Leopard found dead in tea garden

Siliguri: The body of a full-grown male leopard was found in a tea garden here today.

Environmentalists, who suspect that the animal was poisoned, have demanded a probe into the death, the cause of which is yet to be ascertained. Forest officials, too, have not ruled out foul play.

“We cannot say anything until the post-mortem report reaches us. However, we are not denying anything either,” said P.T Bhutia, the conservator of forests (wildlife), north Bengal.

The carcass was discovered early this morning by some workers of Fulbari-Patan tea estate in Khaprail, 7km from Siliguri.

A veterinary team conducted the post-mortem after which the animal was consigned to the flames.

Foresters at Sukna, which comes under Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary, said the autopsy report was expected in a week.

Recounting the incident, Ranjit Mitra, manager of the tea estate, said: “At 8.30am, the workers informed us about the leopard after which we sent for the foresters at Sukna (located 5km from the garden), who came and took the body away.”

He said about a month ago he had heard about a wild animal, possibly a leopard, roaming the tea estate.

“However, no sighting or disturbance was reported in the garden during the past few weeks. Also, the size of the paw of the earlier animal was much smaller than the one found dead today. It is quite likely that this could be a different leopard,” Mitra added.

The manager denied allegations that the animal might have been poisoned by the workers because it had been preying on their poultry.

Animesh Bose of Himalayan Nature and Adventure Foundation, however, feels otherwise. “We suspect some foul play. The forest department should investigate and take necessary action,” said Bose.

“A few weeks ago, villagers had lynched a leopard at Nagracata in Jalpaiguri. So, nothing can be ruled out,” he added.

Leopards generally give birth during summer — from April to June — in tea plantations located close to the forests. The animals avoid the sanctuaries during this period so that other big cats or leopards do not maul the newborn cubs. But this leads to tension in the gardens as the mother leopard starts preying on poultry reared by the workers and strays into human habitation.

Environmentalists alleged that though the leopard is listed in Schedule-1 of the Wildlife Protection Act and is a critically endangered species according to the World Conservation Union, it has not been covered by any conservation programme in India till date.

In 2005, the Wildlife Institute of India released an estimate (not a census), which said there were around 7,500 leopards in the country.

Source: The Telegraph

Leopard found dead in tea garden

Siliguri: The body of a full-grown male leopard was found in a tea garden here today.

Environmentalists, who suspect that the animal was poisoned, have demanded a probe into the death, the cause of which is yet to be ascertained. Forest officials, too, have not ruled out foul play.

“We cannot say anything until the post-mortem report reaches us. However, we are not denying anything either,” said P.T Bhutia, the conservator of forests (wildlife), north Bengal.

The carcass was discovered early this morning by some workers of Fulbari-Patan tea estate in Khaprail, 7km from Siliguri.

A veterinary team conducted the post-mortem after which the animal was consigned to the flames.

Foresters at Sukna, which comes under Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary, said the autopsy report was expected in a week.

Recounting the incident, Ranjit Mitra, manager of the tea estate, said: “At 8.30am, the workers informed us about the leopard after which we sent for the foresters at Sukna (located 5km from the garden), who came and took the body away.”

He said about a month ago he had heard about a wild animal, possibly a leopard, roaming the tea estate.

“However, no sighting or disturbance was reported in the garden during the past few weeks. Also, the size of the paw of the earlier animal was much smaller than the one found dead today. It is quite likely that this could be a different leopard,” Mitra added.

The manager denied allegations that the animal might have been poisoned by the workers because it had been preying on their poultry.

Animesh Bose of Himalayan Nature and Adventure Foundation, however, feels otherwise. “We suspect some foul play. The forest department should investigate and take necessary action,” said Bose.

“A few weeks ago, villagers had lynched a leopard at Nagracata in Jalpaiguri. So, nothing can be ruled out,” he added.

Leopards generally give birth during summer — from April to June — in tea plantations located close to the forests. The animals avoid the sanctuaries during this period so that other big cats or leopards do not maul the newborn cubs. But this leads to tension in the gardens as the mother leopard starts preying on poultry reared by the workers and strays into human habitation.

Environmentalists alleged that though the leopard is listed in Schedule-1 of the Wildlife Protection Act and is a critically endangered species according to the World Conservation Union, it has not been covered by any conservation programme in India till date.

In 2005, the Wildlife Institute of India released an estimate (not a census), which said there were around 7,500 leopards in the country.

Source: The Telegraph

Central sales taxed waiver at Jalpaiguri tea auction

The North Bengal Tea Auction Centre in Jalpaiguri is set to enjoy a waiver on central sales tax.

This means buyers at this auction centre will get a three per cent waiver for the next two years. The waiver, which has come into effect from April 1, is likely to give Jalpaiguri an edge over Siliguri and Calcutta.

During his visit to Jalpaiguri on April 3, Bengal finance minister Asim Dasgupta announced the waiver. “I have already signed the necessary papers, and it should be effective very soon,” he had then said.

Kamal Bhattacharjee, the executive officer of the Jalpaiguri centre, today said they had been banking on the minister’s assurance. “Finally on May 15, the state government declared through a gazette notification that buyers purchasing tea through this centre would get the benefit of a three per cent central sale tax waiver which will continue till March 31, 2009.”

The benefit, he claimed, has already started drawing buyers to this centre set up in February 2005 amid much scepticism that it would not be able to survive competition from the 30-year-old Siliguri centre.

