The Industries department has come up with a multi-pronged strategy to help the cashew sector tide over its current crisis and become a major foreign exchange once again. Apart from providing necessary support to private processors, the department plans to sign memoranda of understanding (MoU) with cashew producing countries and introduce mechanisation in a phased manner to maximise production and profit.
“Currently the State government has taken up the responsibility of Provident Fund (PF) and Employees State Insurance (ESI) contributions of labourers working in private factories. It’s for the first time a government is offering such an assistance to the private sector to sustain an industry and protect its labourers. The Kerala Cashew Board has initiated steps to procure raw cashew nuts through the governments of African countries cultivating cashew. As part of the recently announced ₹37-crore package, private processors were offered a scheme to close their loans by paying 50% of the principal. Reviving the sector is a challenge, but we are going forward with a solid plan,” Industries Minister P. Rajeev told The Hindu.
