Following the Government declaration of the Plantations sector as an essential service, the Planters’ Association of Ceylon (PA) stated that RPC operations immediately gathered momentum amid stringent new measures to protect workers and the wider estate community against the COVID-19 pandemic.
Expressing gratitude to all industry stakeholders and Government authorities for successfully enabling plantation sector to resume critical operations, PA Chairman, Sunil Poholiyadde stated: “While work on the estates was halted by March 13, as soon as the COVID pandemic worsened, most RPCs were able to resume work after only 4-days interruption.”
This was due to the remarkable initiative taken by the RPCs with the assistance of health authorities to institute stringent health and safety protocols, while ensuring that all workers and the wider estate community had their essential needs met.
“The challenges around COVID-19 add to the already pressing difficulties of tea producers who have been facing an unprecedented drought for the past 3 months which is estimated to have caused as much as a 40% reduction in estate production. The loss in crop had already created an increase in the cost of production (COP).”
Moving forward, he reiterated the total and continuing commitment of all RPCs to ensure that all possible precautions are taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19 among workers and the estate community, in compliance with guidelines issued by health authorities.
Poholiyadde also commended the success of each RPC in ensuring that employees were provided with food parcels as well as advances for food and other essentials. At present, the RPC tea sector maintains a workforce of approximately 135,000.
“Having safely commenced work on the plantations, the next hurdle was the sale of produce at the Colombo Auction. “Hence we are grateful to all stakeholders for banding together and changing a system which is over one century old.”
Given the unprecedented global supply chain disruptions unfolding as a result of the pandemic, Sri Lankan tea attracted significantly improved prices by the close of the very first tea e-auction which took place on April 3.
However, Poholiyadde warned that wwhile improved prices would be useful in a crisis situation, currency depreciation also posed a serious challenge for the industry.
In the case of the rubber sector, six auctions were delayed for a period of three weeks owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, despite increased production driven by favourable weather conditions in rubber growing regions. Poholiyadde noted that the interruption in auctions had caused acute difficulties for RPC cashflows.
“The resumption of auctions has been an extremely welcome development for the rubber sector as well,” he stated.
Moving forward all staff and worker dwellings, as well as factory premises will continue to be disinfected on a regular basis.
“Despite the challenges, RPCs are fully committed to ensuring the health and safety of its employees,” PA Media Spokesperson, Dr. Roshan Rajadurai stated
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Resuming Work On Plantations
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