The first Agriculture Committee of the year 2025 met at the District Secretariat today (21) morning under the chairmanship of District Secretary Ranjana Jayasinghe.

Like last year, this year too, the rat fever disease has spread widely throughout the Kegalle District and is spreading among those engaged in other cultivations other than agriculture. The District Secretary further said that the public should be informed through officers to control the rat fever disease through the Regional Agricultural Committees and that the problems and suggestions arising through that should be referred to the District Agricultural Committee.

68 projects related to the agricultural sector in the Kegalle District have been identified for the year 2025 and the District Agricultural Director M. S. Thilakasiri said that those projects can be implemented after the funds are allocated from the upcoming budget.

Farmers cultivating pineapples in the Kegalle district should be careful when obtaining plants for their crops, says Deputy Director of Agriculture R. N. L. Rajapaksa. In order to obtain pineapple plants that will bear fruit, she further said that they should take steps to obtain them after inspecting the cultivation land and with the intervention of the Agricultural Inspection Officers.

The committee's attention was drawn to the abandoned paddy fields on both sides of the Colombo-Kandy road bordering the Kegalle district. Identification of abandoned paddy fields is currently being carried out by the Paragammana, Abeypussa and Yattogoda Agricultural Service Centers. It was revealed in the committee that the Waragoda paddy field has already been cultivated.

The National Fertilizer Secretariat is currently implementing a program called "One more seed for the rice field", said Deputy Director of the District Fertilizer Secretariat, Mr. T.H.S. Thennakoon. This program introduces an integrated plant nutrition method through the use of chemical fertilizers and organic fertilizers.

The annual requirement of chemical fertilizers in the district is about forty thousand metric tons, but since there is a huge gap between fertilizer supply and fertilizer use, this program provides relief in a context where it has a direct impact on the harvest.

Under the Aswesuma program in 2025, it is expected to empower 16,800 beneficiaries in all 11 Divisions of the Divisional Secretariat under the agro-industrial and industrial sectors, says Additional District Secretary (Administration) Mrs. T. A. Kusum Bandara. She further stated that the officers should provide full support from the time of land preparation and seeding to the time of harvesting in the implementation of these agricultural projects.

The progress of minor export crop cultivation in 2024, the progress of the Rubber Development Department, the progress of the Small Tea Estate Development Authority, the progress of the livestock and animal production sectors, as well as the future plans for 2025 were presented here.

The damage caused to crops by wild animals in the Kegalle district was discussed at length. The views and suggestions of representatives of farmers' associations and officials belonging to the agricultural sector were discussed here. Currently, committees on wild animal damage are being formed at the regional level and the issues discussed there are to be forwarded to the ministry as proposals for future work.

Additional District Secretary (Lands) Dilip Nishantha, District Planning Director A.A. Weerakoon, Divisional Secretaries, Deputy Director of Agriculture, Assistant Commissioner of Agrarian Development, heads of institutions in the agricultural sector, officers of Agrarian Service Centers, representatives of farmers' associations and others participated.