Satellite images expose scars in tea plantations
Indian tea has undergone a quality degradation due to the presence of old and unyielding bushes in domestic tea gardens.
By Debasis Sarkar, TNN |
SILIGURI: Indian tea has undergone a quality degradation due to the presence of old and unyielding bushes in domestic tea gardens. However, satellite imagery reports seem to suggest that local tea entrepreneurs may have remained more interested in receiving replantation subsidy than utilising it for the development of tea gardens. “Assessment of tea bush health & yield using geospatial techniques,” a thesis by Rishiraj Dutta of GIS Development, is among the first few studies about assessing tea health in India through the remote sensing technology.
According to the study conducted over a large part of Assam, the Landsat image of December, ’01 showed 60.4% area under healthy tea, 23.6% under moderately affected tea and 16.2% area under diseased tea cultivation. Landsat is a joint programme conducted by Nasa and the US Geological Survey.
However, the situation worsened in the next few years. Satellite images in February, ’04 showed 43.9% area under healthy, 36.8% under moderately affected and 19.3% under diseased tea cultivation. In contrast, the Aster image of June, ’04 showed only 24.9% in healthy condition, 50.1% moderately healthy and 25.1% diseased. Hence, indicating the increasing tendency of a slow paced tea bush replantation process in the region.
“All the gardens are supposed to replant 2% of their bushes so that each garden gets a new set of bushes within 50 years, which is the optimum yielding age for a tea bush,” said tea expert SE Kabeer.
Even before the conceptualisation of a Rs 4,5000-crore fund in May, ’05 to aid tea bush replantation, “a standing subsidy provision was offered by the Tea Board at 25% annually against the total replantation expenditure,” Mr Kabeer added. Still, over 70% of bushes in India are over 50 years old.
Darjeeling produces around 550 kg made tea per hectare annually against nearly 2,100 kg produced by Kenya, the latter having comparatively new plantations. However, the Tea Board is planning to engage Isro and IIT Kharagpur to asses the health of the domestic tea sector through remote sensing during the 11th Plan period.
According to the study conducted over a large part of Assam, the Landsat image of December, ’01 showed 60.4% area under healthy tea, 23.6% under moderately affected tea and 16.2% area under diseased tea cultivation. Landsat is a joint programme conducted by Nasa and the US Geological Survey.
However, the situation worsened in the next few years. Satellite images in February, ’04 showed 43.9% area under healthy, 36.8% under moderately affected and 19.3% under diseased tea cultivation. In contrast, the Aster image of June, ’04 showed only 24.9% in healthy condition, 50.1% moderately healthy and 25.1% diseased. Hence, indicating the increasing tendency of a slow paced tea bush replantation process in the region.
“All the gardens are supposed to replant 2% of their bushes so that each garden gets a new set of bushes within 50 years, which is the optimum yielding age for a tea bush,” said tea expert SE Kabeer.
Even before the conceptualisation of a Rs 4,5000-crore fund in May, ’05 to aid tea bush replantation, “a standing subsidy provision was offered by the Tea Board at 25% annually against the total replantation expenditure,” Mr Kabeer added. Still, over 70% of bushes in India are over 50 years old.
Darjeeling produces around 550 kg made tea per hectare annually against nearly 2,100 kg produced by Kenya, the latter having comparatively new plantations. However, the Tea Board is planning to engage Isro and IIT Kharagpur to asses the health of the domestic tea sector through remote sensing during the 11th Plan period.
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