Small tea grower's body unhappy over low price of leaves

FROM A CORRESPONDENT

Dibrugarh, April 8: Pointing fingers at the tea leaves manufacturers of playing foul on the pricing of green tea leaves; the price issue has once again raised by the small tea growers’ body.

The All Assam Small Tea Grower’s Association (AASTGA) alleged that the manufacturers are paying low prices to growers by stating that the leaves supplied to the growers had grown longer and had turned coarse.  The general secretary of small tea grower’s body  Rohit Borgohain have stated that some factories are deducting about 10 percent of the total weight, giving the same reasons. The manufacturers are processing the coarse leaves, instead of rejecting or segregating the coarse leaves from the quality produce, he alleged.

As the first flush of green tea leaves in general fetches a high price, for the tea leaves harvested on March, the growers were paid between rupees 14 to 20 for every kilogram of leaves.  Notably, in the previous years, the small tea growers had received over rupees 20 per kg around this season.

Calling upon the Tea Board  and the respective district price monitoring committees, the small tea growers  organization,  has  urged upon them  to ensure that the tea growers are not denied fair prices , at the time when  the bench mark price of green tea leaves are being determined.

Meanwhile, Borgohain   has insisted upon taking of proper initiatives to be taken by Tea Board and the State Government, to open tea factories exclusively for small tea growers, so as to protect them from being exploited.