JCI may appoint agency to evaluate impact of raw jute project

The government may appoint an agency soon to evaluate the impact of Jute-ICARE project which is aimed to offer higher and better quality yield of raw jute crop, a top Jute Board official has said.

"With the growing popularity of the project and initial indication of sucess, the Centre will evaluate the project for which, a third party government agency will be engaged soon, National Jute Board CEO S Pal told reporters here yesterday.

He said that under the project, the acreage has been increased from around 12,000 hectares covering four blocks in West Bengal and Assam in 2015 to one lakh hectares covering 90 blocks in 2018.

"In this year, two lakh registered farmers in all the jute growing states would be provided 900 metric tonnes of certified seeds, he said.

According to him, 64 metric tonnes of certified seeds were provided to around 21,500 farmers in 2015. Registered farmers would get certified seeds at 50 per cent subsidised rate.

"With their participation in the projects, farmers have been able to reduce the cost significantly and are producing better quality jute with a higher yield. The grade of raw jute has also improved. The farmers can fetch additional Rs 300-400 per quintal by producing better grades of jute, JCI Chairman and Managing Director KVR Murthy said.

Launched in 2015, the Improved Cultivation and Advanced Retting Exercise for Jute (Jute ICARE) has been aimed at popularising some of the better agronomic practices and recently developed microbial-assisted retting among farmers in a few blocks in West Bengal and Assam on a pilot basis.

The project, initiated by National Jute Board in association with the Central Research Institute of Jute & Allied Fibres and the JCI, was expanded to cover more area and intensify the implementation from 2016 onwards.