Bengal small tea growers want a separate directorate under Tea Board

KOLKATA: The small tea growers of North Bengal want a separate directorate under Tea Board that will exclusively deal with their issues. To this effect the Confederation of Indian Small Tea Growers Association ( CISTA) has submitted a memorandum to the newly appointed Tea Board chairman Mr M.G.V.K. Bhanu on Wednesday.

Mr BG Chakraborty president of CISTA said: "Creation of a separate STG (small tea grower) directorate under the aegis of Tea Board will help in better execution and monitoring of the different schemes, in initiating pilot programmes on alternative market development for STGs and in providing systematic training and extension services."

CISTA has also demanded to involve the small tea growers in planning, execution and monitoring of schemes meant for the STGs in the next five year plans. "CISTA has already submitted a comprehensive proposal for the CTGs in the 12th Paln period to the Union commerce ministry. Some of them include scheme for setting up of processing unit by the small tea growers cooperatives and special schemes for assistance for promoting organic tea," Mr Chakroborty said.

CISTA has also demanded thatf the existing price sharing formula between the STGs and bought leaf factories should eb made transparent and efficient and a system should be put in place to regularly monitor the effectiveness of the price sharing formula. The small tea growers also demanded that Tea Board should put in place a stringent qualityy control system to improve the quality of green leaf by the STGs and made tea by the bought leaf factories so that there is a better price realisation for all.