Piyush Goyal interacts with representatives of tea industry in Guwahati

Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Saturday interacted with representatives of the tea industry, and assured them that the Centre will take necessary steps to resolve the issues faced by the sector.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and Industry Minister Bimal Bora were also present on the occasion along with stakeholders, including buyers, producers and small tea growers from various states.

Goyal said he has taken cognisance of the challenges faced by the industry, and he will hold further consultations to resolve the issues. Sarma said the state government is cognisant of the macro challenges confronting Assam's tea industry and its solutions require a collaborative approach.

I am extremely grateful to Hon'ble Union Minister Shri @PiyushGoyal ji for patiently hearing the stakeholders of the tea industry and taking a positive approach to resolve their issues. Thank you Piyush Goyal ji for your valuable time, the chief minister wrote on X.

North Eastern Tea Association (NETA) chairman Ajay Dhandharia, in his presentation, highlighted various challenges being faced by the Assam tea industry, which include routing of 100 percent dust grades through public auctions, maximum residue limit, efficiency of public auctions, early closure of production by December 30, low per capita consumption of tea, stagnancy in export from India and climate change, among others.

Meanwhile, the North East Confederation Small Tea Grower's Association (NECSTGA) called for disbursement of funds to small tea growers under the development and promotion scheme of the 15th Finance Commission to be made more streamlined.

The association also demanded that sufficient funds be made available to Tocklai Tea Research Institute (TTRI) so that it can conduct awareness and training programmes for small tea growers, NECSTGA President Diganta Phukan said.

It also called for declaring tea as the national drink of India and Dibrugarh the Tea City' of the country, Phukan added.

Goyal was on a day-long tour of the city, and had earlier visited the Kamakhya Temple to offer prayers.