THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Amid the opposition's allegations that the Left government in Kerala was not addressing the plight of rubber growers, Finance Minister K N Balagopal on Monday announced the approval of Rs 42.57 crore as a subsidy for farmers in the key sector in the state.
Balagopal, in a statement, said the subsidy would benefit 1,45,564 rubber cultivators in the state. With this allocation, the government has disbursed a total of Rs 124.88 crore as a subsidy to rubber cultivators for this financial year, including the earlier distribution of Rs 82.31 crore, he said.
The minister said that the Rubber Incentive Programme was initiated in light of the existing market conditions for natural rubber.
In 2021, the previous LDF government increased the subsidy to Rs 170 per kilogram when rubber prices saw a decline, in order to counterbalance the reduced market value.
This subsidy aims to offer relief to small and marginal farmers grappling with high production costs.
The distribution of the subsidy is based on the list of farmers recognised by the Rubber Board, and the Rubber Price Stability Fund is tapped for this purpose.
Balagopal said an amount of Rs 600 crore has been set aside in this year's budget for this fund.
Recently, the opposition Congress alleged that the Left government had betrayed rubber cultivators by not increasing the minimum support price as promised.
They had also raised the matter in the assembly during its session last month.