The Hindu Business Line : Floods wreak havoc in Barak valley tea estates

Kolkata, Sept. 21 Floods in Assam have devastated a large number of tea estates in the State’s Barak Valley. An estimated 20 per cent of the total of 103 tea estates in the valley are believed to be completely under waters. The number of estates partially affected too is not small. As a result, normal operations have remained suspended in many tea estates, according to tea industry sources.

The damage caused to road and rail links has thrown up several problems. Essential items such as coal, petroleum products and other fuels cannot be transported to the affected gardens. In most flood-hit gardens, there is an acute shortage of foodgrains for workers and their families. Teas ready for despatch cannot be evacuated out of the gardens, causing cash flow problems.

Particularly hit are those tea gardens which are located in remote areas as the supply line is totally cut off. Disruption in communication system caused by incessant rains has made the collection of information from these gardens even more difficult. Quick estimation of loss is not possible as one has to depend on the thin trickle of information.

Historically, according to the Indian Tea Association (ITA), tea estates in Barak Valley have been in disadvantageous position vis-À-vis the tea estates in the Brahmaputra Valley in the sense the average yield per hectare in Barak Valley is lower than that in Brahmaputra Valley. Also, the price realisation is lower. The tea industry in Barak Valley has been reeling under the unprecedented recession since 1999. The present floods will deal yet another blow to it.

long-term effect

The long-term effect of the floods, said Mr Shashank Prashad, President of Tea Association of India, too will be substantial because of the destruction of a large number of young as well as matured tea bushes. The damage to tea factories and buildings in the gardens too has been a matter of concern.

Mr Prashad, therefore, has urged the Assam Chief Minister, Mr Tarun Gogoi, to come to the rescue of the affected tea estates and the people dependent on them. While work on the restoration of rail and road links should brook no delay, the State Government should help the industry by granting reprieve from the payment of green leaf cess and other statutory dues, he said.

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