Guwahati, Feb. 14: The Assam government will soon impose a ban on setting up of new "bought-leaf factories" as an immediate measure to control production of poor quality tea.

The term "bought-leaf factories" denote standalone units that process tea with leaf procured mainly from small growers. These factories allegedly do not care for quality and sell their produce outside the state.

There are nearly 220 such factories in the state at present, which accounts for about 15 per cent of the total production.

The decision in this regard was taken at a meeting between a delegation of small tea growers and industry minister Pradyut Bordoloi here yesterday.

Bordoloi said that it was high time to regulate the mushrooming growth of these newly bought tea factories, which are more or less responsible for the deteriorating quality of Assam tea.

The minister said that small tea growers can set up such factories but they have to fulfil the basic norm that half the leaves processed in the factory should be from their own gardens.

The president of the All Assam Small Tea Growers Association, Cheniram Khonikar, led a 10-member delegation to hold a meeting with the minister. The president of Confederation of Indian Small Tea Growers Association, Satyajeet Bordoloi, and president of Assam Bought Leaf Factories Association, Kanekeswar Sensowa, were also present at the meeting.

Khonikar said the government's decision to ban the setting up of new brought leaf factories would be a big help in checking production of poor quality tea in the state. "These factories only concentrate on quantity production and quality takes a back seat."

The All Bodoland Small Tea Growers Association, which has around 700 registered members, have also joined the Assam small tea growers association recently.

Apart from the ban, the government will also soon depute a magistrate in each district to monitor the buying and selling of green leaf.

The minister said the state government was contemplating floating a small tea growers labour welfare fund and has asked the members to contribute the same.

There are about 2.5 lakh labourers involved in the small tea growers' sector in Assam, which has nearly 60,000 registered small tea growers.

Khonikar said that the decision to contribute towards the labour welfare fund would be taken up in the annual general meeting of the association to be held at Lakhimpur next month.