🌾 Policy Reset: Lanka Pushes Shift from Input Subsidies to Output Incentives

• Core Reform: A significant shift is proposed in agricultural policy from providing costly input subsidies (like cheap fertiliser) to a digital Output-Based Aid (OBA) system, which rewards verified production results. • Current Issue: Input subsidies breed farmer dependency, distort markets, and create a "break-even trap," causing paddy farmers to settle for lower yields and inefficient practices. This also results in significant leakages of public funds. • Proposed Solution: A National ICT Platform utilizing QR codes and IoT-enabled digital scales will track paddy production sales to buyers. • Farmer Incentive: Farmers would receive a direct cash payment, e.g., Rs. 10 per kg sold. This is approximately double the support compared to the estimated Rs. 5/kg value of the current typical Rs. 10,000/acre fertiliser subsidy, directly benefiting high-producing farmers. • Triple-Win Advantage: • Farmers: Performance-based, dignified earnings rewarding efficiency and modern methods. • Government: Real-time data on food stocks and land use for smarter policy and import decisions. • Economy: Taxpayer money is released only upon actual food production, reducing corruption and fiscal leakage. • Outlook: The system aims to treat farming as a business, making it more profitable for productive cultivators and strengthening national food security.