Vinod Sivappa elected new president of UPASI

While T Jayaram was elected as vice-president of the apex body of tea, coffee, rubber, pepper and cardamom planters in South India

The United Planters' Association of Southern India's (UPASI's) members have elected D Vinod Sivappa as the new president of the association for 2016-17. He will succeed N Dharmaraj.

Sivappa’s family has been in the coffee growing business for more than 160 years. He was on the Committees of Codagu Planters’ Association and was also the chairman of the Karnataka Planters’ Association.

Further, T Jayaram was elected as vice-president of UPASI for the year 2016-17.

Jayaram, an agricultural graduate, runs a family business of cultivation and manufacturing of tea with an experience of 37 years. He is the third generation of the family to be involved in tea plantations. He has occupied various positions, such as chairman of the Nilgiri Planters’ Association and Planters’ Association of Tamilnadu. He has served on the UPASI Executive Committee for the past 20 years.

UPASI is an apex body of planters of tea, coffee, rubber, pepper and cardamom in the Southern states of India – Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka – and has been in existence since 1893.

There are three state planters' associations and 13 district planters' associations affiliated to UPASI. It is the premier representative body of buyers, sellers, processors, exporters, co-operatives and all other market intermediaries of tea, coffee, rubber and spices.

The association's operations cover economic research, market intelligence, industrial relations, liaison, public relations, scientific research and publication.