Govt increases outlay for tea development plan by 82% to ₹528 crore for two years

livemint.com:

₹528.97 crore for the next two financial years (to FY26), a senior government official said. The scheme is aimed at supporting the development of improved varieties of tea to increase production and quality. India is the largest producer of black tea and the third-largest tea exporter, but exports dipped by more than 4% to $673 million during April-January this fiscal.

Under the scheme, the government will assist small tea growers, whose number has increased to 0.23 million. Of these farmers, 70% have one hectare or less of land. The scheme aims to set up 800 self-help groups (SHG) and 330 farmer-producer organisations (FPOs) by FY26, with an outlay of ₹105.5 crore, said Amardeep Singh Bhatia, additional secretary in the department of commerce.

Earlier, the plan was to set up 40 SHGs and 8 FPOs with an outlay of ₹2.7 crore. "The outlay has been increased by 82% from ₹290.81 crore to ₹528.97 crore for the next two financial years," Bhatia said. The increased outlay will be used to promote Indian tea in domestic and international markets.

Funds for the promotion of tea have been increased to ₹72.42 crore. The government will promote Darjeeling and other GI teas in global markets to improve exports. It also has set aside ₹40 crore for blending and packaging units for value addition, Bhatia added.

"The objective is to increase exports, especially in value-added segments and consumption of quality tea," he said. Another ₹20 crore has been allocated to set up or upgrade tea testing labs to improve quality. The scheme also aims to harness technology such as precision farming, drone surveillance, traceability through blockchain, and digitisation of the Tea Board’s activities.