KOTTAYAM: With less than a year remaining for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the NDA government at the Centre in a swift move, has proposed a new Bill for the rubber sector and to constitute a modern Rubber Board.
The Rubber (Promotion and Development) Bill 2023, a draft of which has been circulated to the stakeholders, was prepared after dropping a similar Bill which was put in the public domain for discussion in January 2022.
The enactment of a new Bill and Act, replacing the Rubber Act 1947, assumes importance as the Union government has directed the additional secretary in charge of plantations at the Union Ministry of Commerce, Amardeep Singh Bhatia, to convene a meeting of all stakeholders in the rubber sector, right from farmers to tyre industry representatives, at the Rubber Board headquarters in Kottayam on Friday to seek their opinion on the draft Bill.
“An officer of the rank of additional secretary at Commerce Ministry visiting the Rubber Board to convene a meeting of the stakeholders is a rare development. The government has taken the new Bill with utmost seriousness,” said an official on condition of anonymity.
Earlier, the move of the Union government to repeal the Rubber Act 1947 with the Rubber (Promotion and Development) Bill - 2022 in the previous year had ignited widespread protest, especially from the Catholic Church.
Through the new Bill, the government intends not only to get the support of farmers but also to woo the Church, which had, a couple of months ago, offered an MP for BJP from Kerala if rubber price reaches Rs 300 per kg. However, the Catholic Church is yet to respond to the Bill. “Let’s go through the Bill and its details. We will comment on it later,” said Jacob Palakkappilly, KCBC secretary general and spokesperson.
As per the draft, the Bill is intended “to promote and develop the Indian rubber industry, to constitute a modern Rubber Board and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.” The structure of the Rubber Board will be slightly altered with the new Bill, adding a new post of chief executive officer instead of the executive director. Meanwhile, Kerala’s representation in the 30-member board will come down from eight to six.
At the same time, experts in the rubber sector are not satisfied with the draft. “Though it is comprehensive, the draft lacks vital points. It seems the Bill was prepared without studying the complexity of the rubber sector. The Bill doesn’t deal with the requirements of the rubber plantation,” said P C Cyriac, former chairman of the Rubber Board.
He said research activity has been completely downgraded in the draft. “There is no mention of research activities. Presently, the director of the Rubber Research Institute is a member of the Board. But it is not as per the draft. Moreover, there is nothing about the steps on extension and marketing of the rubber,” he said.
Farmers also raised concerns over the draft. “The centrifuged latex has not been included in the definition of the rubber. Moreover, there should be a provision in the Bill to prevent the import of field latex and cup lump rubber,” said Babu Joseph, general secretary of the National Federation of Rubber Producers Societies.
Rubber Board won’t be disbanded: N Hari
Brushing aside the concerns over the new Rubber (Development and Promotion) Bill, 2023, Rubber Board executive committee member N Hari said the Board will not be disbanded with the new law. He said the new Bill will strengthen the sector. “The meeting called by the additional secretary at the Commerce Ministry will take decisions to strengthen the rubber sector. But the Congress and the Left camps are trying to mislead people,” he said.