AGARTALA, Oct 24 � The Rubber Board of India has set a target of bringing one lakh hectare under the rubber cultivation in Tripura in the next ten years.
�Tripura now produces 29,698 tonne raw rubber annually in 55,000 hectare. We have set a target of bringing 1 lakh hectare under cultivation in the next ten years,� Joint Rubber Production Commissioner D Anil Kumar said today.
Rubber in Tripura had boosted rural economy with a huge number of people, especially indigenous ones, cultivating it since it took seven years to raise and then a good return each year for over 30 years could be expected, Kumar said.
A hectare of rubber fetched Rs 7000 per month, he said.
The rubber commissioner said, only 3 to 5 per cent of the rubber was locally consumed and the remaining sold outside the state.
Kumar said, the Tripura Industrial Development Corporation Ltd recently set up a Rubber Park recently at Bodhjungnagar near here with technical support from the Rubber Board.
The Park would have all facilities including a laboratory and storage facility at par with national standard.
The Common Effluent Treatment was yet to be established and hopefully it would come up shortly,
he said.
Around 13 potential entrepreneurs have approached the TIDC seeking plots at the Rubber Park, which was the first in Northeast and the second in the country after Kerala.
He said, the price of raw rubber has remained consistent since last year selling at Rs 202-205 per kg in Tripura and Rs 213-215 per kg in Kerala.
Farmers in Tripura received less compared to their counterparts in Kerala due to geographical isolation, he added. � PTI
