity, are often highly environment-specific. Introduction of such alien microorganisms to Sri Lankan soils could cause all types of unforeseen interactions with local microorganisms. Some of these interactions could have environmental repercussions, which are irreversible as once released to the soil, these alien microorganisms cannot be ‘recalled’. Therefore, it is always advisable and safer to develop organic fertilizers locally rather than importing.
Sterilization of imported organic fertilizer to kill all alien microorganisms via a process of fumigation after importation is suggested as a solution to this problem. However, the large quantities of organic fertilizers that are required to be imported and the toxicity levels
of the chemicals that are used in fumigation could lead to environmental issues that the organic fertilizers are aiming to prevent. Recently, the Cabinet Minister of Agriculture went on record saying that only sterilized organic fertilizer conforming to quality standards acceptable to a government-appointed expert committee would be imported. Given Sri Lanka’s poor record of regulation, implementation and enforcement of quality standards on a range of items, both imported and locally-produced and both agricultural and non-agricultural, it remains to be seen whether these promises will be fulfilled.
Rational medium- to long-term possibilities for reducing the use of inorganic fertilizer while increasing yields of major food crops at a rate required to keep pace with increasing population and consequently increasing demand
A few medium- to long-term options, based on sound scientific principles, are available and are briefly discussed below:
Genetic modification of crops
In addressing the challenges of increasing crop yields while decreasing their use of nutrients (i.e. increasing the yield per unit nutrient used), scientists have been trying to modify the components and steps involved in the photosynthesis process via genetic engineering. One of their aims has been to produce a plant which achieves a higher photosynthetic rate with the same level of nitrogen used. After about two decades of research effort, a recent research publication in the prestigious science journal Nature reports of such a breakthrough in rice3. Reading through it carefully, I gather that this new genetically-modified rice plant (we call them ‘transgenic’ plants) has the potential to achieve a higher photosynthetic rate and grain yield with the same level of nitrogen as the ‘normal’ plants (which are not genetically-modified). However, this is possible under ‘well-fertilized conditions’ meaning that at the currently-used high nitrogen fertilizer rates4. This particular publication does not indicate whether such higher levels of photosynthesis and yields are possible at lower than ‘well-fertilized conditions’ which are likely to prevail in fields fertilized exclusively with organic fertilizer. Nevertheless, as Professor Stephen Long, a recognized world authority on photosynthesis states, the production of this transgenic rice plant could be a ‘game-changer’ to increase grain yield of rice without a proportionate increase in nitrogen input.
However, it should be noted that a considerable time could elapse from the point of producing a ‘transgenic’ plant to developing a new crop variety that could be released to the farmers for commercial cultivation. Yet, this appears to be a solid step in the right direction.
3 Long, S. P. (2020). Photosynthesis engineered to increase rice yield. Nature Food, 1(2), 105-105. A brief comment by Professor Stephen Long on the recent breakthrough in producing a genetically-modified rice plant which is able to achieve a higher photosynthetic rate and grain yield with the same amount of nitrogen.
4 Yoon, D. K., Ishiyama, K., Suganami, M., Tazoe, Y., Watanabe, M., Imaruoka, S., … & Makino, A. (2020). Transgenic rice overproducing Rubisco exhibits increased yields with improved nitrogen-use efficiency in an experimental paddy field. Nature Food, 1(2), 134-139. The research publication which describes the above breakthrough in photosynthesis and nitrogen use. Increasing the organic matter content in soils
Soil organic matter (SOM) is a component of the soil in addition to the soil particles. While the soil particles arise from weathering of rocks and minerals of the soil parent material, SOM arises from the decomposition of organic material added to the soil. SOM helps to retain nutrients and water in the top layers of the soil where most plant roots are also present. In addition, SOM helps to improve the aeration and structure in the soil, which are vital physical properties in the soil to facilitate plant growth.
Except the soils in the terraced plateaus of the Central Highlands, soils of almost all arable crop lands in Sri Lanka have inadequate SOM. This means that the ability of these soils to retain the nutrients that are added to them, especially in the form of readily-released inorganic fertilizer, is limited. Therefore, a concerted effort to increase the SOM status in Sri Lankan soils will enable reduction of leaching losses of nutrients and associated environmental consequences such as pollution of water sources. Increased SOM will also enable reduction of the amounts of inorganic fertilizer applied without causing a shortage of nutrients to the crops as a greater fraction of the applied fertilizer remains in the soil to be absorbed by the plants.
Therefore, while the total and immediate ban of inorganic fertilizer and replacing them with organic fertilizer will not provide the required nutrients in sufficient quantities, the large-scale application of organic fertilizer, if it happens as envisaged, will serve to increase the SOM of Sri Lankan soils in the medium- to long-term. This will make the Sri Lankan Agriculture sector less-reliant on inorganic fertilizers. However, this will have to be a gradual, phased-out transition rather than a sudden, unplanned total ban on inorganic fertilizers. Such a transition should be towards achieving an optimum balance of inorganic and organic fertilizers, which will ensure food security while protecting the environment. This is an endeavour that has been undertaken in many parts of the world, which include both the developed and developing countries, and is termed ‘Sustainable Intensification of Agriculture’5.
5 Baulcombe, D., Crute, I., Davies, B., Dunwell, J., Gale, M., Jones, J., … & Toulmin, C. (2009). Reaping the benefits:science and the sustainable intensification of global agriculture. The Royal Society.A very useful, concise, butcomprehensive description of the salient features of sustainable intensification of agriculture written by a group
of experts from the Royal Society, UK. Can be accessed at https://royalsociety.org/topics-
The letter signed by Dr. Sampath Dharmadasa, President/SAEA and Dr. Shashika Rathnayaka, Secretary, has been copied to the Prime Minister, Ministers of Agriculture and Plantations, among others.
In the absence of proper substitutes
The Sri Lanka Agricultural Economics Association (SAEA) has expressed some concerns on the appropriateness of the newly introduced regulation to restrict forthwith the import of chemical fertilizers and pesticides by the Gazette Extraordinary No 2226/48 of May 6, 2021, to achieve the broader development goal.
In a letter to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the SAEA, the professional body representing the Agricultural Economists of Sri Lanka, has predicted massive economic losses due to potential yield losses in the absence of proper substitutes for chemical fertilizers and pesticides with the implementation on the import ban on fertilizers and pesticides.
The immediate adverse impacts on food security, farm incomes, foreign exchange earnings and rural poverty can be detrimental to achieving the cherished long-term goals”, it warned.
Our membership endorses the government’s decision to adopt a Green Socio-Economic Model for development as we firmly believe that such a strategy would be critical to conserving the environment and improving human health. We agree that green approaches in crop cultivation contribute significantly towards achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)”, the professional organization noted in its letter to the President.
