The Hindu Business Line : Rubber tappers are a hot commodity now

Chennai, Sept. 11 Rubber growers are facing a problem of different kind — shortage of skilled tappers. It is a problem that Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, the top three global producers of natural rubber, have been facing. Now, Kerala, which accounts for 92.1 per cent of the country’s 8.52 lakh tonnes production, has begun to experience it.

“Booming economy which is seen growth in information technology, retail business, construction is taking its toll. Getting skilled tapper has become a major problem since the tappers are opting to go for other jobs,” says an official of the Automotive Tyre Manufacturers’ Association.

To turn worse

“The shortage is set to become worse in the coming years. The new generation is no longer interested in such type of jobs. Earlier, we used to get people from Tamil Nadu but that source is drying up,” says Prof K.K. Abraham of Pala Cooperative Rubber Marketing Society. “It will become very serious in the next 10-15 years,” he says, adding that when prices were lower rubber estates in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand were kept idle.

“Now, they are paying extravagant wages to tap rubber since the prices are ruling high,” he says.

“A tapper’s son no longer wants to be a tapper. People are looking for white collar or blue collar job. It is turning out to be a serious problem,” says Mr N. Radhakrishnan, President of the Cochin Rubber Merchants Association.

“The problem of tappers is an issue of labour shortage as a whole in plantations,” says Mr Ulhas Menon, Secretary-General of the United Planters’ Association of Southern India.

The major problem is that while rubber prices have increased sharply in the last couple of years, wages for tappers have not seen a corresponding rise from a stage when rubber prices were ruling at Rs 35 a kg, say industry sources, adding, today the prices are hovering around Rs 88.

But Prof Abraham denies this. “The wages for the tappers have been increased to 50 paise per tree from 30 paise three years ago. If they tap 300 trees a day, they will easily earn a wage of Rs 150,” he says, adding: “I think, next year there will be an increase of 10 paise.”

Work schedule

It is just not the question of low wages, says Mr Radhakrishnan. A tapper has to set for work at 4 a.m. The tapper’s day starts with cutting a wound in the tree early in the morning. Then, after some rest, he collects latex collected the previous day and puts them in aluminium trays. After taking a three-hour lunch break, he makes rubber sheets, dries them and then puts them in the smoke houses.

“People do not want to become tappers as it is seen as some sort of social stigma. They don’t get a bride to marry,” says the tyre industry official.

One possible solution could be mechanical tapping but the Rubber Board has ruled it out as “next to impossible”.

“New people will have to be trained and paid well,” says Mr Radhakrishnan.

“People can be wooed and they can be given incentives,” says Prof Abraham.

Cup coagulum

“One solution could be to train women in tapping. Or the other way can be to prepare cup coagulum as it is done in Indonesia,” he says.

Cup coagulum is prepared by collecting latex in cups with half a drop of formic acid placed in the cups before the latex is collected. The latex turns into a ball as it drops into the cup.

“This can be collected as crumb rubber and best quality block rubber can be got from this,” says Prof Abraham. “For this also, some incentive should be given and we trying to persuade the Rubber Board to do it,” he says.

However, this could result in fall of farm gate prices for rubber. “This is because the dry rubber content can be lower. Normally, cup coagulum will have 65 per cent dry rubber content and the remaining content water. To be remunerative, crumb rubber should be at least Rs 4 a kg lower than block rubber so that the crumb rubber units will at least get a 50 paise margin,” Prof Abraham says.

But both industry and plantation players agree that the problem could get compounded in the years to come.

More Stories on : Rubber | Human Resources

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page