New Delhi: Once largely associated with traditional livelihoods, bamboo is now emerging as a strong driver of employment, entrepreneurship and innovation across India. Government policies, technological support, training and market linkages have given a new direction to the entire bamboo value chain.
The story of Vishakha Didi from Assam is a notable example. Her journey was showcased at the Saras Aajeevika Mela held in Gurugram. She joined a Self-Help Group (SHG) and revived her father-in-law’s bamboo craft enterprise with new designs. Government support and participation in exhibitions helped her access wider markets. In 2025, she participated in the India International Trade Fair and earned around Rs 2 lakh from the sale of bamboo products.
A major transformation in the bamboo sector came in 2017, when the government removed bamboo from the legal definition of a tree. This eliminated several regulatory hurdles related to its harvesting and transportation and opened new avenues for innovation, entrepreneurship and value addition in the bamboo sector.
The impact is particularly visible across the Northeast. In Sikkim, fashion designer and sustainable development entrepreneur Chimi Ongmu Bhutia’s Lagstal Design Studio, located near Gangtok, produces bamboo handicrafts, incense sticks, furniture and interior décor products. In Tripura, Bijay Sutradhar has adopted technology to improve bamboo product manufacturing. In Nagaland, Self-Help Groups are adding value to bamboo-based food products, while local enterprises such as Khorolo Creative Crafts are producing furniture and handicrafts.
In Mizoram’s Mamit district, scientific bamboo cultivation is being promoted through tissue culture and polyhouse management.
The National Bamboo Mission is supporting farmers, manufacturers and sellers by focusing on cultivation, processing and market access. In Madhya Pradesh, Vijay Patidar shifted to bamboo cultivation in 2019 after suffering losses from traditional farming. With support from the Bamboo Mission, he planted around 4,000 bamboo saplings. Within two years, he earned approximately Rs 75,000 by selling bamboo poles. He was also able to grow chilli, capsicum, ginger and garlic as intercrops.
Science and technology initiatives have further expanded the commercial potential of bamboo. The North East Centre for Technology Application and Reach (NECTAR) has supported bamboo technologies in food and agricultural processing, construction materials, manufacturing machinery, renewable energy and industrial products.
These initiatives have generated around 3 crore person-days of employment annually and increased the value addition of bamboo products from 10 per cent to 70 per cent.
Engineered bamboo has also opened new opportunities in the construction sector. Made by binding and compressing bamboo fibres, strips or particles, engineered bamboo is increasingly being used for furniture and modern structures. More than 42 lakh square feet of engineered bamboo structures have been created for disaster relief and rehabilitation.
In Chhattisgarh, 576 school classrooms have been constructed using engineered bamboo, benefiting around 20,000 children.
Women are also becoming important participants in the emerging bamboo value chain. In Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli district, the Gadchiroli Agarbatti Project (GAP) established bamboo-based incense-stick production centres across the district. By 2020, there were 32 centres employing around 1,100 people, nearly 90 per cent of whom were women. The monthly income of each woman reached around Rs 5,000, while employment increased from about 45-60 days a year to more than 225 days.
In June 2026, CSIR-NEERI, Nagpur, organised a five-day training programme on bamboo handicrafts for women’s Self-Help Groups. The programme provided practical training in bamboo harvesting, treatment and processing, handicraft production, value-added product development, entrepreneurship, branding, marketing and product design.
The programme also demonstrated how bamboo grown on reclaimed fly-ash dump sites could be transformed into productive landscapes, generating both environmental and socio-economic benefits.
The story of bamboo in India is therefore no longer limited to traditional handicrafts. With technology, entrepreneurship, government support and market linkages, bamboo is emerging as a powerful source of employment, income, innovation and sustainable development for communities across the country.
