NE NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, AUG 19
Consumers will now be able to buy organic, essential natural immunity-boosting products made by tribals at their doorsteps.
Union Minister for Tribal Affairs Arjun Munda flags off ‘Tribes India On Wheels’ Mobile Vans via video conference in 31 cities across the country ; Speaking on the occasion, the Union Minister says this novel initiative by TRIFED ensures people's safety. pic.twitter.com/W88zwBn0r4
— DD News (@DDNewslive) August 19, 2020
Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda on Wednesday flagged off 57 mobile vans which will carry tribal products to every household in 31 cities, including Ahmedabad, Allahabad, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Chennai, Coimbatore, Delhi, and Guwahati.
“In these trying times, when COVID-19 has disrupted lives in more ways than one, people are focusing on healthier ways of living and staying as safe as possible.
“This novel initiative ensures that one does not even have to step out to shop for organic, essential natural immunity-boosting products and adopt a sustainable and wholesome way of living,” the minister said.
The initiative is a brainchild of the Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED), which functions under the tribal affairs ministry and is responsible for promoting tribal art and craft, and handlooms.
“These mobile vans will bring the natural and immunity-boosting tribal produce such as organic ‘haldi’, dry ‘amla’, wild honey, black pepper, ragi, ‘triphala’, and lentil mixes such as ‘moong dal’, ‘urad dal’ and white beans directly to the doorsteps of customers over the next few months. TRIFED is also tying up with business partners for accelerating the sales of products,” TRIFED Managing Director Pravir Krishna said.
Keeping in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for an ‘Aatma-nirbhar Bharat’ (self-reliant India), TRIFED is also set to launch an exclusive e-marketplace for tribal producers – forest dwellers and artisans — to facilitate the purchase of minor forest produce (MFPs), handicrafts and handlooms online soon.
The ‘Tribes India E-Mart’ platform will be an omnichannel facility for tribals to sell their goods to a large national and international audience in an e-marketplace through their own e-shop.
TRIFED is in the process of onboarding approximately 5 lakh tribal producers across the country and sourcing their natural produce and handcrafted goods.
