The State Budget for 2024-25 has earmarked ₹107.64 crore for the coir industry, a decrease of ₹9.36 crore from the previous budget.
Presenting the Budget on Monday, Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal said that an amount of $32 crore was earmarked for rejuvenating and modernising public sector undertakings, cooperative societies and private enterprises in the coir sector. A sum of ₹7 crore has been set aside for research and development projects.
To ensure price stability, an amount of ₹38 crore has been allocated for the procurement of coir and coir products through agencies like Coirfed.
Representatives of various organisations said that there was nothing to cheer about for the sector in the Budget.
“The coir sector is going through the worst period. Large quantities of traditional handloom mats and mattings manufactured by small-scale units are piled up in coir societies with no takers. The Coir Corporation is not procuring products from the societies. Due to poor demand for traditional products, allied sectors, including coir spinning, face an uncertain future. We expected something to spur up the sector, but the Budget has disappointed in that sense. Though the government has been allocating crores for the coir sector in every Budget, the benefits are yet to reach the bottom of the pyramid,” said M. Anilkumar, general secretary, Kerala Coir Goods Producers Association.
P.V. Sathyanesan, general secretary, Kerala State Coir Thozhilali Federation (AITUC) termed the Budget allocation too “low” for the debt-ridden sector.
In a statement issued here, Coir Workers Centre (CITU), however, said the Budget would ensure the development of the coir industry and provide succour to employees.
