Colombo, Jan 4, (dpa/GNA) – Sri Lanka’s President, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, sacked a minister for criticizing an ambitious government plan to become the world’s first country to only use organic fertilizer to grow crops, officials said on Tuesday.
The president’s spokesperson, Kingsly Ratnayake, said the president had used his powers to remove Education Minister Susil Premajayantha with immediate effect.
The president’s office did not give reason for the step, but Premajayantha said he believed he was removed after saying the country’s agricultural policy had failed, and converting to organic farming had led to a sharp rise in vegetable prices.
The minister’s comments came amid public protests over rising vegetable and rice prices due to major shortages after the government banned the import of chemical fertilizers in May last year.
The government revised the policy in November, lifting the ban on chemical fertilizer imports, but the move came too late for most farmers who had been unable to cultivate crops, leading to the shortages.
Opposition parties and farmers have held protests about the harm caused to the agricultural sector and the increased cost of living.
However, Agriculture Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage defended the government’s decision and vowed to continue encouraging organic farming through the payment of subsidies.
GNA