India's bid to raise palm oil production causes concerns
Areas set aside for cultivation of crop are biodiversity hot spots
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Debarshi Dasgupta India Correspondent In New Delhi, Debarshi Dasgupta
India, the world's largest importer of palm oil, is pushing to increase domestic production of the commodity to reduce its ballooning edible oil import costs, part of a national initiative to make the country self-sufficient in cooking oils.
The move was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Aug 9, with funding of more than 110 billion rupees (S$2 billion) which includes support for farmers growing oil palm.
