In-house training for youth

Areca growers grumbling about mounting losses and acute scarcity of skilled farm hands can now look to the future with a hope.

Campco (Central Arecanut and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Co-operative) Limited is all set to implement its vision of tackling acute scarcity of farm hands by organising its first in-house training for youth at Regional station of CPCRI in Vittal from December 5 to 9.

“The selected youth will be given stipend, free food, accommodation and trained in climbing areca palms,” Campco President S R Satishchandra said on Friday.

He told reporters at Varanashi towers, Campco’s head office, that the participants would also be trained on other skills like spraying, harvesting arecanuts, knowledge on first aid among others.

The training programme being implemented with the help of Central Plantation Crops Research Institute (CPCRI), Universityof Agricultural and Horticultural Science (UAHS) will be restricted to about 35 members.

"The initiative will not only solve the acute scarcity of farm hands but also will provide gainful employment for unemployed youth," Satishchandra stressed.