Natural Rubber Production Up by 8.7% in May

Chennai: According to the latest data from the Rubber Board, natural rubber production in India increased in May by 8.7 per cent over the previous year.

The total production of natural rubber during May 2017 stood at 50,000 tonnes compared to 46,000 tonnes in May last year.

During the two months of the current fiscal, the production of natural grew 15.3 per cent to 98,000 tonnes from 85,000 in the corresponding period last year. With this growth momentum, the Board is anticipating natural production to touch 8 lakh tonnes in the current year.

The increase is being attributed to the Rubber Board’s initiatives, including mass contact programmes to improve production and productivity.

According to the Rubber Board, some 800 meetings conducted this year at various rubber growing areas as part of its mass contact programme had attracted 50,000 participants.

The second phase of training for 22,000 persons in rubber tapping and processing in Kerala, Tripura, Assam, Tamilnadu and Karnataka, under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) has already begun.