Hyderabad, Aug 19 (KNN) The Oil Palm Developers and Processors Association (OPDPA), the Nodal Agency for Oil Palm Cultivation in India, has lauded the landmark reforms by the Government of India to boost oil palm production in the country.

OPDPA congratulated the Prime Minister and the government on meeting all its demands to bring far-reaching benefits not only for the farmers but also to the economy in line with the Atmanirbharta vision.

''It took multiple efforts to ensure the required promotion of the Oil Palm which offers multiple benefits to the country. The industry which is capable of making India self-reliant in its edible oil requirement, could additionally enhance the income of the farmers and save precious forex for the exchequer due to high dependency on the imports,'' Oil Palm association said in a statement on Wednesday.

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday cleared the setting up the Rs 11,040 crore National Mission on Edible Oils-Oil Palm to boost palm oil production in India and reduce dependence on expensive imports from Southeast Asia.

In the project, the Central government's share will be Rs 8,844 crore, while the states will contribute Rs 2,196 crore as their share for the mission.

The measures announced by the Centre include price assurance to the oil palm farmers for the fresh fruit bunches (FFB), a mechanism to fix and regulate FFB prices (MSP), considering the annual average crude palm oil (CPO) price of last five years.

The move will protect the farmers from the fluctuations of the international CPO prices and protect him from the price volatility and guarantee the farmer even if the prices go down; farmer would know in advance how much income he can expect by cultivating oil palm plantation

Commenting on the Cabinet Meetings decisions Tuesday, Sanjay Goenka, President of OPDPA said, “OPDPA as the nodal agency has been relentlessly pursuing the Government to bring about reforms in the sector to help create a sustainable environment for the farmer and the industry - be it the pricing mechanism or other subsidy measures towards increasing the crop cultivation. Benefit of announcement will accrue to the farmer - the most important stakeholder in making oil palm cultivation widespread a reality and whose welfare the association has been fighting for.''

''Today’s announcement by the Government will have a tremendously positive impact on the sector making it viable for the industry to continue to contribute towards being self-sufficient in our edible oil requirements and I in turn have a huge impact on foreign exchange savings,'' he added.