The Parliamentary standing committee on commerce has recommended that small tea growers who contribute over half of the total tea produced in India be considered on a par with farmers and brought within the ambit of central welfare and assistance schemes.
The committee headed by Trinamul Congress MP Dola Sen submitted its 188th report with several recommendations to the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha on March 20 and 21, respectively.
“Along with new recommendations, the report also mentions the actions taken by the central government on the recommendations and observations which the committee had made in its 187th report on the ‘comprehensive strategy to map major products and countries to maximise exports and minimise imports’,” said a source.
India has around two-and-a-half lakh small tea growers spread across Bengal, Assam and southern states. According to data published by the Tea Board, the small tea sector contributed 53.93 per cent of the production in 2024.
“In some of the tea belts like north Bengal, the contribution of the small tea growers is much higher. In 2024, it was 64.22 per cent,” said a tea grower in Siliguri.
Bengal has around 50,000 small tea growers having plantations in the districts of North Dinajpur, Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar and Cooch Behar.
Small tea growers always demanded similar welfare schemes and benefits offered to farmers by the central government. One who cultivates tea on less than 10 hectares is classified as a small tea grower. Small growers sell their produce (green tea leaves) to bought-leaf factories or standalone tea-processing units.
In the report, the standing committee said: “The Committee notes that despite initial engagement between the department of commerce and the Ministry of agriculture and farmers’ welfare, tangible outcomes for inclusion of small tea growers in welfare schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) and the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY) are lacking.”
“To address these gaps, the committee recommends that the department should actively pursue the inclusion of small tea growers in these and other relevant schemes. Additionally, the eligibility criteria for welfare schemes must be revised to provide small tea growers with the same benefits as other farmers,” added the report.
Bijoygopal Chakraborty, the president of the Confederation of Indian Small Tea Growers’ Associations, said: “The small tea growers are no different than farmers. We have flagged our demands many times and this time, as the standing committee on commerce has specifically mentioned the issue, we hope the central government will take necessary initiatives for the benefit of thousands of tea growers.”