Meet Tage Rita: India’s First Organic Wine Brewer & Winner of Nari Shakti Puraskar 2021

‘Nari Shakti Puraskar’ is an initiative of the Ministry of Women and Child Development to acknowledge the exceptional contribution made by individuals

Time8 Webdesk
March 7, 2022
3:54 pm

Guwahati: Arunachal Pradesh’s young woman entrepreneur Tage Rita has been chosen for the prestigious Nari Shakti Puraskar for the year 2021. She, along with 28 other women who have shown outstanding ways of inspiring the society and women empowerment, will be awarded with the honour on Tuesday by the President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, marking the international women’s day.

Rita was the lone award winner from the entire northeast for the prestigious award for the year 2020-2021.

An agricultural engineer from Ziro Valley, Rita was India’s first kiwi wine brewer. She studied and was trained as an agricultural engineer from NERIST (North Eastern Regional Institute of Science and Technology), Nirjuli, Arunachal Pradesh.

Rita has been working to expand the winery and establish a state-of-the-art world-class winery along with a wine academy to teach locals the skill and become empowered.

She has employed local school or college dropout boys and girls from the area who have learned how to make wine and handle wine machines. Around 25 staff is employed on a regular basis and the numbers get higher during the fruits ripening season.

Rita had worked as an engineer in the Rural Works Department for 17 years before turning an entrepreneur.

‘Nari Shakti Puraskar’ is an initiative of the Ministry of Women and Child Development to acknowledge the exceptional contribution made by individuals and institutions, to celebrate women as game changers and catalyst of positive change in the society.

These achievers have not allowed age, geographical barriers or access to resources to come in the way of fulfilling their dreams. Their indomitable spirit will inspire the society at large and the young Indian minds in particular to break gender stereotypes, and stand up against gender inequality and discrimination. These awards are an effort to recognize women as equal partners in the advancement of society.

In 2018, she was honored with the Women Transforming India Awards, organized by the United Nations and NITI Aayog too.