Even as the apex industry association, the Darjeeling Tea Association went into a huddle hoping that the GJM does not implement such a suicidal move, Chairman of the Tea Board of India Basudeb Banerjee said closure of the gardens would have a long-term adverse impact on India’s export prospects. He said that 40 per cent annual output of Darjeeling tea camefrom this second flush season—which was now being held to ransom. “ It will harm the economy of that area.” he said.

Talks held
Discussions were held in this regard with West Bengal industry secretary Sabyasachi Sen too. However the solution will have to be a political one, Mr. Banerjee said.

Industry sources said that Darjeeling was a success story of India’s exports as various measures to turnaround the sick tea gardens, developing a logo and protecting it in international markets had all begun to yield results.

Of the 87 gardens, which cover a 7,500 hectare of area on the slopes of the eastern Himalayas, barring one or two all had been revived, sources said. “All gardens are now earning money. The agitation and proposed garden closure comes at a very bad time.”

Teams from Germany and Japan who had come for a visit to the tea estates from which they buy teas have now returned after camping in the city for a few days. Nearly 50 per cent of the total exports of Darjeeling tea valued at Rs. 200 crore go to Germany which re-exports it to other European countries. Japan too is a very high-value tea importer.

Respite does little, cry for solution
- Spared this time, tea fears troubles ahead
OUR CORRESPONDENT - The Telegraph

Darjeeling, June 23: Truckloads of Darjeeling Tea made their way down the hills all night long following the relaxation of the indefinite bandh from 6pm yesterday, but planters are worried about the short-lived respite at the end of which, gardens, too, will be included in the shutdown when it resumes on 6am on Wednesday.

“On an average, the 70-odd Darjeeling gardens have dispatched about 10,000kg of made-tea that were lying in godowns for the past one week. More consignments are expected to move by Wednesday morning,” said an industry source.

Although planters are looking at recovering some of the losses they were apprehending, things are not that rosy for the industry. “Most gardens have fixed buyers in countries like Japan, Germany and the US and the industry will be able to sell them the products this time. But the problems will arise after that as the gardens would be brought under the purview of the bandh starting from Wednesday,” said the source.

Representatives of the industry are trying to reason with the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha so that the relaxation extended to the gardens from June 12 onwards remains till the second flush, which usually ends by June. The Morcha has, however, not yet given an assurance to the planters.

“We cannot lose out on the second flush. The quality is almost as good as the first flush and if not plucked on time, the tea will be spoilt. Even if we are allowed to pluck the tea, it must make it to our customers or else we will lose out on prices,” said a planter.

The average price that second flush tea usually fetches ranges from Rs 800 to Rs 1,000 per kg.

Many gardens today distributed wages among workers, which they were entitled to get on Saturday but did not as banks were closed and the planters could not go to Siliguri because of the bandh.

“Garden managers have been told not to hold back any payments,” said a source. Non-payment of salary despite the relaxation could pose law and order problems.

Many colleges across the hills also published their first lists to allow those selected for first year degree courses to seek admission.

Darjeeling tea loses flavour due to shutdown
NDTV.com
Wednesday, June 18, 2008 (Darjeeling)

India's most famous commodity export, Darjeeling tea, is being hit hard by the shutdown in the Himalayan region where it is grown. The country is losing Rs.20 million ($470,000) a day.

The delay in plucking of leaves and transport of tea for export auctions due to the ongoing Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) sponsored shutdown in West Bengal's Darjeeling hills will get worse if the indefinite shutdown continues and will give an edge to tea from Sri Lanka, say traders.

''If people are so agitated, how will the work continue? The industry is thoroughly disturbed and we expect tea exports to fall drastically this time. Production will decrease and the quality of tea, which is the only trademark of Darjeeling tea, will definitely deteriorate,'' he added.

The indefinite shutdown that began Monday evening has paralysed life in the three hill sub-divisions of Darjeeling district - Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong.

Each day of shutdown means a loss of Rs.20 million ($470,000), Lochan estimated. It is especially galling because exports of Darjeeling teas were targeted to rise 20-25 percent over last year's six million kg. But now the industry is looking at a 20-25 drop in exports, Lochan said.

Over 70 percent of the 10 million kg of tea produced by the 87 tea gardens in Darjeeling is exported. Though Darjeeling tea accounts for only 7-8 percent of India's tea exports, which were worth Rs.1.85 billion ($407.42 million) in 2006-07, it fetches 5-6 times the price of the usual CTC (crush, tear, curl) tea.

Of the 10 million kg annual production, the best one million is produced in June, the well-known ''second flush'' of tea leaf pickings that start with the beginning of the monsoon rains.

The shutdown means uncertainty for over 50,000 permanent workers in the tea gardens, and no wages for around 100,000 temporary workers.

''Since the movement started from February this year, the tea industry has suffered a lot. The best plucking season starts mid-May and continues upto mid-June but the shutdown has badly affected the plucking of second flush tea,'' Lochan said.

Second flush tea is the prime quality tea, highly priced in the international market.

Indian Tea Association joint secretary Sujit Patra conceded that the shutdown would have an adverse impact on tea export.

''Not only Darjeeling tea, but Assam tea will also face hassles in reaching Kolkata, because of the road blockade,'' he said.

''The tea will not reach Kolkata in time for the auction. So there will be a ripple effect on the tea market in India and overseas. There is a big possibility that Sri Lankan tea, which also has a huge international market, will stand to gain as Darjeeling tea suffers losses,'' Patra said.

