The Tea Board of India has cancelled the licence of 24 buyer units in South India for various violations.

“We had issued show cause notices to 46 buyer units across the Southern states seeking their explanation for non submission of the mandatory quarterly returns in Form F as this is violation of various provisions of the applicable law,” Tea Board Executive Director Dr M Balaji said.

As 24 of them did not respond, second set of Notices were issued to them to provide opportunity of being heard, he said.

After detailed enquiry and verification, their licences have been ordered to be cancelled, he disclosed.

“The quarterly returns furnished by the buyers are essential to regulate the production and supply in the market. They are crucial for declaring the monthly average price for small farmers,” Dr Balaji explained.

He said that the South Zonal Office of the Tea Board located in Coonoor has been undertaking regulatory measures to ensure the quality of the made tea produced by the factories and the Notices to the buyers were issued as part of this effort.

Besides this, sample checking by the auctioneers is regularly done. The Board is closely monitoring the quantity offered in the auction platform and the filing of the various statutory returns by the stakeholders, he said.

“Substantial efforts have been taken to contain adulteration and excess use of tea waste in the final products. As many as 140 notices to Bought leaf factories, 58 notices to estate factories including state-owned estates and factories, 14 notices to auctioneers and 30 notices to tea waste processing units have been issued. Of this, 44 licenses have been cancelled; in the remaining cases, based on the gravity of the deviations observed, appropriate advisory notices had been issued,” Dr Balaji disclosed.

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