Indian government has set a target to increase domestic production of palm oil by more than 3 fold, from the current level of 3 lakh tonnes to 11 lakh tonnes by 2025-26. The aim is to reduce India’s import dependence on palm oil. To accelerate the production, the government will target the North East states and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
India’s imported quantity for edible oil in 2020-21 stood at 133.5 lakh tonnes, worth at Rs. 80,000 crore, to meet the domestic requirement. The share of palm oil in edible oil imports stood at 56%. For soyabean and sunflower oil, the share is 27% and 16%, respectively.
Under the mission to raise domestic production of palm oil, oil palm cultivation is planned to increase to 10 lakh hectares by 2025-26 and 16.7 hectares by 2029-30. According to some sources, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and North East are suited for oil palm production, which is why these areas have been focused on. The central government will assist the farmers through financial support to ensure that the farmers get good returns.
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