COLOMBO, Dec. 3 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's cabinet of ministers on Monday allowed the removal of licensing needed to import rice until Dec. 20, cabinet spokesman Nalinda Jayatissa said Tuesday.

Addressing a cabinet press briefing, he said the cabinet of ministers took this decision due to a rice shortage in the country as well as the damage to paddy cultivation caused by recent floods.

"Thus, the ministers decided to temporarily lift the import restrictions on rice and until Dec. 20 one can import the commodity without a license," he said.

Recently, the cabinet approved a proposal to import 70,000 tons of rice, out of which 52,000 will be imported through Lanka Sathosa and the Sri Lanka State Trading (General) Corporation, both state-owned entities.

"The decision is also a response to the high rice prices in the market," he said. Enditem

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