Moreover, SAEA is of the view that most of the current farming systems in Sri Lanka are unsustainable. Hence, the conversion of them into organic farming systems in the long run, would help promote health of the people and nurture integrity of the nation’s environment. It is well known that many countries currently take systematic and pragmatic approaches to achieve this long-term objective by first setting targets, standards, and subsequently, investing and promoting farmers to adopt best practices, it further said.
Therefore, we would like to extend our appreciation to the government for taking such a valuable decision to adopt the green socio-economic model in Sri Lanka”.
Outlining its primary concerns and the less costly policy alternatives proposed by its members in place of the newly introduced import ban for the President’s consideration, the SAEA was of the view that the policy instrument identified by the government to promote organic farming is less appropriate due to potential economic losses and its incompatibility with other policy goals of the government.
Continuing, the professional body of Agricultural Economists, further opined: When converting from conventional agriculture into organic farming, the government should weigh the technological, environmental and economic costs and benefits. The preliminary findings of the studies conducted by the SAEA on potential economic losses of the import ban and respective estimations are as follows:
(a) Agronomic studies reveal that the average yields from paddy can drop by 25% if chemical fertilizers are fully replaced by organic fertilizers. This loss in productivity could reduce the profitability of paddy farming by 33% and rice consumption by 27% if paddy is cultivated just with organic fertilizers with a complete ban on rice imports. In contrast, applying organic fertilizer with the recommended dosages of chemical fertilizers would improve the profitability of farming by 16%.
(b) Absence of chemical fertilizer would drastically reduce the productivity of the Vegetatively Propagated Tea (VPT). With a 35% productivity drop, the export volume of tea would go down from 279 to 181 million kg, causing an income loss of LKR 84 billion. The estate sector will likely incur significant losses compared to those of tea smallholders. These losses could further be aggravated due to increased cost of labour to apply bulky organic fertilizers.
(c) The coconut yields would go down by 30% if chemical fertilizers and pesticides are not applied. This situation will adversely impact fresh coconuts availability for the production of coconut oil, desiccated coconut and other coconut products. The loss in foreign exchange earnings can be as high as Rs. 18 billion, based on the assumption that only 26% of the total coconut extent is fertilized. When the additional cost for the importation of edible oils is considered, the loss of foreign exchange earnings will be even higher.
(d) The above results were derived considering the immediate effects on three agricultural sub-sectors. An analysis performed accommodating adjustments in the economy over the medium to long run reveals that a reduction in average agricultural productivity by 20% could cause a decrease in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 3.05% suggesting an overall contraction of the economy with the implementation of the import ban.
The proposed policy instrument is not compatible with the policy objectives stated in ‘Vistas for Prosperity and Splendor’. Given below are a few policy incompatibilities highlighted by the members of SAEA (Relevant statement from Vistas for Prosperity and Splendor shown in parenthesis).
(a) Modernization of agriculture
(International export business through various value-added products backed up by new technologies): The SAEA would like to propose that the government considers Sustainable Intensification of farming systems to feed the growing population with rising incomes, seeking safe and nutritious food, which are produced in environmentally sustainable farming systems, rather than converting all systems to fully organic agriculture, as its policy objective.
(b) Food self-sufficiency drive (Make the country self-sufficient in the relevant products): Estimates reported in section A (a) indicate that a food deficit would be created in the country owing to yield losses. However, the current government policy on food self-sufficiency would not allow the policymakers to fill this deficit through imports. Such a situation could give rise to food price inflation, unrest, and starvation.
(c) Freedom (People-Centric Economic Development): The chosen policy instrument does not provide flexibility to farmers to determine their least-cost food production methods without harming the environment. This situation would violate the ‘people’s freedom’ policy of the government.
(d) Rural-urban migration (Linking the village development together with the regional development): Contraction of the rural economy due to reduced farm profitability will lead to increased migration from rural to urban areas. With limited capacity of the manufacturing sector to absorb migrants, this will result in urban congestion.
(e) Commitments with the WTO and other international relations (Friendly, Non-aligned, Foreign Policy): The policy instrument chosen is not compatible with commitments to the WTO.
Alternative policy instruments for making food systems more environmentally sustainable
In light of the above observations, members of SAEA suggest the government use more cost-effective instruments to achieve the stated health and environmental outcomes in place of the newly introduced import regulation.
Globally, the approach to environmental protection has been evolving from a regulation-driven approach to a more proactive approach involving voluntary and market-led initiatives. Accordingly, we wish to propose the following three-point policy package.
1. Incentivize organic cultivation using safe and environmentally friendly organic fertilizers and pesticides: Open up pathways towards encouraging organic fertilizer production, storage, distribution, etc. and promote Public-Private Partnership (PPP) models to achieve those.
2. Develop national standards for organic fertilizers and pesticides to ensure non-importation of substandard products to the country and domestic production meeting specified quality standards.
3. Improve awareness of various organic farming technologies among farmers through a strengthened extension system.
Institutionalize and make Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) a mandatory national standard.
Dis-incentivize use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides in an environmentally harmful manner: Revisit national standards for chemical fertilizers and pesticides to ensure non-importation of sub-standard products to the country.
Impose environmental taxes on selected inorganic fertilizers and pesticides.
Reduce and eventually eliminate the subsidy on chemical fertilizers. In phasing out the fertilizer subsidy, we wish to recommend the following steps:
* Prioritize subsidies according to characteristics such as fertilizer type, agro-ecological region, season and crop.
* For the targeted farmers, establish a voucher system that restricts farmers’ access to a lifeline amount [such as two bags] and require them to purchase the balance at market prices for a limited period.
* When the subsidy is lowered, introduce an output price support program to support the farm producers partially.
* Provide and support farmers to adopt site-specific fertilizer recommendations and integrated pesticide recommendations.
* Reduce and eventually eliminate protection provided to crops that are highly fertilizer intensive and erosive.
* Strengthen existing measures to improve awareness of the safe use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
Cross-cutting proposals to safeguard the poor and vulnerable and improve the policy process: Maintain a safety net for the poor recognizing the possible increase in food prices.
* Identify a harmonized financing mechanism. For example, finances of saved fertilizer subsidy and environmental taxes can be used to subsidize organic fertilizer production and application.
* In formulating the strategic roadmap, adopt a consultative process involving all stakeholders (policymakers, politicians, agriculturalists, environmentalists, and the private sector) and also considering economy-wide impacts (macro, meso and micro) and externalities.
Considering the economic loss, policy inconsistency, and counter-productive effects created by the regulation in the manner introduced and the availability of relatively superior alternative measures, the SAEA seeks to substitute the import ban on chemical fertilizers and pesticides with the set of alternative measures proposed above. The SAEA extends its professional support to establish a green-economic model for the agriculture sector of Sri Lanka.
The letter signed by Dr. Sampath Dharmadasa, President/SAEA and Dr. Shashika Rathnayaka, Secretary, has been copied to the Prime Minister, Ministers of Agriculture and Plantations, among others.
