AGARTALA: Samir Jamatia, a 36-year-old bamboo technologist from Garjee village in Udaipur's Gomati district of Tripura has exported 600 kg bamboo leaf tea to Europe through a Delhi-based exporter amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Samir was supported by Nanjing University, where he obtained a diploma in bamboo technology and spent nearly a year learning more about the subject.
He returned to India since the Northeast is home to up to 90 different types of bamboo, and he believed he could perform better in his homeland.
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He studied the procedure of making the mentioned drink in great detail. According to Jamatia, this drink is high in anti-oxidants and anti-biotics.
He said bamboo leaf tea is popular not only in China and other South Asian neighbouring nations but also in Ghana and Europe.
Despite the enormous potential of establishing a large-scale bamboo leaf tea processing unit in India's Himalayan states, it has received little attention at the policy level, he added.
Samir tried to set up units in Assam, Nagaland, and Mizoram before starting his little business here.
According to Samir, bamboo in the northeast is naturally wild and does not require fertiliser, which is what attracts overseas purchasers.
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To produce tea leaves, they take the mature leaves from the bottom of the bamboo and dry them in a specific arrangement.
Antioxidants, antibiotics, and anticancer medicines abound in bamboo leaves, researchers have said. Bamboo leaf tea also offers many other health benefits, including protecting hair, skin, and teeth, as well as strengthening bones and teeth, said Samir.
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