Forty net houses have been prepared :
More than 300 strawberry plants grown in one net house :
The Agrarian Development Department is taking steps to start Sri Lanka’s first strawberry cultivation model village in Nuwara Eliya.
The Agrarian Development Department has made arrangements to establish Sri Lanka’s first strawberry cultivation model village in Nuwara Eliya.
Agriculture and Plantation Industries Minister Mahinda Amaraweera advised the Agrarian Development Department to start this strawberry model cultivation village under the programme initiated by the Government to acquaint the farmers with the new crops that have been exported using new technology. Accordingly, the Agrarian Development Department took steps to start this strawberry cultivation.
Under this arrangement, 40 farmers in Nuwara Eliya have been selected and arrangements have been made by the Agrarian Development Department to provide the farmers with the financial allocation, strawberry plants required for cultivation as well as the new technology and water supply required for cultivation.
One farmer spends about Rs.1.3million for this cultivation of which Rs. 750,000 have been provided by the Agrarian Development Department without any recovery.
The remaining amount of six lakhs will be borne by the farmers engaged in the respective cultivation.
The Agrarian Development Department will provide an amount of Rs. 30 million to these 40 farmers for strawberry cultivation.
This strawberry cultivation is done in net houses in Nuwara Eliya and 40 net houses have been prepared so far. All of these safe houses can be fully automated by a remote control application.
Arrangements have been made to import the strawberry plants required for this cultivation before the end of this month. More than 300 strawberry plants are grown in one net house. Agrarian Development Department’s Commissioner General A. M. H. L. Abeyrathna said that steps will be taken to start cultivation as soon as the plants are received in Sri Lanka.
This strawberry cultivation is going to be cultivated locally as well as for export and the Agrarian Development Department has already organised the necessary facilities to buy the harvest from the farmers.
Minister Amaraweera said that this first strawberry cultivation model village will be established under the Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurship Village programme, which was started with the aim of attracting the youth community to agriculture, especially to generate high yield and income by using new technology, as well as the dollars needed by the country.
