Tripura to launch diploma in tea prodn & mgmt

Agartala: Tripura Tea Development Corporation (TTDC) Limited has announced a one-year diploma course on tea production and management this academic year in collaboration with Maharaja Bir Bikram (MBB) University, the only university in the state.
TTDC chairman Samir Ghosh said here on Friday that they have been working hard to boost the tea industry using local resources and to pursue the mission it required expertise and trained manpower for which TTDC approached the university.Still, it is awaiting the approval of the state govt.
The curriculum of the course has been designed by the scientists of the Tea Board, which included some subjects of science, humanities, law, and economics. Initially, at least 30 seats have been proposed for the course in self-finance mode with the provision of subsidy from the state government, as the course has the potential for employment in Tripura and outside, he stated.
Tripura will be the third state in the northeast after Assam and Sikkim to have a similar course on tea.
“Although tea is a traditional knowledge-based industry in the northeast, its promotion and commercial scale-up activities depend on the involvement of trained manpower in the age of globalization. The production of quality tea and its proper management give additional value to the industry, which TTDC authority realised,” Ghosh said.
The first six months of the course will be theoretical training at the university campus, followed by six months of practical experience in the tea gardens. Ghosh said under Mukhyamantri Cha Sramik Prakalpa Yojana, the state govt launched a special scheme to help tea garden workers. A sum of Rs 85 crore was allocated for the project, through which tea garden workers have been allotted land titles, making them eligible for the PM Awas Yojana.
“As of now, 2,800 members of 7,532 families of have been given land titles,” he said, adding that the present govt is very sincere about tea industry, which will help in the growth of tourism and widen the scope of employment.