Women-led co-ops bring fresh veggies to remote tea gardens of Alipurduar

Alipurduar: Following the Chief Minister’s directive, the state government’s ‘Sufal Bangla’ mobile van service has begun operating deep inside the lanes and alleys of three remote tea gardens in Alipurduar, ensuring that workers’ colonies now have access to fresh vegetables at fair prices.

Until recently, residents of these tea estates were forced to travel more than 15 km—often crossing rivers and forests—to reach the nearest daily market. Today, thanks to the initiative, fresh produce is delivered directly to their doorsteps at affordable rates.

The scheme has been rolled out through three women-run cooperative societies based in Madhu Tea Garden (Kalchini), Huntapara (Madarihat) and Bandapani (Birpara). Each morning at dawn, cooperative members procure vegetables from the district’s Kisan Mandis and distribute them across labour colonies in the tea belt.

The project has not only solved the chronic problem of vegetable scarcity but has also opened new avenues of employment and self-reliance for women in the region.

Profits from the trade cover vehicle maintenance, fuel and drivers’ wages, making the model self-sustaining. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, at a recent administrative meeting in Kawakhali, Siliguri, personally handed over the keys of government-allocated vehicles to a cooperative.

Within just three months, the initiative has yielded remarkable success, empowering women and improving nutrition in far-flung tea garden areas.

Kanika Dhanwar, manager of the Madhu Tea Garden Cooperative, said: “We are now the primary source of vegetables for the Kalchini tea belt.

While residents get fresh produce at affordable prices, we too have discovered a sustainable means of livelihood.”

Meena Gowala, representing the Bundapani Tea and Allied Plantation Workers’ Cooperative Society, added: “This initiative is nothing short of revolutionary. We are giving our hearts and souls to make it succeed.

But now we need a storage facility to preserve our vegetables for longer hours.”