The Central Arecanut and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Cooperative (Campco) Ltd is planning to impart training on the use of carbon fibre telescopic poles to farmers mainly to help them carry out activities such as harvesting of the crops and spraying of fungicides. This follows lack of adequate manpower to climb trees and carry out these activities.

On the reasons for planning such a training for farmers, SN Khandige, Vice-President of Campco, told BusinessLine that there is a lack manpower to carry out these activities and carbon fibre telescopic poles can help carry out farm operations from the ground itself without climbing the trees.

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Campco’s training programme

Campco is planning to conduct a training programme on the use of carbon fibre telescopic poles in plantations during the second week of January to prepare a pool of manpower to handle these poles.

He said Campco had conducted training programmes on arecanut tree climbing as a part of skill development in the sector a few years ago. Those who learnt the skill then are earning their livelihood with this skill.

However, still there is a fear among a majority of people to take up arecanut climbing as a profession. One of the reasons for this is the reported cases of people falling from tree in the past. Such people remain bed-ridden for life. He said this and several other factors are keeping the youth away from taking up tree climbing as a profession.

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Stating that Campco is aiming to bridge the gap of skilled manpower for these activities with the help of these carbon fibre telescopic poles, Khandige said interested youths can take up this as a profession to carry out the harvesting and spraying activities in arecanut plantations.

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