Professional Documents
Culture Documents
1. Tea was discovered in China about 4700 years ago. The botanical name o f
the tea plant is Cam ellia Sinensis (L).O.Kuntze. The seed and sapling o f tea,
made tea and the culture o f drinking tea spread to other countries o f Asia from
China. Tea entered the western countries in the beginning o f the 17* century. The
major tea producing countries in the w orld are India, China, Sri Lanka, Kenya,
Indonesia and Japan etc. Now, more than 131 countries in the w orld import tea
2. In India, indigenous tea plant was first discovered in upper-A ssam forests
by M ajor Robert Bruce and his brother Mr. C. A. Bruce in 1823 A.D. Cultivation
o f tea was initiated in the Brahmaputra Valley o f Assam in India in the year 1835
Assam Com pany the first tea company. M ajor tea producing states o f India are
Assam, West Bengal, Tamilnadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh and Tripura
etc. India is one o f die m ajor producers, consumers and exporters o f tea in the
world.
Assam was the first Indian tea planter. Some rich Assamese families had started
tea plantation along w ith the British tea planters. M ajority o f tea plantation in
gardens are there in Barak Valley also. As indigenous people were not interested
in working in gardens as labourer, the tea planters had brought labourers from
Bihar, Orissa, M adhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh etc. during British Rule, to work
China, Japan, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Indonesia etc. In India, small tea cultivation is
Assam, small tea cultivation was initiated in 1970s. Now, small tea cultivation is
processing units is popularly know n as small tea cultivation. This small scale is
treated as small tea plantation by the Tea Board o f India. This upper lim it o f small
6. The youths o f Assam had started small tea plantation in 1978 at the call
given by Mr. Soneswar Bora, the then Agriculture M inister o f Assam. The All
Assam Small Tea Growers Association was formed in 1987. The small tea culti
growth o f small tea cultivation was noticed in Assam. N ow this small sector pro
local youths in the later part o f the 1970s, Small tea cultivation assumes much
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o f people o f the State. The annual turnover o f the small tea growers o f Assam is
around Rs.300 crores. (400 M kg o f green leaf). The soil and agro-climatic con
dition o f Assam is very suitable for the cultivation o f tea. So it seems to be the
best alternative use o f cultivable land in this region. Moreover, tea industry has a
very high linkage effect which helps in the development o f trade and commerce.
Production o f more and more quantity o f quality tea becomes necessary to achieve
the export target set by the Tea Board o f India. All these factors have increased
8. Unem ploym ent is an acute problem in the N orth Eastern Region o f India.
opportunities available despite having large amount o f resources and demand for
various products in the region. Some o f the reasons behind slow pace o f industri
alization in this region are geographical isolation, lim ited infrastructural facili
garded as the m ost im portant factor for the slow growth o f industries in the re
gion.
9. A num ber o f rich Assamese families had established large tea estates in
Assam during the British Rule. Entrepreneurship in small tea cultivation was no
ticed in Assam for the first time in 1970s. A num ber o f favourable factors have
favourable climate, experienced labourer and retired tea garden supervisors and
availability o f other inputs have helped the expansion o f small tea cultivation in
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Assam. Existence o f a large num ber o f tea estates having processing factories
have facilitated the selling o f green leaf in the initial years. Then Bought Leaf Tea
Factories have been established. The State Government and the Central Govern
m ent are inspiring the youths for self employment through various schemes.
sity is providing necessary training to small tea growers w ith financial assistance
from the Tea Board o f India. Lately, Tea Research A ssociation o f Toklai Experi
11. The num ber o f small tea growers is increasing at a faster rate in all the tea
growing districts o f Assam and N.E. India. Therefore, the extension activity to
the small tea growers has to be accelerated at such a rate to keep pace w ith its
growth. In this context training, field visits, demonstration and all the advisory
resource support.
12. Small tea growers o f Assam are scattered in quite interior places and also
far away from STAP H ead Quarter. In order to provide better and equal extension
service to the small tea growers o f the State the programme needs to be strength
13. The plantations o f pioneer growers have attained age at which some specific
problems like decline in yield, decline in vigour and vagaries o f pests and diseases
etc wiU creep up. These problems may be area specific or situational specific.
14. In order to produce quality tea, a constant updation with the latest technol
ogy and frequent intensive as well as extensive training is necessary for all the
15. All Assam Small Tea Growers Association formed in 1987 is the only
organization of small tea growers of Assam. It has 88 branches all over Assam.
This organisation has done a lot for the development of entrepreneurship in small
tea cultivation. So far six biennial conferences of this Association have been held
for the welfare of small tea growers of Assam and for the growth of small tea
found in the study that during 1990s huge areas of high lands were converted
from other crops to tea plantation. It has reduced the production of some other
crops and fruits as well as bamboos, thatch and citronella etc. Production of
17. Small tea cultivation has contributed a lot in mitigating the unemployment
problem of the State. More than 50000 small tea growers are there in Assam.
Most of them were unemployed youths. The small tea sector is providing direct
18. The Supreme Court imposed ban on cutting of trees in the N.E. Region had
virtually closed the Plywood Industry of Assam. Many Plywood Mills and Saw
Mills were converted into Bought Leaf Tea Factories after 1996. Establishment
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o f these Bought L eaf Tea Factories m ay be termed as linkage effects o f small tea
cultivation.
19. Tea is generally cultivated on highlands. Therefore, naturally small tea cul
tivation in Assam has changed the composition o f different agricultural and hor
ticultural produce to some extent. In 1990s small tea cultivation was giving a very
high return. Ehning that period conversion o f other crops land to tea had taken
place. Moreover, the use o f chemical fertilizers and pesticides in small tea plan
20. Small tea cultivation has some positive impact on grow ers families. It has
tea growers has been considerably increased. The standard o f living is also raised
by small tea cultivation. W ith the increase in income, savings and investment is
also increased. A ll these have been giving a self-contentment to small tea grow
ers families.
