Cabinet nod to plantation support

• Rubber replanting subsidy increases from Rs. 175,000/ha to Rs. 350,000 
• New equipment for coconut landowners 
• Rs. 250 m for water tank, water pump and spray machine provision

Considering the high cost of rubber re-planting, the Cabinet approved the proposal presented by Plantation Industries Minister Naveen Dissanayake to increase the subsidy for the new rubber plantations from Rs. 150,000 to Rs. 300,000 and the subsidy for rubber replanting from Rs. 175,000 to Rs. 350,000 per hectare.

The Cabinet also approved the proposal to allocate funds for providing coconut tree climbing machines, small tiller machines, pheromone traps for red palm weevils, grass cutting machines, spraying machines, and coconut trunk cutting machines for coconut land owners and Kapruka Fund members.

Approval was also given to implement a project with the investment of Rs. 250 million to provide 10,000 water tanks, 3,500 water pumps, and 4,500 spray machines in order to encourage correct agricultural methodologies to increase productivity of the small tea estates.