Lankan journalist weighs price of people’s suffering
Amid the heightened political and economic crisis of Sri Lanka, TBS contacted Pravin who highlighted the deeper scars of his homeland
A cup of tea at a tea stall in Colombo cost Rs100, equivalent to around Tk29 in Dhaka, on average as of Monday afternoon.
While it sounds exponentially high, a senior Sri Lankan journalist has explained that the root of such a hike lies in the economic turmoil of the island nation famed for tea.
"The price of a cup of tea is about Rs100. This is because of a jump in commodity prices. A 400-gram pack of powdered milk sells for Rs790 now, which is essential for tea preparation here," Pravin Mendis, who works for Sri Lanka's Daily News, told The Business Standard.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
Amid the heightened political and economic crisis of Sri Lanka, TBS contacted Mendis who highlighted the deeper scars of his homeland.
"The rupee's value has floored. The economic crisis is hurting not only the poor but the people of every class. There is no utility service available. We are facing a dollar crisis," he said.
Sri Lanka's gas supply is now virtually non-existent according to Mendis as the central bank has run out of dollars to pay for gas shipments.
"The central bank has run out of dollars, foreign remittances have stopped coming, we have no money to pay for gas," he said, adding that the country has to go to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to readjust the loans.
Meanwhile, on the streets, the queues for commodities are only getting longer, said Mendis.
"A litre of petrol is about Rs350. That too is short in supply so a long queue of people is always there," he added.
Mendis also claimed that the Lankan people now have to face long blackouts as even the hydropower plants have stopped functioning.
Just a week ago, Sri Lanka, which is facing a spiralling foreign exchange crisis, approached Bangladesh for a swap of $250 million.
Mendis noted that the Rajapaksa government is seeking loans or readjustments to the previous ones with foreign parties but they are not so successful in availing so.
The veteran journalist described that the people hold the present Sri Lankan government responsible for the crisis and wants it to step down.
"There was a curfew yesterday, which many did not conform to. People want the government to go. People want the president to go and make a way for a new government," Mendis told TBS.
On Monday, Sri Lanka's president Gotabaya Rajapaksa invited all political parties represented in parliament to accept ministerial portfolios to help find a way out of the country's worst economic crisis in decades.
According to Mendis, the present government will not stay in parliament for long due to a lack of public support.
Regardless of being rich or poor, everyone in Sri Lanka is suffering, claimed Mendis.
"The rich are suffering too. They also need commodities. They want the administration to go," he said.
It can be mentioned that the experts had warned the government of such an economic downturn earlier this year because of excessive foreign loans.
"The Sri Lankan opposition too warned about it. Just in January, the government had to repay an international loan worth $500 million," added Mendis.
Overdependence on foreign loans for international projects and the dried-up tourism business for Covid contributed to the economic downfall.
However, the veteran newsman expressed hope that the situation will change for the better soon.
Earlier in the day, several members of the cabinet in Sri Lanka, including the prime minister's son, resigned, just days after President Gotabaya Rajapaksa declared a state of emergency following protests over a deepening economic crisis.
A new Sri Lankan Cabinet is expected to be sworn in today as part of the government's bid to tackle the raging public anger against the ongoing economic hardships caused by the island nation's worst economic crisis.
"If the Sri Lankan administration changes and goes through restructuring, the international monetary organisations will address the current issue and give the country more economic support," he added.
