First rubber census in the country to be launched

KOTTAYAM: For the first time in the country, a nationwide census on rubber is set to be launched by the Rubber Board to prepare a comprehensive data base on rubber plantations and rubber growers using a mobile application. The census is proposed to be carried out all over India in a phased manner.
Kerala accounts for 67pc of rubber area in the country, of which, Kottayam district shares about one fifth of the area and hence the survey is proposed to initiate in Kottayam District in the first phase.
K N Raghavan, Executive Director of the Board, said that though there are only 534 rubber estates in the country, as per the details available with the Board there are 13.5 lakh holdings of rubber. “These are records generated over a period of several decades. We needed a full scale updation of this so that we will have the complete data at our fingertips,” he said.
The census will be conducted in 16 states in the country, which include all seven states in the North East, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa and West Bengal. The Board has earmarked Rs two crores for a period of two years.
Main objectives of ‘Census on Rubber’ are; ascertaining the actual area under rubber, new-planted area, re-planted area, the age profile of trees, discarded area over the years, level of adoption of new clones, size of holdings and details of tappers etc.
These updated details are highly essential for the formulation of any developmental project on rubber industry and benefit the growers as well. The Government introduces several schemes which directly benefit to rubber growers. Hence census is also essential to create a data base of rubber growers and tappers employed.
The unit level information collected through the census will be utilized for statistical purpose only and confidentiality will be strictly adhered, said a Board official.
The field enumeration is proposed to be carried out by employing competent unemployed youths, preferably, hailing from the same locality with the help of various Rubber Producing Societies (RPSs). The survey is being carried out by using Digitalized Mobile Application, ‘RUBAC’, developed in association with the Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management, Kerala, said the official.
Rubber is a perennial crop with long gestation period of around seven years. Therefore for formulating any developmental project in NR sector, a precise picture on area, production, productivity etc. is a shear necessity. Another salient feature of the rubber industry in the country is the dominance of the small holding sector, with average holding size of 0.57 hectare.
Reliable and timely statistics on new-planting, replanting, actual area under rubber, level of adoption of recommended agro-management practices, harvesting practices followed etc. are necessary for implementing rubber related development projects.