New avenues are opening for tribal entrepreneurship in Madhya Pradesh now. Tribal youth are being trained to make Mahua liquor from micro-distilleries for which they will also be provided financial assistance.
Quality parameters of heritage liquor will also be put in place. It will be sold in the country as heritage liquor. This will improve the economic condition of the tribal groups and heritage liquor made from Mahua will be known in the country and abroad as heritage liquor of Madhya Pradesh.
Alirajpur and Dindori districts of Madhya Pradesh have been selected in the pilot phase for making heritage liquor from Mahua flower from Micro Distillery. Later Khalwa block of the Khandwa district will also be included as the pilot phase. As many 13 tribal youths have been trained to make heritage liquor from Mahua, in collaboration with Commercial Tax Department and Tribal Affairs Department at Vasant Dada Sugar Institute, Pune. More tribal youths will be provided such training in the future.
The services of Vasant dada Sugar Institute Pune are being taken for this. This institute will conduct necessary studies on the issues related to heritage liquor manufacturing. It will also prepare training modules and project reports. Financial assistance is being given by the Tribal Affairs Department for the micro-distillery being set up in the pilot phase.
Traditionally, liquor is made from Mahua flowers by the tribal community of the state, which they use traditionally. Heritage liquor shall be treated separately from country liquor. It is the only wine made from a flower. There is no possibility of any adulteration in it.
State Cabinet had approved it
It may be noted that the Cabinet had given instructions under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for policy formulation by giving in-principal permission to manufacture heritage liquor.
The policy of heritage liquor will be presented before the sub-committee of the Cabinet. In this, only tribal groups will be allowed to make Mahua liquor from micro-distilleries. Mahua based economy works on a small scale in tribal areas in the state. Mahua collection sustains the life of many families.