Dr .C.S. WEERARATNA Former Professor of Agriculture at Ruhuna and Rajarata Universities
In 2019, around Rs 310 billion worth of food has been imported. Among these are rice, sugar, green gram, red onion, big onion, maize, etc., which can be locally produced. If we are to reduce our expenditure on food imports, it is essential that the local food production is increased. For effectively addressing this issue, several inputs are important. Among these are good quality seeds/planting material, and use of appropriate technology. In this regard, judicious use of both organic and inorganic fertilizers is important. Several research studies, conducted in Sri Lanka and elsewhere, indicate that application of inorganic fertilizers tend to increase growth and yields of crops.
In 2020, we imported Rs. 48 billion worth of fertilizers. These are applied to replace nutrients absorbed by plants from soil. A ton of paddy removes 60 kg of nitrogen, 10 kg of phosphorus and 20 kg of potassium. Similarly, other crops remove nutrients from the soil. If land is going to be cultivated, without replenishing the nutrient level in the soil, it will become deficient in essential plant nutrients. Plants growing in such soil will not grow properly, and, as a result, yields will be reduced. There may be instances when crops will not produce at all.
Applying organic fertilizers alone will not replenish the nutrients absorbed by a crop . Organic fertilizers have relatively small amounts of the nutrients that plants need. For example, compost has only 2% nitrogen (N) whereas urea has 46% N. Banning the import of inorganic fertilizers will be disastrous, as not applying adequate amounts of nutrients will cause yields to drop; making it essential to increase food imports, resulting in our annual import expenditure to rise substantially from the present Rs. 310 billion. This may be impossible as our economy is in dire straits. Further, importing rice may be an issue, as most of the Asian countries which grow paddy are currently facing problems.
As indicated by Dr. Parakrama Waidyantha, in his article titled Agrochemical ban: Heading for national disaster?” – in The Island of 3 May – the President’s decision to shift totally to organic agriculture, from conventional, could lead to widespread hunger and starvation. It will cause a shortage of food, locally, resulting in food prices to increase causing some people, mainly the poor going hungry, creating health and social problems.
We export several crops and earn foreign exchange, which is used to import essentials. Tea is the main export crop. We earned nearly Rs. 230 billion, in 2020, by exporting tea. If we do not apply adequate inorganic fertilizers, especially nitrogen, the present tea yields will get reduced, causing tea exports to dwindle; and, as a result, the foreign exchange we earned by exporting tea will also come down. Thus, banning of inorganic fertilizer imports will cause economic, health and social problems.
If the government wants to reduce our import expenditure, it could be done by reducing import of many food items. Those who decided to ban fertilizer imports, to save foreign exchange, may not have realized that we spend colossal amounts to import many food items which can be produced locally. It may be interesting to know that the expenditure on import of ayurvedic herbs is nearly Rs. 1,200 million. As suggested by Prof. O.A. Ileperuma, in his article published in The Island of May 1, 2021, the Government can save a considerable sum of money on fertilizer imports if we undertake to manufacture superphosphate fertilizers in the country, using Eppawela Apatite.
Some ill-informed people are of the opinion that fertilizers are the causal factor of increased incidents of chronic kidney disease with unknown aetiology (CKDu), reported in some parts of the country. In this regard, it is pertinent to indicate that CKDu is not reported in some districts although fertilizers are used in large amounts. An international expert consultation, on CKDu, was held in Colombo, in April 2016. It was organized by the Presidential Task Force for Prevention of Chronic Kidney Disease and the Sri Lanka country office of the World Health Organization (WHO). The consultation concluded that there is no conclusive evidence to indicate that there is any relationship between CKDu and fertilizers.
The decision to ban fertilizer imports should be taken after considering all the pertinent issues.
Dr .C.S. WEERARATNA
Former Professor of Agriculture at Ruhuna and Rajarata Universities
1. Vegetatively Propagated Teas are CLONAL HYBRIDS which requires high and correct nitrogen ratios to reach its potential yield of over 3,000 kg per hectare made tea per annum.
2. The required norm is 10 kg nitrogen for every 100 kg of made tea. If soil carbon ratios are good at 7% organic matter in the soil, improving the cation exchange (ability of soils to hold nutrients) capacity, it is possible to reduce the N ratio from 10 N to seven N per 100 kg made tea. However, timing and the method of application is very important to derive absolute benefit.
3. Most soil where tea is grown in Sri Lanka is eroded and the organic matter in the soil is so poor that the tea is fertilizer dependent.
4. A field yielding 3,000 kg of made tea per hectare will require 300 kg N. Less if the soil carbon is good. The N per one ton of compost is believed to be low at 1.5% nitrogen. Based on this, one hectare of tea yielding 3,000 kg per hectare will require 20,000 kg of compost each year. Cost of procurement and application will be prohibitive and not cost effective and practical.
5. The quality of compost supplied to the industry requires to be closely monitored, particularly if imported, as there is the risk of introducing nematodes and other pest and diseases that we did not have hitherto.
6. Where compost is produced locally, proper C:N ratios must be ensured to give a standard of 20:1 or below. Quality control is a must or there will be repercussions as with high ratios the bacteria in the compost will draw nitrogen from the soil.
7. Compost fertilizer will be unable to match nitrogen, phosphate & potassium ratios recommended by the TRI. For example if the potassium levels are too high, it will bring about a magnesium deficiency making the leaf yellow.
8. If nitrogen is reduced, production will take a huge dip and leaf supplied to the factory will not be healthy for producing good tea. Succulent leaf is required for good tea manufacture but with less nitrogen the leaf will be yellowish and leathery. This will result in a brownish tea and high percentage of off grades. Poor quality tea will not fetch good prices at the auctions and the overall average will dip with both the factory and the green leaf supplier severely affected. The tea factories will run into problems of not being able to achieve the desired out-turn from green leaf to made tea which should be 21.50%. Even a loss of 0.50% will mean a loss to the factory in monetary terms which they can ill afford. A tea factory manufacturing 500,000 kg of green leaf based on a green leaf rate of Rs.100/= per kilo, incurring a loss of 0.05% on the out-turn will incur a loss of Rs.250,000/=.
9. The reduction of nitrogen over a long period of time will weaken the tea bush and the casualty rate will be very high after pruning.
10. Dependence on artificial fertilizer can be reduced but not completely stopped. Reducing the current rate of application cannot be done overnight and must be implemented in stages at the grower level. I suggest the following steps:
a. Encourage the grower to establish Gliricidia and Albizzia shade and maintain it correctly. A good cover of both type of shade ensures improving the soil carbon over a period of time. Fifty kg of gliricidia leaves adds 01 kg nitrogen into soil. In land with a high gradient, de-silting of drains is a must.
b. In land with a poor cover of tea due to erosion, most of the soil carbon will be lost and the grower must be encouraged to infill. Bright sunlight falling directly on the soil burns up soil organic matter very fast and also leads to the loss of ammonia in the soil when the soil temperature increases. Therefore establishing shade and infilling vacant tea patches is essential.
c. By changing the method of fertilizing, efficiency can be improved. Currently, the method of fertilizer application is to apply the manure on the surface of the soil by what is popularly known as broadcasting. This, I consider, to be the most inefficient method of application leading to loss of ammonia. I have over a decade adopted a different method of placement of fertilizer.
