The Hindu Business Line : Trade wants tea declared as national drink

IN an effort to outsmart competing rival beverages, tea industry is lobbying hard with the Union Government to announce tea as the National Drink of India and also mark a day as the National Tea Day.

A formal proposal has already been submitted to the Tea Board, a Union Commerce Ministry outfit. The industry is trying to promote tea as a health drink and is currently busy in identifying a date, which will be marked as the National Tea Day.

The proposal was made by Federation of All India Tea Traders Association (FAITTA) but it was supported by the tea producers too. In fact, the body is working out a detailed promotional activity in collaboration with the Tea Board as an extension of the "Piyo More Chai" campaign.

The traders took these decisions at a meeting last week, when the producers were struggling to calculate their gains from the "sops" announced by the Union Finance Minister. Mr N.K. Das, Chairman of Tea Board, was present in that meeting.

Mr Das was not available for his comments but sources in his office said the suggestions were received but "no formal assurance" was given by the Tea Board Chairman. "The proposal will be considered" sources said.

Talking to Business Line from Hyderabad, Mr Darvesh Ghiyasuddin, Chairman of FAITTA, explained why tea should be declared as the National Drink of India.

"Tea was first discovered in India. Even today we are world's largest producer and consumer of tea. This is one beverage which can be afforded even by the poorest Indian. The drink integrates India and it is exclusive to tea only. So, there is every good reason to declare tea as the national drink," Mr Ghiyasuddin said.

Competing industries are at a loss. "How can it be done? I doubt whether Indian laws permit such a thing at all. It is hard to believe that the proposal will be accepted," a coffee producer said. An executive in a soft drink bottling plant felt the idea is "childish and ridiculous" and it will not stimulate any extra growth to the tea industry.

According to the FAITTA Chief, after the cola controversy, tea has established itself firmly as a health drink too and it has been noticed with the increasing domestic consumption. "Tea reduces cholesterol and controls blood pressure," he said.

FAITTA is considering to declare either April 13 (the Baishaki) or the day when Tea Board was incorporated (sometime in June or July of 1953) as the National Tea Day.

"On this day everyone will be offered a free drink of tea by all the sections of the industry. We want to treat every Indian with a cup of tea. The Union Government can release commemorative stamps on tea on this day too," he said.

Meanwhile, Tea Board has recently worked out a fresh `Piyo More Chai' campaign with a Rs 20 crore budget. It was formally announced by the Tea Board a couple of weeks ago.

FAITTA along with a leading tea producer is considering weekly tea promotional activity. It is scheduled to start off from Kolkata in March, this year, where the consumers will be treated with special qualities of Darjeeling, Assam and Niligiris tea.

"We wish to make the consumer aware of the difference in these teas. From the metros we wish to take this campaign to rural India as there is a huge potential" he said.