• P. 'Chowda-ppa arid S..

Jayasekhar

Central Plantation Crop Research Institute, Kasaragod

Introduction the globe that resulted in fierce competition among

Plantation crops sector in India, in recent times, is producing countries. The relevance of a retrospection
characterized by selective state intervention and the and introspection of 100 years of research in the
removal of tariff barriers wherein, its survival depends coconut sector arises exactly in this context, wherein
on international competitiveness. It is noteworthy that the institutions strive for technology generation and
the sector is dominated by millions ofsmall and marginal dissemination to address the challenges and to convert
fanners and mainly confined to the economically and the weaknesses to opportunities, in a concerted and
ecologically vulnerable regions, and plays a cruc ial role synergized fashion.
as far as the issue of sustainc:bility is concerned. The Coconut: National Scenario
changing crop use pattern, climate change concerns India has produced 20440 million nuts in the year
and constraints on natural resource use and reduction 2015 from an area of 1.97 million ha with a productivity
in profitability in the plantation scenario warrants of 10345 nuts per hectare (Table 1). It is predominantly
innovative strategies and approaches to address new cultivated in small and marginal holdings. Most of
challenges and sustain accelerated growth of the sector. these holdings neither provide gainful employment
In the present context, the major challenge is to develop opportunities for the family labour throughout the
an equitable and sustainable plantation sector ensuring year nor generate sufficient income to meet the family
inclusive growth with international competitiveness. requirement. Presently coconut growers are more
Coconut, arecanut and cocoa are important plantation exposed to economic risks and unceltainties owing to
crops of India with a profound influence on the rural the high degree of price fluctuations. In this context
economy by suppOiting the livelihoods of millions in the it is needless to emphasize the importance of crop
country. The year 2016 marks the 100 years of coconut diversification in coconut gardens. For brightening the
research in India. Coconut exerts a profound influence future prospects of a sustainable coconut sector, it is
on the rural economy of the country by supporting the imperative to delink the sector from the dependency on
livelihoods of ten million people in the country. It also coconut oil and enhance the production of diversified
contributes to the national agrarian economy, with an value added products.
annual contribution to the tune of Rs 9000 crores to the
GDP and foreign exchange earnings of about Rs 1200 State "Area I, "Production "Productivity
crores, besides supporting the subsidiary industrial (DOD hal " I (nuts/ha)" (mn . nuts)"
development. However, of late coconut is faced with Andhra Pradesh 106 1464 13808
unprecedented crises on account of various macro and
micro level factors. The productivity of the crop is Kamataka 515 5141 9982
constrained by the low input use efficiency in conjunction Kerala 650 4897 7535
with other biotic and abiotic stresses which are priority
Tamil Nadu 465 6917 14873
areas of research. The aspects of mechanization also
deserve adequate impoltance, considering the scarcity Other States 240 2021 7295
of skilled labour. Above all, the most important facet is India 1976 20440 10345
value addition , which should be strengthened to mitigate Source: COB, 2015
the issue oflow profitability of the sector. The post World
Trade Agreement (WTA) and ASEAN Treaty regime Research Contributions over a Century
witnessed integration of plantation economies across It is unique that the coconut sector has been evolved

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July 2016
 ._ - - - _ . _ - - --_. _ - _.... .. . _ - - - --­

