Kerala overhauls husk procurement scheme

Coir cooperatives procuring husk directly or through agents will be provided transport costs of Rs 250 for every 5,000 husks and Rs 50 for every additional 1,000 husks

The Kerala government today announced an overhauled husk procurement scheme to meet a long-standing demand from the coir industry for addressing shortage of raw materials.

Minister for revenue and coir Adoor Prakash today said the new scheme would equip workers in the sector to create a vast procurement network through various incentives and utilise Rs 600 crore worth coconut husk produced in the state annually.

He was speaking at the valedictory function of Coir Kerala 2015 trade event in Alappuzha, where he also interacted with coir sector workers and took notice of their grievances and suggestions.

"Schemes were introduced in 2010 and 2012 to streamline husk procurement, but they have not yielded desired results. Despite the subsidies, we are still dependent on husk from other states," the minister said.

Under the scheme, individuals who bring raw husk for processing at accredited fibre making units will get 25 paise incentive for every green husk and 15 paise for dry husk.

Coir cooperatives who procure husk directly or through agents will be provided transport costs of Rs 250 for every 5,000 husks and Rs 50 for every additional 1,000 husks.

Workers in cooperatives employing defibreing machines will receive, in addition to their wages, incentives at the rate of Rs 160 for every 400 green husks they procure and Rs 20 for every additional 50 husks. For dry husk, the rate will be Rs 150 for every 600 dry husks and Rs 25 for every addition 100 husks.

The state government will also subsidise coir fibre at Rs 3 per kg for green husk and Rs 2 per kg for dry husk. A working capital of up to Rs 200,000 would be given to coir cooperatives as a revolving fund to procure husk.

Cooperatives that use large machines will get up to Rs 50,000 and mini-defibreing units will receive up to Rs 10,000 per machine towards repair and maintenance reimbursements annually.

A government order revising the previous scheme has been issued and the project would be implemented at the earliest, the minister said.

Budget session on Mar 6

The Budget session of Kerala Assembly will begin on March 6 starting with the address to the House by Governor Justice P Sathasivam.

A meeting of the state Cabinet today decided to recommend Governor the convening of the session from March 6, chief minister Oommen Chandy told reporters. The state's Budget for 2015-16 is scheduled to be presented by finance minister KM Mani on March 13. The session will last till Apr 9, he added.