Staff Reporter
GUWAHATI: The tea season for the year 2024 in Assam and other states in the Northeast ended on December 2, 2024, following a directive from the Tea Board of India.
The Tea Board of India on July 15, 2024, notified the last date of plucking/receiving of green leaves by tea factories and the last date of processing green leaves at factories for all units, etc. November 30 and December 2, 2024.
According to sources in the Tea Board, the tea manufacturing units of Assam and other states in the Northeast are intimating it and declaring the closure of their tea manufacturing today.
From now onwards, the tea manufacturing units can do only the completion of sorting, gapping, packing, and transporting to notified storage areas of CTC till December 13, 2024. However, completion of sorting, gapping, packing, and transporting to notified storage areas of Orthodox/green teas is allowed till December 18, 2024.
The Tea Board sources further said that it fixes the closure dates of tea manufacturing in the northeastern states as per the tea (marketing) control order 2003.
According to Tea Board sources, the green tea leaves plucked in December in Assam and other states in the regions become poor in quality.
Assam produced 577.07 million kg of tea from January to October 2024, and the state apprehends a fall in tea production in the calendar year 2024 when compared to the production in 2023. In the calendar year 2023, Assam produced 688.33 million kg of tea.
After the tea season ends, the tea bushes in the gardens of the big companies and small growers are pruned. This results in new leaves sprouting in the bushes for the next tea season, which starts in March/April.
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