The Cabinet on Monday (06) decided to impose a tax of Rs.40 per kilo on imported big onions to ensure a fair price for local big onion producers.
Agriculture Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage said the tax came into effect from midnight on Monday (6). The Minister was speaking at the weekly Cabinet media briefing held yesterday at the Government Information Department.
The present demand for big onions in the country is 290,000 metric tonnes per year.
The quantity of big onions produced locally this year is around 60,000 metric tonnes.
Minister Aluthgamage said the Finance Ministry has imposed a tax of Rs. 40 per kilo on imported big onions, allowing the local big onion growers to obtain higher prices for their produce as their stock of produce is being released to the market now.
by Daily News Sri Lanka
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