Coir Board seeks ban on burning coconut husk

Puducherry, Dec 26: Chairman, Coir Board, Kochi, Mr A C Jose today called upon the Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh governments to impose total ban on burning coconut husk for industrial use.

Presiding over a seminar on "feasible projects of coir in Puducherry', jointly organised by the Regional office, Coir Board, Pollachi and District Industries Centre, Puducherry here today said that presently five lakh people were working in coir industry in the southern states.

In the 11th Five Year plan it was proposed to enhace this with another 2.5 lakh people. The Self Help Groups(SHGs) should collect the coconut husk with which they can earn Rs 100 a day. Besides coir, fibre and coir pith could be made out of husk, he said, adding coir pith worth Rs 60 crore have been exported from Tamil Nadu.

Mr Jose said following the tsunami disaster, Sri Lanka could not supply the required fibre for China and they were purchasing it from Nagercoil. As China found our fibre better than that of Sri Lanka, two officials were camping in Nagercoil to purchase fibre.

He said due to the availability of coconuts in Puducherry there was large scope for the coir industry to develop here.

The 'Rattai' which was being given to women who obtained training with a subsidy of 75 per cent would help empowering women.

The banks will provide the 25 per cent money they require as loan now, he added.

Inaugurating the seminar, Puducherry industries minister V Vaithilingam said the administration would set up a Coir Cluster Centre at Ariyankuppam near here to ensure the production of all coir products at one place.

Steps were being taken to acquire the land required for the same, he added.

To ensure marketing, the administration would also set up a government agency to buy the products, he said. Coir pith was being exported to France from Puducherry and added women could earn Rs 100 to Rs 150 per day by taking up coir works as a side business.

UNI