A total of 3,500 metric tons of ‘Ponni Samba’ rice has been imported into the country, to curb the shortage of Keeri samba rice which is currently prevailing in the local market.
This announcement was made by the Sri Lanka customs department today (27).
Accordingly, the first consignment of the imported rice arrived in the country on October 23.
Sri Lanka Customs noted that additional consignments of imported ‘Ponni Samba’ rice were brought into the country last Friday and Saturday, and distribution will begin soon.
The Cabinet of Ministers granted approval for the import of GR-11 grade ‘Ponni Samba’ rice on October 15 as a measure to address the shortage of ‘Keeri Samba’ rice in the local market.
Following the approval, the Government decided to exempt importers from the requirement to obtain import control licenses.
Thus, based on the recommendations of the Food Policy and Security Committee, each importer was permitted to import up to a maximum of 520 metric tons of rice.
