Chief Minister of Kerala Oommen Chandy has urged the prime minister Narendra Modi to raise the import tariff on natural rubber (NR) to control imports at a time when the domestic rubber price is falling. He has sought the Centre’s directive making the use of rubberised bitumen mandatary in the constuction of national highways.
“In the interests of rubber farmers, the government should raise import tariffs on natural rubber. The Centre could also encourage NHAI to utilise natural rubber in its roads,” Chandy wrote.
He reiterated the state’s demand for a Rs 1,000-crore stabilisation fund for crops like rubber. To support rubber farmers, the state government, though subsidiaries Rubbermark and Marketfed, has been procuring rubber at Rs 2 per kilo mark-up over the market price identified by Rubber Board.
– financialexpress.com