21. Small tea cultivation has some negative impacts too on grow ers families.
Increased income and changing living style has isolated the small tea grow ers
families in rural areas from the mass people. Some o f the small tea grow ers
22. Small tea cultivation has some positive impacts on the economy o f the State.
extent is a positive impact o f small tea cultivation. It has expanded trade and com
merce in the State. W ith the increase in the purchasing pow er o f growers families
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and labourers and employees engaged in small tea plantation, the circulation o f
money is m uch increased, which is good for the economic health o f the State.
well as revenue by increasing the production o f tea. It is the best alternative use
small tea cultivation has brought a ray o f hope in the minds o f a large num ber o f
23. An analysis o f strength, weakness, opportunity and threat to small tea cultiva
tion reveals that there are many strong points o f small tea cultivation in Assam.
Some o f them are availability o f favourable soil and climate, availability o f labour,
comparatively lower cost o f production, support from Tea Board and Government,
existence o f a large number o f processing units who buy green leaves etc.
24. Some weak points o f small tea cultivation are also observed in the study.
tional finance and inadequate training facilities are some o f the weaknesses o f
25. It is observed in the study that small tea cultivation has some opportunities
which could be exploited by growers w ith some personal efforts. These opportu
o f medicinal plants, multi-crop cultivation, cattle and poultry farming etc. High
production target set by Tea Board and provision o f minim um support price and
growing num ber o f bought le af factories in the State are some other opportuni-
r
26. Escalation o f labour cost, poor quality o f made tea produced by bought leaf
factories, green le af theft are some threats to small tea cultivation in Assam.
small tea cultivation o f Assam is commercially viable considering its strong points
and opportunities. W eaknesses o f the small tea sector could be rem oved w ith a
27. As per the present study, the cost o f plantation o f tea per hectare amounts to
years.
28. From 3rdyear onwards, the tea bushes start giving production. After 5 years
tea bushes attain m aturity and give a steady production for about 35 to 40 years.
The plucking season o f tea in Assam is generally M arch to N ovem ber each year.
During these 9 months, tea bushes are plucked about 25 to 30 times at a regular
interval.
29. Based on data collected from sample population, it is estimated that operat
ing cost per kg o f green leaf is Rs. 4.89. The average production o f green leaf per
hectare is 1073 6 kg. As all the tea bushes have not attained maturity, the yield per
hectare is likely to be increased by around 4000/5000 kgs'in the next few years.
30. Break Even Analyses o f area, yield, volume and price (o f green leaf) o f
small tea plantation revealed that small tea growers o f Assam are operating at a
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higher level than the Break Even point. It may be concluded from the analyses that
leaf.
31. The small tea cultivation o f Assam is plagued by various constraints. These
lated constraints and situational constraints. Some o f the problems are common
32. Un-remunerative price o f green leaf is a problem faced by almost all the
growers. G reen le a f price received b y small tea growers is slightly higher than
cost o f production o f green leaf. This slender margin o f profit is not enough for
33. M ost o f the small tea growers do not possess proper title over land planted
w ith tea. They could not register their plantation w ith the Tea Board o f India for
lack o f periodic patta land. This non registration deprives them o f receiving any
34. Bought L eaf tea factory in co-operative sector is not there in Assam. Small
tea growers are fully dependent on private bought le a f factories and large tea
estates for selling green leaf. This dependence on buyers has m ade them vulner
3 5. Lower productivity, lack of training and higher cost o f production are some
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36. The tea industry o f South India has some unique features. Tea producing
states o f South India are Tamilnadu, Kerala and Karnataka. Commercial produc
tion o f tea was started in South India in 1853. Tamilnadu alone produces around
37. Production o f tea on a small scale was started in South India in 193 Os. F aim
ers growing potatoes and other vegetables first started small tea plantation in the
the district, about 30000 hectares are owned by small tea growers numbering
over 60000. They produce nearly 95% o f the tea produced by small tea growers
o f South India. 173 nos. o f Bought L eaf Tea Factories are operating in the Nilgiris.
1893 is the apex organization o f die producers o f tea, coffee, rubber and spices
in South India. These producers o f different plantation crops have some common
problems relating to wages, welfare measures etc. since inception, UPASI has
been functioning admirably to advance and protect the interest o f the planting
community in Southern India. Krishi Vigyan K endra set up in 1983 serves the
40. The first Bought L eaf Tea Factoiy intheN ilgiris was established in the year
1935. Now there are more than 170 bought leaf factories operating in the Nilgiris.
operative sector. These bought leaf tea factories purchase almost the entire quan
41. Small tea growers o f the Nilgiris are faced w ith a num ber o f problems such
production, low price o f green le af etc. Out o f these problems high cost o f pro
duction and low price o f green le af are two m ajor problems confronted by the
42. From the year 2000 onwards a Quality Up-gradation Programme has been
undertaken for the small tea growers o f the Nilgiris. To realize better price for
made tea in the auction centres up-gradation o f quality is a must. Price o f green
leaf depends on price o f made tea realized in the auction market. Therefore, steps
have been taken to improve the quality o f green leaf produced by small tea grow
43. A comparative analysis o f the small tea sectors o f South India and
Assam reveals that the small tea cultivation o f South India is older and the growers
have earned m uch experience. They have ownership title over tea growing lands
and m ost o f them are registered w ith the Tea Board o f India. The growers have
Association o f Southern India (UPASI) plays an im portant role for the growth
and development o f the small tea sector. The productivity o f the small tea sector
o f South India is higher than Assam. But the quality o f tea produced by them is
inferior and the selling price o f made tea is less in com parison to Assam.