ALAPPUZHA: Unveiling the road map for the revival of the state’s coir industry, Finance Minister Thomas Isaac said the government would promote coir geotextiles in a big way, aiming to evolve the sector into a Rs 1,000-crore industry in five years.
In a chat with select mediapersons on the sidelines of Coir Kerala fair in Alappuzha, he said the government has set a target of achieving 60,000 tonnes of coir yarn production in five years. The yarn will be used to produce geotextile, which the state will promote at the national level for reinforcement of embankments, soil stabilisation, watershed management, road construction and for erosion control of mine waste dumps.
“Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has offered to buy 40,000 tonnes of coir geotextile for road construction. Many northeastern states are willing to use it for soil stabilisation. However, the state’s annual production is a meagre 5,000 tonnes. It is a promising sector and we are ready to give 50 per cent subsidy on purchase of machinery for entrepreneurs to start geotextile units,” said Isaac.
He said the state was planning to go for aggressive automation of the coir sector to achieve the target. “We will shift to automation without creating a labour problem. The government will purchase the yarn produced by the traditional sector at a competitive rate to ensure minimum wages to one lakh workers. The state, which had a monopoly in the coir sector till the end of 1960s, now holds only 20 per cent share in the industry due to our reluctance to adopt mechanisation. Tamil Nadu has captured the export market through diversification,” he said.
He also said the government will sign an agreement with local self-government institutions for the purchase of coir geotextile worth Rs 100 crore for implementation of soil stabilisation projects under the Employment Guarantee Scheme. The state will hold a meeting of coir ministers of the country to discuss the steps to popularise coir geotextiles. While jute geotextiles have a life of three months, coir can withstand the weather for two years, the minister said.
Training for civil engineers
The state government will launch a three-month training course for civil engineers in coir geotextile applications. A batch of 100 civil engineers will be provided practical training in implementing coir geotextile projects in various sectors.
50% subsidy for new coir units
The government will provide 50 per cent subsidy to young entrepreneurs willing to establish coir units for the purchase of machinery.