The Hindu Business Line : CDS to have centre of excellence in plantation economy

The Union Budget has provided a one-time grant of Rs 5 crore to CDS for establishing the centre, which would provide research inputs for the Union Government’s import policies.

Our Bureau

Thiruvananthapuram, March 7

A National Centre of Excellence in Plantation Economy will be set up at the Centre for Development Studies (CDS) here, according to the Union Minister of State for Commerce, Mr Jairam Ramesh.

The latest Union Budget has provided a one-time grant of Rs 5 crore to CDS for establishing the proposed centre, which would provide research inputs for the Union Government’s import policies in future, he told newspersons here on Friday.

Mr Ramesh said that the Government wanted to encourage research into a sector on which a large section of the poor people of the country depended for their livelihood. It was left to CDS how to spend the funds granted and the Government looked forward to the centre producing research experts in plantation economy, the Minister said.

The research at the centre will cover plantation crops like tea, coffee, rubber, spices, cashew and coconut.

Mr Ramesh pointed out that the plantation sector was not exclusive to Kerala but had presence in large parts of the country such as Assam, West Bengal, Tripura, Karnataka, southern Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and even Rajasthan.

The Minister said that the Centre would invest Rs. 7,000 core over the next 10 to 15 years for taking up re-plantation to increase the productivity of the plantations.

The Government’s strategy was to ensure not just the livelihood security but the income security of more than six million people depending on the sector, he added.

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