India is in the process of launching an insurance scheme for plantation crops such as tea, coffee, rubber and tobacco to help growers tide over the impact of price and yield fluctuations, with premium shared by the Centre, state governments and beneficiaries.
The scheme would be implemented on a pilot basis in seven districts.
According to a release issued by the state-run Rubber Board, supportive measures may consist of fiscal
concessions, developmental assistance and regulatory simplification.
“Our primary aim is to make things here and sell them everywhere underlying the Make in India vision of the prime minister. The government is keen in the overall development of the rubber industry value chain starting from rubber growers to consumers of end products,” the release quoted Ranjan Rashmi, additional secretary, ministry of commerce and industry, as saying.
He was delivering the inaugural address at India Rubber Meet 2016 being held in Goa from March 10-11.
The insurance scheme will be funded from the price stabilisation fund for plantation crops.
According to a commerce and industry ministry report, these crops are grown in about 16 lakh hectares and they provide direct employment to about 17.10 lakh workers.
Though the plantation crops occupy only about 1% of the total cropped area, they generate about 15% of the total agricultural export earnings.
The report has also stated that the growers of plantation commodities are vulnerable to large risks in terms of production caused by adverse climatic conditions, as also to price risks caused by demand and supply situations and changes in domestic and international prices.
India is the largest producer and consumer of black tea in the world. The country is among the largest producers and exporters of tobacco in the world.
As far as the production of rubber is concerned, India ranks fifth in the world. Rubber farmers are demanding the Union government to slap a ban on import of natural rubber through all channels till its domestic price stabilises at remunerative levels.
“The impact of low prices will be more severely felt in natural rubber production sector, dominated by small and marginal growers. The low prices will have a critical bearing on planting and replanting decisions and future availability of NR. Providing safety nets for small-holders to protect them against price and other risks, beneath the prevailing socio-economic and political environment, is a critical task which has to be deliberated seriously,” A Jayathilak, chairman, Rubber Board , said at the Goa meet.