The Hindu Business Line : Alapuzha coir cluster gets modified ratt

THE SBI Project Uptech in collaboration with Senior Experten Services (SES), Germany, has introduced a modified mechanised ratt in the Alapuzha coir cluster on Friday.

The modernised ratt, designed by Mr Richard Schuster, a German expert on textiles and Home furnishings from SES, and developed by the Common Facility Centre (CFC), Changanassery, was formally dedicated at a function here by Mr P.H. Kurien, Managing Director, Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC). Mr C. Narasimhan, Chief General Manager, SBI, Kerala Circle, presided over the function where Ms V. Bhavani, Secretary, Coir Department Kerala, Ms Radha Unni, GM, SBI, and Mr Richard Schuster also spoke.

The main advantages of the new ratt are that unlike in the conventional ratts, the women need not walk and could spin in a stationary position and it would reduce the drudgery of the work and increase productivity by over 50 per cent.

Even physically challenged women could spin yarn and earn a livelihood; there is no replacement of labour and the focus is on reducing the human effort and improving quality and productivity; and any time the spinner could vary the speed of the machine and could produce any type of yarn like Vaikom, Arattari, Anjenco, Mangadan etc., according to the project co-ordinator.

The cluster development programme by SBI-UNIDO project UPTECH launched some two years ago has facilitated the formation of 160 consortia consisting of 2,900 tiny product manufacturers and yarn spinners. Each consortium consists of 10 - 25 units and employs 60 - 150 families. Project Uptech has imparted 47 capacity building programmes in close association with the Coir Board, Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDI), the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the South India Producers Association (SIPA), SES, Netherlands Management Co-operation Programme (NMCP) etc.

Consortia are given training by Central Coir Research Institute (CCRI) and CFC, Changanacherry, for better operational skills, he said. Besides, networks have been evolved to enable consortia to implement options, which, cannot be done by a single consortium. They have, for instance, established common shearing, webbing, packaging, glueing units etc., as to enhance cost competitiveness.

Linkages have been established with the State Government, IIM Kozhikode, SES Germany, CII and Cochin University of Science and Technology (Cusat) etc., he said.

He said that interventions through new product/design development had been planned in phase III with the assistance of Cusat, Coir Board etc.