targets of production area were decreed to ensure that each statedivision was selfsufficient in rice and farmers were forced to cultivate rice in designated areas especially those with irrigation as a condition to access land and inputs the mapt used the rice obtained under compulsory procurement to supply lowincome groups government employees and military personnel and to maintain buffer stocks undp well aware of the economic importance and the role of rubber as an exportable crop and an industrial raw material for local manufacturing industries rubber became one of the major crops promoted by the mpce following the creation of the mse from to sugarcane area tripled and production more than tripled from million to million mt