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New Delhi: The Modi government’s push for palm oil has given rise to environmental concerns, particularly for the Northeast and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, two areas earmarked for improving the country’s edible oil production.
But the National Mission on Edible Oils-Oil Palms (NMEO-OP) hopes to address a bigger problem – India is the largest importer of edible oil, with more than half of its palm oil imports from countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia. is made of.
Union Cabinet Accepted 11,000 crore for the scheme with an ambitious target of increasing the production of palm oil fields by more than three times.
But it has also raised environmental concerns, given the nature of palm oil farming and the biodiversity of the areas the government has set out to push.
environmental concerns
There is concern that water-consuming crops such as palm, which grow best in tropical regions, will lead to water scarcity and biodiversity in the Northeast and the Andaman, and the forest cover in ecologically sensitive areas will be greatly reduced. There will be a decrease.
Four of India’s biodiversity hotspots fall within palm oil aspirational regions, two of which are in the northeast (Indo-Burma region) and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands (Sundland).
Indian Express informed of The government’s Oil Palm Mission was also launched despite the Indian Council of Forestry Research and Education stating that plantations in biodiversity-rich areas “should be saved” without further study of their impact.
Then there are the issues of palm oil plantations being poorly forested.
According to reportsThe development of palm oil plantations has replaced rich tropical ecosystems in Southeast Asian countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia with monocultures – “green deserts” that destroy native animals and plants in the process.
a 2020 Malaysian Studies found that natural forests were a much better carbon sink than oil palm monocultures. The study found that compared to palm oil plantations, forests had a total ecosystem carbon (TEC) stock of 287 tonnes of carbon per hectare, while palm plantations had 60.30 to 76.44 tonnes of carbon per hectare. TEC refers to the plant’s ability to absorb carbon dioxide.
Malaysia, with Indonesia, eat 85-90 percent in the production of palm oil in the world.
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National Palm Oil Mission of India
National Mission on Edible Oil-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) India’s dependence on imports for cooking oil is expected to end.
It will provide a fixed fixed price to the farmers on the lines of Minimum Support Price (MSP). As informed of Earlier by ThePrint, in case of market volatility, palm oil farmers would be paid the price differential through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).
The scheme will increase the planting material assistance from Rs 12,000/ha (ha) to 29,000/ha with special assistance of Rs 250/plant to rejuvenate old orchards. The government said it would fix a formula price on a monthly basis derived from 14.3 per cent of crude palm oil market prices.
Multiple such incentives are needed as palm trees produce oil ready fruit only 4-5 years after planting, making cultivation impossible for small farmers.
In addition, according to an estimatePalm produces 10-46 times more oil/ha than other oilseed crops, making it a prime candidate with huge cultivation potential.
Under the NMEO-OP, the government aims to touch 10 lakh hectares by 2025-26 to cover an additional 6.5 lakh hectares under palm oil. Also, palm oil production is targeted to increase to 11.20 lakh tonnes by 2025-26 and to 28 lakh tonnes by 2029-30.
This is based on an assessment by the Indian Institute of Oil Palm Research (IIOPR), which states that the potential for palm cultivation in the country is 28 lakh hectares.
To overcome the shortage of planting material, 80 lakh/15 hectare will be given to seed gardens, which will be increased to 100 lakh/15 hectare in Northeast and Andaman. Capital assistance will also be given to industry in Northeast and Andaman.
The NMEO-OP financial outlay is Rs 11,040 crore, of which the central share is Rs 8,844 crore while that of the states is Rs 2,196 crore.
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palm oil requirement
The annual edible oil demand in the country is around 25 million tonnes, of which 13 million tonnes are met by imports. Palm oil accounts for over 55 per cent of these imports, making India the world’s largest importer of palm oil.
Such heavy import dependence makes the country vulnerable to international price fluctuations, which were witnessed this year due to the second Covid-19 wave.
palm oil price increased It rose over 60 per cent in the previous year to Rs 138 per kg on 1 June 2021 from Rs 86 per kg on 1 June 2020 – its highest recorded price in the last 11 years.
The government’s special focus on palm oil is also due to its widespread use, which includes commercial and domestic uses. The rise in palm oil prices doubled the cost of vanaspati, a cheaper ghee/butter substitute derived from it, which is mostly consumed by low-income households.
possible path
However, there is hope that palm oil can be cultivated in the country in a sustainable manner.
Dr. Siddappa Setty R., Fellow and Convener, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and Environment Center for Environment and Development. told ThePrint, “One solution would be to grow palm oil on agricultural land if farmers are willing to do it and the government encourages it. This.”
“In my opinion, man-made oil palm plantations should not be included in the definition of forest, especially if they are going to replace forest cover, as they may not support the same level of biodiversity,” he said. .
a report in Hindustan Times famous Given that the current definition of forest in India includes palm oil plantations, the potential loss of rainforest cover cannot be accounted for.
Because of the pervasive nature of palm oil and its products, it can be difficult to avoid.
However, it is possible to purchase sustainable certified palm oil products. NS Round Table Meeting on Sustainable Palm OilThe world’s largest consortium for ethical palm oil production certifies some palm oil as sustainable due to its proven socially and environmentally responsible production, and one can choose to label its various products. Is.
(Edited by Arun Prashant)
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