As part of plans to establish a modern rice mill in the cooperative sector, the Kerala Paddy Procurement Processing and Marketing Cooperative Society (KAPCOS) on Saturday launched a capital raising initiative.
Cooperation Minister V.N. Vasavan inaugurated the programme by accepting an equity from the Regional Service Cooperative Bank, Kaduthuruthy. The project envisages establishment of a godown for paddy storage and a mill unit for rolling out value-added products on a 10-acre property purchased by KAPCOS at Kidangoor panchayat in Kottayam.
The project is being established at a cost of ₹86 crore. Of this, ₹30 crore will be raised through contributions, while the remaining amount will be mobilised with the help of the government and various agencies.
The facility is expected to collect and process paddy from all districts except Palakkad. Upon its completion, the share of rice processing in the State’s cooperative sector is expected to go up to 10% from the present share of 2.75%.
