Bongaigaon, July 10: The dream of small tea growers in Bongaigaon district turned into a reality today in the form of a tea factory to sustain their livelihood and contribute to the local economy.

The tea factory has been named Maharanee Tea Company Private Limited and is located at Malipara. It is spread over 10 bighas of land in the North Salmara area of Bongaigaon district.

Industry, commerce and transport minister Chandra Mohan Patowary today formally opened the factory and praised the initiative of the tea growers of the district.

The factory has the capacity to produce around 13,000kg of CTC (crush, tear curl) tea. The factory will auction 25 per cent of the tea, according to Tea Board of India norms, and sell the rest. The tea will be sold in 30-35kg packets but the selling price has not been decided yet.

Four self-help groups of tea growers had been formed in the district in 2006 and they supplied tea leaves to private factories in and outside the state till 2013. Each group contained at least 20 tea growers.

They sought loans from different financial institutions, including the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard). But their efforts bore no fruit. Finally, in 2013, they formed a company, which included the four self-help groups and 47 other shareholders, to open this factory after taking a loan of Rs 2 crore from State Bank of India in December 2015.

They also contributed additional capital of Rs 2 crore, taking the total investment to Rs 4 crore.

Currently, there are around 700 tea growers in the district and 3,000 bighas of land under tea cultivation.

Bhupen Ray, former legislator of North Abhayapuri seat, had first floated the idea of growing tea, like other cash crops, in the minds of farmers in North Salmara subdivision in 1988.

"This factory will certainly encourage the local people to grow tea on their lands, which is unused, and will also generate employment to some extent," said Samil Ray, who is looking after the factory.