Rajya Sabha passes Coconut Development Board (Amendment) Bill, 2021 – All you need to know

Rajya Sabha on July 30, 2021, passed the Coconut Development Board (Amendment) Bill, 2021.

The bill will make the post of the Chairman of the Coconut Development Board a non-executive position, increase the number of members of the Board to six from four, and allow Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh to be able to nominate their representatives to the Board.

The Coconut Development Board (Amendment) Bill, 2021 amends Sector 4 of the Coconut Development Board Act, 1979.

The Coconut Development Board (Amendment) Bill, 2021 – Key Benefits

•Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar stated the bill aims at developing coconut cultivation in the country, increase the income of the coconut farmers, and extend facilities for them.

The Coconut Development Board Act, 1979

•The Act was introduced by the Coconut Development Board on January 12, 1981, to offer development of the coconut industry.

The Coconut Development Board

•The Board is a body under the Ministry of Agriculture that is responsible for promoting the development of the coconut industry, adopting measures to aid small coconut farmers in becoming beneficiaries and participants in the development of the coconut industry.

•The Board also introduces various schemes to boost production, marketing, export, global competition, and promotion of health benefits of coconuts.

Coconut Industry in India

•India is one of the largest producers of coconut in the world. It ranks 1^st in production and 3^rd in the area in terms of coconut production in the world.

•The annual coconut production in India was reported to be 23.90 billion nuts from an area spread across 2.15 million hectares with average productivity of 9,897 nuts per hectare, as per statistics reports published during 2018-19.

•Since 2013, Coconut production in the country has been witnessing significant growth, the production has increased from 42,104 million nuts in 2013-15 to 44,405 million nuts in 2015-17.

•Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala are the major coconut-producing states in India. These states account for more than 90 per cent of the production and area.

•The latest scientific technologies for coconut cultivation have reported a four-fold increase in yield.

•From 2016 onwards, India began exporting coconut oil to Indonesia, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka.