S N Tripathi, a joint secretary in MSME Ministry, has been given additional charge as Coir Board chairman.
"On expiry of the tenure of the Chairman, Coir Board, a Statutory Body under the Ministry of MSME, Shri S.N. Tripathi, IAS a senior Joint Secretary in the Ministry of MSME has been given the additional charge of the post of Chairman, Coir Board till further order," an official statement said.
The Ministry said it will look into the issues faced by the coir industry before it appoints a regular chairman.
"It has also been decided that before appointing the regular Chairman, the Ministry will examine the difficulties and opportunities before the Coir industry. The MSME Minister has observed that further programme will be formulated only after keeping in mind the difficulties faced by the coir sector," it added.
The appointment was made following retirement of G Balachandran on June 26, who belonged to the Alappuzha district of Kerala, known as the homeland of coir.
The coir industry has been grappling with issues like high cost of credit, delays in raw material procurement and inadequate access to modern technology.
The industry employs over 7 lakh workers, 80 per cent of whom are women, in more than 14 states and Union Territories.
