Kalay-based welder builds arecanut dehusking device

Panaji: Kalay-based welder Durgesh Chari usually starts his day by 8.30am at his fabrication workshop. However, of late, he has been busy building a unique device that has helped farmers skip the labour intensive process of dehusking arecanut.
Inspired by the coconut dehusking machine and similar devices used to separate nuts from their outer shell, Chari resolved to build an arecanut dehusking device that can be used manually, thereby separating the husk, nuts and unpeeled arecanut.
“It takes me about two hours to build each dehusking machine,” he told TOI.
Though a few farmers use a mechanised machine to dehusk nuts in Goa, many still continue to do so using conventional means of peeling each areca nut by hand.
“I noticed that the labour force working for the farmers in Kalay spend hours to manually separate the husk and the nut of the arecanut. Resorting to rudimentary means even in this day and age for something as simple as dehusking is, however, a lot of work. The device will therefore save their time,” he said.
With the help of the manually operated device, about 400-500 arecanuts can be dehusked in a day. Each device is priced at Rs 500.
The innovator’s design has proved to be a huge hit among the farmers of the area who have been thronging his workshop to place orders.
Nilesh Khanvilkar is one of the farmers from Sanguem who has bought the machine.
“Following harvest, peeling of the arecanut is an important process without which we are not able to sell it to buyers. It takes workers about five seconds to dehusk a single arecanut with the help of the device. Therefore, its use has become essential in the processing of the nut,” he said.