Darjeeling tea exports to the West caught in a political storm

Darjeeling tea, one of the world’s most popular hot beverages, may soon lose significant export demand from tea connoisseurs in the western world, thanks to an unprecedented militant trade unionism by supporters of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, a political outfit demanding separate statehood.

The Morcha-controlled Darjeeling Terai Dooars Plantation Labour Union has virtually blocked dispatch of the prized first flush tea leaves from the gardens from Sunday demanding higher wages.

“The situation is scary. The just plucked first crop of the season, the most premium of all teas produced during a year, is not being allowed to be exported from the gardens. Our clients in Germany and Japan are annoyed as the leaves have already started losing their quality and value,” Sanjay Bansal, chairman, Darjeeling Tea Association told DNA.

First flush variety of Darjeeling tea—the leaves plucked at the beginning of the tea season that starts mid-February—commands a premium over all other varieties of tea produced in the country and is fully exported to the developed markets.

Japan is a major market for such teas whose importers usually pay Rs4,000-4,500 a kilogram of tea.

“Unless the deadlock comes to an end, Darjeeling tea industry would suffer a big blow and loss of image in the world market as this is the first time that Indian tea exporters might fail to honour export commitment,” Bansal said.

The deadlock would be difficult to resolve as the workers have demanded more than 100% hike in daily wages from Rs67 a day to up to Rs154 a day, something which the tea planters would find difficult to accept.

To address the crisis situation, Consultative Committee of Plantation Associations, the apex body of all tea producers’ associations, huddled in an emergency meeting on Monday afternoon initiating discussion on the wage hike issue, Indian Tea Association secretary general Monojit Dasgupta said.

Indian Tea Association represents most of the planters in West Bengal and Assam.

“The union’s charter sets the demands for workers’ wages at completely unsustainable levels given the commercial and economic realities of the tea industry,” Dasgupta said.

The existing 3-year wage agreement effective since 2008 is scheduled to expire on March 31.