The Hindu Business Line : Small tea growers seek reasonable floor price

THE Nilgiris Small Tea Growers' Association has urged the Tamil Nadu Government to accord tea growers similar status as those given to general farmers cultivating crops such as paddy and sugar cane.

"We have appealed for treating tea growers as agriculturists as that alone would enable us to get the benefits which the State Government gives to the farmers. Many a time, we are treated as the suppliers of raw material to the tea factories and not as agriculturists. So, we are thrown to the mercy of the factory owners for our returns, but we don't get any assured returns," Mr T. Rangaiah, President of the Association, told Business Line.

He said if the Government committed itself to a reasonable floor price for small tea growers , it would solve many problems as there would be no need to shell out huge sums in the form of subsidy.

The growers have been demanding a floor price up to Rs 15 a kg for the green leaf they supply to the factories from the Centre.

"We are telling the State Government that it can make a beginning in respect of the Industrial co-op factories which are managed by the State Government. These Indco factories cover around 21,000 small growers and if the State announces a workable floor price to the growers supplying the leaves to these factories, that would solve many problems," said Mr Rangaiah, who is also the former Chairman of Indcoserve, the apex body of the Indco factories.

The Centre had undertaken a cost study to examine the demand for floor price fixation for tea growers, but has not come out with any announcement so far.

Growers have been contending that the very delay the Centre makes in this regard shows that it is not convinced or prepared to announce a floor price for tea.