By Aravinda Anantharaman | Editor
India Tea News for the week ending October 11, 2024
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Bonus Updates For North India
Last week, Darjeeling’s tea garden employees went on a 12-hour strike demanding a 20% bonus and refusing to accept the 13% offered. The Statesman reported that after the fifth round of tripartite talks on the bonus issue ended without consensus, the state government had to intervene. They have issued an advisory to the management asking them to pay 16% as a bonus adding that the tea gardens facing financial difficulties can negotiate the bonus percentage through discussions with unions. The advisory covers Darjeeling, Kurseong, and Kalimpong Hills tea garden workers. Bonuses were to be disbursed by 4 October, given that the country celebrates the Dusshera festival this week, an important festival in Bengal. However, trade unions have not been happy with the 16%, and the state labor department has informed them that another round of talks would be held in Kolkata on November 6.
Tea Board Announces Tea Development & Promotion Scheme
The Tea Board, under the aegis of the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India, announced the Tea Development & Promotion Scheme that comes with a budget of Rs
664.09 crore or USD 79 million. The scheme will extend from 2023 to 2025 and broadly covers Plantation Development & Quality Upgradation, Tea Promotion and Market Support, Technological Intervention, Research and Development, and Welfare & Capacity Building measures. It addresses several immediate concerns, such as replanting, proper pruning, adherence to quality plucking, soil health, product development and diversification, and value addition. There seems to be a heavy emphasis on branding and promotion. These schemes are open to registered stakeholders from within the industry on the 15th of this month.
Elephant Attack Claims Another Life In The Nilgiris
A 34-year-old man in Kengarai in the Nilgiris was walking through a tea estate when a wild elephant attacked him. He was found seriously injured and rushed to the hospital but succumbed to his injuries. This is the third casualty in Kengarai in two months. The villagers staged a protest, calling for the government to do something to prevent more deaths. While man-elephant conflict is prevalent around the country, all the tea regions struggle with this problem.
Episode 189
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