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Mechanised Coir Mill to be Opened at Feroke
Thursday, November 29, 2018Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac will inaugurate a mechanised coir mill under the Department of Coir Development at Feroke, in Koshikode district of Kerala State, reports The Hindu. The mill is the 50th in a series of new mechanised coir mills being set up across the State as part of the project for second restructuring of the coir industry in the State. The mill is the 10th one in the district with a capacity to process 8,000 pieces of coconut husk a day, according to Feroke municipal chairperson K. Kamarulaila. The 10 mills will together produce 1,920 tons of coir fibre a year, she said.
Coir District Project Officer Anandakumar K.T. said the second reconstruction of the industry launched in February 2018 is aimed at revival of the coir industry through modernisation and mechanisation. This is expected to increase production, thus ensuring year-round job for those in the traditional coir industry. Around one lakh people in the State are working in this sector.
The new mills are being opened to resolve the scarcity of good quality fibre for the manufacture of coir products. Coir has become a profitable enterprise these days and more private entrepreneurs are coming forward to join the sector every day. There are 59 coir manufacturing cooperative societies and seven private entrepreneurs in Kozhikode district. Twenty new private entrepreneurs will join soon, Mr. Anandakumar said.