From Hills to Harvest: Tripura's agricultural landscape set for a revolution with cultivation of Palm Oil in 7000 hectares land
Agartala: With an aim to boost the economy of Tripura as well as to help the farmers in the state, the state government has decided to expand palm oil cultivation in 7,000 hectares of land by 2026-27.
Tripura is rolling out this ambitious plan to increase acrea from the pilot project of 56 hectares to 7000 hectares by 2027.
Speaking about the initiative, the Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Ratan Lal Nath told Business Northeast that the state government plans to bring 7,000 hectares of land for oil palm cultivation under the National Mission on Edible Oil Palm Project by 2026-27.
He emphasized that, in addition to financially enriching the farmers of the state, the government is giving special importance to palm oil cultivation with the aim of increasing their income.
“Palm oil is a promising new crop in India. Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, and Cambodia produce more than 90 percent of the world's palm oil. India imported about 133.52 lakh metric tonnes of edible oil in 2020-21, worth about Rs 80 thousand crores. Palm oil accounts for about 56 percent of all imported edible oils, which is 75 lakh metric tons. In addition to achieving self-sufficiency in edible oil, the Indian government has prioritized palm oil cultivation to reduce imports. Currently, 38,992 hectares of palm oil are cultivated in Northeastern India. The climate, rainfall, and soil conditions in the Northeastern region, including Tripura, are favorable for palm oil cultivation. The agriculture minister mentioned that in 2020, the ICAR-IIOPR re-evaluation committee identified 1,46,364 hectares of land for the expansion of palm oil cultivable area in the state through digital mapping,” he said.
Two agricultural producers in the country, including Godrej Agrovet Limited and Patanjali Food Private Limited, have signed MoUs with the State Department of Agriculture for the implementation of the National Mission on Edible Well-Palm Oil project.
“Godrej Agrovet Ltd. has already set up a nursery on 6.5 hectares of government garden at Nalkata in Dhalai district, where 150,000 seedlings of foreign varieties and 6000 seedlings of indigenous palm oil have been produced. Godrej Agrovet Ltd. has planted 52.01 hectares of palm oil in the state this year through farmers using palm oil seedlings brought from Andhra Pradesh. Patanjali Food Private Limited has also planted palm oil saplings on a total of 4.31 hectares this year. A total of 56.35 hectares of palm oil cultivation area has been expanded in the state,” he said.
The state government has also sent 18 officers of the state agriculture department to Andhra Pradesh for training on palm oil. Besides, as of now, 2,123 farmers of the state have been trained in palm oil cultivation, and 1,076 farmers have already expressed interest in palm oil cultivation.
He mentioned that in November 2021, the centrally sponsored scheme of the Government of India, the National Mission on Edible Oil Palm Project, was launched. He also discussed in detail the various supports for palm oil growers under the scheme.
Nath further informed that the Government of India has guaranteed fresh fruit bunch prices for palm oil farmers from November 1, 2021, to October 31, 2037.
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