Calcutta, May 4: The Siliguri tea auction was hit hard today as the deadlock over brokerage fee continued.

No tea was sold at the auction (sale 18), even though some buyers were present.

“There were about 50 buyers present. A single buyer often operates for multiple companies. But they did not participate in the buying process. However, the situation was peaceful and they did not prevent anyone from buying,” said Shiv K. Saria, chairman of Siliguri Tea Auction Committee. On a normal auction day, there are more than 100 buyers.

Around 42,000 CTC packages (30kg/package approximately) were on offer, but nothing was sold. According to Saria, large players do not operate at this time of the year as the quality does not meet their requirements. The first flush on offer cannot be stored for long.

The industry, including buyers and auctioneers, are awaiting the outcome of tomorrow’s meeting of the Tea Auction Buyers Association of Calcutta (Tabac). After Calcutta takes a stance, reactions in other centres like Guwahati and Siliguri will follow, Saria said. The industry is divided on this issue. According to auctioneers, around 70 per cent of the Darjeeling produced have already been sold privately from Calcutta.