Hyderabad: Telangana Agriculture Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao has written to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman requesting that the import duty on crude palm oil be restored to its earlier level of 44 percent. In a statement on Thursday, Tummala asked the Union government to reconsider its recent decision reducing the duty to 16.5 percent from 27.5 percent on May 31.
He argued that the cut in import duty could discourage farmers from taking up oil palm cultivation, thereby threatening the objectives of the National Mission on Edible Oils – Oil Palm (NEMOOP), a central initiative aimed at boosting domestic production.
Telangana, according to the Minister, has so far covered 78,870 hectares under oil palm involving 56,231 farmers, with a target of expanding to 1,25,000 hectares. For the current financial year, the state has aimed at 50,000 hectares, with 18,185 farmers having enrolled on 26,597 hectares.
Tummala said the reduction in import duty would depress prices paid to farmers and affect confidence in the sector, which could damage the long-term growth of domestic oil palm production. He described the Centre’s decision as regrettable and urged an immediate reversal to protect the interests of farmers.
