The Coconut Development Board (CDB), State Centre, Odisha, marked World Coconut Day 2025 with a state-level celebration at IIHR-CHES, Bhubaneswar on Tuesday. The event focused on strengthening coconut cultivation, processing, value addition, marketing, and exports, while also launching the Board’s newly revised welfare schemes for farmers.

World Coconut Day is observed every year on September 2 to commemorate the foundation of the International Coconut Community (ICC). This year’s theme was “Uncovering Coconut’s Power, Inspiring Global Action.” The Odisha event was inaugurated by Shri Kalunge Gorakh Waman, IFS, Director of Horticulture, Government of Odisha, who delivered the keynote address. Senior officials including Dr. Gobind Chandra Sasikumar, Deputy Director, CDB (Odisha), Dr. (Mrs.) Manjula Tripathy Acharya, Principal Scientist & Head, CHES-IIHR, and Dr. Niranjan Panda, Dean (Research), OUAT, Puri, also addressed the gathering.

At the national level, celebrations were held in Kochi, with more than 1,500 coconut farmers participating. Union Agriculture Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan virtually inaugurated the programme and stressed the government’s commitment to supporting coconut growers across the country.

The CDB announced revised schemes to address challenges faced by farmers due to rising cultivation costs, pest and disease attacks, and climate change-related losses. This year, the schemes will cover 23,000 hectares nationwide, including 1,250 hectares in Odisha, with financial support exceeding ₹3.39 crore. Under the revised Kera Suraksha Insurance Scheme, coconut workers will now be eligible for coverage up to ₹7 lakh with an annual premium of only ₹143.

The event also featured a technical session on opportunities in coconut processing, value addition, and export, with experts and scientists from various institutes sharing their insights.

With participation from more than 150 farmers, researchers, and industry representatives, the celebrations in Odisha are expected to provide a strong push for coconut-based productivity, value addition, and exports from India.