New Delhi, Sept 14: Ministry of Tribal Affairs, through its subordinate organization Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Ltd. (TRIFED) has been implementing Scheme namely “Institutional Support for Development and Marketing of Tribal Products or Produce” for promotion and development of tribes.
Under this scheme, besides other market development activities, TRIFED has also been involved in Retail Marketing activities, which involve procurement of various tribal products from its empanelled tribal suppliers.
That is individual tribal artisans, SHGs, Organizations or Agencies working with tribal artisans located in different States and marketing the same through Retail network of Tribes India Showrooms and exhibitions across the country.
The product categories being dealt by TRIFED are, Metal Craft, Tribal Textiles, Tribal Jewelry, Tribal painting, Cane & Bamboo products, Terracotta and Stone Pottery, Gift and Novelties, Organic and Natural Food Products.
In consultation with State Governments Implementing Agencies, Minor Forest Produce (MFP) items are identified across the country for inclusion in the scheme of “Mechanism for Marketing of Minor Forest Produce (MFP) through Minimum Support Price (MSP) and Development of Value Chain for MFP”.
To start with, the scheme had been implemented in States having areas under Schedule V of the Constitution and initially covered ten MFP items. However, the list has been modified periodically after discussion with various stakeholders and TRIFED.
Currently 73 items have been notified, including 15 items that are generally classified as “Agricultural produce” but have been included in the list due to exceptional and very difficult circumstances prevailing in the country due to the COVID 19 pandemic as they are collected by tribal gatherers.
Under Marketing Development Activity, the following products/produce are sourced from Karnataka: Wild Honey, Shikakai, Coffee, Amla, etc. The Tribal Groups involved is Soliga.
The schemes of “Institutional Support for Development and Marketing of Tribal Products and Produce” and “Mechanism for Marketing of Minor Forest Produce (MFP) through Minimum Support Price (MSP) and Development of Value Chain for MFP” are demand driven and depend upon proposals from State Governments.
This information was given by Union Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Smt.Renuka Singh Saruta in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.
