A file photo of a rubber plantation.
Despite Kanniyakumari being the largest producer of natural rubber (latex) in Tamil Nadu, producing around 22,000 tonnes per annum, the proposal for setting up a rubber park or large scale rubber based industries in the district has remained in limbo for years.
The district’s horticultural crop area is 65,804 hectares. Of this, rubber plantation occupies around 28,000 hectares, as a major cash crop in regions such as Vilavancode, Kalkulam and Thovalai taluks. The number of estates and plantations in Thovalai taluk is comparatively lower than the other two.
Through the plantations and estates, thousands of workers have been employed directly and indirectly. However, the district still lacks facilities such as rubber park or its associated large-scale industries, a long standing demand put forward by former MLAs of Vilavancode and Thiruvattar constituencies, before Thiruvattar’s merger with Padmanabhapuram and Vilavancode constituencies.
Former CPI(M) MLA Leema Rose, who represented Thiruvattar constituency, said the initiative to establish such industries in Kanniyakumari district dated back to the 1990s. “In 1999, during former chief minister M. Karunanidhi’s visit to Kanniyakumari district, then Vilavancode MLA D. Mani submitted a request seeking the establishment of rubber-based industries in the district.”
She added: “Again, while I was an Assembly member from 2006-2011, I pursued a similar facility. At that time, Mr. Karunanidhi said a rubber park would be established in Chenbagaramanputhoor area at a cost of ₹15 crore. However, that too was halted due to various reasons.”
Stating that thousands of youngsters were moving to other cities and abroad in search of jobs, Ms. Rose said that establishment of rubber parks or related industries would provide employment opportunities for local youth. “Many private estates have occupied large amounts of government lands. This land could be acquired for the establishment of rubber parks or related industries.”
P. Singaran, vice-president, CITU, Kanniyakumari district, said that establishment of such a facility in the district would help reduce the commission taken by middlemen who procuredrubber from small farmers . “At present, a kg of rubber sheet sells around ₹180. If an industry is established locally, it would cut down the middlemen commission and allow even small farmers to get a profitable price.”
Speaking to The Hindu, Dairy Development Minister T. Mano Thangaraj, who is also MLA of Padmanabhapuram constituency, said that large-scale establishment of rubber industries might not be feasible in the district due to the requirement of at-least 100 acres of land, which was difficult to secure locally.
He added, “However, we are encouraging industries to establish small-scale rubber by-products units for which the government is ready to provide grants through various schemes including StartupTN and the District Industries Centre.
Published – January 04, 2026 07:52 pm IST