The Northeast is an unexplored part of the country in many ways. Although tourism got much boost in the last few decades and under the Modi government connectivity has improved significantly, but the products grown here are yet to be introduced in the global market, or even in Indian markets properly. Remember that Tea, one of the consumed items in the global markets is a product from the Northeast.
Similarly, there are many other products in the unexplored part of the country that can make their mark in the world. All that is needed is a bit of entrepreneurial push. With the government’s efforts to mainstream products from every district of the country under the One District, One Product (ODOP) – many new products from the remotest part of the country are being introduced to the global markets.
Naga Coffee: An emerging Sensation
For example, very few people are aware of the unique qualities of Naga coffee which has a unique “citrus and fruity” flavour. An entrepreneur from Nagaland was informed about the uniqueness of Naga coffee by an expert from South Africa and the expert suggested the businessman that people used to coffee would love to taste this new flavour.
Vivito, who co-founded Nagaland Coffee Private Limited, stated, “He told me that people outside would love this unique taste, and Nagaland coffee can be a new brand. That’s when I decided to tie up with our farmers and promote Naga coffee outside (of the state).
A post-graduate in international marketing from Cardiff University, Vivito, now 33, opened a cafe in the state’s commercial town, Dimapur, and started selling single-origin estate coffee. He gradually focused more on branding Naga coffee, and is now selling to customers outside Nagaland.
While talking about the selling prospects of Naga coffee, Vivito said, “The consumers outside are liking the different taste Naga coffee offerings. We are now sending the products (selling it online) to Delhi, Bangalore and even to South Africa, Bahrain, Dubai and in some European nations like Netherland, Germany and Italy.”
Read More: PM Modi is elevating the status of long-ignored Northeast India
Mainstreaming of Northeast and its products
Similarly, there are many other products which such as Chilli Choclates and Bamboo biscuits are also being marketed by new age entrepreneurs. A fusion of unique northeast products and the products being sold in mainstream markets is creating a new market and is bringing prosperity to northeastern region.
In the last few years, the Modi government has invested heavily in social, economic, infrastructure, and security development of Northeast. Recently, the Union government also withdrew AFSPA from a large portion of the region. This decision came after the government was able to bring various insurgent groups to the negotiation table and eventually to the mainstream. The reduction in the disturbed zone is a clear indication of peaceful resolution of all the concerns of the rebel forces.
The continuous effort by the government to bring rebels to the table has bore fruit. The protection of the culture and unique identity of the tribal groups has been given Constitutional as well Statutory recognition.
In Tripura, the government launched a Rajdhani Express and the Tripura Sundari Express between Agartala and Delhi. A deal with Bangladesh was also signed to develop a rail link between Tripura and Chittagong, which would speed up the flow of products, especially grains, to the region.
The airport building spree under the regional connectivity scheme (RCS)-UDAN has connected many Northeastern cities to metropolitans of India. The integration of Northeast is going in full pace and with the mainstreaming of their products in heartland markets, the integration will be complete in near future.
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