Government reallocates funds from Indian credit line amid concerns

The government has decided to prioritise imports of pharmaceuticals fuel and LPG following the concerns expressed on allocating US$ 500 million for industrial raw materials under the US$ 1 billion Indian credit line.
Initially, the government allocated US$ 500 million for the import of industrial raw materials followed by US$ 300 million and US$ 200 million for imports of essential food items and pharmaceuticals, according to Cabinet Co-Spokesperson and Minister of Mass Media Nalaka Godahewa.

However, the government later decided to trim the US$ 500 million allocated for the import of industrial raw materials to US$260 million in order to make room for imports of fuel and LPG. Further, US$ 300 million allocated for essential food items has also been trimmed to US$ 180 million.

Accordingly, US$ 200 million and US$ 160 million have now been allocated for fuel and LPG imports while maintaining the original US$ 200 million allocated for pharmaceuticals.

Godahewa said that only US$ 40 million has been allocated under the credit line to import industrial steel.
However, he defended the government decision to allocate US$ 260 million for the import of industrial raw materials citing the impact on the employment in the construction sector.