Correspondent
RUKSIN, 1 Feb: The state trade & commerce department, in collaboration with the Tea Board India’s Itanagar region office, conducted a training programme on ‘Comprehensive quality upgradation for small tea growers’ at the Donyi Polo Tea Estate in East Siang district on Friday.
The initiative was aimed at enhancing the tea processing and manufacturing skills of small tea growers from the Siang Valley and nearby Assam.
The training focused on modern technologies, including stress management, pruning of tea plant, and plant protection code in tea processing to improve the quality of products and market competitiveness.
Technical experts from the Tea Board India – Krishna Bora, B Bordoloi and Dhiraj Saikia – attended as resource persons.
During the training, the issue of power subsidies for large-scale operations like the Donyi Polo Tea Estate was brought into discussion.
It is said that running a tea factory is no small feat; power subsidies would significantly ease their operational costs.
The event underscored the necessity for a re-evaluation policy to support small tea growers in the Siang belt, to and ensure that the small tea farmers can compete on a level playing field with other agricultural sectors.
The small tea growers of the belt are disappointed over the Supreme Court order of 1996, stating that small tea growers must obtain licence for their tea products – a hurdle not similarly faced by farmers growing oil palm and rubber plantations.
“We are facing a disparity in the government support system. Subsidy grants and licenses are being readily available for oil palm and rubber, but it seems something neglected in the tea industry, especially for small growers”, the small tea growers, who are seeking equal opportunity in agricultural subsidies, said.
