Success Stories

Aquaculture was started in 2006, with the objective of land value optimisation by creating water bodies for fresh water fish cultivation on lands in the estates where tea plantations cannot thrive. The Aquaculture project – under the supervision of the Agri-Division of Amalgamated Plantations Pvt Ltd and in partnership with the Central Institute of Fresh Water Aquaculture (CIFA) – has converted 150 hectares of fallow land spread across 15 locations in Assam into water bodies for fresh water fish cultivation.

APPL Foundation has a current inventory of over ten indigenous varieties of trees.

Pole-climbing and Archery competitions were held at the sports venue of the Festival.

The competitions, using standard equipment, were conducted by officials from the Sports Authority of India (SAI). In pole-climbing, the first position was secured by Mr Anod Karmakar and the first runner-up was Mr Ashok Lohar, both from the Hathikuli tea estate. Mr Arjun Singh Bhumij of Hathikuli estate and Mr Mangal Karmakar from Kakajan tea estate were ranked first and second in the archery, respectively.

A jhumur folk dance competition held at the cultural venue of the Festival saw the participation of teams from all estates of Amalgamated Plantations. The competition was judged by an eminent jury panel selected from within the tea community.

A colourful and vibrant event, the Sirish Festival showcased the unique cultural heritage of the tea tribes. The competition concluded with the Hathikuli team receiving the Best Performance award, followed close by the Nahorkutia team as first runnersup.

‘Railgadi Jhumur’ was the theme song of the first Sirish Festival. It is a modern rendition of a traditional...

The high point of the Festival was the honouring of two ‘icons’ from the tea community, one each from the fields of Literature and Culture. Ms Padumi Gazloo, a renowned writer was chosen by the APPL Foundation as the Literary Icon for Sirish 2015 while Mr Sajan Nayak, a popular singer and music composer from the community was chosen as the Cultural Icon for Sirish 2015.

Kushal Limbo took admission in the cookery class at VTC, Dam Dim, because he was inspired by his father. His father is the cook at the estate Senior Manager’s bungalow and everyone speaks very highly of his cooking. While Kushal has always looked up to his father, he also wanted to do something different with his passion for cooking. He knew he couldn’t afford to go any hotel management institute as they charge Rs. 3-4 Lakhs as course fees. Kushal had to come up with a plan which would be feasible yet allow him the opportunity to explore new avenues.

Sagar’s mother brought up his younger sister and him with great difficulty. She is the only parent they have known. Depending on agriculture as a source of income, this family of three knows only too well what it means to have to struggle to survive. Sagar found out about the ITI in Rowta from some friends in the village. As a child, he was always interested in learning about machines and how they worked so it seemed a natural thing for him to do when he decided to appear for the entrance examination.