through imbibing the scientific excellence for the pa 1 It i worthwhi Ie to note that coconut based
100 years.The country has rich genetic resources to microenterprises run by women SHGs have increased
provide breeders with required genetic stock to tackle th ir income by 3-5 times mpared to thei r previous
future challenges. It maintains the largest collection of jnc me from copra, securing a steady source ofadditional
coconut germplasm (438 accessions). It is noteworthy inc me. Equally important, th intervention provided
that an International Coconut Gene bank tor South Asia employment opportunities to formerly unemployed and
(ICG-SA) has been established in the country under under employed rural women resulting in enhanced
a tripartite agreement a mong ICAR-FAO-ITPGRFA. self-esteem, and economic & social empowerment. It is
Wt: have a Nationa l Coconut Gene Bank (NCGB) that striking that, trained women serve as 'skilled coconut
serves as the Nati onal Acti ve Germplasm Site (NAGS) poll ina tors' for coconut hybrid production. Coconut
for coconut. The focused research etforts to improve climbing and pollination was men's territory so far, since
productivity and overall profitability to the farmers the practice involved considerable drudgery and the risk.
resulted in the development and release of high yielding Women have learnt the steps in coconut pollination with
varieties and hybrids. Eighteen improved high yielding ease and carry out the work with confidence.
varieties including twelve selections and six hybrids In nutshell, the existing design of the research
we re released. There is tremendous potential for the systems of coconut is well evolved and could be
rel eased varieties as they are capable of yielding two categorized under the sectoral system of innovation
to six times more than the average yield in different frame. The system is essentially a complex one with
growing regions. The coconut based cropping system multitude of inter linkages at various levels of activities.
(CBCS) and coconut based mixed farming system In addition to this, system is also benefited by the
CMF S) categorically proved the advantages of the coordination and replication functions provided by the
system approach (Sahasranaman et oZ., 1983; Hegde All India Coordinated Reseach (AICRP) on palms. In
et 01., 1990; Thamban and Arulraj , 2007; Das, 1991). the recent period there is a proactive movement to ensure
The CB S using multi species cropping of coconut with maxiinum possible participation of the stake holders'
pepper, banana, nutmeg, pineapple, ginger, turmeric through the formation of strategic research clusters . The
and elephant foot yam generated a net income of Rs 3, system has evolved not only as a research hub meant for
62,595 per ha, which is 150% higher than that of coconut the productivity growth of coconut, but also as a crucial
monocrop (Rs. 1,41,505), while the CMFS wherein the facilitator of the entire process of technology generation
components are coconut, pepper, banana, crossbred to the technology refinement options pertaining to
cows, poultry birds, goat, and pisciculture generated a coconut sector.
net n;turn of Rs . 5,50,214 which is 288% higher than Research Gaps
that of coconut monocrop. However, the changing scenario of coconut sector
Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PG PR) based warrants innovative strategies and approaches to address
product- Kera Probio has been released for clean and new challenges and sustain accelerated growth along
green cultivation of coconut to ma: .lrain sustainability. with competitiveness and sustainability. In the present
Integrated disease management strategies developed for global scenario, it is evident that coconut requires to
root (wilt) and leaf rot affected coconut garden s could be promoted as a food crop for nutrition, health care
increase yield by 25-83 % depending on severity of the and environmental services to safeguard the livelihood
di sease . The coconut climbing model developed with of millions of people. It is necessary to rope in global
the safety attachment has become an effective solution partners for collaborative programmes to address the
since it could be operated even by women with proper long standing and complex problems in the sector.
training. This gi ves much required confidence to the Efforts have to be intensified to gainfully utilize new
climbers especially the beginners. In an effort towards frontiers of science and technology, which would
value addition , Institutes have developed complete include an under~t anding of structural and functional
package ofpractices for the production of virgin coconut genomics, long term conservation of genetic resources
oil, coconut chips , coconut honey, jaggery and sugar. through cryopreservation, development of varieties for
Besides, the Institutes developed 'Coco-sap Chiller' biotic/abiotic stress tolerance and higher resource use
fo r collecting fresh, hygienic and unfermented coconut efficiency, use of nanotechnology in disease diagnostics
inflorescence sap called ' neera'. The research system has and targeted delivery of biomolecules, leveraging
been producing quality planting materials in coconut environmental benefits through sequestration of carbon
for distribution to farmers. Seed gardens of improved as net carbon sinks and it benefits, product diversification
varieties have been established at the Institute's level as and mechanization for sustainable use of coconut to
well as in farmer's garden to augment planting material provide qual ity life to the people. The praiseworthy
production. achievement of the research front needs to be sustained

