Tripura CM for making tea development corp self-reliant organisation

Agartala, Dec 5 (PTI) Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha has urged the state tea development corporation to take proactive steps to become a self-reliant organisation and adopt specific plans for employment generation, an official said on Friday.

The Tripura Tea Development Corporation has reduced loss from Rs 5.4 crore in the 2023-24 financial year to Rs 2.81 crore in the 2024-25 fiscal, which was seen as a major success in curbing revenue loss, he said.

The chief minister held a review meeting with senior officials of the Industries and Commerce department and the TTDC authorities at the Civil Secretariat here on Thursday, he said.

"During the meeting, the chief minister pointed out that Tripura tea is not inferior in taste and aroma. He emphasised maintaining the quality of tea and taking aggressive marketing initiatives," TTDC chairman Samir Ranjan Ghosh said.

It is possible to increase revenue by marketing Tripura tea in states where the crop is not produced, he said.

"The chief minister also asked officials to take forward Prime Minister Narendra Modi's appeal 'vocal for local', and urged the authorities concerned to ensure higher consumption of Tripura tea within the state," he said.

Tripura industries department secretary Kiran Gitte said annual tea production in the state in 2024 was 90 lakh kg.

There are five gardens under the tea development corporation, 13 run by cooperatives, and 36 privately owned estates.

The number of small tea farmers is 2,800, he said.

According to him, various initiatives have been taken to improve the living standards of tea garden workers under the Chief Minister's Tea Workers Welfare Scheme.

Gitte said the daily wage of tea workers has been increased from Rs 105 to Rs 204, and the upgrading work of the Brahmakund Tea Processing Centre has been completed, while a small tea processing factory has also been set up in the Machmara estate in North Tripura district.

"Several steps have been taken to make TTDC an 'atmanirbhor' (Self-reliant) organisation in the days to come. The loss has been reduced from Rs 5.4 crore in the 2023-24 financial year to Rs 2.81 crore in FY'25. The loss could have been reduced more had the government been allowed to send tea to the auction market, instead of supplying to the public distribution system," Ghosh said.

The TTDC has already set a target to achieve 'zero loss' by taking various steps during the current fiscal, he added. PTI PS BDC