Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan will formally launch Kerakeralam Samrudhakeralam, an ambitious project aimed at increasing coconut production by 2029, in Kozhikode on Saturday.
Being implemented under the aegis of the newly-formed Coconut Development Council, the project will see the distribution of 75 coconut saplings each to all wards in 500 selected panchayats at 50% subsidised rates in the first phase. In 10 years, two crore saplings are to be distributed to all local body wards in the State.
The council aims at extending coconut cultivation to an additional 1.44 lakh hectares and reviving it in another three lakh hectares. By 2029, ten lakh hectares in the State will be brought under coconut cultivation through the project. The per-hectare productivity will be increased from 6,889 nuts to 8,500 nuts.
Agriculture Minister V.S. Sunil Kumar, who chairs the council, said coconut production in the State had risen from 6,054 million nuts in 2006-07 to 7,464.25 million nuts in 2016-17. The project targets better incomes to coconut farmers, mechanisation in the sector and the streamlining of research and extension activities, the Minister said. Through it, the government intends to restore the State’s glory days in coconut cultivation.
Scene in 1903-04
“Coconut products worth approximately ₹5 crore were exported from Malabar during 1903-04. This included coconut oil, copra and coir. Even in those days when science and technology was not so advanced, our ancestors had a fair idea about value added products from coconut. We also had around 30 indigenous coconut varieties,” he added. The launch will be held at 3 p.m. on Saturday at the Vengeri market in Kozhikode.
