THOOTHUKUDI: The Tamil Nadu Palm Products Development Board had traded palm products including palm jaggery (karupatti), handicrafts, and value-added fibre materials to the tune of `80 crore in the past five years, agriculture minister MRK Panneerselvam said in the Assembly on Tuesday.
The state has taken special cognisance of palmyra, considering its status as the ‘State tree of Tamil Nadu’, by devising stringent norms to prevent felling. The state had floated several initiatives to increase the number of palmyra trees. “In the past five years, the state had distributed 68 lakh palm seeds, and 1.28 lakh seedlings and established 354 value addition units through the Department of Horticulture”, Panneerselvam said.
The minister noted that the board had provided training and equipment to over 2,000 people including 1350 individuals to produce palmyra value-added products, and 650 women for making palmyra leaf products at an expenditure of Rs 9.17 crore.
Speaking to TNIE, a senior officer said the Common Facilitation Centre established at Veerapandiyapattinam in 2023 has been very successful in production of quality palm jaggery, which is the main product. Several farmers having palm trees are using the facility to boil ‘pathaneer’ to make ‘karupatti’ (palm jaggery) and palm jaggery powder.
The board, in association with the Department of Horticulture, produces palm products including palm jaggery, ‘karkandu’, ‘chillu karupatti’, palm tubers, and nearly 10 varieties of value-added products like palm-mixed powders, cakes, halwa and candies.
Palm fibre brushes, banister brushes, and at least 25 handicrafts made of palm leaf products, are manufactured and traded.
“There are plans to manufacture door mats, which have good demand,” the officer added.
The board has eight federations, including one in Coimbatore and Chennai, to monitor and support the manufacturing process of various products. Palm products manufactured by the 354 primary jaggery manufacturing societies, and value addition units, are being traded by the federation and also Khadi and village industries department, he said.
“There is, in fact, a substantial shortage of skilled workers. So we are increasing courses to increase their skill with stipends at several villages,” said a managing director of a federation.