JUTE TURNS GOLD AGAIN

A happy coincidence of good weather and astute central policy scripts a revival for struggling crop

- By Arkamoy Datta Majumdar

GOLDEN AGES ARE USUALLY THINGS OF THE PAST. So it had long seemed for Bengal’s jute story. Once vivisected down the middle by Partition, the Indian side had of late been stalked by dwindling returns, farm distress, locked mills and layoffs. But after years, with nature and official nurture working in unusual concert, the state’s jute farmers are tasting a season of genuine profit.