First countrywide census of rubber holdings this month

As soon as the ongoing Statewide lockdown eases, enumerators will be knocking on the doors of natural rubber growers in Kottayam to count the trees in their holdings. The exercise, according to Rubber

As soon as the ongoing Statewide lockdown eases, enumerators will be knocking on the doors of natural rubber growers in Kottayam to count the trees in their holdings. The exercise, according to Rubber Board officials, marks the pilot phase of a countrywide census to prepare a comprehensive data base on rubber plantations. The details, to be collected with the help of various rubber producing societies, will be updated and collated through a mobile app, developed in association with the Indian Institute of Information Technology and Management, Kerala. According to K.N. Raghavan, executive director, Rubber Board, the census aims at ascertaining the actual area under rubber, size and age profile of holdings and rubber trees, level of adoption of new clones, and details of tappers, among other things. The exercise will help overcome the shortcomings on periodical updating and is crucial in understanding the distribution pattern of holdings, especially in northeastern States.