Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Thursday, Apr 01, 2004
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Thursday, Apr 01, 2004 |
||
|
|
||
|
Corporate
-
Outlook Agri-Biz & Commodities - Cultivation Finolex to cash in on drip irrigation thrust in TN — Hikes production capacity expecting demand R.Y. Narayanan
Coimbatore , March 31 FINOLEX Industries Ltd (FIL), manufacturers of branded PVC pipes, plans to capitalise on the thrust given by the Tamil Nadu Government to drip irrigation in the State, which accounts for nearly 10 per cent of the company's turnover. Anticipating demand from this sector, FIL has already enhanced production capacity. According to Mr Saurabh Dhanorkar, Director (Commercial), FIL, "Tamil Nadu is a key market" for FIL, and the initiative of the State Government in earmarking substantial subsidies for installation of drip irrigation facilities would "give a boost to the farm sector." He said FIL is committed to the drip irrigation projects launched by state governments and has been playing a proactive role in educating both farmers and engineers about the advantages of drip irrigation. The company, in a release, said the Tamil Nadu Government's recent announcement allocating Rs 30 crore as subsidy for drip irrigation projects is of particular importance to Coimbatore district since the district has garnered 25 per cent share of the proposed subsidy (Rs 7.5 crore). In a bid to educate the engineers of the region about the advantages of drip irrigation, Finolex recently arranged for the visit of 80 engineers from Coimbatore to its head office for training in the areas of borewell and emerging technologies. Before that, a batch of 60 engineers had visited FIL's plant in Ratnagiri in Maharashtra where a workshop was held on technology developments related to drip irrigation. FIL said it has been witnessing "very strong demand" from rural markets in the country and to cater to the demand, it has chosen to increase the production capacity of PVC pipes from 59,000 tonnes a year to 65,000 tonnes a year. Another State whose initiatives on the drip irrigation front hold out promise for the company, is Andhra Pradesh, which has identified 2.5 lakh hectares for drip irrigation. It also feels that the recent World Bank approval for $181 million to fund rural water supply and sanitation schemes in Maharashtra would benefit the company. FIL clocked a sales turnover of Rs 866 crore during the last financial year, with sales in Tamil Nadu alone accounting for more than Rs 70 crore. The company, which has a strong presence in Western and Southern markets, made a foray into Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan recently.
More Stories on : Outlook | Cultivation | Water | Tamil Nadu
Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page
|
Stories in this Section |
|
The Hindu Group: Home | About Us | Copyright | Archives | Contacts | Subscription Group Sites: The Hindu | Business Line | Sportstar | Frontline | The Hindu eBooks | The Hindu Images | Home |
Copyright © 2004, The
Hindu Business Line. Republication or redissemination of the contents of
this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of
The Hindu Business Line
|