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Nirmala assures support for oil palm farmers
Highlights
Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitaraman assured oil palm farmers that she would consider their request to increase import duty on palm oil to bail out the palm oil sector from the present crisis.
- But rules out abnormal hike in import duty as it will affect India’s trade relations with other countries
- Farmers suffer losses due to fall in price from Rs 8,500 to Rs 5,400 per tonne
- Clear-cut long-term policy sought from Centre to save the beleaguered farmers
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Vijayawada: Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitaraman assured oil palm farmers that she would consider their request to increase import duty on palm oil to bail out the palm oil sector from the present crisis.
Addressing the palm oil farmers at Sub-collector office here on Friday, the Minister said that at present the import duty on crude palm oil stands at 12 per cent and refined oil at 20 per cent.
She said that it would not be possible to increase the import duty abnormally as it would affect the Indian trade relations with other countries.
Several farmers expressed concern over fall in oil palm prices to Rs 5,352 per tonne and said that they suffered heavy losses with fall in price and several farmers even decided to cut down oil palm trees.
A farmer Ramakrishna of Salur in Vizianagaram district said that the State and Central governments failed to protect the interests of palm oil farmers.
He said that the yield in AP stands at 17 per cent against 30 per cent in Malaysia. He said that the State government should take care of oil palm sector as oil palm trees produce 3 tonnes of oxygen per year per hectare and prevent soil erosion.
Telugu Rythu president Ch Anjaneyulu said the oil palm cultivation spread in 1.25 lakh acres in AP and the farmers are suffering heavy loss as the price came down to Rs 5,400 from Rs 8,500 per ton.
Bharatiya Kisan Sangh leader J Kumara Swamy said the farmers are suffering loss due to lack of remunerative price and transparency in ascertaining oil recovery by domestic mills besides lack of long term policy from Central government and import dumping and disclosed that Nigeria has a comprehensive long term duty structure to protect domestic sector.
TDP leader Kadiyala Raghava Rao said that the government should come to the rescue of oil palm farmers as majority of the farmers gave up farming fearing heavy loss.
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