Planters are banking on Members of Parliament Raju Bista (Lok Sabha) and Shanta Chhetri (Rajya Sabha) when it comes to resolving problems plaguing the tea industry. Planters and owners have sought help from Mr Bista and urged him to plead for them in Delhi.

Similarly, stakeholders associated with the tea industry have also sought help from Mrs Chhetri, a Trinamul Congress leader from Darjeeling Hills, to criticise the Centre and to inform the state about the problems in the tea industry and finding solutions.

A few days ago, as the Terai Indian Planters’ Association (TIPA) refuted statements made by the Tea Board on financial assistance to gardens, including the longpending subsidy amount, Mr Bista immediately took up the matter with the Union minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal. On the other hand, another section of tea garden owners have decided to woo Mrs Chhetri in writing against the Centre’s orders to stop import of tea from Nepal during the lockdown.

“The objective is nothing but to prevent Nepal from exporting tea to India’s domestic market at any cost just to get better prices by reducing its supply to increase demand,” sources said.

Mrs Chhetri on Monday wrote to Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha over a letter written by the Secretary of the Union Home Affairs Ministry, Ajay Bhalla, who asked the former to allow transportation of essentials to Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh through the borders, keeping in mind the international relations with the neighboring countries.

Mr Bhalla pointed out that the state had taken a unilateral decision to close the borders. Mrs Chhetri has termed the Home Secretary’s letter as “irrational” and has urged the Chief Secretary to not carry out the Centre’s orders and also not allow tea import from Nepal.

“lndian Customs is hardly screening tea from Nepal and the entire spectrum of analysis as mandated under the FSSAI regulations is not being followed,” Mrs Chhetri claimed. However, the president of the Tea Association of India (TAI) Raj Bansal said: “Although gardens commenced operations in Assam from 10 April with 50 percent workforce and with 25 percent workers in Bengal from 12 and 13 April, the gardens had to skiff in order to maintain proper plucking table.

This has led to loss in manufactured tea. A conservative loss in production projects is to the tune of 110 million kg as per projections prepared by the Association with inputs from other organizations.” “In the backdrop of the above scenario, the industry is expectantly looking towards a certain buoyancy in prices.

The deployment of workmen being below the normal strength, the operational problem in continuing with this format is proven to be a grave challenge for the industry,” Mr Bansal said, adding, “A financial package in terms of interest subvention, enhancement of working capital limit, relief in payment of electricity charges and provident fund dues have been petitioned before the Union government and respective state governments. However, the industry remains optimistic at the export front.”

Tea Workers Demand Day:

Meanwhile, the Tea Workers’ Demand Day was observed in several tea gardens of North Bengal and Assam yesterday, with several demands to be tabled before the Union Labour as well as the Commerce and Industry ministries.

Workers under the banner of the Terai Sangrami Cha Shramik Union, affiliated to AICCTU, led by Sumanti Ekka, Tashilal Oraon, Joseph Oraon, Monbahadur Lama, and Bandhu Bek demanded that all tea workers be paid full wages for the lockdown period, and no discrimination of lockdown wages between permanent and temporary tea workers be made.

“Advance payment should be treated as lockdown wages, and not to be ‘recovered’. Current wages must also be paid in full strictly on due dates. State governments must ensure enforcement staff to keep a close vigil and to strictly monitor the Covid-19 guidelines especially for migrant tea workers or family members of tea workers from sick/closed tea gardens must be provided with equipped and hygienic quarantine facilities in case of their forced homecoming,” a union office bearer said.