Association decides to take legal action against Centre

The Nilgiris Tea Growers Association today decided to take legal action, including contempt of court against the Centre for its alleged failure to implement the Madras High Court directive to fix minimum price for green tea leaves.
The decision was taken at a meeting of representatives of small growers, numbering about one lakh in the district, Manjai V Mohan, president of the Association told reporters here.
Considering the lower and also fluctuating prices for the last 10 to 15 years, the Association had approached the Court in 2002, which in 2007 directed the government to fix minimum price for green leaves.

As the government failed to take steps, the association again moved the court in 2008 and the government sought six months time to work on fixing minimum prices, he said.
The Association decided to approach the court to seek justice for its long pending demand to fix the minimum price since the government was sitting on the directive, he said.
The green leaves were given a price of Rs six to Rs 10 per Kg and sometimes Rs 12 per kg, depending on the quality, Mohan said alleging a cartel between the factories and buyers was benefiting the middlemen instead of growers.

Giving a 15-day ultimatum to both the Central and state governments to take steps to fix minimum prices, the Association decided to boycott the annual Gram Sabha meeting on August 15, he said.