While this is expensive, it successfully reduces the volume of fertilizer that need be applied. The fertilizer is placed in a 6-inch deep alavangoe hole, one and a half feet away from the bush on the upper side of the slope and the hole covered. The cost of placement works out to three and a half workers per acre as opposed to one when broadcasting. It is a crime at today’s cost to waste fertilizer by broadcasting using more volume than necessary to compensate for volatization. More so as there is a big government fertilizer subsidy.
R & D is required to invent an applicator for fertilizer placement.
In conclusion I must say that with good agricultural practices, dependence on artificial fertilizer can be reduced but we cannot go 100% organic. It is important to educate tea growers, 70% of whom are smallholders using very much more than recommended doses of fertilizer, to mend their ways. They believe that applying more fertilizer means overnight crop increases and make five or six applications when four would suffice if correctly timed. What the smallholder does not understand is that we have to only replace N that has been removed from the soil. This is why we go on a replacement ratio of 10 kg N to 100 kg of made tea which could be reduced to 7% if the soil organic matter is good.
If a study is done on the fertilizer use by the smallholder and N replacement ratio worked out, I am sure the figure will be astronomical. This is where lot of money is wasted and must be corrected. With proper use of fertilizer, imports can be reduced and valuable foreign exchange saved by the country.
The authorities must also develop a method of issuing fertilizer to smallholders based on their production. This should not be a problem as the factories have the required information. In my opinion four application of fertilizer is more than enough with application during and after the two monsoons when the assimilation is best.
Reducing rate of N application with artificial fertilizer, in my view, does not require addition of compost if proper agricultural practices are followed. In an estate I work on, the soil is very rich in organic matter on account of a good cover of Albizzia and Gliricidia. No soil is exposed to direct sunlight as a lot of Albizzzia leaf litter and twigs and gliricidia loppings lie on the soil. They slowly disintegrate into colloids that will attract a negative iron to bind the ammonia and other elements such as Pottasium, Calcium etc.
I appeal to the authorities to rethink the ban on inorganic fertilizer imports. Immediate change will cause a lot of hardships to the grower, particularly the smallholder who contributes 70% to the national production and depend on this income for a living. The grower requires to be educated on the importance of soil organic matter to get them to adopt correct agricultural practices and reduce dependence on artificial fertilizer.
Halting inorganic fertilizer and moving totally to organic will cause irreversible damage to the industry in many ways. What is required is to improve the soil organic matter and reduce the dependence on fertilizer. One has to keep in mind that the tea industry is an interconnected web and the ban will not only affect the grower and the factories but also many others indirectly employed in the tea industry.
(The writer is a senior planter from a planting family with 48 years experience in the industry.)
The Holy City of Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka is a place unlikely to be the setting for a fascinating tale of flying objects and other mundane events. Anuradhapura, named after a King’s chieftain called Anuradha, is one of the oldest continuously inhabited settlements in the world. It thus means Anuradha’s City.
Also known locally as Rajarata (Land of the Kings), this UNESCO World Heritage Site is the first kingdom founded on the island (in 377 BC) and is located at the heart of Sri Lanka’s Buddhist culture.
H.C.P Bell
Today, it is one of the most visited places nationwide, attracting devoted pilgrims from all over the country and even from other Buddhist countries to ancient Buddhist temples and giant dome-shaped towers (monuments). It is home to some of the most venerated sites in Sri Lanka, known locally as Atamasthana (eight sacred places).
But this holy city is also home to something even more curious. Here, in Ranmasu Uyana (Golden Fish Park), an ancient urban park of 16 hectares surrounded by three Buddhist temples, there is an inscription supposed to be a map to reveal the secrets of the universe or a gateway to the universe.
The Sakwala Chakraya scaffold (which roughly translates to the cycle of the universe”) is about 1.8 metres in diameter, and is hewn into the surface of a boulder among the protected park ruins. The front facade can only be seen from ground level.
In fact, four seats have been carved into the flat rocky surface in front of the dashboard, providing an ideal viewing area.
Both the inscription and the benches, which are also of obscure origin, have intrigued local and foreign historians, archaeologists and academics for more than a century, although interest has peaked only now.
Ranmasu Uyana has been in use for a long time in history,” says Raj Somadeva, Professor of Archeology at the Kelaniya University in Sri Lanka. Although little is known about the painting and its purpose, the iconography does not correspond to other reliefs from the Anuradhapura period (3-10 centuries CE). It does not seem to have any religious significance per se.
The centre of the graph consists of seven concentric circles divided by parallel horizontal and vertical lines. Rectangular chambers contain small intersecting circles. For the novice eye, there are shapes resembling umbrellas or a bow and arrow, a kite, wavy lines and cylindrical shapes. The outer ring represents marine animals: fish, turtles and seahorses.
Sigiriya
When compared to other sculptures from the same period, such as Sandakada Pahana (moonstone), which depicts vines, swans, and lotus flowers, all typical elements of Buddhist iconography, the painting does not have a religious context – that is, it does not have a clear explanation of why.
This left the site completely open to online speculation. Before the advent of the Internet, it drew little interest in Sri Lanka itself or elsewhere.
It is believed that the Sakwala Chakraya survived here, hiding on the edge of a rock, after the fall of the kingdom of Anuradhapura; Nothing remarkable compared to its picturesque surroundings, such as the so-called double lakes and bathing pavilions which could have been used by kings of yore.
In fact, if the aliens got to Earth here, they could not have chosen a better location – the sacred temple area, surrounded by a dense tropical forest, uninhabited and protected by the authorities.
The first researcher to note the archaeological significance of the inscription was H.C.P. Bell, a British Government official appointed as Commissioner for Antiquities from Ceylon (later known as Sri Lanka).
La Puerta de Hayu Marca in Peru
Bell included a description of the plate in his 1911 report to the Governor of Ceylon, in which he concluded: This ancient world map, perhaps the oldest in existence, is of extraordinary importance. Its existence … bears witness to antiquity. Astronomical knowledge is still required in some Buddhist monasteries in Ceylon”.
Although the diagram does not resemble a map in the modern sense of the word, Bell writes that it represents an ancient cosmic map that illustrates the most simple Buddhist conceptions of the universe.” This was a reference to interpreting the circles, symbols, and marine life in the chart, based on his knowledge of island Buddhism, such as Earth, seas, outer space, and the universe.
While discussions about the map for many years were confined primarily to academia due to its historically significant position, the proliferation of image sharing on social media in recent years has put the mystery in the global spotlight.
