Development of Palm Trees, Agarwood and Bamboo in North East India

Over the last year, the Government of India has implemented comprehensive initiatives across the northeastern region to strengthen the value chains for bamboo, palm trees, and agarwood.

Through these agroforestry initiatives, the government aims to enhance livelihoods, improve export performance, and develop industries in palm oil, agarwood, and bamboo, with measurable outcomes.

North East India offers an ideal environment for agroforestry due to its favourable climate, diverse topography, and rich ecology. Studies using multi-criteria GIS modelling show that about three-fourths of the region’s arable land is very good to suitable for agroforestry, driven by high rainfall, moderate temperatures, fertile soils, and varying elevations that support tree-crop integration.

Despite challenges such as soil erosion on steep slopes, the area’s biodiversity and traditional practices enable resilient models for developing palm trees, agarwood, and bamboo in Northeast India. 

Palm Trees

As per the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, as on 31st March 2025, a cumulative area of 68,324 ha has been brought under oil palm cultivation in the North Eastern Region (NER) under the National Mission on Edible Oil – Oil Palm, with a target to reach 92,543 ha in 2025–26.

To support expansion, 47 nurseries have been established and 22 additional nurseries approved for 2025–26. Additionally, seed garden strengthening has been undertaken in Mizoram, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, and Assam. Processing capacity has also been enhanced with two operational mills in Arunachal Pradesh and one in Mizoram.

A new mill has been approved for Assam in 2025–26. The Mission focuses on expanding area coverage, ensuring timely, high-quality planting materials are available, and strengthening processing infrastructure to benefit farmers across the northeastern region.

Agar Wood

Cultivation of agar trees is part of the States’ ongoing plantation programme, including agroforestry. The Botanical Survey of India, in a 2024 assessment, indicated that about 13.51 crores of agar trees are grown on private land in the NER.

Recognising its high export potential, the Government, on the recommendation of an Inter-Ministerial Task Force in 2023, approved a roadmap to guide sustainable cultivation, processing, and trade.

The north-east Indian States have been advised to prepare area-expansion plans, supported by geospatial mapping in Tripura and Assam. At the same time, export promotion has been significantly strengthened by increasing annual export quotas under the CITES Convention to 1,51,080 kg for chips and 7,050 kg of oil.

To streamline exports, agarwood application processing has been integrated into the DGFT portal. GI tagging has also been adopted by the North Eastern Region Agricultural Marketing Corporation (NERAMAC) Ltd, in collaboration with the North Eastern Council (NEC).

Proof of Concept (PoC) has also been prepared for the development of two Agarwood clusters at Kadamtala (Tripura) and Golaghat (Assam). Collectively, these interventions aim to expand cultivation, strengthen value chains, and boost agarwood exports from the North Eastern Region.

Bamboo

A total of 23 projects worth ₹154.03 crore to strengthen the bamboo sector in the northeastern region have been sanctioned by the NEC so far. The North East Cane and Bamboo Development Council (NECBDC) has trained 4,907 bamboo artisans and officials over the past three years.

Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) has sanctioned two projects with a total outlay of Rs 82.50 crore for strengthening traditional bamboo artisan clusters by enhancing market access, modernising products, and linking them with the digital and retail ecosystem; as well as for promoting engineered bamboo products through cluster strengthening and export facilitation in NER.