வடக்கு மாகாண விவசாயத்துறையைத் தேசிய மட்டத்துக்கு இணையாகக் கட்டியெழுப்புவதுடன், மாகாண விவசாயிகள் எதிர்நோக்கும் நீண்டகாலப் பிரச்சினைகளுக்குத் தீர்வு காணும் நோக்கிலான அதிமுக்கிய உயர்மட்டக் கலந்துரையாடல் வடக்கு மாகாண கௌரவ ஆளுநர் நா.வேதநாயகன் அவர்களின் தலைமையில் புதன்கிழமை காலை (25.0…
A crucial high-level discussion aimed at building the Northern Province agriculture sector at par with the national level and finding solutions to the long-standing problems faced by the provincial farmers was held at the Governor's Secretariat on Wednesday morning (25.03.2026) under the chairmanship of the Honorable Governor of the Northern Province, N. Wethanayagan. The discussion, which was attended by a high-level delegation led by the National Director General of the Department of Agriculture, Dr. Wickramarachchi, and officials of the Northern Province Department of Agriculture, lasted for about 4 hours and was very productive. The meeting discussed in detail the current challenges, future plans and policy decisions of the provincial agriculture sector. Inaugurating the discussion, Governor N. Wethanayagan pointed out the unique challenges faced by the farmers of the Northern Province. “Climate change, erratic rainfall, floods and prolonged droughts have had a major impact on our farmers’ cropping calendar. Farmers are also facing yield losses due to new diseases such as whitefly in coconut and Panama in banana. As a solution, we need to implement integrated pest management with biological control methods. We need to introduce drought-tolerant crops and strengthen farmers’ organizations to increase the bargaining power of farmers. In addition, we need to develop value-added products, cold storage facilities and agro-processing zones with public-private partnerships. This can only be possible through better coordination between the national and provincial departments of agriculture. This meeting should not be just a discussion, but a clear action plan with responsibilities and deadlines,” the Governor emphasized. Following this, the Director General of National Agriculture, Dr. Wickramarachchi, who spoke, said, “Our main objective is to bridge the gap between the National Agricultural Development Program and the Provincial Program. The dedication of the farmers of the Northern Province and the agricultural resources in the province are immense. In the next round of appointments to be made to address the personnel shortage in the Department of Agriculture, full priority will be given to the Northern and Eastern Provinces. Steps will also be taken to fill the vacancies at least on a contract basis and expedite the services.” The Provincial Director also made a detailed presentation on how to improve agriculture in the North under the ‘Eight Pillars’ program of the National Department of Agriculture. In a special presentation presented by the Director General of Agriculture of the Northern Province, the needs to improve the livelihood of 1,49,136 farming families in the province were highlighted. In particular, demands were made to establish ‘biological control agents’ production facilities in the province to combat threats such as Panama disease in banana, flag leaf blight, Parthenium weed, coconut whitefly and weedy rice in paddy cultivation, to promote potato cultivation in Jaffna and to set up ‘fiber breeding’ laboratories in the province. In addition, the gap between the sanctioned staff and the staff currently in service was pointed out with data. At the end of the extensive discussion, key decisions and assurances were given: Since there was no official recommendation from the Department of Agriculture for the traditional ‘Aattakari’ paddy, which is produced in large quantities in Jaffna and Kilinochchi districts, farmers were facing difficulties in determining a fair fixed price for it and obtaining agricultural insurance. This long-standing issue was discussed in depth in the meeting and the Director General assured to take positive steps to immediately recommend Attakaari as a ‘Regional Rice’. The issue of making the ‘Plant Quarantine Office’ centered at Palaly International Airport and Kankesanthurai Port fully operational to promote exports through the Northern Province and control disease outbreaks was discussed. Since there is a risk of spreading deadly diseases like ‘Panama’ through banana seedlings brought from abroad (especially from India), it was decided to carry out strict surveillance in collaboration with the customs authorities and to improve the facilities for issuing certificates easily to exporters. It was decided to take steps to quickly establish ‘Small Seed Testing Laboratories’ within the Northern Province itself to replace the situation of waiting for months after sending seeds from the North to the South to obtain seed certificates. Policy discussions were also held on expanding diploma courses at Paranthan and Vavuniya Agricultural Colleges to attract youth to agriculture, facilitating 4 percent low-interest loan schemes for youth, and providing unused government lands for youth agricultural ventures. The relevant authorities were instructed to strictly control the sale of unauthorized and expired agricultural chemicals in the market and to immediately cancel the registrations of businesses involved in such activities. The Northern Provincial Chief Secretary, Secretary to the Northern Provincial Governor, Secretary to the Northern Provincial Ministry of Agriculture, Northern Provincial Director of Agriculture, Additional Director, District Deputy Directors, and District Directors of Agriculture participated in this discussion.