Another Rs. Trillion to go to print: Ranil warns of inflation !

 

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has stated that an interim budget will be presented within six weeks.

He made this statement in an interview with Reuters news office at the Prime Minister's Office yesterday (May 24).

Accordingly, the Prime Minister has stated that he will suspend infrastructure projects to raise funds to implement a two-year relief program for the people affected by the economic crisis.

He said inflation as well as popular protests could rise as the government tries to resolve the crisis.

"There must be protests ahead of the difficult times," he said. When people are suffering, they should protest, it is natural, ”he said.

"But we want to make sure that the political system is not destabilized," he added.

The Prime Minister has stated that the interim budget will cut spending completely and use it for welfare purposes.

“We have no rupee income. We now have to print another trillion rupees, ”he said.

He warned that annual inflation could exceed 40% in the coming months, and warned that Sri Lankans, who were already struggling with high prices, could suffer further.

According to government data released on Monday (May 23), inflation in Sri Lanka rose to an all-time high of 33.8% in April from 21.5% in March, Reuters reported.

The prime minister has said he is reviewing possible spending cuts across the public sector to raise money for relief efforts.

"For example, the Ministry of Health, we can not reduce its costs. The Ministry of Education may make its limited austerity. But we have many more ministries that can cut costs, ”he said.

The Prime Minister also said that Sri Lanka, which has been worried about possible food shortages since August due to the catastrophic decision taken last year to halt the import of chemical fertilizers that had lost its harvest, was seeking foreign assistance from allies and multilateral institutions to procure essential food items. There are.

“We have to get some help from our friends abroad to make sure we have enough food reserves. We need more rice. ”

The Prime Minister further stated in the interview that he is likely to meet the Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka next week to obtain fertilizer and medicines from Beijing.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was sworn in as the new Minister of Finance, Economic Stabilization and National Policy today (May 25).