By Upatissa Pethiyagoda –

Dr. Upatissa Pethiyagoda

It is said that “every cloud has a silver lining”, and that “It is an ill wind that blows nobody any good”. We could examine three of our recent tragic experiences as models, namely, “The Covid Epidemic”, the “Organic Agriculture fiasco” and the “Ditwah disaster”. These are just three among several that are illustrative.

The Covid Epidemic was spectacularly sudden and widespread and thus struck everyone unprepared. Transport systems were hugely disrupted, schools and offices closed, healthcare facilities strained, severe shortages of food and fuel and cancellation of flights and some airport forced to shut down. This was a rare occasion where there was deprivation cause by sheer physical collapse of transport systems.    

The obvious greatest direct beneficiaries were the giant multinational Pharmaceutical manufacturers of vaccines, notably – Pfizer, Moderna, Sinopharma, and Astra-Seneca. Never before has such an enormous affliction, opened up so rapidly and on such a scale. Millions of vaccine doses were desperately needed World-wide.

True to form, subtle subterfuges bred a host of indirect beneficiaries, who profited by deliberate acts of omission (and “commission”). These indirect beneficiaries having made their kill, have crawled out of the limelight and slunk into their lairs, rather like snakes into their termite hills. One hopes that at long last, some of these disgraceful parasites and their families, who are in judicial custody and awaiting justice, and their doom. The fact that parents can school their children into cheats is distressing. Have you ever heard of fathers in effect, “pimping” for their sons?   

The massive destruction of supply networks for essential goods, principally food, justifies a major effort to grow and present2 the required crops more widely.

This urges a re-focus on restraining factors, a greater investment of time and money, to enhance availability and access to essentials. The hitherto lackadaisical approach to meeting local farmer needs, must change to at least match the effort and enthusiasm as is now lavished on the “Export Crops” Sector.

This is not only as a means of “coping” with unexpected disasters, but also an implicit validation of the core area of “food security,” as an inviolable entitlement of our people, and the bounden duty of the State to ensure it.

The devotion to the formula of using income from Agricultural Exports, which incomes could then be used to purchase our food needs from others. This would mimic the Colonial powers, who found it more profitable to produce tea and get cheaper rice from Burma and elsewhere. Such thinking Is no longer tenable. No country deserves dignity, if it cannot feed its own people.

This, as expected is a massive change, and justifies an essay on its own, aa it requires nearly revolutionary changes in attitudes, research activities and extension services.

What the “Vipathmaga” caper taught us was that advice of sundry “Experts” can be disastrous. Professors of Surgery, clergymen and Pediatricians are not the best equipped to advice on fertilizers, as much as a Soil Scientist should not prescribe treatment for a sick child.`                 

Equally deadly is the “With immediate effect,” or the slightly milder, “asap syndrome.” This creates an illusion of authority and competence, pleasing for a congenital idiot or opinionated upstart, but useless for implementation.

The prevalent view is that traditional methods are inefficient, primitive, unproven and backward. ThIs assessment has to be rejected.The wealth of experience and knowledge, among our famers should be seen as a treasure waiting to be used.