Role of tea cultivation in the economy of Nagaland: A case study of small tea growers in Mokokchung District of Nagaland

Tea industry is one of the largest agro based industry of the country. Tea has been contributing bigger share to the national income through its export and foreign exchange earning capacity, it contributes substantially to the state as well as central Government exchequer in the form of central income tax/excise duty, export duty, local agricultural income tax, land revenue and other local taxes. The importance of the industry lies in its capacity to provide employment directly to millions of people especially to weaker section and about twice the number indirectly employed in transportation, storage marketing etc. The tea cultivation in Nagaland is relatively new concept compared to pioneer Assam though there is huge potentiality of growing tea in the state. The tea growers in Nagaland are now gradually organized. They throw up their challenges by their limited opportunities and led to exploring the possibility of extending tea cultivation in non traditional areas of the state. Most of the farmers in Nagaland i.e. Mokokchung, zunheboto, Mon, Tuensang, Dimapur, Phek etc have shifted towards exclusive tea cultivation instead of mixed crops and the numbers of growers are continuously increasing. This paper tries to focus the importance of tea cultivation in the economy of Nagaland in generating income and employment opportunities in rural areas by a case study in Mokokchung district of Nagaland.