In order to boost revenue, Karnataka to market Neera as a non-alcoholic nutritious drink

Karnataka plans to market 'Neera" as a non-alcoholic nutritious drink. Neera is the sweet sap harvested from coconut spathe and Karnataka wants to market this to augment its financial resources in the backdrop of a slowdown triggered by demonetization.
The state government has figured out that even if one per cent of neera is extracted from coconut trees spread over 4.97 lakh hectares in the state it could result in an income of Rs 4,500 crore.
This has been reported in timesofindia.indiatimes.com dated 8 January 2017.

There were a few bottlenecks and, after removing these, by introducing amendments to the excise rules, the government is waiting for the governor's assent to the proposed legislation. Once it arrives, it would allow Neera to be marketed as a natural nutritional drink with rejuvenation capabilities.
Neera is, at present, being tapped and marketed as a natural drink by Kerala which has the largest coconut growing area in the country. It may be noted that Neera can be used as an ingredient in manufacturing jaggery, sugar, honey, chocolate, cake and cookies apart from being sold as a natural drink. It is also reported to be good for treating urinary problems and diabetes.


Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org

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