New Delhi, Aug 7
Low demand of tribal products in the market, delayed utilisation of funds by state Implementing Agencies, and market linkages are the key challenges faced by the Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India, the Lok Sabha was informed on Thursday.
TRIFED, a national-level apex organisation under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, received a financial assistance of Rs 111.70 crore in 2024–25, said Union Minister of State for Tribal Affairs Durgadas Uikey in a reply.
Its main goal is to improve the socio-economic well-being of tribal communities by facilitating the marketing of their products. He informed the House that the review of schemes and programmes implemented by TRIFED is a routine process which is undertaken from time to time. Claiming that no third-party review of the schemes implemented through TRIFED has been conducted recently, the MoS said that at present, the Ministry does not have any plan for the restructuring of TRIFED.
So far, TRIFED has sanctioned 4,130 Van Dhan Vikas Kendras (VDVKs) under the Pradhan Mantri Janjatiya Vikas Mission (PMJVM) scheme, associating 12,35,308 beneficiaries, and 531 Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG) VDVKs under the Pradhan Mantri Janjati Adiwasi Nyaya Maha Abhiyan (PM-JANMAN), associating 45,480 beneficiaries, he said. The MoS said all these VDVKs have reported sales of tribal products amounting to Rs 129.86 crore to date.
Besides, TRIFED has undertaken procurement worth Rs 97.18 crore from its empanelled tribal artisans/SHGs in the last five years for marketing through its Tribes India outlets and multiple e-commerce platforms, he said. There are generally no delays or gaps in procurement, marketing or disbursement of payments to tribal artisans/suppliers, he said, replying to the questions.
The MoS added that VDVKs set up under PM-JANMAN and PMJVM take care of promotional activities for the livelihood of PVTGs and other tribal communities located in remote areas, as well as Left-Wing Extremism (LWE)-affected tribal areas. He was replying to questions asked by Vijaya Kumar Alias Vijayavasanth, Suresh Kumar Shetkar and Manickamtagore B.
— IANS
Reader Comments
Rs 129 crore sales from 4,130 VDVKs? That's just Rs 3 lakh per center on average. Clearly the demand is very low. Maybe they should focus more on urban markets and online platforms rather than just setting up more centers.
As someone who works with tribal communities, I can say TRIFED needs better ground-level implementation. Many artisans still don't get fair prices for their products. The middlemen take most of the profit while tribals struggle.
Why not make tribal products part of corporate gifting culture? Companies spend crores on Diwali gifts - if even 10% of that went to tribal products, it would make a huge difference to these communities.
The numbers look good on paper but where is the impact? I've visited tribal areas and most families still live in poverty. Maybe TRIFED should focus on quality rather than quantity of centers opened.
We need to make tribal products more trendy and contemporary without losing their authenticity. Young urban buyers want modern designs with traditional craftsmanship. Some designer collaborations could help!
As an expat in India, I find tribal products fascinating but hard to access. TRIFED should improve their e-commerce platforms with better English descriptions and
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