The new budget comes amid a relative calm following months of public protests that led to the ouster of Wickremesinghe’s predecessor and his family members from power. Other taxes approved in May will soon come into operation, he said. He also vowed to control inflation to a mid-single digit level, and proposed a value added tax increase to 15% from the current 12%. He also aims to reduce public sector debt from around 110% of GDP in 2021 to less than 100% in the medium term. Wickremesinghe also said that his administration's fiscal program envisages government revenue increasing to around 15% of GDP by 2025 from 8.2% at the of end 2021. He said the issues will be sorted out within days. Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera said lapses in distribution, delays in unloading, and payments for orders by fuel stations have created long lines. Now it looks like the shortage is still there and we are back to the square one.” “For several weeks in May and June, we faced severe hardships, but things were getting better over the last two weeks after the introduction of the quota system. “I thought things are improving,” salesperson Asanka Chandana said. However, long fuel lines have reappeared after a quota system seemed to have brought them under control over the past weeks. Schools have reopened and universities have resumed classes after long closures, he said. Wickremesinghe said that the United Nations along with other international organizations has launched a program to ensure food security. Wickremesingh delivered his first budget proposal after he was elected by Parliament in July to cover the remainder of the five-year term of ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Though cooking gas supplies were restored through World Bank support, shortages of fuel, critical medicines and some food items continue. Sri Lanka is facing its worst economic crisis with acute monthslong shortages of essentials like fuel, medicine, and cooking gas due to a severe foreign currency dearth. Sri Lanka’s total foreign debt exceeds $51 billion - of which it must repay $28 billion by 2027. Prior to the visit, the IMF said that because Sri Lanka’s public debt is unsustainable, the IMF’s executive board will need assurances by Sri Lanka’s creditors that debt sustainability will be restored before any bailout program begins. An IMF team is visiting Sri Lanka and is expected to end the current round of talks on Wednesday.