Union Minister for Development of North Eastern Region and Communications Jyotiraditya M. Scindia on Monday launched the ₹175-crore “Coffees of Nagaland” mission, a major initiative aimed at transforming Nagaland into a premium specialty coffee destination under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision for a developed Northeast.
The cluster-based Coffee Value Chain Development Mission seeks to build a globally competitive coffee ecosystem in Nagaland by integrating plantation development, post-harvest processing, branding, exports, tourism and capacity building. The initiative was launched in the presence of Minister of State for DoNER Sukanta Majumdar, Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, Deputy Chief Minister T. R. Zeliang and senior officials from the Centre and the state government.
The mission adopts a cluster-based approach with two pilot coffee clusters identified in the state – Tuophema village in Kohima district for Arabica coffee and Ghotovi village in Niuland district for Robusta coffee. The Ministry of Development of North-East Region said the initiative aims to address gaps across the entire coffee value chain while ensuring greater market access and higher income for farmers.
Addressing the launch event, Scindia said the initiative reflects Prime Minister Modi’s commitment to ensuring that farmers become stakeholders in the entire agricultural value chain.
“This is not merely a Whole of Government approach, but truly a Whole of India approach, bringing together governments, ministries, farmers, entrepreneurs, processors, branding experts, exporters and market leaders onto one common platform,” the minister said.
He said the “Coffees of Nagaland” mission had been designed as a full-value-chain development initiative to transform Nagaland from a raw coffee-producing region into a premium, traceable and single-origin coffee economy with strong domestic and global market presence.
Scindia highlighted that the initiative envisions creating the “Brand North East – Coffees of Nagaland” through media campaigns, trade fair participation and experiential coffee tourism initiatives. He added that the mission would also promote coffee farm stays and farm-to-cup tourism experiences in the pilot clusters.
“The true success of the initiative would be reflected when ‘Coffees of Nagaland’ secure premium shelf space in both domestic and international markets, while ensuring higher and more sustainable incomes for coffee-growing communities across the state,” he said.
Majumdar said the integration of organic certification, GI tagging and digital traceability would help boost farmer incomes and provide direct access to premium international markets.
Nagaland CM Rio described the initiative as a milestone in the state’s agricultural diversification and rural development strategy. He said coffee cultivation had emerged as an important alternative to shifting cultivation and had strong potential to support environmentally sustainable farming systems while creating long-term livelihood opportunities.
Sanjay Jaju, Secretary MDoNER, said Nagaland’s agro-climatic conditions were highly suitable for producing premium-quality Arabica and Robusta coffee. He noted that the cluster-based model would help small farmers benefit collectively through shared infrastructure, technical support and branding initiatives.
The Ministry said the initiative is expected to generate sustainable livelihoods, improve value realisation for farmers and encourage greater participation of rural youth in the coffee economy.
