Tendu Leaf Bonus: MP Pays ₹22.9 Crore to Collectors for 2024 Season
Image: People's Update
Tendu leaf collectors in six forest divisions of Shahdol, Anuppur, Umaria, Rewa, Sidhi and Satna received about ₹22.9 crore in bonus on Sunday, 25 October, when Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav transferred the money to their bank accounts at the Banganga Mela Ground in Shahdol. The payment is for leaves picked in the 2024 collection season, PTI and local reports said. At the same event Yadav promised pucca houses to families whose homes have been knocked down by wild elephants in the district.
About ₹230 to ₹265 Per Collector
The state’s pre-event figure was ₹22,89,09,461 for 9,77,696 eligible collectors. Reports from the venue put the transfer at ₹22.85 crore to more than 8.66 lakh beneficiaries; the government has not explained the gap between the two counts. On either figure the bonus works out to an average of roughly ₹230 to ₹265 a collector, paid more than two years after the leaves were plucked. Tendu leaves are used to roll bidis, and summer collection is a main cash source for tribal households in these forests.
For families hit by elephants, Yadav announced pucca homes, rescue centres near Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve and an additional ₹2 lakh for building homestays, PTI reported. The announcement came amid reports that 37 more elephants had moved into Shahdol from Bandhavgarh, taking the number in the district to 62.
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Elephants Moving Out of Bandhavgarh
Herds from Bandhavgarh and Sanjay Dubri have been moving through Shahdol for several years. Two tendu collectors were trampled to death in the Godawal and Doda forests in May 2025, and the state approved a ₹47-crore human-elephant conflict plan that month. On 13 October this year a 15-year-old male elephant was found dead in a field at Chandoli near Bansagar, with electrocution suspected. Earlier this month IPB reported on new rail lines in Rewa and Satna and the Narmada-Jhabua irrigation project.
No Count Yet of Houses to Be Rebuilt
The government has not said how many houses elephants have damaged, how many families will get pucca homes, or when the bonus for the 2025 season will be paid. Yadav also laid foundation stones and opened 134 works worth ₹461.73 crore in Shahdol district. Congress workers led by district chief Ajay Awasthi tried to show black flags during the visit and several were detained by police; Awasthi said the party would keep protesting.
Source: Based on reporting by PTI via ThePrint, People’s Update, MP Breaking News, Indian Masterminds, IANS via The Hawk and IANS via Social News XYZ.
Image: People’s Update.
