Modern technology for kitul tapping

M. M. Abeysinghe, Kuliyapitiya Group corr.

KULIYAPITIYA: Mahinda Chinthanaya is not a mere concept but a practical approach to rural development by way of promoting local products. VIDATHA is planning for making Mahinda Chinthanaya a successful reality, Kurunegala District VIDATHA Co-ordinator Maheepala Herath said. He was addressing the inaugural session of Kitul tapping workshop held in the auditorium of Kuliyapitiya West Divisional Secretariat.

Mr. Herath added, there are resources in abundance in our villages, but they are not properly utilised. As a result the poverty, unemployment and indebtedness prevail among the villagers. Had those resources were properly utilised, almost all the problems pertaining to the villagers could be solved.

VIDATHA had introduced modern technology to transfer the village level resources into finished products during the past few months. However, the villagers are reluctant to produce products in the village level since they would find it difficult to find a market for their products. VIDATHA gives solutions for that problem also.

This time we introduce modern technology for kitul tapping. Kitul trees are found in every village, but the villagers take no use from them. Kitul toddy is a good medicine, better for diabetes. Consuming kitul toddy makes the man strong. As a result the ancient Sri Lanka was self-sufficient in food.

However, "Suddas" banned kitul tapping during their regime and introduced arrack. Even after the independence that ban was not released. So now we are a lazy and feeble nation begging for food from foreign countries. That policy should be changed.

The Technical Advisor to the Ministry of Science and Technology Parakrama Ruchiranath said, kitul tapping was a cultural heritage of ours. In addition it is an income generating industry. However, in Deraniyagala, Sinharaja and Meemure areas the industry was flourishing.

Having done researches for months in those areas we were able to identify the "casper" liquid as a means of increasing sweet toddy from kitul tapping. A minimum of 12 bottles of sweet toddy per day could be obtained from tapping a single tree. 2 bottles of treacle could be produced from that. The present price of a bottle of kitul treacle is Rs. 200. So one could earn an additional income of Rs. 400 per day by tapping a single kitul tree using casper technology.

Asst. Director Planning Kuliyapitiya West Divisional Secretariat, W. A. Seelawathie the Chief Clerk S. P. S. Welagedara also spoke.

The workshop continued for the whole day.