About Rubber
India is a leading natural rubber producer and an even bigger consumer, because of its tyre industry. Kerala grows most of the crop.
Where Rubber Is Grown in Assam
The main rubber districts of Assam are Goalpara, Karbi Anglong, Kamrup. Assam is India's largest tea-growing state and grows rice in the Brahmaputra and Barak valleys, including the aromatic Joha rice. It is also an important producer of jute, ginger, arecanut, banana, rapeseed-mustard, masoor and vegetables.
Season in Assam
Tapping mostly September–February. Exact arrival dates in Assam depend on local sowing and the monsoon, so check current arrivals before planning purchases.
How Rubber Is Sold in Assam
Farm produce is sold through regulated APMC market yards under the state's agricultural produce marketing law, run by the state agricultural marketing board, with many yards linked to eNAM. Guwahati is the main trading hub for the Northeast.
Other major markets in Assam
- Guwahati wholesale marketsFruits, vegetables, grainsAboutExplore
- Pamohi and Fancy Bazar, GuwahatiWholesale tradeAboutExplore
State Agencies in Assam
Rubber has no minimum support price, so it is bought almost entirely by private traders, processors and exporters. State marketing bodies regulate the markets and support farmer producer organisations.
- Assam State Agricultural Marketing BoardRegulated marketsAboutExplore
- Assam Food and Civil Supplies CorporationPaddy procurement supportAboutExplore
Quality and Price Notes
Most small growers in Kerala make ribbed smoked sheets: latex is coagulated with acid in pans, rolled into sheets, and dried in smoke houses. Sheets are graded RSS1 to RSS5 by cleanliness and colour; RSS4 is the benchmark grade quoted daily by the Rubber Board. Factories make ISNR (Indian Standard Natural Rubber) block rubber, preferred by tyre makers, and centrifuged latex for gloves, balloons, foam and condoms.
Indian rubber prices follow the Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur markets, adjusted for import duty and freight. Tyre demand from the auto industry, monsoon disruption of tapping in Kerala, and labour shortages decide the domestic balance. When domestic prices fall below world prices, growers cut tapping; when they rise, imports grow.
With little new land in Kerala, the Rubber Board and tyre companies are expanding plantations in Tripura, Assam, Meghalaya and Mizoram, where rubber is replacing shifting cultivation on hill slopes.
Buyers, Processors and Exporters
These companies and bodies buy, process or export rubber across India, including from Assam. Tap a name for details.
- Rubber BoardKottayamAboutExplore
- MRF LtdTyresAboutExplore
- Apollo Tyres LtdTyresAboutExplore
- CEAT LtdTyresAboutExplore
- JK Tyre & Industries LtdTyresAboutExplore
Research and Advice in Assam
New varieties, crop advice and seed for rubber growers in Assam come from the state agricultural universities below and from the Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) in each district.
Rubber in Other States
Kerala · Tripura · Karnataka · Tamil Nadu
Related: Rubber – all India · Assam · All crops
Names are listed for reference only and do not imply endorsement or affiliation. The About and Explore buttons open Google in a new tab; results there are generated by Google and third parties, not by this site. Prices, MSP, export rules and schemes change often. Nothing here is financial, legal or purchasing advice. Full disclaimer