The Central Arecanut and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Cooperative (Campco) Ltd has sought the Union Home Ministry’s intervention to curb the illegal import of arecanut from Myanmar.

SR Satishchandra, President of Campco, told BusinessLine that poor-quality arecanut from Myanmar is being smuggled into the country through Silchar in Assam and Falakanta in West Bengal. The imported arecanut is mixed with the domestic arecanut and marketed. This is affecting the prospects of arecanut growers in the country.

The cooperative has written to the Union Home Ministry requesting it to curb the illegal import with strict vigil at borders. Such a move would help a large number of arecanut growers in the country, he said.

Apart from this, a delegation of arecanut growers and cooperatives will meet the Union Home Minister and the Commerce Minister in Delhi and apprise them of the situation.

Domestic growers hit

He said that arecanut, which attracts an import duty of 108 per cent on a minimum import tariff value of ₹251 a kg, illegally comes in through Silchar and Falakanta. Such consignments are then sent by rail and road to major arecanut-consuming markets within the country .

Sources in Campco said that around 400 tonnes of arecanut is being imported illegally every day from Myanmar. While the price of old stocks of white arecanut is in the range of ₹270-plus a kg, the imported arecanut is being sold in the range of ₹250 a kg to ₹260 a kg, affecting domestic producers.

Some arecanut traders in the arecanut-growing markets mix the imported arecanut with the domestic arecanut and sell it. The imported goods do not meet the parameters specified in the rules for standardisation of arecanut, he said.

Around 70 lakh farmers grow arecanut in 11 States. More than one crore people are connected to this business as farm labourers and paan-wallas all over the country, he said.

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