The Dutch company that supplies thick paper used for train tickets has stopped supplying the paper.

The General Manager of the Railways Dilantha Fernando stated that the company refused to supply the paper due to the high cost of production due to the fact that the paper was ordered only from Sri Lanka.

Based on this situation, the Railway Department has taken steps to import 30 million thick sheets of paper used for train tickets through a Japanese paper printing company.

This paper has been ordered from Japan for a period of 6 months as 60 million train tickets are printed annually.

Samples have also been submitted to the Valachchenai Paper Mill to look into the local production of thick paper used for train tickets.

However, the General Manager of Railways further stated that they have requested for a period of 6 months.

A train ticket costs Rs. 2.50 cents and the Railway Department plans to introduce electronic tickets in the future.

Fernando stated that while the Cabinet has granted approval in this regard, problems will arise when issuing train tickets in the next six months if further steps are not taken by the Ministry of Finance.