Agartala, February 19, 2026: Tripura is set to join the ranks of tea-producing states with its own auction facility, as officials confirmed that the state’s first tea auction centre at Gurkhabasti is expected to become operational by April.

Chief Minister Manik Saha laid the foundation stone for the centre in March 2024 at West Tripura district. Once functional, Tripura will become the eighth state in the country to host a tea auction hub.

Tripura Tea Development Corporation (TTDC) chairman Samir Ranjan Ghosh said preparations are on track. “We have set a target to operationalise the first tea auction centre at Gurkhabasti by April,” he stated.

To address concerns from buyers over high transportation costs, TTDC has announced a subsidy of ₹4 per kilogram from its own funds. The move aims to make the centre commercially viable and attractive for traders.

Currently, Tripura’s tea growers send their produce to Guwahati and Kolkata for auction, a process that is both costly and time-consuming. Ghosh noted that a local auction centre would ensure better price realisation for growers, as Tripura’s tea often receives less priority outside the state.

The initiative also carries significant revenue implications. Tripura is presently classified as a tea-producing state, which results in loss of crores in State GST. With the new centre, the state will be reclassified as a tea-consuming state, enabling it to collect GST on transactions conducted locally.

Tripura has 54 operational tea estates producing nearly 90 lakh kilograms of made tea annually. More than 30,000 people depend directly on the sector, underscoring the economic importance of the upcoming auction facility.