He said the affect of the Gorkhaland movement on the tea industry ''is a very serious issue and should be addressed'' by the state government.

Tea is one of the three pillars of Darjeeling's economy along with timber and tourism.

Following the recent flare-up, all three have been hit.

Tea consumption is very high in India. According to a rough estimate, the per capita consumption of tea is about 700 gram per year.

The industry overall is also registering a year-on-year growth of nine percent. India exports Rs.20 billion worth of tea annually.

The GJM has been leading the movement in the hills for a separate state, besides opposing the Sixth Schedule status for Darjeeling district that ensures greater autonomy to the district's governing body - the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council.

Gorkha unrest may take toll on Darjeeling tea
17 Jun, 2008, 0222 hrs IST,Sutanuka Ghosal, - The Economics Times

KOLKATA: The Darjeeling tea industry apprehends that some tea estates may have to close down operations if the bandh called by Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM), which began from Monday, continues for an indefinite span. There are 87 tea estates in Darjeeling which employ some 60,000 workers.

Even though GJM has exempted tea from the purview of bandh, it has taken the decision not allow movement of transport from the garden. Tilak Chand Roka, organising secretary of GJM central committee, said "We will not disturb production work at tea estates. But, we will not allow any transport to enter or leave estates. We have already informed tea garden managers about our decision. The tea produced at the gardens will be stored at warehouses and may be sold later."

But, Darjeeling tea planters are wondering how to run tea estates and factories if GJM does not allow critical raw materials like coal, diesel, fertilisers and ration for workers to enter gardens. "If the bandh continues for an indefinite period, then it will become impossible for the planters to run operations. Automatically, some of the planters will have no choice but to close down gardens. We expect that a solution will come immediately," said Raja Banerjee, owner of Makaibari tea estate.

But, Darjeeling tea planters are wondering how to run tea estates and factories if GJM does not allow critical raw materials like coal, diesel, fertilisers and ration for workers to enter gardens. "If the bandh continues for an indefinite period, then it will become impossible for the planters to run operations. Automatically, some of the planters will have no choice but to close down gardens. We expect that a solution will come immediately," said Raja Banerjee, owner of Makaibari tea estate.

Anticipating that crisis might continue for long, the tea industry has already sent a report to Union minister of state for commerce Jairam Ramesh. When contacted Mr Ramesh said, "I have just received a report from the tea industry. I am going through it and will discuss the issue with the industry."

Tea industry officials have raised question on whether the GJM bandh will benefit workers of tea estates in the long run. "Most of the tea estate workers are now under the banner of Darjeeling Hill Plantation Labour Union, which is the labour arm of the GJM. "We wonder whether the GJM has ever thought about these people who will be the worst sufferers if the bandh continues indefinitely," said senior officials of the tea industry.

The auction centres in Kolkata have also decided to relax its rule for the Darjeeling tea industry. "According to our existing rule, teas should come to the auctions exactly three weeks before the sale date. We are organising sale 28 on July 7 and for that teas should come to auctions on June 18. But, we have extended it by one day for Darjeeling tea," a senior official of Calcutta Tea Traders Association said.

Incidentally, the bandh in the hills last week has already affected the flow of tea to the auctions. "Last week, we received 65,000 kg of Darjeeling tea as compared to 1.5 lakh kg of tea received during the same period previous year. We expect less teas to arrive at auctions this week as well," the CTTA official added.
 

Gorkha bandh hits tea planters
The Times of India

KOLKATA/SILIGURI: The Gorkha Janamukti Morcha has kept tea gardens out of the purview of its indefinite bandh, but the gesture of Bimal Gurung's men may not be enough to stop more than five lakh tea workers in north Bengal from starvation.

Many tea gardens may have no other option but to shut down operations if the bandh turns out to be a long one. There are 87 gardens in Darjeeling and another 175 in the Dooars region. These gardens employ over 25 lakh workers. At least 25% of these gardens are not in a good shape.

Some tea garden owners find it difficult to even pay daily wages. The indefinite bandh couldn't have come at a worse time.

Most of them are preparing for the second flush, which fetches a high price in the west European market. The strike has jeopardized export possibilities. The garden owners have been caught in a Catch-22 situation. If they continue with plucking, they may not be able to export the tea. If they stop work, they still make losses.

Raja Bonerjee, the director of Makaibari estate, said the bandh had cut off supply routes to the gardens. Even if the gardens stay open, it wouldn't help as nothing could be transported out or brought in.

"We need diesel and coal to run the tea factories. But if the bandh continues, there will be a shortage of fuel. Once the factory closes, we have to stop plucking operations. It is not possible to keep green leaf for more than 18 hours without processing," he said.

A senior official of another group, which owns 13 gardens in Darjeeling, said small gardens would suffer the most.

"At least 15 gardens in Darjeeling don't have their own processing units. They will be in dire straits," he said.

Incidentally, the tea industry has done well over the past year after a prolonged bad patch. Aditya Khaitan, chairman of Indian Tea Association, pointed out that if gardens stop plucking then it would loose on the price front.

"As the leaf grows bigger, the value diminishes. Price realisation will definitely come down if plucking is delayed. Many buyers who look forward to Darjeeling tea may now opt for other varieties," he added.

Convener of Consultative Committee of Planters Association N K Basu cautioned that workers may themselves go on a stir if rations to gardens are in short supply.