State to conduct first-ever horticulture census

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: State Horticulture Mission has been given sanction by the Union Government to conduct the first-ever horticulture census in the state.A fund of Rs one crore has been released by the National Horticulture Mission for the purpose. The census will be conducted by the State Economics and Statistics Department.  State Horticulture director K Prathapan told ‘Express’ that the basic preparations for the census had already begun and it was expected to be completed by October 2012. This will help in having a clear data of all the crops in the state. “Horticulture Department was spending money for the cultivation of various crops, including fruits, vegetables and plantation. The production and area of cultivation is not accessed till now and the census will give the data and results of the steps taken for increasing the cultivation,’’ he said. There are also instances of fall in crop production and remedial measures could be taken for them. New schemes could be chalked out for increasing the productivity of crops. Prathapan pointed out that pineapple production in the state had increased to 35 per cent and crop area had also increased at the same level. The pineapple cultivation in the state will double in the next two years. The census will help produce value-added products from the crops which are having high yield in the state. The Horticulture Department could plan  which crop need more fund for cultivation and it would be planned according to the data. The Union Government has sanctioned Rs 3.25 crore for the project which will be released in a phased manner. The enumerators from each of the local bodies will collect data from each house and compile the data. This is for the first time that a census of this kind is being held in the state. State Economics and Statistics Department has expertise in this field and it will be conducted similar to that of the population census.