10,000 people to be trained in art of coconut plucking

Talking to reporters here today, CDB member Raja Limaye said these people will be trained under a programme devised by the Board, a statutory body established under the Union Ministry of Agriculture.

The six-day training programme, started in Kerala in 2011, has been extended to Maharashtra this year, he said.

Trainees would be trained in the art of climbing on the tree and plucking coconuts and also in other related activities, Limaye said.

In Maharashtra, where 500 people will be trained, the programme will be implemented in coastal Konkan region and some parts of Sangli district, the CDB member said.

The Kochi-headquartered Board is also targeting to train 5,000 people in Kerala, 2,500 in Tamil Nadu, 1,000 in Karnataka and 500 each in Goa and Andhra Pradesh, he said.

"The Board will continue the programme till we get sufficient people for extraction of coconuts, a profession which has a large potential in the country," he added.