MARGAO
Agriculture Minister Vijai Sardesai on Thursday said that a team comprising of MLAs, officials of the Agriculture and Horticulture department, besides progressive farmers, will be deputed to Madurai in Tamil Nadu post-Assembly session to examine the feasibility of introducing hybrid coconut variety in Goa to boost coconut production and tide over the shortage.
After launching the subsidised coconut scheme in Fatorda constituency on Thursday, the Agriculture Minister said the team will be given a brief to study the post-harvest technology used by coconut farmers in Tamil Nadu and the feasibility of introducing the hybrid variety in Goa.
“We are only contemplating in introducing the hybrid variety in Goa. No decision has been taken as yet as the Agriculture University has to endorse the coconut hybrid variety before we decide to introduce the same in Goa,” he said, adding “what we have in Goa is the mother plant. In Madurai, Tamil Nadu, they have gone in for the hybrid variety. It will be introduced in Goa after being endorsed by the University and certified that it is foolproof”.
Replying to a question, the Agriculture Minister said that though the government was initially toying with the idea of importing coconuts from Sri Lanka, it has now decided to procure from local sources, including traders, farmers, etc. “The Congress had a problem when we announced plans to import from Sri Lanka. But, we are living in a democracy and views of everyone needs to be respected. It is also a fact that there’s a coconut shortage in the State and make available the coconut at subsidised rates to the people,” he said.
The coconuts will be sold at the Horticulture outlets and the Bagyadhars at a price ranging from Rs 15, Rs 18 & Rs 20 depending on its size.
“At the moment, the Horticulture has procured around 15,000 coconuts. Each LPG card holder will be entitled to 15 coconuts in a fortnight, keeping in mind that a Goan household uses one coconut a day,” he said, adding that the coconut will be available in all the horticulture outlets in the coming days.
