Bamboo & Bamboo Handicrafts/ other Products
- Endowed with rich and diverse resources of bamboo with traditional usage Tripura is home to 21 species of bamboo out of 130 species available in India.
- Cane & Bamboo Handicrafts of Tripura – among the best in the country.
- 60% of the requirement of the entire country for bamboo sticks for Agarbatti-making is met from the State.
- Tripura Bamboo Mission(TBM) has been launched in 2007, under PPP framework, for integrated development of Bamboo Sector.
Tripura Cane and Bamboo handicrafts are considered to be among the best in the country for their exquisite designs, wide range of products and artistic appeal. This industry has a great export potential as well. Not only that, industrial products like bamboo tiles, laminated products, ply boards, corrugated sheets, etc., can be produced and used as building materials for furniture manufacture etc. Studies have shown that Bamboo is a very effective substitute for timber and is, in fact, better in many respects.
Tripura Bamboo Mission (TBM):
The State Govt. has launched Tripura Bamboo Mission in PPP mode, for integrated development of Bamboo sector in Tripura. The implementation of the Project started in August 2007. The Mission is focused on development of 4 sub-sectors, namely, Bamboo Plantations, Bamboo Handicrafts, Bamboo Incense Sticks and Bamboo Industrial Applications. The catalytic role played by TBM has resulted in increased turnover as well as livelihood generation. Value addition is taking place in Agarbatti sector, new handicraft products have been designed and launched, marketing of products has been organized. Some significant achievements of the Mission during 2014-15 are as follows:
- Turnover increase: The total turnover of the bamboo sector across the identified sub-sectors in the State has increased from the base levels of Rs. 27.90 crores in 2006-07. The turnover was 83.7 crore during the FY 2015-16 which has increased to over Rs. 96.53 cr. during 2016-17
- Institution Development: The artisans & producers are being organized to form their own grassroot institutions. So far, more than 1000 SHGs, 60 Producer Societies/ Cooperatives and community owned institutions have been supported and promoted by TBM since 2007. Around 100 new Bamboo Farmer’s Groups are also being promoted under the bamboo plantation activity in new areas.
- Capacity Building: Over 45,000 artisans have been trained by TBM on various aspects of bamboo plantation to production to marketing. Now TBM is following NSDC model of skill training and getting active support Director of Skill Development. Govt of Tripura
- Technology Induction: The Project has introduced technologies in bamboo treatment, dyeing, use of Japanese Juki machines/ Taiwanese stick-making machines/ Power tools/ Semi-mechanized/ mechanized Agarbatti Rolling/ Finishing machines/ semi-mechanized tools for bamboo stick-making, etc. Induction of improved techniques & tools has greatly helped the producers to enhance their product quality & productivity.
- Common Facility Centers (CFCs): 21 cluster CFCs have been set up in state. Also more than 50 small village level units owned by the artisan community have been established and promoted/ supported under various interventions by TBM.
- Design & Product Development: An exclusive “Design & Product Development Cell” has been set up by TBM at AD Nagar I.E., Agartala. Dedicated team of designers, Master artisans & Marketing Experts has been deployed to develop very trendy yet user friendly craft ideas and prototyping of the same. The designs are tested in the market and transferred to potential producers/entrepreneurs after prototyping. By partnering with eminent design institutes & designers, TBM has created a large range of contemporary designs, especially in handicraft & furniture that has resulted in complete facelift from low value age old products to high value utility products that have wider market in the urban areas. Apart from product development, standardizing the production process on lean manufacturing technique is integral to the activities of TBM’s Design & Product Development Cell.
- Private Investment: With establishment of Bamboo Park, many investors are showing keen interest to set up bamboo based units in the state. Investors from outside as well as from within the state are also setting up high technology intensive bamboo industrial units. The Mutha Industries Ltd has commenced commercial production and marketing the bamboo tile and other products outside the country. Many small bamboo based units have also taken the shed on rent at the Bamboo park developed by TIDC.
- Trade facilitation and Market Linkage: TBM Trade Facilitation Cell is working to establish market linkages. The cell is supporting the grassroot producers through central supply chain management between buyers & producers. Major steps taken by TBM Trade Facilitation for improvement of marketing of bamboo product are- a) Marketing Tie up with NEHHDC, THHDC, ITC, NRRS, Mother Earth, Giskaa and many other private players, b) B2C marketing through eBay.in, flipkart, snapdeal, realshoppee.com etc. c) B2B marketing through Indiamart.com, Tradeindia.com, Indiatradezone.com, d) Launch of revamped TBM portal with payment gateway facilitating direct online selling of products. One private Limited Company, namely “Simanta Handicraft Products Pvt Ltd” represented by the producer groups, has been registered to facilitate the marketing of bamboo products outside the state. The company has taken over the business activities managed by the TBM trade facilitation cell for sustainable operation.
- Agarbatti Sector: TBM has made very significant impact in ‘agarbatti sticks’ sector. TBM has been promoting ‘polishing of agarbatti sticks’ and ‘rolling of agarbatti sticks’, which increases the value of the product manifold, on a massive scale. TBM has introduced Mechanization in Incense sector by adopting the globally acceptable technology. TBM’s interventions have resulted in extensive level value addition of bamboo stick to Raw & Perfumed Agarbatti. More than 900 agarbatti rolling machines are being installed by TBM across various Agarbatti clusters in the state. Tripura is gradually transforming itself from manual stick producer to mechanized stick producer reciprocating to the change in global business regime and market demand. Similarly the demand for round bamboo stick has forced TBM to promote bamboo round stick units across the state with active support of the various state govt and central govt schemes like Swabalaban, PMEGP etc. One round bamboo stick unit has been set up at Kumarghat with 50 round stick making machines with monthly production capacity of 60 MT.
- Bamboo plantation: Resource is the backbone of the bamboo based activities of the state. Under the TBM resource generation program, the focus has been to address the resource requirement of the various bamboo value addition clusters. While Bamboo Plantation in the state is being undertaken by the Forest department in forest areas, TBM is implementing Bamboo Plantation in private lands, mostly RoFR lands through cluster development approach. TBM plantations are being recognized in the state due to the fact that, it has adopted High Density Bamboo Plantation (HDBP) technology for the first time. Besides its limited scope, TBM is organizing the bamboo growers & farmers engaged in commercial bamboo plantation & nursery into Bamboo Producers’ Societies. TBM has so far implemented plantation of around 1500 Ha of commercially important bamboo species across various rural development Blocks of Tripura till 2016 and during the current plantation season 2017, it has planned 1000 ha of bamboo plantation with support from MGNERGA . It has also mobilized CSR funding from ITC ltd towards technical support and creation of planting material focusing on Tulda bamboo. TBM has promoted around 10 women SHGs for creation of quality bamboo planting material in the plantation area and one central nursery at the Bamboo park to meet the requirement of planting material in the coming years.
The catalytic role played by TBM has resulted in the turnover of Bamboo Sector in the State increasing five-fold in last 9 years. Value addition is taking place in Agarbatti sector, new handicraft products have been designed and launched, marketing of products has been organized. A Bamboo Park has been set up on outskirts of capital city Agartala Bamboo Park has been set up, on outskirts of capital city Agartala, to facilitate setting up of bamboo-based industries. This is India’s only Bamboo Industrial Park. One Bamboo Floor Tiles unit and one Bamboo round stick making unit are already operational at the Bamboo Park.
