The State-run Karnataka Soaps and Detergents Ltd. (KSDL), which is facing a shortage of sandalwood oil essential for its flagship brand “Mysore Sandal” soap, has tied up with 670 farmers for commercial cultivation of 3,586 acres, largely in dry regions of north Karnataka, including Dharwad, Haveri, Gadag, to reduce its oil import bill. This is under the ‘grow more sandalwood’ policy.
The company will supply saplings to farmers under the principle of “share and prosper” basis. KSDL has planted 2,800 saplings in the Bengaluru and Mysuru division in the last few months.
On an average, sources said four to five kg of oil will be extracted from 100 kg of wood. Oil is largely extracted from the root stem and branches of the tree. KSDL has one root from Kerala costing ₹1.25 crore, the official said.
Farmers can earn in the range of ₹30,000 to ₹50,000 per tree if it was 20 to 25 years old and grown in dry regions. The average price of wood per kg is around ₹6,000.
However, the official said many farmers are reluctant to grow sandalwood following a fear of theft. In fact, many sandalwood trees located in police stations, court and university campuses have been stolen, the official said.
KSDL purchased 94 tonnes of wood from farmers in Karnataka last year but the wood quality was inferior, as farmers cut trees before it had grown fullly owing to a fear of theft.
“A national-level sandalwood policy is needed to ensure protected cultivation” sources maintained.
Monetising land
Meanwhile, KSDL has planned to monetise its unutilised land by developing an office complex on its premises at Yeshwanthpur in Bengaluru, for providing space for offices of various government departments.
The company has 37.04 acres in Bengaluru and it has utilised only 7.12 acres. In Mysuru, SKDL has 33.16 acres and has utilised 24.15 acres, while in Shivamogga, the firm has 25.09 acres and utilised 11.03 acres, leaving 14.06 acres free.
Huge vacancies
KSDL is likely to commence a recruitment drive to fill 771 vacant posts. It has sanctioned 985 posts, including both executive and non-executive posts. But it has only 214 regular executive and non-executive employees.
The company has hired a large number of employees on contract. It has introduced several measures to increase the work productivity of 1,860 employees by increasing the shifts. The production increased from 100 tonnes to 125 tonnes per day in the last few months, official sources said.
