Tripura Launches First Tea Auction Hub to Cut Costs

Agartala: Chief Minister Manik Saha opened Tripura’s first Tea Auction Centre on October 29. The facility sits at the PN Complex in Gorkhabasti, Agartala. It aims to save struggling gardens and lift growers' pay. High logistics bills hurt producers before today. Producers previously moved goods to Kolkata and Guwahati auctions. This move cuts travel time and shipping costs.

Tripura ranks third in the nation for tea output. It sits second in the Northeast region. The state harvests roughly 70 to 100 lakh kilograms of tea every year. About 54 gardens and 2,000 to 2,800 small growers keep the industry alive. “This is a very important and significant day for us, and it will be written in the history of Tripura,” Saha said.

The centre uses electronic auctions to boost competition. It bypasses middlemen to speed up payments. The state expects savings of 3 to 6 rupees per kilogram. The total sales timeline should drop by 40 percent. It currently takes 44 days to sell inventory. New warehouses and testing bays further lower overhead. The government has pushed welfare and infrastructure programs since 2018 to stabilize the workforce. Officials now expect growers to invest in better branding and modern production.