Ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, the Union government is expediting the process of introducing the Rubber (Promotion and Development) Bill 2023 in Parliament. The Rubber Board, in line with the government’s directives, is organizing three open house meetings in both traditional and non-traditional rubber-growing regions to deliberate on the draft Bill. The initial session is scheduled at the Rubber Research Institute of India (RRII) in Kottayam on Monday, followed by meetings at FAC auditorium in Arassummoodu, Kanyakumari district, Tamil Nadu, on Tuesday, and at the Karnataka Christian Education campus in Mangalore on Thursday.
During a recent meeting led by Rubber Board executive director M Vasanthagehan, it was decided to invite representatives from all stakeholders in the rubber sector, including prominent growers, dealers, processors, manufacturers, and Rubber Board members. The outcomes of these meetings will be submitted to the government. Notably, this is the second time in the last five months that the Board has called a meeting of stakeholders to discuss the draft Bill. The National Consortium of Rubber Producers’ Societies (NCRPS), a collective of rubber farmers, has urged for provisions ensuring a minimum rubber price based on production costs. NCRPS also emphasized the need for a clear definition of crude rubber and the inclusion of compound rubber in the definition, expressing concerns about potential hidden agendas related to the import of cup lump rubber.
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