Thaindian News

Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 23 (IANS) Soaring rubber prices have come as a pleasant Christmas gift for planters in Kerala.
Central districts — home to a large number of Christians who make up 22 percent of the state’s 32 million population — also account for about half the rubber production of Kerala, which meets 83 percent of India’s needs.

Rubber prices have now touched Rs.138 per kg, just Rs.2 short of an all-time high. In December last year, the price stood at Rs.65 per kg, and Rs.90 in the corresponding month the previous year.

“The excellent price of rubber has really warmed the countryside,” said Joseph Thomas, a retired banker who now spends his time tending a small three-acre plantation in Kottayam, considered the home of rubber.

In the predominantly Christian-dominated central Kerala districts of Kottayam, Ernakulam and Thrissur, there are a large number of small rubber farmers.

“Last Christmas was gloomy because of the recession. Many of our relatives are employed in the Middle East. This time, even though the situation there is fluid, the price of rubber has given us stability,” said K.K. Thomas of Ernakulam, whose grandchildren are visiting from the Gulf.

At the community level, higher rubber prices have laid the platform for bigger celebrations.

At Koovappally in Kottayam district, best known for its rubber industry, a commando with the elite National Security Guard (NSG) involved in the Mumbai anti-terror operations last year, will scale down the façade of the parish church.

“Dressed as Santa Claus, Appu John will come down using a rope down the façade of the church, which is more than 70 feet tall, immediately after midnight mass,” said Kiran Jose Abraham, a church member.

“He’ll come down with a bag full of presents to be distributed to members. Such a thing has never happened before. Last minute trials are on.”

It’s not only the rubber planters who are upbeat; the Kerala State Beverages Corp (KSBC), the sole wholesaler of beer and Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL), says it is expecting the highest ever turnover this month.

“No Christmas is complete without liquor in the state,” according to company managing director N. Shanker Reddy. “We are expecting sales to cross Rs.450 crore.”

Even the state government has risen to the occasion, and distributed salaries for December in view of Christmas.