Question

How and when were the rubber plantations started in India?

Answer 1

Hint: It was first started in a coastal state in India. The plants grow better in hot and humid climates, so the place was chosen accordingly. Rubber plantation and production was started in India around the time when the global market for rubber and rubber products increased rapidly.

Complete Answer:
Rubber is an elastic solid that is produced from the sap of the rubber tree. The plant which yields this is known by various names like rubber fig, rubber bush, rubber tree, rubber plant, or Indian rubber bush, and Indian rubber tree. The sap from the trees are collected and then it is converted to rubber through the process of vulcanisation. Rubber plants were a native to South and Southeast Asia but were not naturally present in India. When the rubber trade became very profitable, the plant was introduced in India for commercial cultivation.

- The first commercial rubber plantation was started in Kerala in the year 1902.
- Before the first full commercial project of 1902, plants were first being introduced from around 1895 in Kerala. The location chosen was on the hill slopes.
- In the beginning, commercial rubber plantations were in the form of large estates. But these days it is grown more in smaller private holdings.
- Rubber grows well in areas that have hot and humid climates and gets a good amount of rainfall. The trees grow quickly, but need around 6-7 years before they start yielding the latex.
- Rubber plantations need deep and well drained loamy soils. Elevation range from 300 to 450 metres above sea level is ideal for its growth.
- The government has plans to expand rubber cultivation in some parts of Orissa, West Bengal, Karnataka and Maharashtra to increase domestic production in India.

Note: In early 1873, experimental efforts were made to introduce rubber plantations at the Botanical Garden in Calcutta. Currently, 90% of rubber production in India is from Kerala. Consumption of rubber is much higher than the production of rubber in India, leading to a reliance on importing it. India is the third largest producer of natural rubber among the countries of the world. Thailand and Indonesia are the first two.