Agartala, August 10, 2024: In a significant development for the agricultural sector of Tripura, Malaysian scientist Dr. Harikrishna Kulaveerasingam emphasized the potential of oil palm cultivation to transform the state’s economy. Speaking during his inaugural visit to Tripura, Dr. Kulaveerasingam highlighted the importance of a scientific and calculated approach to replicate the successful “Malaysia model.”
“Availability of water is a major boon for India. This state has good soil, availability of labour force, and materials of best standards are being made available here by Godrej. The most important thing is that what should be the best practices will also be studied here in the research center,” Dr. Kulaveerasingam stated.
Dr. Kulaveerasingam was in Tripura to attend the foundation stone laying ceremony of North East India’s first oil palm research center, set to be established in Nalakata, Dhalai district. Reflecting on the future of oil palm cultivation in Tripura, he remarked, “Malaysia was a poor country once upon a time. In the 1950s, the government there decided to set up oil palm nurseries for small holders. Today, if you visit Malaysia as the minister has visited, the whole country has transformed. People who started farming are now employing others. If things fall in the right track, I see the Malaysia model being successfully reflected here if we go forward 20 years. Maybe in the near future, Tripura will import labor from other places.”
Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Ratan Lal Nath, who was also present at the event, shared insights from his visit to Malaysia. “We had visited Malaysia after receiving an invitation from the Oil Palm Board. During our visit, we had the opportunity to go to the international seed and breeding centre located in Banting. Palm oil is a variety of edible oil which is consumed by the highest number of people across India. We have been dependent on other countries to meet up the demands. To cut short the expenses in export, Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave a clarion call for oil palm cultivation in the North Eastern region and Tripura’s agro-climatic conditions are found to be best suited for this crop.”
Minister Nath further elaborated on the progress of oil palm cultivation in Tripura, stating that 952 hectares of plantation have already been completed, with an additional 1,560 hectares being planted in the current financial year. He also highlighted the significance of the new research center, “Today, we are here to lay the foundation stone of the first privately managed oil palm research center here. One government research centre is functional in India elsewhere but this is the first private facility. We are doing this in collaboration with Godrej and Malaysia. 15 hectares of land had been allocated by the government for the project. In five hectares the processing centre will come up and in the remaining ten hectares we shall have the research center. The agency received the land for 30 years of lease as per terms and conditions. This is a historical step forward as other North Eastern states also wanted such a facility but Tripura became the first state to have this.”
Sougata Niyogi, CEO of the Oil Palm Business branch of Godrej Agrovet, praised the progressive attitude of Tripura’s farmers, “The progressive attitude of the farmers of Tripura is evident by the huge rubber plantation that has happened here in the past. It shows that farmers accept crops with a gestation period. Oil palm although has a slightly lesser gestation period has multiple uses. Since this is a new crop the farmers need to be properly educated to know the right art of cultivating the crop. This is why a research center is being set up here.”
Niyogi also mentioned the free services that will be provided at the center, including soil testing, lift testing, and continuous training. “The processing unit is also coming up here so that farmers can see their crops being utilized,” he added.
