Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

District panchayat to set up rural business hub

Special Correspondent

NOVEL INITIATIVE: District panchayat president Anavoor Nagappan handing over the Memorandum of Understanding for the rural business hub project to secretary Santhoshkumar. District panchayat vice-president B.P. Murali is also seen.

Thiruvananthapuram: The Thiruvananthapuram District Panchayat has chalked out a plan to establish a rural business hub for promotion of banana cultivation in over 2,000 hectares. As many as 6,000 Kudumbasree units all over the district will be involved in the participatory project that seeks to manufacture and market value-added products from banana. The panchayat has tied up with Province Foods, a private agri-business company, to market the products.

Training

Under the project, the Kudumbasree units will be trained in cultivation methods and manufacture of banana fibre, banana paper, chips and other products. The monthly crop production is estimated at 100 tonnes. The district panchayat will supply tissue culture saplings of hybrid species.

District panchayat secretary Santhoshkumar said the tie up with the agri-business firm would help to tap the export market for value-added products. He said the banana cultivation would be taken up in 50 grama panchayats across the district. All the products would be packed at a centralised facility using modern technology.

The project also involves setting up model farms and demonstration gardens, tissue culture laboratories, soil testing units, biocontrol laboratories, vermicomposting units, cold storage facilities and training and R&D centres. As many as 18,000 families in the district are expected to benefit from the project.

The district panchayat has earmarked an outlay of Rs.43 crore for the rural business hub. The project will have financial assistance from the National Horticulture Mission. The concept of the business hub was conceived by the Union Government to maximise employment and wealth generation in the agriculture and horticulture sectors. The focus of the mission is on technology upgradation, value-addition, improved marketing and modern management.

The project in Thiruvananthapuram is scheduled to take off in June.

The Memorandum of Understanding for the rural business hub was signed between the district panchayat secretary, Kudumbasree district coordinator and the CEO of Province Foods at a function held here on Thursday. District panchayat president Anavoor Nagappan and Kudumbasree director Sarada Muraleedharan were present on the occasion.

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