On January 19, 2019; Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb unveiled the
official logo of Tripura Tea and said it would help in getting a better
scope in the market.
“Nothing exists without its name and logo is the identity of a
product. It is very unfortunate that tea produced in Tripura did not
have a logo till now. We have designed a logo. This will go a long way
in promoting tea from the state,” Deb told reporters at an informal logo
unveiling event at his official residence in Agartala this evening.
Tea industry started in Tripura over 100 years ago, in 1916, at Hiracherra tea estate in present Unakoti district.
The state now has 58 operational tea estates, among which 42 are
individually owned, 13 are operated under cooperative societies and 3
are run by the Tripura Tea Development Corporation (TTDC). Nearly 3,000
small tea growers also run their small tea estates with government
support. As per government estimates, 6,885-hectare land area is under
tea cultivation in the state, in which 3.58 crore kg green tea leaf is
produced annually.
Meanwhile, talks are on to facilitate the auction of Tripura Tea at
Srimangal auction centre, which is in Bangladesh, right across the
international border near Kailashahar in Unakoti district, 15 Km from
here.
“If our tea is auctioned and sold in Bangladesh, they will benefit
since they have a huge demand and shortage of supplies. We will also
benefit from the large market. I have written to Union Commerce Minister
Suresh Prabhu and the Minister for External Affairs about this issue,”
Deb said.
He also said that tea produced in Tripura can be among the best quality tea produced in the country.
“Quality of tea depends on the number of leaves which are plucked in a
season. In Tripura, 6,7 even 8 leaves were previously plucked. I have
requested tea estate owners to pluck only 3 leaves from next season
after the winter is over. I believe they will heed this request. We can
have the best tea produced from Tripura in this way,” he said.
TTDC earlier announced ‘Tripureswari Tea’ brand to identify tea grown
in the three corporation-owned gardens. However, the Tripura Tea logo
would equally apply to all 58 tea estates in Tripura, TTDC chairperson
Santosh Saha said.
The logo was designed by artist and designer Aparesh Paul. Tea Board
India played a crucial role in getting the logo passed by the Centre.
Tea Board India Assistant Director Diganta Barman congratulated TTDC
over the logo and said that he hoped the tea industry in Tripura would
draw huge benefit due to the new identity of brand and logo.
