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Central Plantation Crops Research Institute

The main crops the institute concentrates on are arecanut, cocoa and coconut. CPCRI has a total of 685 staff in seven locations.

The Coconut Research Station was established in 1916 and later brought under Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) in 1970 as Central Plantation Crops Research Institute (CPCRI). The initial mandate of the institute was on crop husbandry of coconut, arecanut, cocoa, oilpalm, cashew and spices.

The restructuring process during VII and VIII Plan resulted in the establishment of separate research institute/centres for spices, cashew and oil palm.

At present the institute has a countrywide research network of three regional stations, three research centres and 20 centres under AICRP on palms. Besides, the institute also hosts the headquarter of Indian Society of Plantation Crops. CPCRAI has its head office in Kasaragod, Kerala The main crops the institute concentrates on are areca nut, cocoa and coconut. In an online interview, Dr. Muralikrishna Halemane, Technical Information Officer, spoke to Agriculture & Industry Survey regarding the various activities of CPCRI.

Main Activities
The institute carries out the following activities:

· To develop appropriate production, protection and processing technologies for coconut, areca nut, and cocoa through basic and applied research

· Act as a national repository for the genetic resources of these crops

· Produce parental lines and breeders’ stock of plantation crops

· Develop improved palm-based farming systems through more effective use of natural resources to increase productivity and income from unit area

· Collect, collate and disseminate information on the above crops to all concerned

· Co-ordinate research on these crops within the country and execute the research programmes under the All India Coordinated Research Project on Palms

· Transfer technologies developed at CPCRI to the farmers through the co-operation of developmental departments/ Boards by sponsoring training programmes, workshops, demonstrations, etc.

Staff Strength
CPCRI has a total of 685 staff in seven locations. The institute also gets technical know-how from foreign countries. It procures raw materials from the institute plantations as well as other private plantations.

Organic Farming Technologies
The various organic farming technologies used in plantation crops is the following:

· Growing Glyricidia as green manure crop and using the biomass as green manure.

· Vermicomposting of coconut palm wastes by using a local earthworm.

· Utilization of coconut wastes for oyster mushroom cultivation.

· Beijerinckia indica, Azospirillum spp., Burkholderia sp., Azoarcus sp., etc. were effective bioinoculants for better establishment of nursery seedlings.

· Studies in areca nut-cocoa cropping system revealed that it is possible for carbon sequestration to the tune of 7.16 t/ha to 14.83 t/ha annually.

Regional Stations
The regional station at Krishnapuram, in Kerala is devoted to etiology and management of root (wilt) and other diseases, pest and nematode management of coconut. The regional station at Vittal, Karnataka, is devoted to breeding, production and protection, cropping systems and drought resistance in arecanut and cocoa. And the regional station at Minicoy, Lakshadweep, is conducting research in island eco-system and coconut and coconut based cropping systems.  

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