Indian Tea Association issues white paper on Darjeeling & Dooars Tea Industry seeks revival packages
The white paper on Darjeeling highlights the sharp decline in production—from 14.49 million kg in 1990 to 5.6 million kg in 2025 while the paper on Dooars & Terai Tea Industry points out at a market asymmetry between small tea growers and organised tea estates
The Indian Tea Association (ITA) has released two white papers aimed at reviving and ensuring sustainable development of the Darjeeling Tea Industry and the Dooars & Terai Tea Industry in North Bengal. The Darjeeling White Paper focuses on the significant drop in production, from 14.49 million kg in 1990 to 5.6 million kg in 2025, and calls for urgent intervention to preserve the globally recognized Geographical Indication (GI) status of Darjeeling Tea.
It proposes a budget of around Rs. 113 crore annually to address various aspects such as orthodox tea production, working capital interests, transport, mechanization, social security, rejuvenation, and factory modernization. The Dooars & Terai Tea Industry white paper highlights a disparity in market conditions, with small growers accounting for 68% of the state's production but lacking similar welfare benefits as organized estates.
This imbalance leads to higher costs for organized estates, affecting auction prices and the survival of the organized sector. ITA representatives recently met with State Industry Minister Tapas Roy, Finance Minister Swapan Dasgupta, and Chief Minister Advisor Subrata Gupta to discuss the white papers' recommendations. They aim to foster dialogue with the State Government to implement timely policy interventions that will restore competitiveness, promote sustainability, safeguard livelihoods, and encourage long-term investment in these iconic tea-growing regions.
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