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Rubber Board keen on promoting replantation

Aravindan

KOTTAYAM, July 2

THE priority in the rubber plantation sector has been shifted to replanting. The Rubber Board is now organising a series of campaign meetings to lay more stress on replanting, especially among the small holding sector.

Rubber Board was not encouraging new planting due to the non-availability of land in traditional areas and therefore attached much importance to replanting to make the plantations economically viable said Dr A.K. Krishna Kumar, Rubber Production Commissi oner. It would reduce the surplus in the market in the long run, he told Business Line.

There are over 5,60,000 hectares under rubber in the country. A preliminary survey conducted recently reveals that of this, an area of 75,000 hectares will be available for replanting. As per the indications, productivity per hectare is below 1000 kg in 40 per cent of the small holdings. Even now, the country has enough old and uneconomic plantations with a very low productivity record. This makes the situation more severe in respect of the appaling rubber prices.

Immediate replanting is the only alternative to many issues confronting the plantation industry now. Besides making the estates economically viable, it will suspend the large inflow of rubber to the market.

The old plantations have a productivity of only 800 kg per hectare while the average productivity of the plantations during prime productive period is 2,500 kg per hectare.

According to Dr Krishna Kumar, productivity improvement is the only way to enhance the economic viability of the plantations and therefore blocking the area with very low yielding trees is a wastage of natural resources besides causing much hardships to the growers.