US dollars not available anywhere at Central Bank’s rates - Harsha

Parliamentarian Dr. Harsha de Silva says that Sri Lanka is today facing its worst economic crisis since independence and that there are no US dollars available anywhere at the rates specified by the central bank. 

He stated that in the unofficial market the US dollar is being sold for around Rs. 235-240 and sometimes for even more, despite the exchange rates of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka stating that the buying price and selling price of the US dollar is Rs. 198 and Rs. 202.89 respectively. 

“Dollars are not available at these rates anywhere,” he said, referring to the Central Bank’s exchange rates. 

Dr. de Silva added that a Gazette notification has been issued stipulating a price of Rs. 98 per kilogram for rice, however rice cannot be purchased from anywhere at that price. He said the same can be said for the prices of salmon tins and gas cylinders as they cannot be purchased for the prices declared by the government.  

The SJB MP stated that unfortunately for the first time the Central bank is saying that a US dollar is Rs. 202, however the general public is unable to buy US dollars at that rate from anywhere. 

The former State Minister emphasized that what is happening is that Sri Lanka is today facing its worst economic crisis since independence and that the biggest challenge in the short term is the fact that within the next couple of months the country has to payback massive loans obtained is US dollars.