The Hindu Business Line : Summer rains to boost cardamom output

Stock outlook
Arrivals at the auctions held in Kerala and Tamil Nadu up to March 16 stood at 4,116 tonnes only as against 6,586 tonnes in the corresponding period last year.
The stocks held by dealers and major growers are estimated at 2,000 tonnes.
The direct sales so far are projected at 1,600 tonnes.
Output in Karnataka is estimated at around 1,500 tonnes.

G..K Nair

Kochi, March 23

The extended summer rains, which have been active over Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka for about a week now inflicting heavy losses to paddy, vegetable and some other crops, have turned out to be a blessing for the cardamom growers.

Boon to farmers

The unexpected incessant showers for over a week have helped the growth of cardamom plants which have become healthy and new panicles and tillers have started emerging. Once the rains are over if some organic manure or fertiliser is applied, the crop will improve significantly, Mr T. Ashok Kumar, President, Kerala Cardamom Growers Union, told Business Line.

Besides, he said, the plants will not have to be irrigated during the rest of the season if we get a brief spell of summer showers in April. There will also be sufficient storage of water in case there is a need for irrigation. “Very good tillers are emerging and panicles also coming out. If the nature remained favourable as it is now, the harvesting of the next crop could commence by June 15 and we can expect an increase in output by 30 per cent from that of the current season”, he said.

Estimated output

The total cardamom output in the country during the current season is expected to be somewhere around 9,000 tonnes as against 12,540 tonnes in 2005-06 and an estimated 10,500 tonnes in 2006-07, he said.

Sharp decline in arrivals during the current season so far is a clear indication of the sharp fall in production in 2007-08.

According to trading sources total arrivals during the current season at the auctions held in Kerala and Tamil Nadu up to March 16 stood at 4,116 tonnes only as against 6,586 tonnes in the corresponding period last year. The stocks held by dealers and major growers are estimated at 2,000 tonnes. The direct sales so far are projected at 1,600 tonnes. Output in Karnataka is estimated at around 1,500 tonnes. The harvesting of the current crop has almost come to an end, they said.

Replanting

According to Mr Ashok Kumar, who is also a member of the Spices Board, there would be improvement in the output once the re-planted plantations started yielding. An estimated 2,000- 3,000 hectares would be replanted during the current fiscal, he said. The Board has fixed the re-plantation cost at Rs 1.28 lakh a hectare besides, raising the eligibility for subsidy for re-planting from 4 hectares to 8 hectares. Up to four hectares, 33 per cent of the cost would be given as subsidy while above four hectares and till eight hectares, it would be 25 per cent of the cost, he said.

Meanwhile, he claimed that the cardamom plantations in Thadiyamkurichi near Periyakulam in Tamil Nadu has been negatively affected following the shifting of the research station of the Spices Board from there to Bodinayakannur.

He said that 219 hectares in that area are under the crop spread over Theni and Dindigul districts. The Tamil Nadu forest department had asked the Spices Board to shift the station from the forest land and consequently the latter had shifted it to Board’s premises in Bodi. Now for conducting field trials they may have to go to Thadiyamkurichi, Mr Ashok Kumar, the Cumbum-based grower added.