RUBBER - AGRICULTURE
News:
Industry seeks removal of import duty on natural rubber
What's in the news?
● The All India Rubber Industries Association
(AIRIA) has urged the Government to not impose any further restriction on
import of rubber compounds.
Key takeaways:
Imports by rubber industry:
● The
industry imported 1,12,500 tonnes in
2021 under “4005 Compounded rubber, unvulcanised, in primary forms or in
plates, sheets or strip” category to make products such as conveyor belts,
hoses, O ring and profiles.
● The current duty on it is
basic duty 10%, IGST 18%, and surcharge 10%.
Issues in rubber production:
● Indian
production of natural rubber does not meet the demand (consumption) of 12.38
lakhs tonnes (2021-2022).
● India does not produce
rubber EPDM (ethylene propylene diene monomer)
and its prices have doubled due to the pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war and
fluctuations in exchange rates.
● The
Indian rubber industry manufactures all types of rubber products and so there
should not be duty concessions in trade agreements with other countries for
rubber products.
● Hence,
the Government should not only encourage production of rubber EPDM, which is
synthetic rubber, but also reduce the import duty on it for short-term.
Go back to basics:
Rubber:
● Rubber
is a tropical tree.
● It
requires high temperatures
throughout the year - ranging between 20°-35°C or average monthly mean of 27°C.
● Less
than 20°C temperature is detrimental.
● Rubber
also requires heavy rainfall.
● The
annual average rainfall of not less than 200 cm is optimum. Rubber trees thrive
when the distribution of rainfall is uniformly high all over the year.
● Deep,
friable, well-drained soils are ideal as they promote root development, and
acidic soils are also suitable.
Production:
● Thailand
is the highest rubber producer in the world, which produced 31.29 per cent of
world production. Indonesia is the second largest producer.
● In
the world production of natural rubber, India
ranks Fourth.
● Traditional
rubber-growing states comprising Kerala
and Tamil Nadu account for 81% of production.
Rubber Growing Regions:
Traditional Regions:
● Rubber
cultivation in India has been traditionally confined to the hinterlands of the
southwest coast, mainly in Kanyakumari District of Tamil Nadu and Kerala
Non-traditional Regions:
● These
are hinterlands of coastal Karnataka, Goa, Konkan Region of Maharashtra,
hinterlands of coastal Andhra Pradesh and Orissa, the northeastern states,
Andaman and Nicobar Islands etc, where rubber is now being grown.
Uses of Rubber:
● Rubber
is used for a variety of purposes from erasing pencil marks to manufacturing
tyres, tubes and a large number of industrial products.
● Natural rubber
is preferred over synthetic rubber due to its high tensile strength and vibration resistant properties along with
tear resistance.
● This
quality makes it more important for the construction and automobile industries.
● The
growth of the automobile market in
the countries is anticipated to increase the demand for natural rubber
production.
● Growth
in demand for latex products, such
as catheters, gloves and belts, is also one of the factors that could drive the
growth of the rubber market.
Rubber Board of India
● The
Rubber Board is a statutory body under the Rubber
Act 1947, for the overall development of the rubber industry in the
country.
● It
functions under the control of the Ministry
of Commerce.
● It
is located in Kottayam.