Balrampur, May 23 -- The Chhattisgarh government's Tendu leaf procurement scheme is emerging as a major source of livelihood support for forest-dependent communities in Chhattisgarh's Balrampur district, with the Forest Department directly purchasing collected leaves and transferring payments to beneficiaries' bank accounts.

Under the scheme, villagers engaged in tendu leaf collection are being paid Rs.5,500 per "standard bag" of produce. A standard bag is defined as a lot comprising 1,000 bundles of tendu leaves, with each bundle containing around 50 leaves.

The payments are made directly into the bank accounts of collectors based on the quantity of leaves they gather and deposit at designated procurement centres.

To support smooth im...