'Merger of Tea Board with other commodity boards would help lift production, exports'

The likely merger of Tea Board of India with other commodity boards, creating an umbrella organisation, would help improve production and export of plantation crops such as tea, coffee and spices.

According to P K Bezboruah, Chairman, Tea Board, there could be a possibility of the separation of the functions being performed by Tea Board and various other boards right now.

“There is also talk about bringing promotion under one umbrella and other functions of the board under the Agriculture Ministry. Research function of the board may be dismantled or may be handled by other organisations such as CSIR or ICAR,” said Bezboruah, during the annual general meeting of the Tea Association of India here on Tuesday.

Farmers to benefit The board will have a more critical role to play if it is merged with the Agriculture Ministry.

“If it is merged with the agriculture industry, maybe it will have more important role. The Agriculture Ministry is doing good for crops such as sugar cane, paddy and wheat. Maybe it will ensure that tea growers get fertilizers at the farm rate and not at the industrial rate,” he said.

With talks of merger and reorganisation doing rounds, it would be a “grave mistake” to look at Tea Board as a “saviour” of the industry in future, he said.

“Tea Board’s mandate has been to help the industry, but I feel that era is past. The thinking at the highest level of the government today is that the importance of these autonomous entities has decreased,” he said.

Tough times ahead The tea industry has lost its unique advantage with entry barriers and low wages becoming a thing of past.

There has been a drop in volumes for organised players, while small tea growers have been growing at a fast pace.

“The share of small tea growers is increasing and it will continue to go up with more and more growers from the north-eastern States of Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur getting into tea plantation on forest land,” he said.

Innovation The industry will, therefore, have to innovate to be able to sustain.

Players should explore the possibility of going in for multicropping and mechanisation to improve productivity.

“There is a lack of a level-playing field between the organised sector and the small tea growers. If the industry wants to survive, it will have to innovate,” he said.

COMMENT NOW