Eagle-eyed tourists have noticed similarities between the painting at Anuradhapura and similar historical sites in other countries that some consider stargates” – ancient portals through which humans could enter the universe and travel around.
Their theory is that the inscription contains a secret code to open the gate and thus enter the universe.
Opposite the chart, four seats sculpted into rock provide an ideal viewing area
Conspiracy theorists have noted that the stargate” in Anuradhapura had almost identical shapes and symbols to those at Abu Ghurab, Egypt, and the Hyu Marca Gate, Peru. The most striking similarity, they said, when speculation about the stargate in Sri Lanka was at its height, was its proximity to water.
The nearby Tissa Wewa (Tissa Tank) reservoir, built in 300 BC, was released as conclusive evidence, as the Abu Ghurab and the Hyu Marca gate were also built near the water, which, according to the stargate theory, allowed aliens to process gold from the Earth’s waters.
This theory is reinforced by the painting’s proximity to Mount Danigala, also known as Alien Mountain, in the nearby holy city of Polonnaruwa.
Danigala, located deep in the jungle and popular with trail enthusiasts, has a uniquely rounded shape and a completely flat top.
This led online investigators to conclude that the mountain must have been used, in the past, for landing UFOs.
Interestingly, according to Sri Abeywickrama, a local tour guide, Locals believe that the Mount Alien attracts more meteors, thunder and lightning above it than anywhere else.”
However, according to Somadeva, there are few archaeological traces that indicate that it is a stargate.”
Ranmasu Uyana
Instead, he thinks the most reasonable conclusion is that the painting is an ancient map of the world, as Bell suggested, because this interpretation has a logical cosmological and religious context, given the period and place in time. According to Somadeva, Since at least 250 BC, the Sinhalese had a clear idea of the objects in the sky and outer space.”
In the oldest Brahmi inscriptions, found in Sri Lanka, there are many names referring to stars and specific concepts related to astronomy.”
However, Shireen Almendra, Professor of Landscapes at the Moratuwa University in Sri Lanka, offers a different, more grounded perspective.
I think Sakwala Chakraya is the blueprint for a complex project that is similar to the huge towers that were being built at that time,” she says. I tend to think it was a factory of Sigiriya.”
Sigiriya is one of Sri Lanka’s most famous ancient attractions, a 5th century BC rock fortress filled with running water, landscaped gardens, and various rooms.
It is located just half an hour away from Anuradhapura, in the cultural triangle of Sri Lanka, which consists of three important ancient cities: Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Kandy.
Considering that the sculpted seats in the front of the dashboard look a little towards each other, it makes me think it was a place for discussion—an old architectural office, if you will,” she says.
If the benches had been built for religious purposes, such as meditation, they would have been upright.”
According to Somadeva, the biggest challenge in determining the function of the graph was the lack of evidence to date it properly.
Although Ranmasu Uyana and other parks and towers of Anuradhapura are mentioned in records and inscriptions dating back to 250 BC, Sakwala Chakraya is not described in any historical record.
There was certainly a practical use for this diagram,” he says, but it is hard to tell what it could have been when we cannot date it properly.”
As such, Sri Lanka’s mysterious stargate” appears to remain shrouded in mystery – its purpose and meaning still lost in the mists of time.
However, the newly acquired cult status among science fiction buffs finally gave the artefact the audience’s well-deserved attention.
With their enthusiasm and the power of social media, Sakwala Chakraya has finally emerged from the shadows of the mighty Anuradhapura to shine on her own.
The resolution calls on the EU Commission to carefully assess whether there is sufficient reason, as a last resort, to initiate a procedure for the temporary withdrawal of Sri Lanka’s GSP+ status and to report to Parliament on this matter as soon as possible”.
The resolution recalled that the GSP+ scheme offers the incentive of better access to the EU market for the country’s exporters, in return for further progress in fully implementing those conventions.
EDB feels the apparel industry, which contributes close to half of the total exports of Sri Lanka and generates over $5 billion in foreign exchange, will be affected the most if the EU decides to withdraw Sri Lanka’s GSP+ status and the accompanying benefits, according to a top financial newspaper in the country.
The EU remains Sri Lanka’s largest export market, accounting for 30 per cent of the total, while the United States is the largest single export market, accounting for 27 per cent of the total merchandise exports last year. Nearly 60 per cent of Sri Lankan exports benefit from some form of preferential access due to EU GSP+ and US GSP schemes.
In January 2020, the EU delegation in Sri Lanka reassured that it will continue the GSP+ concessions to Sri Lanka till 2023 while noting that there will be ‘no changes’ in the rigorous monitoring of the country’s progress in implementing the conventions.
Sri Lanka regained the EU GSP+ privileges in May 2017.
The Communist Party of Vietnam and the Vietnamese State always treasure the traditional friendship and fruitful cooperation with Sri Lanka, Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong has said.
Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong holds phone talks with President of Sri Lanka Gotabaya Rajapaksa (Photo: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – The Communist Party of Vietnam and the Vietnamese State always treasure the traditional friendship and fruitful cooperation with Sri Lanka, Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong has said.
The Party chief made the affirmation during his phone talks with President of Sri Lanka Gotabaya Rajapaksa on June 14.
He recalled President Ho Chi Minh’s stop-over in Sri Lanka 110 years ago as part of the late leader’s journey to seek ways for national salvation.
The Party General Secretary expressed his hope that under the leadership of President Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka will reap more achievements in development, and soon contain the COVID-19 pandemic and restore the national economy.
Vietnam stands ready to share experience with Sri Lanka in the pandemic combat, he said.
Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong (Photo: VNA)The Party leader suggested the two countries work to enhance their mutual understanding and trust, and step up all-level meetings and exchanges, adding that Vietnamese and Sri Lankan agencies should utilise existing mechanisms to promote collaboration in politics, economy, investment, trade, agriculture, national defence and security, science-technology, culture and education.
At the same time, the two nations should continue with mutual consultations and support at regional and international organisations, he added.
For his part, President Rajapaksa congratulated Trong on his election as General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, and lauded achievements the Vietnamese people and Party have attained over the past years under his leadership.
Sri Lanka wants to continue close coordination with and is willing to back Vietnam at international forums, the President said, noting his hope that the two sides will forge their cooperation to overcome the present challenges such as diseases and climate change, while expanding cooperative areas to serve economic recovery after the pandemic./.
The Galle Chief Magistrate Harshana Kekunawela today ordered health authorities to hand over the list of persons who were given the second dose of AstraZeneca vaccine at the Galle Health Services Director’s Office on June 5 and 7, to the police.
The orders were issued after considering the facts provided by the Police over the investigation that a large number of people from the Western Province had arrived in Galle on the Southern Expressway in vehicles on the 5th and 7th June to receive the second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
The Magistrate also ordered the Director of Health Services of the Southern Province and the Controller of the Unawatuna Drug Store to hand over the details of the number of Covishield does received at the Unawatuna drug store, the number of doses administered and the remaining number of doses to the Galle Divisional Crime Investigation Division.
