Sources said the Board's marketing committee, which met in Kochi on Wednesday, has decided to promote the domestic production of SPNR varieties in a big way. The board has also earmarked Rs 10 lakh for the promotion of Radiationed Valcunised Natural Rubber (RVNR). The RVNR, a high quality natural rubber, was mainly used for the production of sophisticated surgical goods and condoms.

"The increased production of SPNRs could help the country save prescious foreign exchange as now bulk of these were imported", the source added.

In tune with new strategy, the board will come out with an aggressive marketing and publicity campaign for promoting SPNR variety soon. Besides publicity in newspapers and magazines, the board will also produce adocumentary projecting the importance of increased SPNR production, the source added.The Rubber Board has also revised the production and consumption figures for the Natural Rubber during the Ninth Five-Year Plan.

According to the revised estimates, the board has predicted a zero balance scenario by the year 2002 and since then the Board has predicted a deficit in the natural rubber availability in the country.

If the Board's revised estimates as anything to go by, the growers could expect a turnaround in their fortunes by the turn of the next century.Meanwhile, the State Trading Corporation (STC) has decided not to go ahead with its second tranche of procurement if the the prices cross the Rs 34 per kg level. Following this, the market expectation of prices crossing the benchmark level of Rs 34.05 per kg may not be realised. STC sources said the agency's mandate was to procure natural rubber below the Rs 34 per kg mark and if the price touches that level the agency will stop its procurement drive.

Thesource added that the agency had not got any communication from the centre directing it to help the market take the prices to the benchmark level.

The agency had so far purchased only 445 tonnes from the market of a total mandate of 20,000 tonnes.

The source added that STC had authorised various agencies to purchase another 445-tonne-delivery which was confirmed. Another 400 tonnes worth of order was cancelled by agencies after placing orders, it added.

Significantly, even two weeks after the announcement by the centre, the NR prices were ruling much below the new benchmark price of Rs 34.05. However, there was an upswung in prices during the last couple of days taking the price to Rs 33.50 per kg for the RSS 4 variety on Friday at the Kottayam market. However, market sources attributed the current firming up in prices to inventory buildup by tyre companies before the Diwali holidays and the severe shortage of arrivals following heavy monsoon in the major rubber-growing areas in the State.