A delegation of arecanut cooperatives and elected representatives from Karnataka has urged the Union Minister for Commerce and Industries, Nirmala Sitharaman, to ban the import of arecanut and to promote the production of value-added arecanut-based products, reports Hindu.
The Members of Parliament from Karnataka, BS Yeddiyurappa and Nalin Kumar Kateel, and the President of Central Arecanut and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Cooperative (Campco) Ltd SR Satishchandra, were part of the delegation that met the minister in Delhi on Tuesday.
SR Satishchandra told media that the memorandum highlighted issues such as arecanut production in the country and the impact of import on its economy. Since the production fulfils the domestic demand, even a small amount of import will also damage the economy in the arecanut-growing areas.