The Government has disbursed Rs. 13.492 billion in fertiliser subsidies to 667,460 farmers covering 449,757 hectares cultivated during the 2026 Yala season, Commissioner General of Agrarian Development Dhammika Ranatunga announced.
Speaking at a media briefing held today (10) at the Department of Government Information, he said fertiliser subsidy payments have already been completed for the majority of eligible farmers, while payments to a small number of farmers who commenced cultivation later will be finalised within the next few days.
The Commissioner General noted that, from this cultivation season, the Government has decided to pay the full fertiliser subsidy in a single instalment instead of the previous two-instalment system.
He also said that Agrarian Service Centres supplied 50 kg bags of urea to farmers at the fixed price of Rs. 10,200. Accordingly, around 64,500 metric tonnes of urea have been distributed through the centres so far. The Government incurred an additional cost of Rs. 1.84 billion to maintain the subsidised price.
Furthermore, the fertiliser subsidy has been increased from Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 30,000 per hectare, providing greater financial support to farmers.
Ranatunga said the success of the current Yala season was made possible through the Government's timely interventions in response to challenges that emerged late last year.
He noted that the "Ditwah" cyclone caused complete damage to nearly 60,000 hectares of paddy fields, prompting the Government to provide a special compensation of Rs. 150,000 per hectare. As a result, the Department of Agrarian Development has granted Rs. 8.886 billion in compensation and assistance to 112,442 farmers, enabling them to resume cultivation quickly.
In addition, the Government has allocated Rs. 5.788 billion to restore tanks, anicuts and irrigation canals essential for agricultural activities, the Commissioner General added.
