Siliguri's tea planters staring at pest-linked production losses

Tea planters in Siliguri are having a tough time breaking even as pests have damaged almost a third of their crops.

Unrest among so-called Tea Tribes in Siliguri is visible as changing weather patterns have upset the economics of the industry.

Scientists say climate change is to blame for uneven rainfall that is cutting yields and lifting costs for tea firms.

While rainfall has declined and become concentrated, temperatures have risen- ideal conditions for pests like looper caterpillar and helopeltis tea mosquito to infest the light green tea shoots just before they are ready to be plucked for processing.

Use of pesticides and fertilisers has nearly doubled as a result in tea plantations, known as gardens, and the rising costs are making Indian tea less competitive.

A tea trader, Krishna Kumar Tiwari, said that the poor quality tea was fetching half the price.

"As compared to last year, the production this year has been very good. Last year around this time, there was a drought but this year the weather is such that it rains at night and the sun shines bright in the morning. But the tea crop has been infested by two kinds of pests, looper and helopeltis. They are affecting the quality of tea leaves which in turn is impacting the quality of tea," said Tiwari.

Explaining the impact of pests on the tea leaves, Tiwari says once a leaf is affected by a pest it becomes less soft and the result is a not so strong tea.

Secretary of North Bengal Small Tea Planters' Association, Netai Majumdar, said that 30 per cent of the tea production this year has already been eaten up by these pests.

"The scientists from Tocklai or TRA (Tea Research Association) should analyse the pesticides banned by the Tea Board and also see which are the pesticides whose effects will last for at least 45 days. This will help us cut down on the use of pesticides and also the production cost," said Majumdar.

He pointed out that the pesticides currently being used by tea planters are only able to keep the pests at bay for a fortnight after which they resurface.