KOCHI: Rubber growers threatened tyre manufacturers of boycott if they do not buy rubber from the local markets at the same rates as that paid for its import.
The Indian Rubber Growers Association said growers may also consider importing tyres to supply in the local market, just like the way the tyre industry is sourcing cheaper rubber by ignoring the domestic industry. This statement came even as Kerala CMOommen Chandy called a meeting of stakeholders in the rubber industry to discuss the crisis in the sector. The southern state is the largest producer of the latex in India. According to the association, the landed cost of imported rubber is Rs 135-140 a kg, whereas the domestic prices are around Rs 114 per kg. The association secretary Siby Monippally said that all tyre companies have been making huge profits.
“It is time these companies introspect and come forward to support Indian farmers by buying from the domestic market,” he added. The association accused the tyre industry of making use of the drop in rubber prices in the global market to import cheap rubber and push down local rubber prices.
– India Times
