India’s Darjeeling tea

Subject – Geography

Context – Duplicates from Nepal add to India’s Darjeeling tea worries

Concept –

After years of countering cheaper teas imported from Kenya and Sri Lanka, the beverage industry in India has a new worry — duplicate Darjeeling tea brought in from Nepal.
The Tea Association of India (TAI) has raised the red flag on Nepal-origin teas reportedly sold in the domestic market as the premium Darjeeling teas, thereby “diluting the brand image of Darjeeling tea and adversely impacting prices”.
A revised treaty on trade signed in 2009 allowed the free and unhampered flow of goods between India and Nepal. But that should not be the reason for overlooking certain regulation
The current trade between India and Nepal allows mandatory sanitary and phytosanitary certificates before products are allowed in the country. This should be strictly enforced and a notification may accordingly be issued.

About Tea –

Tea is a beverage made from the Camellia sinesis plant. It is the world’s most consumed drink, after water.
Origin: It is believed that tea originated in northeast India, north Myanmar and southwest China, but the exact place where the plant first grew is not known. There is evidence that tea was consumed in China 5,000 years ago.
Tea is a tropical and sub-tropical plant and grows well in moderately hot and humid climates.
The ideal temperature for its growth is 20°-30°C and temperatures above 35°C and below 10°C are harmful for the bush.
It requires 150-300 cm annual rainfall which should be well distributed throughout the year.
The most suitable soil for tea cultivation is slightly acidic soil (without calcium) with porous sub-soil which permits a free percolation of water.
Tea is a shade-loving plant and develops more vigorously when planted along with shady trees.
FAO has designated 4 tea cultivation sites in China, Korea and Japan as Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems.
- Pu’er Traditional Tea Agrosystem (China)
- Fuzhou Jasmine and Tea Culture System (China)
- Traditional Tea-grass Integrated System (Japan)
- Traditional Hadong Tea Agrosystem, Hwagae-myeon (Republic of Korea).
India and Tea Production
- The largest consumer of tea in the world
- The second largest producer of tea in the world
- The fourth largest exporter of tea in the world.

Tea Board

It is a statutory body under the Ministry of Commerce.
The Board is constituted of 31 members (including Chairman) drawn from Members of Parliament, tea producers, tea traders, tea brokers, consumers, and representatives of Governments from the principal tea producing states, and trade unions.
The Board is reconstituted every three years.