IIPM imparts training to rubber growers in Tripura

Agartala, Jul 20 (UNI) The Bangalore-based Indian Institute of Plant Management(IIPM) has imparted skill development training to 44 premier rubber growers in Tripura on modern technology for both plantation and processing of rubber.

Rubber Board(RB) officials here today said the training was aimed ar enhancing the skill of the planters as well as the institutional and capacity building of the rubber planters in the state.

IIPM recently set up its academic building at Toklai Research Complex in Jorhat exclusively for Northeast with a view to helping the growers in branding Tripura rubber effectively.

IIPM officials claimed that besides rubber, tea, spice and coffee planters could also realise their potential in the sector by acquiring management education and training.

Tripura has over 35,000 square hectares under rubber production, while the potential has been tapped in 18,000 square hectares and annual production recorded has been over 17,000 metric tonnes.

However, rubber producers do not get the real price of the product due to poor institutional support in the state.

Meanwhile, the RB planned to bring about 32 to 60 per cent of new rubber plants in the country to NE states by next year and an integrated approach for hiking rubber production was drawn for the region for achieving the target.

The RB had implemented a project for accelerating the development of rubber production in the region between 1989-90 and 2004-05, which was followed by a scheme with a total financial outlay of Rs 84 crore for the Tenth Five Year Plan (2002-07).

According to RB statistics, out of five lakh hectares of potential area in NE, one lakh hactre is in Tripura, with 31.2 per cent potential area still available in the state, while only six per cent of the potential area has been cultivated so far in other NE states.

UNI