NONGPOH/TURA: The ongoing lockdown has adversely affected small-time tea growers in Ri Bhoi and Garo Hills.
In Ri Bhoi, 80-year-old Dulit Wahlang said the lockdown began during harvest and instead of getting 50-60 kg a day, the planter is harvesting only a few kilograms. “The leaves are getting old and fresh pruning is required,” said Wahlang of Quinine village who is in the tea business for more than three decades now.
“I have to spend thousands just for pruning in tea garden spreading over an area of 6 acres. Had there been no lockdown, pruning would not have been necessary at this time of the year. Even after pruning, we have to wait for another four months for fresh tea leaves to grow and harvest,” he added.
Wahlang also complained about the low price of fresh green tea leaves, which is Rs 16 per kg, “whereas labour cost keeps on increasing and labourers are difficult to get”. The rate of a woman labourer is Rs 200 per day. “The output is very low as they are not skilled enough and I am incurring a huge loss,” Wahlang said, adding that he would shift to pineapple plantation, which is more profitable than tea.
With no help from the government, several tea growers in Marngar area have either abandoned their plantations or have shifted to pineapple or other crops.
AD Sylliang, a former tea grower and teacher by profession from Marngar area, said tea plantation involved huge maintenance cost and produce is less.
BR Syngkli of Nalari Tea Estate at Mawsyntai said the factory is closed due to lockdown and yet the management has to incur huge expenditure to provide monetary help and other essential items to daily wage labourers.
Syngkli informed that pre-lockdown, the factory used to produce around 400-500 kg of tea per day. “Now that the government has relaxed a bit we have started operating with only 50 per cent staff. Our produce is only around 200 kg per day as the supply of raw materials has decreased. We are expecting that the supply of raw materials will soon come back to normal by mid-June or July,” he added.
On the allegations that the factory is taking undue advantage on the local tea growers, Syngkli said even the factory faces difficulties. “The government should address their (the tea growers’) problems, ours is a private factory and I am just an employee and I can’t say much on this allegation,” he added.
The rate of fresh green tea leaves is Rs 17 per kg if delivered at the factory and Rs 16.50 if they pick up themselves.
In West Garo Hills, tea farmers from Rongram area were at the risk of losing their crops due to the closure of the two factories in the area. But they are relieved after the district administration and block officials promised to make temporary arrangements to send the already plucked leaves to Assam.
To take stock of the situation, West Garo Hills Deputy Commissioner, Ram Singh visited the factories on Tuesday and held a meeting with authorities to find a solution to the plight of the tea farmers. During the meeting, it was decided that the farmers would submit the plucked tea leaves to the Durama factory from where it would be sent to Assam. The process of transportation is to be facilitated by the BDO and the Horticulture Department.
Prior to the COVID-19 lockdown in the state, the tea growers usually submit their harvested produce to two local tea factories-the Durama Tea Industry and the Arengh Tea Industry, both located in Rongram. However, since the two factories were closed when the lockdown began, both have failed to open up even after lockdown was eased and permit given, due to lack of technical staff at the industries.
The manager of Arengh Tea Industry, Bobby Brian Arengh, said the factories were unable to operate as the technical staff employed by them had left their stations prior to the lockdown.
“We had to keep the factory shut as many of our out of state technical staff are yet to return. We used to have a permanent fitter (mechanic) stationed at the factory, but he lost his life in an accident last year. We have found a replacement and once he arrives, we can open our factories full time,” Arengh said.
Meanwhile, the factories have been advised to recruit skilled technical staff to ensure operation. But the units have to follow necessary guidelines like self quarantine if the recruitment is done from outside.
