Unions upbeat about ‘star status’

The government decision to serve toddy at star hotels has been welcomed wholeheartedly by toddy tappers’ unions.

In their reckoning, toddy, which had lost its battle to the glamorous and diversified foreign liquor brands, stands a certain chance to make a comeback with the government’s new liquor policy. “The ‘star’ status will be a much needed booster dose for the toddy sector,” said K. Radhakrishnan, CPI(M) Thrissur district secretary.

Once a strong cadre-base of the Left parties in central Kerala, the toddy tapping sector had got weakened when many tappers migrated to other jobs. Declining revenue, tainted image and short supply of toddy had prompted the workers to go for more lucrative jobs, said K.M. Jayadevan, general secretary, Enamavu-Perungottukara Chethu Thozhilali Federation, one of the strongest units of the federation in the State.

Wages in the toddy sector are low as compared to what others earn doing similar jobs. When a toddy tapper earns ₹300-400 a day, other manual labourers get a daily wage of ₹800-1,000. A tree should be tapped three times a day. Short supply of toddy had resulted in the flow of synthetic toddy affecting the credibility of the drink.

The Anthikkad, Chavakad, Kodungalloor, Mala and Irinjalakuda belt in Thrissur district used to be the hub of toddy tapping in Central Kerala. Climate change and the sharp dip in the number of coconut palms had affected toddy output, affecting the 120 toddy shops in Thrissur taluk under four ranges such as Cherpu, Anthikkadu, Kolazhy and Thrissur. “There were more than 7,000 toddy tappers in Thrissur taluk alone earlier, but their number has come down to one-fourth of that now. The taluk used to produce more than 14,000 litres of toddy a day. That has also come down considerably. It is a vocation that is on the decline. No youngster is coming into the field now,” Mr. Jayadevan said.

Toddy Board welcomed

Welcoming the decision to constitute a Toddy Board to promote value addition in toddy, Mr. Radhakrishnan said toddy shops should be done up in such a way that even families can visit them. The Udhayabhanu commission had strongly favoured promotion of toddy so that people could be encouraged to drink light liquor. “Kallu kudiyan (toddy drinker) is a bad name slapped on the drink, which has many health benefits. Adulteration and spread of spurious liquor have made the situation worse,” he said.

The unions also pointed out that the possibilities for value addition are many in the toddy sector as it could be used for making by-products such as jaggery, cakes and chocolates. There should be awareness about the health benefits of unadulterated toddy and along with it, Neera also should be promoted. The question of toddy shortage can be tackled by cultivating good quality dwarf variety coconut palms. Modern equipment to aid easy tapping should also be developed. Then only the younger generation would be attracted to the sector, the tappers’ union leaders say.