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July 2016
and taken forward in a strategic manner with concerted countries in the international arena.
efforts. The imporl duties on edible oils have moved
Impedimen ts in the Trade Spectrum basica lly in counter-cyclical nature to the level of edible
The significance of analyzing coconut sector in India oil prices in global markets. This is a rational policy
in the light ofrecent policy issues, especially the ASEAN­ choice which is required to stabilize edible oil prices
India Free Trade Agreement (AIFTA) emerges in the in the domestic market. Since 2012, the palm oil prices
context of commodity crisis (Veeramani et al. its, 20 II ; have been declining and the import duty still remains at
Lathika and Ajithkumar, 2009; Anoopkumar, 2012). The a low level. In view offall in international prices of palm
likely impact of AIFTA could not be undermined for oil , the import duty on crude palm oil was increased to
three reasons. Firstly, the present context should be seen 2.5 percent but remains the same for refined palm oil.
as a continuation of evolving trade liberalization regime The import duty for palm oil has to be dynamically
and the effects of such a regime on plantation sector. adjusted to its international prices as palm oil prices acts
Secondly, although coconut and coconut oil is put under as an anchor to all edible oil prices. A bearish trend in
the negative list, the tariff reduction in palm oil', which is palm oil prices exerts downward pressure on prices of all
a close substitute of coconut, would turn up detrimental edible oils with an adverse effect on domestic production
in the near future (Table 2). The surging palm oil imports and further rise in palm oil imports. Therefore, there is
in the recent years are noteworthy and substantiate this an urgent need to re-calibrate the import duty structure.
argument. Thirdly, the agreement is evolving one and For better trade relations among the APCC countries
the tariff rates fixed are ceiling rates (the maximum level it is imperative to form a regional coconut trade
to which tariff can be fixed) , thus providing adequate agreement among the APCC countries. The modalities
flexibility to fix the tariff rates to lower levels. Although of such a commodity specific trade agreement should
coconut and coconut oil are in exclusion list of AIFTA, be worked out with utmost care wherein we should
there is a general commitment under AIFTA to review end up in a win-win situation. In this respect we need
the exclusion list every year with a view to improve the to thoroughly analyze the existing tariff structure of
market access (Jayasekhar et aI., 2014). Obviously, there each APCC countries, and an unbiased tariff reduction
will be pressure to reduce the number of tariff lines kept schedule should be proposed. It is also important to
in the exclusion list. Therefore, there always exists a consider the existing tariff structures of close substitutes/
threat in the case of coconut, seeing that, the existing competing products of each countries and there by
price difference may facilitate the cheap imports in case arriving at a consensus.
coconut is removed from the exclusion list. Problems of Existing Innovation System
We have seen that the current innovation system of
Table 2. Tariff reduction schedule: special products coconuts in India has huge strengths on the research front
of coconut, but the lack ofprice stability, inadequate price
Tariff line Base rate 2010 2015 2019
support mechanism and market.ing facilitation are the
Crude palm oil 80 76 56 37.5 factors detrimental to the functioning of coconut value
Refined palm oil 90 86 66 45 chain in the state. The innovation system for coconuts in
India is unique wherein several governmental agencies/
Coffee 100 95 70 45
institutes undertake the research and development for the
Tea 100 95 70 45 commodity, with evidently lacking collaborative efforts
Pepper 70 68 58 50 (Mani and Santhakumar, 20 II). Eight components
delineated in the sectoral innovation system of coconut
Regional trade agreements are becoming inevitable in are: (i) in the research front, Central Plantation Crops
the growth path of trade liberalization and globalization. Research Institute (CPCRI), (ii) at the policy level,
The most important aspect in the evolving trade Coconut Development Board (CDB), (iii) for marketing
agreements regime is to appropriately reflect the sectoral aspects of coconuts, National Agricultural Cooperative
interestslissues in the national agenda so that the sectoral Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED), (iv) the
apprehensions are well represented in the regional! free unorganized producers with small and marginal holdings
trade agreements. In order to materialize this, in-depth constitute the fOUlth component ofthe coconut innovation
sectoral studies in collaborative mode on various facets system (v) the evolving Farmer Producer Organizations
of coconut economy in India has to be conducted and (FPOs) in the forms of Coconut Producer's Societies,
well chalked out sectoral policy documents should be Federations and Companies (vi) The intermediaries
brought out. It is also necessary to find out the leverage in the coconut sector operate in a very large grey area
points of the coconut sector wherein we can gain the forming syndicates, lobbies and also practice the copra/
competitive advantage vis-a- vis the other competing coconut oil hoarding which causes continuous price

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July 2016
fluctuations in the market (vii) the state departments cooperatives
of agriculture/horticulture who are entrusted with the or crop based
field level transfer of techno logies. Besides these seven organizations
components, the most important but ironically the most to develop
underrated component is the local self governments and utilize
which systematically operate at the grass root level. community
The lack of effective group coherence among different l'acilities for
stakeholders is still remaining as a problematic facet farm operations,
in the sector. Though, there is huge potential for the post harvest
collaborative synergy of these different Institutions, as a processmg
matter of fact, instead the convergence, the redundancy and marketing to economize on production as well as
of efforts is much more prominent in the sectoral front. It marketing costs. Further, research orientation will lead
is high time that, especially in the historic centenary year to an increase in the number of economically viable
of coconut research, we the researchers, developmental coconut farms of different sizes and increase in the
agencies, farmers and all other sectoral agencies/actors number of processing enterprises . As the technologies
come together on the same platform to channelize are adopted only when profitable, policy interventions
our strengths, skills, experience and passion towards in market and regulation of trade tariffs to the benefit of
achieving a common goal- a rejuvenated, vibrant and the industry to compete with global players are the way
sustaining coconut sector. forward. To encourage investments in coconut sector, the
At present, the ambience of coconut sector in the government, as matter of policy, must consider coconut
domestic arena is positive wherein the horizontal node of as a priority crop in its national agricultural development
the value chain aspect is strengthened by the formation agenda.
of Coconut Producer's Society at the grass root level to References
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an excellent auxiliary support for the ambitious export globalization, National Research Program me on Planta tion
orientation programmes. The strategic positioning of Development Discuss ion Paper 13, NRPPD, Centre for Development
develo pmental and research support (CDB, CPCRI, Studies.
KAU, NAFED) is another very important factor which Das P.K. (1991) Coconut based intercropping with cassava: An
will provide the much needed impetus for the sectoral economic analysis. CORD 7(2), 58-65.
development. Moreover, Indian export sector has Hegde M. R., P.G. Gopalasundaram and M. Yusuf( 1990) Intercropping
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July 2016