The Magistrate also directed to hand over CCTV footage at the scene and the telephone companies to provide telephone records of a person who has given a statements in this regard.
Police recorded a statement from a person suspected to have acted as a third party in the incident.(D.G. Sugathapala)
The Epidemiology Unit of the Health Ministry reports that another 479 persons have tested positive for COVID-19 in Sri Lanka, moving the daily total of new cases to 2,259.
This brings the total number of confirmed cases of coronavirus reported in the country to 225,922.
As many as 190,464 recoveries and 2,203 deaths have been confirmed in Sri Lanka since the outbreak of the pandemic.
The Epidemiology Unit’s data showed that 33,255 active cases are currently under medical care.
We,
hereby, vehemently condemn the derogatory and misleading remarks made by Dr.
Anuruddha Padeniya – who seems to be a consummate politician and is a medical
trade union leader – during a recent media release, in which he challenged the
Agricultural officers’ knowledge on organic agriculture. Furthermore, we
believe that his conduct is highly unethical, unprofessional, and amounts to
crossing someone else’s border to a field in which he is not at all an expert.
Dr. Anuruddha Padeniya, not only shows and challenges his own understanding on
agriculture at this vital point, but also dishonours his own professionalism.
However, his baseless remarks don’t appear to have had any impact on men and
women who are attentively serving in the agricultural sector in the country
with a view to making Sri Lanka self-sufficient in food.
We
wish to question and challenge Dr. Padeniya’s knowledge as to how he can
comment on the knowledge of agricultural specialists on organic agriculture as
his immature and irresponsible behaviour may establish a bad precedent for
other professionals as well in the country. Therefore, we take this opportunity
to categorically condemn the unfounded claims made by a trade union leader
against other reputed professionals in order to obtain cheap popular political
mileage.
It
appears that Dr. Padeniya is unaware of the Green Revolution which occurred in
1950/1960 in the world. During the green revolution, the crop/food production
was increased significantly by introducing high-yielding crop varieties (HYVs)
which replaced the low yielding traditional varieties. These HYVs, which is
grown today across the globe, need chemical fertilizers and pesticides and,
otherwise, they do not give the expected yields no matter what measures we
take. If we want to stop the use of chemical fertilizers/agrochemicals, we need
to have a holistic approach and design an operational model. This cannot be
accomplished in a few months/years. We are not surprised to observe that Dr.
Padeniya cannot understand simple facts like these as they have no
qualification/training what-so-ever in Agriculture. The unscientific and sudden
ban of chemical fertilizers/pesticides in the country will undoubtedly push the
country to a chaotic situation soon where the prices of food will skyrocket and
the poor and vulnerable communities would even starve.
We,
hereby, dispute Dr. Padeniya’s baseless allegations inferring that the
recommendations made by the agricultural specialists in state
agencies/departments are made with a strong bias towards such companies,
because the agricultural specialists get direct benefit from chemical
fertilizer and pesticide companies. As we clearly described earlier, the
present crop varieties cannot simply grow and give anticipated high yields
without chemical fertilizers and pesticides. In this backdrop, the remarks of
Dr. Padeniya are highly deceiving and can mislead the general public, thereby
jeopardizing the dignity and integrity of agricultural specialists. Their
apparent motive of gaining cheap fame and personal benefits amounts to
low-quality and unprofessional ethical wrongdoing. Further, it is pitiful that
Dr. Padeniya is deliberately ignoring and tarnishing the good name of
agriculture professionals who have guided the Sri Lankan farming community to
nourish this proud nation for centuries in the past. According to his
misleading statement at a media briefing, all agricultural teaching and
training institutes, agriculture faculties, and research institutes in Sri
Lanka are no longer necessary. Dr. Padeniya should better understand the
difference between “ගොවිතැන”
and the science behind agriculture before making false
statements about reputable professionals in the country.
We
wish to remind him that, at this critical point, the country’s most vulnerable
and pressing worry is not the knowledge of agricultural officers on organic
agriculture, but the rising COVID-19 pandemic, in which Dr. Padeniya is also
deliberately misleading the wider public and concealing the dire situation in
his sector. Therefore, we respectfully suggest that he focuses more on COVID-19
pandemic, smoking, drug addiction and the non-communicable disease incidences
occurring throughout the country, without making false and unconfirmed
references and links to agricultural inputs in relation cancer, CKDu, etc. We
believe that he can act more confidently in his designated profession rather
than making derogatory remarks on other reputed professions. Further, we would
like to ask and invite Dr. Padeniya to accept full responsibility for the country’s
possible future food crisis, which may occur in the near future as a result of
assertions of this nature, rather than blaming the agricultural professionals
who have helped feed the nation for millennia. Finally, we respectfully suggest
that Dr. Padeniya devotes more time on his own profession rather than
commenting on skills and talents of other professions, thereby, causing
problems to the society and destroying his own credibility.
The main
charge against Sri Lanka at the UNHRC is that they deliberately killed
thousands of civilians in the last phase of Eelam War IV. Rajiva Wijesinha was
Secretary-General of the Sri Lankan Government Secretariat
for Coordinating the Peace Process (SCOPP) from
2007–2009. In that capacity Rajiva had access to war data.
Rajiva found that
very few allegations of civilian deaths were made to the Peace Secretariat until
the end of January 2009, when for the first time there was allegations of
hundreds killed. In 2008 when forces took Kilinochchi, the total civilian deaths
according to Tamilnet was only 78. It
was only on Jan 26th 2009 that a massive number of civilian deaths
were announced, just after the first No Fire Zone was declared. UN Resident Coordinator Neil Buhne said he
thought most of the firing in the NFZ came from LTTE, said Rajiva.
Analysts
observed that the government’s offensive in the Eastern Province had succeeded without civilian
casualties. The army would have followed
a similar policy in the North. Analysts noted that the international community has been closely watching the
conduct of the war. Had there been any loss of civilian lives the international community would have definitely tried to
stop the offensive.
The intelligentsia
in Sri Lanka took a similar position. If the army had targeted civilians
outside the conflict area, then we would have known, said Lalith de Mel, former
head of Reckitt and Colman. There would have been some information. But there was none. There can be no truth in
this story. (Lalith” p 151-2)
Rajiva
commented on the paucity of civilian casualties in the war. The reports of the
Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission indicated
that there were hardly any civilian casualties. This is almost unique in the
history of this type of military operation. Western nations are much less cautious,
Rajiva observed. In Fallujah, Iraq, in 2004, the US army completely destroyed homes,
schools, hospitals and killed civilians in droves, said analysts.
