Kochi, Feb 5 (KNN) Kalraj Mishra, Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) who is currently in Kerala has dismissed rumours that the Coir Board headquarters would be shifted from Kochi to somewhere else.

While Addressing the valedictory session of the two-day seminar on coir held in Alappuzha as part of ongoing Coir Kerala event, he said that the Government would continue to support coir sector and the headquarters of the board would remain in Kochi.

The Minister said that eco-friendly, bio-degradable products opened up avenues for greater investment in the coir sector. The need of the hour is the adoption of modernised production and processing facilities to stay competitive and ahead of challenges posed by synthetics.

Indian coir industry contributes to the national economy by bringing in foreign earnings through exports, he said

He also said that the promotion of the coir industry is tied to the empowerment of women and development of rural India as the majority of the workforce in the coir sector is rural women

Later, MSME Minister told reporters that the Coir Board would establish coir products showrooms in all State capitals and big towns in the country to give a big boost to the sale of the products.

The minister said that 14 new coir clusters would be established in the country for which administrative approvals had been given. The cluster programme has a total outlay of Rs. 55 crore, of which Rs. 40 crore will come from the Union government. (KNN Bureau)