Rubber production in India keeps uptrend

Production of natural rubber in India is keeping an uptrend of an average four per cent with the cultivation base as well as productivity increasing, especially in Kerala, which accounts for 80 per cent of country's total output.
  
The fourth largest producer of natural rubber in the world, India's total output was 8.65 lakh ton in 2008-09 marking a 4.74 per cent growth from the previous year, according to the Economic Review of Kerala state Planning Board.
  
In production of natural rubber, India comes after Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia and in consumption also it ranks fourth after China, USA and Japan, the Review, released last week, said.
  
The coverage of under rubber crop in Kerala in 2008-09 was 5.17 lakh hectares, which was higher by 5430 hectares over the previous year. The state produced 783,000 tonnes of rubber during the year, marking an increase of 4.03 per cent.
  
The state has been maintaining the uptrend in productivity from 1,190 Kg per hectare in 1998-99 to 1,514 Kg per hectare in 2008-09.
  
The increase in domestic production also helped reduce the rubber import to the country from  86394 tons to 77616 tons in 2008-09, the Review said.
  
The higher prices of rubber in the international market had its domestic reflection also. The average price of RSS-4 in Kottayam,the epicentre of rubber trade in the country, was Rs 101.12 a Kg in 2008-09.Average international price of RSS-3, the equivalent of RSS-4, was Rs 103.79 per Kg,the review said.