A CORRESPONDENT
DEMOW: Years of perseverance and dedication have earned Tonumaya Sonar Biswakarma, a dairy entrepreneur from Nohat near Demow in Sivasagar district, the prestigious Assam Gaurav award under the 2025 State Civilian Awards. The Assam Cabinet on Friday finalised the recipients of the 2025 State Civilian Awards—Assam Baibhav, Assam Saurav, and Assam Gaurav—which will be conferred in December. Tonumaya has been selected for the Assam Gaurav honour in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the dairy sector as a Lakhpati Baidew. Following the announcement, a steady stream of well-wishers visited Jashuda Dairy and Sweets and the family’s residence at Nohat to congratulate Tonumaya and her family on the achievement. Speaking to this correspondent, her husband, Bipul Biswakarma, said that the couple began their entrepreneurial journey in 2014 after taking a bank loan to purchase a single Jersey cow. They initially produced around 10 litres of milk daily and operated a small outlet at Demow ICDP. Through consistent effort and by sourcing milk from other farmers, their production gradually increased to over 90 litres a day. In 2022, they expanded their business by opening Jashuda Dairy and Sweets in front of their residence at Nohat. The enterprise now manufactures a range of dairy products, including curd, traditional Assamese curd, cream, paneer, and ghee, which are supplied to markets in Demow, Nitaipukhuri, Raichai, Moran, and Sivasagar.