The Hindu Business Line : Mechanisation helps arecanut growers tackle labour shortage

A majority of them in the form of mechanisation of some harvesting and post-harvesting activities are seen as an answer to labour shortage in the sector. Some of the farmers have even gone in for cooperative farming to meet their needs.

The arecanut sector is dependent on manual labour for various activities — ranging from spraying of copper sulphate solution to areca plants to de-husking of arecanut. However, the sector has been witnessing a fall in the number of labourers working in plantations every year.

The recently concluded arecanut machinery fair — jointly organised by the Arecanut Research and Development Foundation, Farmer First Trust and Vivekananda Engineering College at Puttur in Dakshina Kannada district — displayed various machineries related to the sector. From the rugged machines made out of backyard junk to the sophisticated ones were on display at the fair.

30 models

Arecanut sector now has more than 30 models of machineries ranging from fungicide sprayers to the arecanut de-husking machines.

It is interesting to note that the rural grower innovators, with limited technical background, have a major share in the design and manufacture of machineries. More than 50 per cent of the machines at the fair were prepared by such people.

For most of them, these innovations were a means to tide over the problem of labour shortage. Many of them toiled with three to four versions of their models before coming out with the final product. These rural grower innovators have sold nearly 10,000 machines to meet the needs of arecanut sector.

Labour sharing

Another need-based development in arecanut sector is the labour sharing by farmers.

Mr Kulur Satyanarayana, a progressive farmer from Thirthahalli in Shimoga district, who attended the machinery fair, said that 23 families of farmers in Sulgod area of Thirthahalli taluk have adopted cooperative farming where each family member participates in agriculture activities of other families.

By sharing labour among themselves, the villagers have found solution to the labour shortage in the area. All the works in arecanut plantation such as spraying, harvesting, de-husking of arecanut are done on a cooperative basis in that village, he said.

By adopting labour sharing method these families together could save around Rs 16 lakh a year, which otherwise they would have paid for various agriculture activities, he added.

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