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COIMBATORE, Feb. 23

AT last, coconut growers can heave a sigh of relief. The Government has announced a compensation of Rs 150 per coconut tree (for fully dried trees) and at Rs 50 per tree for the partly affected ones.

The District Collector, Mr N. Muruganandam, said the coconut farmers in the district would receive the compensation before the end of this month.

Cultivated in an area of about 91,000 hectares in this district, coconut has been the life-blood for nearly 9,000 farm families.

Due to inadequate rainfall during the last three years, the agricultural economy of this district suffered a set back, with the coconut plantations languishing in many areas.

Farmers, it is learnt, did not have the wherewithal to root out the fully dried trees, sell the bark and plant afresh.

As per the enumeration, the number of affected trees in Coimbatore district has been estimated at 11.124 lakhs, of which 2.920 lakh trees were fully dried and the rest (8.204 lakh trees) partly affected.

Pollachi taluk, including Negamam and Kinnathukadavu blocks has been the worst hit, accounting for over 6 lakh trees. The rest was in Udumalpet taluk.

Mr Muruganandam said that out of the Rs 30.48 crore allotted to the State towards coconut drought relief, a sum of Rs 8.48 crore was assigned for Coimbatore district alone. The compensation payable to the farmer would depend on the number of trees affected and the extent of damage. Small, marginal and big farmers would be eligible for the relief fund, he said.

The district administration has already commenced the re-verification assessment of the affected farmers. The compensation, the Collector said, would not be paid in cash or by cheque, but would be credited to the savings bank account of the concerned farmer, in the Primary Co-operative Bank in the respective villages.

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