I have been
able to establish that the armed forces have been concerned only with military
targets. There certainly had not been wanton attacks on civilians, said
Rajiva. Air Force gave me full accounts
of whatever they had targeted, and their record was impressive. In the period
preceding the last phase there has been allegations of just 76 civilian deaths arising
from over air force 500 sorties Air force had refused to take certain targets
saying it would lead to civilian casualties.
We took our
targets in the air force when we were 100 percent certain that they were solely LTTE targets, Air Force
said. We abandoned over 150 targets where we could inflict massive destruction
on LTTE as they were close to civilians. LTTE lasted two years and ten months
only because the Air Force had gone out of their way to avoid civilian
casualties.
IDAG-S [1]
in its book The Numbers Game” , stated that
high resolution satellite imagery of the
second and third No Fire Zones, showed that shells fired by the army, during
the months of February to May, 2009
avoided civilian settlements.
IDAG-S found that the aerial photographs of the zone confirmed this. The Tamil civilian camp,
their ‘tent city’, was vast and stretched for several hundreds of miles. The
tents were so densely packed together that if the area had been attacked by army
mortars, the resulting fires would have destroyed vast swathes of tents. But the photographs show the tents
practically untouched. The majority
of the permanent structures in this zone were also intact.
[1] Independent Diaspora Analyst
Group, Sri Lanka . IDAG-S is a think tank of academics,
professionals and analysts from the Sri Lankan diaspora in Europe, North
America and Australia. The lead author is an aerospace engineer who was able to
bring a wide range of multidisciplinary skills to the task. https://groundviews.org/2013/05/28/sri-lankas-numbers-game/
By Dr.Nirmala Chandrahasan/The Island Courtesy NewsIn.Asia
Colombo, June 9: The recent discovery of name- boards in public institutions which have omitted one of the national languages, namely Tamil, only to replace it with Mandarin Chinese has caused a furor with Tamil members of Parliament and other politicians voicing their protests.
Certainly, this is most unfortunate but rather than blame the Chinese it is the Government Authorities in charge of the implementation of the Official languages policy who should be blamed. They have been remiss in this instance which is only a small part of the general malaise in respect of the implementation of the official languages policy.
This however is not within the remit of this article. In this article, I would like to focus on another trilingual inscription on a stone tablet stele, left by the Chinese Admiral Zheng He, and dated 15th February 1409, in Sri Lanka.
It was originally inscribed in Nanjing in China itself and discovered in 1911 in Galle, and now preserved in the Museum in Colombo. This stone tablet with inscriptions in Chinese, Persian and Tamil signals the arrival of the Chinese fleet and invokes the blessings of Buddha and the Hindu God Vishnu whom the inscription mentions as Thenavaran Nayanar” and refers to an endowment that Zheng He, had presented to the Vishnu Devale at Devinuwara and to a Mosque.
Prof. Sasanka Perera in a very interesting and historically researched article titled Veera Alakeshvaras Phlight signals from the past,” published in The Island of 28th April 2021, to which I am indebted, refers to this inscription as a subtle but obvious way of appealing to the socio political sensibilities of large and important communities in The Island at the time”.
So it would appear that the Tamils were an important community in the island at the time. Sinhala does not feature in the inscription.
Veera Alakeshwarar’s clash with the Chinese which I refer to in my article is part of the historical perspective which I wish to draw attention to. It has many lessons for the present , and brings to light the Chinese presence in this country many centuries ago.
To continue with the purpose of Admiral Zheng He’s naval journey, it was part of what was known as the Ming Treasure voyages”. To quote Prof. Perera, the seven voyages under this naval scheme took place between 1405 -1433 AD and was the brainchild of the Ming Emperor Yongle. These voyages were undertaken to expand China’s military, political and commercial Authority across the oceans and to find local allies and establish Chinese spheres of influence in different parts of Asia, parts of the Middle East and places like Mogadishu and Mombasa in Africa.
Before arriving in Sri Lanka Zheng He’s fleet had visited other south east Asian countries where also steles were left behind. All these interventions were made to ensure the stability of maritime routes for Chinese vessels. This is very much in line with what is happening today, with the Chinese Belt and Road initiative”.
The Chinese of that era were aware of the Tamil language and culture both because of the maritime traditions of the Tamils during the era of the great Chola empire but also because Tamil Buddhist monks from Kancheepuram had brought Buddhism to China. The Chola empire in South India which held sway over Sri Lanka also included parts of south east Asia, and had a large maritime fleet and merchant navy. Furthermore, Tamil traders and merchant guilds were active in the Indian ocean and in south east Asia. With the decline of the Chola empire the seas were open for a new naval power and we find the Ming emperor making a strategic move.
To turn to Sri Lanka and Veera Alekeshvara’s encounter with the Chinese, I will have to go back in time to the Alagakkonara/Allagakone family, of which he was a member. This feudal family originally from Madurai or Kancheepuram in Tamil Nadu, settled down in Lanka and became very powerful in the Gampola Kingdom. The father of Veera Alakeshvara also known as Alakeshvara became a Minister in the Kingdom. He fortified a marshy region around the present city of Colombo and called the fortress he built there Jayawardenepura, and the area around became known as Kotte, (which means ‘fort’ in Tamil).
From his fortifications he drove out the northern army of the Arya Chakraverti, who ruled the kingdom of Jaffna, and the tax collectors from this kingdom who were raiding the south western region. Thus, he came to overshadow King Vikramabahu I11rd of Gampola. Subsequently after some infighting with family members Veera Alakeshvara, his son, became king of the Gampola kingdom as Vijayabahu VI , and ruled from 1397- 1411 AD.
However, Veera Alakeshvara like some of our present China critics, was hostile to Chinese intentions in Sri Lanka and launched piracy attacks on the Chinese fleet in Sri Lankan waters with the help of some Muslim chieftains. As a consequence, Zheng He, left Sri Lankan waters as he had other ports of call, but returned to take revenge on Alakesvara.
In 1410/11 Zheng He and his troops attacked Kotte and captured Veera Alakeshvara and his family together with other key political figures allied with him. He was taken as a prisoner to China. In the collected works of Yong Rong 1515, his capture is described as well as his subsequent pardon by the Emperor as follows: thus the August Emperor spared their lives and they humbly kowtowed making crude sounds ( a reference to their language) and praising the sage like virtue of the Imperial Ming ruler.”
But this was not the end of the matter. As Prof. Sasanka points out regime change was the object, and Parakramabahu the Sixth ascended the throne. Chinese records reveal that the new king was chosen by Sinhalese emissaries present at the Ming Court, nominated by the Emperor and installed by Zheng He, using the Chinese military and naval power at his disposal, as a ruler more amenable to Chinas intentions. Parakramabahu VI created a political alliance with the Chinese that allowed expansive political projects such as the Ming Treasure fleet easy access to local waters as well as local political support.”
