Hike in price of poplar wood spurs Yamunanagar farmers to grow more trees

Shiv Kumar Sharma

Yamunanagar, January 8

Farmers of the district are upbeat as the rates of poplar wood have witnessed a huge hike of up to Rs 500 per quintal in the past three-four months.

Drop in supply from UP

Yamunanagar district is facing acute shortage of poplar in plywood industry, as farmers of UP have found new avenues in numerous plywood factories that have come up in their state in the past few years. Earlier, UP used to cater to about 80% demand of Yamunanagar industry

The hike has spurred farmers to grow more poplar trees in their fields.

The development follows acute shortage of raw material (wood) in the plywood industry of Yamunanagar district, as farmers of Uttar Pradesh have found new avenues in numerous plywood factories that have come up in their state in the past years.

Earlier, farmers of Uttar Pradesh used to cater to about 80 per cent demand of the Yamunanagar industry.

Sources said the plywood industry of Yamunanagar recently was up to the size of 12 inch diameter wood in the oversized category.

“Earlier, 12 to 17 inch diameter poplar wood came in the ‘under-sized’ category and the rates of this category wood were about Rs 800 per quintal a year ago (in January 2022). But after the change of the category, the rates of this sized wood have reached between Rs 1300 to Rs 1400 in the past few months, bringing cheer to farmers,” said a timber arhtiya of Jagadhri.

He said the rates of 18-inch and above diameter poplar wood had also gone up from Rs 1200 to Rs 1400 per quintal in the past two-three months.

A poplar grower, Joginder Singh, of Devdhar village said the increased demand of poplar was proving to be a boom for the farmers.

“Now, farmers have started harvesting poplar trees in three years, as they become oversized (12-inch diameter) in this period. Earlier, they used to cut the trees in five years after these attained the 18-inch size,” said farmer Joginder Singh.

He said the financial benefits which poplar growers used to get in five years were now got in three years.

Ankit Sharma, who has been growing/preparing poplar plants in his nursery in Shahjahanpur village of Yamunanagar district since 1998, said the demand of poplar plants was very high this year.

“This year, a poplar plant is being sold for up to Rs 45 in our nursery following the high demand of the plants. Last year, the plant was sold for Rs 32,” said Ankit Sharma. Yamunanagar district is considered a hub of poplar trees in Haryana and farmers grow this tree along with sugarcane and wheat in their fields.