BIZ

Another tax imposed on rice

Published

3 years ago

September 20, 2022

editor

Some traders who are close associates of politicians are hoarding another 200,000 metric tons of rice imported from India, President of the United Rice Growers’ Association Muditha Perera said.

He said rice is being imported when there is a rice surplus in Sri Lanka.

He said that the production of rice in the previous 2020/21 Maha Season was 5 million metric tons. Despite this record harvest, Mr. Perera said rice was imported not due to a lack of harvest resulted in from organic farming but because of lack of commissions.

Meanwhile, he said that a social security tax of 2.5% would be imposed per kilo of rice from October 1, and this tax amount would also be added to a kilo of rice.

In order not to collect the tax amount from consumers, he said the new tax amount will have to be reduced when purchasing paddy from the farmer.

Mr. Perera said that the price of rice has gone up due to stubborn actions of one large-scale rice mill owner, and that this situation has arisen due to the lack of straightforwardness and decision making of the agricultural officials.

“The officials of the Agriculture Ministry kept mum while waiting for imported rice. Therefore, rice was imported on loan unnecessarily. It is a crime to try to use the country’s rice production for chicken feed when people don’t have anything to eat. Minister Mahinda Amaraweera has been misled,” he said.

He said that more than 700 small and medium scale rice mills and more than half of the large scale rice mills have been closed. However, he said the paddy harvest will increase in great quantity next year.

BIZ

Customs urges to re-export substandard salt imports

Published

2 hours ago

June 27, 2025

editor

Sri Lanka Customs has recommended the re-export of 05 containers of imported salt after they failed to meet national quality standards.

According to Customs Spokesperson Seewali Arukgoda, all salt containers brought into the country are subject to rigorous standards testing. The five containers in question were found to be non-compliant with Sri Lanka Standards Certification requirements.

According to Customs, approximately 2,000 containers of salt have been imported under the relevant import permit.

MRP on salt

Earlier, The Sri Lanka Salt Manufacturers Association has announced that salt will now be sold under newly set Maximum Retail Prices (MRP), following an agreement with the Consumer Affairs Council.

This move comes after import restrictions were relaxed, and sufficient salt stocks have arrived in the country. The MRPs are as follows :

1 kg granular salt – Rs.180
1 kg salt powder – Rs.240
400 g salt powder – Rs.120

The Association stated that while distribution has begun, it may take a few days for the packaged salt to reach outlets islandwide. Consumers can expect to purchase salt at regulated prices once full distribution is in place.

BIZ

Kunming-Colombo freight service takes off

Published

5 hours ago

June 27, 2025

editor

In a boost to bilateral trade, China’s S.F. Airlines launched its inaugural Kunming-Colombo cargo flight yesterday, marking a new chapter in Sri Lanka’s logistics connectivity with Yunnan Province.

S.F. Airlines deployed a Boeing 747-200 aircraft for the inaugural flight, which arrived at BIA from Kunming at 10:50 a.m. yesterday (26), carrying 22 metric tons of cargo.

S.F. Airlines – a major Chinese logistics carrier.

BIZ

CIB Big City fined Rs. 1 mn. for selling overpriced bottled water

Published

17 hours ago

June 26, 2025

editor

CIB Big City, a private business outlet in Maharagama, has been fined Rs. 1 million by the Gangodawila Magistrate’s Court today (June 26) for selling overpriced bottled water.

A case was filed against the business outlet following a raid carried out by the Consumer Affairs Authority (CAA) officials on May 09, 2025.

During the raid, officials had discovered that a 500 ml bottle of water has been sold at Rs. 90 despite the MRP being declared as Rs. 70 by a gazette notification published on April 01, 2025.

The store is a part of the well known fashion chain – Wijaya Group, which is chaired by Mr. K.R.G Wijesundera.

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