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Commodity planters of South India hope the Union commerce ministry would announce a package to implement the development scheme to boost productivity and drive growth.
About 500 planters and stakeholders from coffee, tea, rubber and spices assembled here for the 121st annual conference of United Planters’ Association of Southern India (Upasi) from Monday.
“Planters are looking forward to an early announcement of the development schemes as part of the 12th Five Year Plan, which will secure state funds and incentives for their implementation,” an official of the plantation sector’s representative body said.
The schemes include re-plantation, quality upgradation, value addition, skill development and mechanisation for higher yields, better returns and variety to boost exports, said R Sanjith, head of commodities, Upasi ahead of its annual conference.
Among other issues, the planters are specifically opposed to the Tea Board’s proposal of compulsory routing 70 per cent of the tea production through auctions. Already, south India sells 65 per cent of its tea in auctions, while north India sells less than 50 per cent.
Upasi had submitted its comments to the Tea Board on the amendments proposed to the Tea Act. Subsequently, the body had asked the Board to have detailed consultations with all the stakeholders before making amendments.
Accordingly, the Tea Board had organised a stakeholders meeting on the proposal to amend Tea Act, 1953, at Kochi on February 16, 2014.
The coffee planters are eagerly awaiting approval from the Expenditure Finance Committee for the 12th Plan proposals.
Rubber planters are seeking safeguards in the form of hike in import or anti-dumping duty to sustain their business in the face of rising production costs and wage increase. The rise in imports in the recent months has resulted in massive fall in the prices of rubber in the last three years.
The state-run commodity boards will announce schemes after the expenditure finance commission of the Union finance ministry approves the funds and incentives to be given to planters, mainly located in Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
Of the 1.7 million planters and 2.4 million workers involved in the plantation sector in the country, 76 per cent (1.3 million) of growers and 57 per cent (1.4 million) of labourers are spread across the southern states.
“Plantation commodities generated value worth Rs 43,871 crore in fiscal 2013-14, contributing 2.5 per cent to the national agricultural GDP while exports earned planters and other stakeholders Rs 10,181 crore, accounting for seven per cent of the total agricultural and allied goods’ exports,” Sanjith said.
About 500 planters and stakeholders from coffee, tea, rubber and spices assembled here for the 121st annual conference of United Planters’ Association of Southern India (Upasi) from Monday.
“Planters are looking forward to an early announcement of the development schemes as part of the 12th Five Year Plan, which will secure state funds and incentives for their implementation,” an official of the plantation sector’s representative body said.
The schemes include re-plantation, quality upgradation, value addition, skill development and mechanisation for higher yields, better returns and variety to boost exports, said R Sanjith, head of commodities, Upasi ahead of its annual conference.
Among other issues, the planters are specifically opposed to the Tea Board’s proposal of compulsory routing 70 per cent of the tea production through auctions. Already, south India sells 65 per cent of its tea in auctions, while north India sells less than 50 per cent.
Upasi had submitted its comments to the Tea Board on the amendments proposed to the Tea Act. Subsequently, the body had asked the Board to have detailed consultations with all the stakeholders before making amendments.
Accordingly, the Tea Board had organised a stakeholders meeting on the proposal to amend Tea Act, 1953, at Kochi on February 16, 2014.
The coffee planters are eagerly awaiting approval from the Expenditure Finance Committee for the 12th Plan proposals.
Rubber planters are seeking safeguards in the form of hike in import or anti-dumping duty to sustain their business in the face of rising production costs and wage increase. The rise in imports in the recent months has resulted in massive fall in the prices of rubber in the last three years.
The state-run commodity boards will announce schemes after the expenditure finance commission of the Union finance ministry approves the funds and incentives to be given to planters, mainly located in Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
Of the 1.7 million planters and 2.4 million workers involved in the plantation sector in the country, 76 per cent (1.3 million) of growers and 57 per cent (1.4 million) of labourers are spread across the southern states.
“Plantation commodities generated value worth Rs 43,871 crore in fiscal 2013-14, contributing 2.5 per cent to the national agricultural GDP while exports earned planters and other stakeholders Rs 10,181 crore, accounting for seven per cent of the total agricultural and allied goods’ exports,” Sanjith said.
Plantation crops are grown in south India spread over an area of 1.8 million hectares, which is 65 per cent of the total area and around two percent of the total cropped area in the country.
In terms of value, south India accounts for cent percent of spices, 97 per cent of coffee, 94.4 per cent of rubber and 16 per cent of tea, he said.
In terms of production too, south India accounts for 100 percent (59,795 tonnes) in spices, 97.4 percent (296,550 tonnes) in coffee, 94.4 percent (796,500 tonnes) in rubber and 20 percent (243,710 tonnes) in tea.
