By buying Mana USA products, you not only enjoy a great cup of tea, but also support
tea growing communities and the environment. Here’s a look into one such community:
Chota Tingrai tea estate spans over 1480 acres, with 860 acres of planted tea.
Chota Tingrai is home to 600 families with a total population of 2200. This small community
comprises people of all ages and a part of our mission is to shape this community into a
self sufficient, sustainable and healthy society.
The workings of this community are no less than those of a small town. We have two
elementary schools, a hospital,a library, public utilities and housing. The leaders of
community development at Chota Tingrai are women who work tirelessly to carry our
social mission forward.
Jyoti, Waste Management Project Leader
Role in Chota Tingrai Tea Estate: Jyoti is leading our successfully implemented waste disposal system for the community, where all waste is segregated into compost and recycle bins. She is responsible for ensuring regular pick up and maintenance of the waste disposal infrastructure. We use the compost waste to produce additional compost for our field requirements, or re-distribute this compost to local growers who are connected with us for organic cultivation of tea.
Challenges: Due to heavy, unpredictable rainfalls in this region in the last few years, the communities have been facing tremendous hardship dealing with water logging. We are in the process of re-constructing our entire drainage system for the worker housing communities to better capture rain water to avoid water logging during the high monsoon seasons. Improving the overall drainage system reduces the chances of spread of waterborne disease and physical damage to homes. This system also helps capture rainwater and help regenerate the natural reservoirs.
Vision for Chota Tingrai Tea Estate: Jyoti wishes for minimal plastic waste from the estate and wide-spread awareness about waste management among the residents of the estate.
We encourage a healthy, happy and engaged community at Chota Tingrai Tea Estate, and with the help of our team we achieve great results. Stay tuned for more updates about life in Chota Tingrai!