Mizoram Broomsticks Draw Exporters

Aizawl, Nov 24 : The made-in-Mizoram broomsticks were centre of attraction of exporters at the ongoing India International Trade Fair 2012 at New Delhi's Pragati Maidan. Hnam Chhantu Pawl, major broomsticks manufacturer in Mizoram, who are displaying locally-produced broomsticks at the Mizoram pavilion, have received a number of business queries, an official statement said here today.

Hnam Chhantu Pawl has made formal agreements with exporters from Delhi, Bihar, Maharashtra, Punjab and UK. " Each exporter would need at least one truckload of broomsticks per month, " the source said.

Mizoram have brooms, which are natural grass in the hilly state, in abundance. Experts said brooms found in Mizoram are in great demand in the international market. Mizoram made the first major broomsticks export when a consignment of 40,000 broomsticks was sent off to Russia in the early 2011. The market was facilitated by monitoring cell under the state government's flagship programme New Land Use Policy.

Mizoram Broom Industry Ltd has already tied up with five companies to market the Mizoram-produced broomsticks.

But the industry is yet unable to meet the companies demand. Broom cultivation is the most opted trade under the NLUP soil & water conservation sector. In Serchhip district, 265 families are engaged in broom cultivation, and produced 293 quintals of brooms during last year. "

We are hopeful that the annual product would double this year, " an official in the Soil & Water Conservation department said. Kolasib district in northern Mizoram, which has the largest number of families doing broom cultivation, has produced 5428 quintals of broomsticks, 3918.19 quintals in green form and 1510.67 in dry form. As many as 965 families in 43 villages in Kolasib district are engaged in broom cultivation.