The Hindu Business Line : Coir industry grappling with shortage of husks

COIR industry in the State is facing acute shortage of raw material. Though the crisis will not last long, the industry finds it difficult to overcome the situation. The non-availability of the husk to the producing centres is the major factor that curtails production now.

In Kerala, there are no proper arrangements for efficient distribution of coconut husk to the manufacturing units. A large number of holdings makes it difficult to mobilise and distribute the husk. Coconut husk is diverted to various other purposes such as sugar production, brick making, etc due to its high calorific value. Also, the widespread use of tender coconuts as health drinks results in premature wastage of husk.

Since 1970s, the problem of husk shortage has been severe and to overcome this, the State Government implemented the Husk Control Act to ensure prompt supply of the raw material to the industry. In spite of the promulgation of the Act, the problem could not be solved. Subsequently, the Government introduced a three-point levy system. But the controls were removed later.

The growing awareness towards environmental pollution resulted in making strong protest against retting of coconut husks.

The present scarcity is not a newly created one. It is the culmination of a series of instances including mite diseases, droughts etc affecting the coconut production in Kerala during the past several years. The experience of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka is also not different.

The Coir Board is taking various measures to solve the problem aiming at enhancing the availability of the husk. Short-term measures include procurement of the coir fibre from production centres in other States for distribution in Kerala and providing assistance to the trade. A fibre distribution centre opened at the Central Coir Research Institute, Alappuzha, would cater to the needs of product manufacturers there.

As per the directives of the Coir Board, the Kanyakumari Central Coir Co-operative Society of Tamil Nadu mobilised coir fibre from production centres in Kanyakumari and Pollachi for supply to Kerala at lowest prices. The Board also explored all possibilities to collect the fibre from coir producing States including Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Orissa.

As part of the long-term measures, the Board has requested all District Collectors in Kerala to setup more defibring units for extracting coir fibre, collecting all the husk locally by utilising the financial assistance under the Coir Board scheme. Much progress has been made in this sphere.

The Board has also taken various steps as part of its golden jubilee year to mobilise enough raw material available in the country for coir production. The objective is to achieve 50 per cent utilisation of husk in the country from the present level of 35 per cent.