Basubdeb Banerjee in Calcutta on Friday. Picture by Kishor Roy Chowdhury

Calcutta, June 27: The tea industry in Darjeeling is worried that the ongoing political tension in the hills will lead to a further drop in production.

Bad weather conditions have already led to a 30 per cent decline in production.

“This is a political problem and we hope that a political consensus will be reached sooner,” said Basubdeb Banerjee, chairman of the Tea Board, on the sidelines of the annual general meeting of the Darjeeling Tea Association.

Last year, the production of Darjeeling tea stood at 9.5 million kg, 90 per cent of which was exported.

R.K. Babaycon, vice-chairman of the Darjeeling Tea Association, said the industry had been asking the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, the political body at the helm of the movement for statehood, to keep tea out of the purview of strikes and bandhs.

IPR of Darjeeling tea

After getting geographical indication status for Darjeeling tea, the Tea Board now wants intellectual property right (IPR) protection.

Banerjee urged the industry to come forward if additional funds were required to get IPR status.

The Tea Board chairman also asked small growers in Darjeeling to maintain product quality.