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G.K. Nair

Kochi , Oct. 7

THE early arrival of the northeast monsoon to the high ranges of Kerala has rejuvenated the pepper and the cardamom plants, which have been facing severe drought conditions.

The incessant rains for the past one week in the State, especially in the Idukki district, where cardamom and pepper are mainly grown, have improved the crop conditions. In pepper, pollination would take place and the berries would be bold. Thus, the crop would be better, a senior official of the Spices Board told Business Line on Tuesday. If the rains continue intermittently with occasional sunshine, it would further improve the pepper and cardamom crop, he said. Pepper production during the current year has been projected at 65,000 tonnes in the country as against 80,000 tonnes last year. Next year production is estimated at 62,000 tonnes.

Attributing the continuous downward trend in production to the vagaries of the weather, the official said low prices had compelled farmers to neglect the crop. "The attention has, of late, shifted to other crops such as vanilla in some areas," he pointed out. However, as there is no crop monitoring mechanism available in the State, actual production cannot be estimated, he added.

In fact, the cardamom crop in some of the major growing-areas has been seriously hit by the dry spell in the past few months, as there was no adequate rainfall in the months of June and July.

The current showers would lead to better flowering and fruit setting in cardamom, Mr P. Punnoose, General Manager, Kerala Cardamom Processing and Marketing Company Ltd, at Kumily said. However, he said, if it continued non-stop then there could be a negative impact. The current rains would result in better crops by January - February 2004.

The cardamom plants require at least two good showers per week, he said. The production, which was expected to be down by around 30 per cent, would be less by 10 to 15 per cent than previous year in view of the rains, he said.

Kerala produces about 7,500 tonnes of cardamom out of the total estimated production of 10,000 tonnes in the country.

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