It is also of interest to note that Sembagha Perumal alias Sapumal Kumaraya, an ethnic Tamil and adopted son of Parakramabahu the Sixth, subsequently conquered the northern Jaffna Kingdom and built the Nallur Kandasamy kovil in Jaffna. His exploits are commemorated by the poet Sri Rahula thera in the Kokila Sandesaya and the Selahini Sandesaya.
Aside from the sense of ‘deja vu’, which Prof. Perera remarks upon, Alakeshvarar’s story has many lessons for us today. We learn that the Tamil community in Sri Lanka was a powerful and respected one, hence the inscriptions in Mandarin along with Tamil and Persian. In the north the Kingdom of Jaffna under the Arya Chakravarti dynasty was as powerful as the other kingdoms and at that time was threatening Kotte and even extracting taxes from regions in the South.
Here too it was ethnic Tamils such as Alakeshvara senior who led the defense of the Kotte and Gampola kingdoms, and built Jayawardenapura, and it was Sembagha Perumal who later defeated the Arya Chacraverti and brought the Jaffna kingdom under the rule of Parakramabahu VI.
Ethnic differences were subsumed, and Sinhalese and Tamils worked together as one people. The wars were for territory, with kings fighting kings and not between ethnic groups. It was only with the arrival of the Western colonial powers starting with the Portuguese that ethnic differences surfaced, perhaps as a consequence of a divide and rule policy.
Another lesson we learn is that the Chinese political presence in the island is not something new. Furthermore Chinese trade was a key factor in the Sri Lankan economy as vindicated by the large collection of Chinese coins in Yapahuwe, which fact is adverted to in Prof. Perera’s article citing Prof. Sudarshan Senviratne. So, the resumption of Chinese political and economic activity in the island is not suprising.
Chinese history records that after the great naval expeditions of Zheng He, there was a change in China’s policy and internal constraints made the country turn inwards. It is now clear that China is resuming its old policy as evidenced by Admiral Zheng He’s naval expeditions, and is once again engaging in expanding its military, political and commercial authority across the globe vide the Belt and Road Initiative.
The Port City project in Sri Lanka is part of this grand design. The Port City project can bring benefits to Sri Lanka too, but it is the responsibility of the Sri Lankan Government and people to see that Sri Lanka’s interests are adequately protected and they cannot fault China for any short fall as every country looks after its own interests.
In the context of the lessons we learn from the Veera Alakeshvara episode, Tamil politicians would be well advised to be more mindful when making protests at what they perceive to be Mandarin taking precedence over Tamil. We do not have to kowtow to the new Emperor in Beijing, and protests must surely be made when called for, but made courteously, recognizing that our cultures Tamil and Chinese, have co -existed enriching each other over many centuries as in the spreading of Buddhism by monks from the Tamil country, and the extensive trade as in the exchange of cotton goods for silk between the two civilizations.
We have seen from the Galle Inscription that China gave the Tamil language pride of place in Sri Lanka at a certain point of time, and I may mention similar inscriptions have also been left by them in other south Asian countries. At that time Tamil was a language of commerce and trade in the Indian Ocean region and the Tamil Kingdoms of South India were powerful entities.
Similarly, the Persian language held sway for these reasons. Interestingly we learn from the Moroccan Traveller of the 14th Century, Ibn Batuta, who visited the kingdom of Jaffna, that the king Arya Chackraverti held control of the trade in pearls, had contact with foreign merchants and could speak Persian.
It remains to be seen whether the Tamil language once again regains its lost position and the respect that entails. The Trilingual stele in Galle invokes the blessings of the Hindu deity the Thenavaran Nayanar” Vishnu, for a peaceful world built on trade.
For the present. we have to recognize that China has come to stay as a power in the region, in a world built on trade. We can be proud that two Asian nations India and China are emerging as the super powers of the 21st century and go with the trend giving due consideration to both countries in our political and economic policies.
The Federation of Sri Lankan Muslim Associations Qatar (FSMA-Q), under the guidance of the Sri Lankan embassy in Qatar, has provided 60 medical oxygen cylinders to help in the fight against Covid-19 back in Sri Lanka.
The Federation of Sri Lankan Muslim Associations Qatar (FSMA-Q), under the guidance of the Sri Lankan embassy in Qatar, has provided 60 medical oxygen cylinders to help in the fight against Covid-19 back in Sri Lanka.The support from FSMA-Q came in response to the call of the Sri Lankan government to expatriate Sri Lankans across the world in the fight against the pandemic by way of assisting in the provision of emergency medical supplies. In a statement yesterday, FSMA-Q, the apex body of all Sri Lankan Muslim organisations in Qatar affiliated to the embassy, said it rallied all its member organisations to “support this noble cause by answering the government’s call to help their motherland during this hour of need”. With the generous assistance of its member organisations, FSMA-Q was able to donate 60 medical oxygen cylinders through the embassy, to be airfreighted to Sri Lanka as urgent medical relief supplies. This will be a significant addition to the medical supplies that have already been provided as donations by other community organisations and well-wishers in Qatar, the statement notes. A ceremony was held observing Covid-19 precautionary protocols to hand over the oxygen cylinders to the Sri Lankan ambassador to Qatar, Mohamed Mafaz Mohideen, on June 11. Besides the ambassador, present on the occasion were FSMA-Q president Mohamed Rinoz, vice-president and project co-ordinator Mohamed Lafir and Executive Committee members. Mohideen thanked FSMA-Q and its member associations for giving their support and co-operation to help their motherland during this time of need by providing 60 medical oxygen cylinders, which will go a long way in saving the lives of fellow Sri Lankan citizens back home. The FSMA-Q president thanked all the members for giving their full support to this initiative in addition to focusing on the projects of their respective associations. He added FSMA-Q has always been at the forefront of supporting the Sri Lankan community back home during any calamity or disaster in the past, and thanked the ambassador as well as the embassy for the encouragement and guidance provided in making this project a success.
The Tamil Nadu state police and Central intelligence agencies have been on their feet and high vigilance after threats of an armed group trying to infiltrate from Sri Lanka were received.
The Tamil Nadu state police and Central intelligence agencies have been on their feet and high vigilance after threats of an armed group trying to infiltrate from Sri Lanka were received. Security has been tightened along TN coastal areas after receiving news of infiltrators attempting to enter with rifles.
https://youtu.be/vLGjdH8PPkM
According to sources, an alert was issued by a Central intelligence agency on Saturday evening and the police have stepped up vigil in the towns of Kanyakumari, Toothukudi, Rameswaram, as well as in Chennai.
According to informed intelligence sources, a boat carrying armed operatives was seen heading towards Rameswaram coast. However, the sources revealed to one media houses that the exact identity of these people are not known and no details also of the organization that they belong to.
According to inputs received, security has been beefed up and an intense vigil is being maintained in the border areas with Karnataka as well. On other hand, recently Tamilian leaders called upon the state government to urge the Centre to pursue legal action over Chinese domination and not to allow a Galwan like situation to develop in the state.
