How tea gardens at Nilgiris, spirit of small growers wither under apathy

Even as the

International Tea Day

was observed across the world on December 15 with much fanfare, the day passed off silently at the

Nilgiris

, a major tea producing region in the country which boasts of the fragrant Nilgiri orthodox tea.

In fact, one of the chief mottos of the observance is to draw the attention of public to the problems of tea production and the impact of the global tea trade on small tea growers and workers in plantations. The Centre in 2015 also proposed expanding its observance through the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation. But the non-observance of the day at the Nilgiris this year points to the waning interest of the government in promoting the GI-tagged brand, especially at a time when small tea farmers, who own most of the acreage of tea gardens in the Nilgiris than corporate estates, are selling off their tea gardens in view of losses.

Hearing a PIL that presented the demands of small tea cultivators to fix ‘minimum support price’ for green leaf, the Madras high court in 2012 directed the Centre to fix the minimum support price keeping in mind the production cost of green leaf. But the order is yet to be implemented. A survey report submitted by the Indian Institute of Plantation Management, Bengaluru in 2013 pegged the minimum cost of production of green leaf at `17, adding that 50% of it was social cost for the farmer. The report said the minimum support price would thus fall somewhere between `25 and `27, which is in contrast to the current price of green leaf which is `11 to `12. The

tea board

determines the price based on the average price fetched for the ‘made-tea’ at auction centres. The rate changes every month depending on the average auction price for made-tea.

Even though the Tea Act ensures the rights of small tea growers and estate workers under its schemes, tea growers feel problems like these could be brought to light for discussion and resolution, only when there is an opportunity for a gathering like the observance of International Tea Day.

J B Subramanian, president, Small and Tiny Tea Growers Association, says, "Tea board is the responsible body to observe the day in a holistic manner. The small growers, tea estate workers and other stakeholders should participate and their grievance should be highlighted so that it reaches the global stage for any resolution."

The real estate boom has come as another blow to tea growers in the hill district. Gardens of corporate tea estates in the Nilgiris shrunk by about 3,300 acres, while the small tea gardens reduced at least by 24,000 acres over the past decade. Many small tea growers are selling off their gardens to real estate owners either due to losses or to earn quick money.

Environmentalists say indiscriminate conversion of tea gardens into concrete establishments would spoil the ‘tea ecosystem’ of the hills. It will also be detrimental to the livelihood of thousands of small tea growers and induce adverse climate change effects.

"If not for celebration, a function should have been organised by the tea board at least to sensitise small tea farmers against selling off their tea gardens and instead take their grievances to the government," said K Mohan, another small tea farmer.

When asked C Paulrasu, executive director, Tea Board (south) said, "the regional office of tea board at Gudalur organised a function involving school children on the occasion of International Tea Day."

Growers say, the event should have been ideally celebrated in tea hubs such as Kotagiri and Coonoor along with stakeholders to make the maximum impact. "A function involving small tea growers here would have meant a lot," adds K Shanmugam, a small tea farmer.


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