“The Jalpaiguri centre was reeling from a crisis resulting from an abysmally low inflow of tea. However, with the notification coming into force, we have recorded 100 per cent sale of tea put on auction in the past two sessions,” said Bhattacharjee.

N.K. Basu, the secretary of the auction committee in Jalpaiguri, admitted that the waiver has come as a major boost. “We are optimistic that more tea producers will decide to sell their brew through our centre. Earlier sellers refused to use our centres because there were no buyers,” he said.

However, the members of the Siliguri tea auction committee are not happy. “We will take up the issue with the finance minister. We are being deprived,” one of them said. Siliguri is considered an “adult” centre, which had had its share of waiver when it was set up in 1975.

Currently, 150 sellers, 58 buyers and eight brokers are registered in Jalpaiguri. This is much lower than the Siliguri centre, which has 327 sellers, 425 buyers and 10 brokers.

Source: The Telegraph

Tea Child excels in exam result

Tania Bakshi lives in a closed tea estate in the Dooars and studies in the light of oil-lamps, as there is no electricity in the staff quarters.

She has got 92.4 per cent marks in the recently published ICSE results.

Bipin Gossain lives in the same garden as Tania. His father is a labourer at Ramjhora tea estate, closed since August 2002. He has cleared ICSE with 72 per cent marks.

Sonu Chhetri, a classmate of Tania and Bipin at Sunshine School in Birpara, cycled 10-12km everyday to reach school from his house in the Nichey labour line of the closed Dheklapara tea estate. He has secured 87.8 per cent in ICSE.

Tania, Bipin and Sonu’s achievement comes at a time when children from the closed and abandoned tea estates of the Dooars are dropping out of schools unable to pay their fees.

Sunshine School has played no small part in helping such students. “Around 40 per cent of the 750 children who study in our school are from tea gardens. We give concessions to those coming from closed gardens, besides free books and additional classes,” said Kirtan Chhetri, the principal.

“Despite the school bus incurring a loss, we have kept it operational considering the problems of transportation faced by students from the tea estates,” Chhetri said.

Of the 41 students who appeared for ICSE exams this year, 16 were from different tea estates, said the principal, though only Tania, Bipin and Sonu were from closed gardens. All 41 cleared the exam, Chhetri added, The ICSE topper from the school, Suman Damai (93 per cent) is also from a tea estate, albeit an operational one. “He is from Hantapara on the outskirts of Birpara,” the principal said.

Tania has already taken admission in Holy Child School in Jalpaiguri with science subjects and plans to appear in the joint entrance examination in 2009. Like her, Sonu, too, wants to study science.

Source: The Telegraph

Question mark on reopening of closed tea estate

The Bengal government’s inability to provide adequate security to Union minister Jairam Ramesh has put a question mark on the reopening of the closed Surendranagar Tea Estate.

The Dooars garden, which has been closed since 2004, was scheduled to start operations in the presence of Ramesh and estate owner Rabin Paul. It would be the first of six such gardens that were identified for reopening at a Tea Board meeting, convened on May 11 by the Union minister.

“I was to reach Jalpaiguri on May 17. All arrangements had been made. But at 5.30 pm on May 15, I was informed by the Tea Board chairman that the chief secretary of West Bengal had called him to request me to postpone my visit to Jalpaiguri,” reads the press statement issued by Ramesh in New Delhi today. “The chief secretary said the state government apprehends trouble and that the presence of the owner along with me could create law and order problems. In deference to this request from the state government, conveyed by Amit Kiran Deb, I have accordingly put off my visit to Jalpaiguri for the reopening of Surendranagar tea estate for the time being,” it added.

The minister’s failure to make it to the garden to the garden tomorrow, however, has failed to deter Paul, who has decided to go ahead with the reopening.

“Although I myself will not go to the garden tomorrow, I have already arranged for rations to be distributed among the permanent workers of the garden. I have also issued a letter authorising Ramesh Lakra, posted at the Dharanipur tea estate at the moment, to act as manager for Surendranagar Tea Estate from tomorrow,” said Paul here this evening. “I am serious about running the garden and have instructed workers and employees to resume their work from tomorrow.”

Most of the workers in the garden have reportedly decided to abide by Paul’s instructions.

“The workers of the garden have decided to join work from tomorrow and the green leaves they pick up will be delivered to the owner’s office,” said Pradeep Mullick, a leader of the Intuc-backed National Union of Plantation Workers, that enjoys the support of a majority of the garden labourers. “However, workers are apprehending trouble from Citu activists from the adjoining Red Bank Tea Estate (also owned by Paul), who control the operations and maintenance committee in Surendranagar.”

In another development today, members of Nagarik Mancha, a social rights group from Calcutta, and some human rights activists alleged that a section of residents of the closed Samsing tea estate were trying to build a satellite township in the garden on the lines of Chandmoni Tea Estate here.

Source: The Telegraph

Mixed Reaction over opening of closed tea gardens

The announcement that five of the 14 closed gardens in the Dooars will resume operations by July has evoked mixed reactions in the tea industry.

While some stakeholders have adopted a wait-and-watch policy, others are appreciating the role of Jairam Ramesh, the Union minister of state for commerce and industry, who made the announcement in Calcutta on Thursday.

Rabin Paul, the chairman-director of Surendranagar Tea Estate at Banarhat, 120 km from here, falls in the second category. Paul, who will be the first in the Dooars to reopen a closed garden, will take charge of his estate in the presence of Ramesh on May 17.

After being thwarted by Citu supporters last week from entering the garden, Paul is now waiting for D-Day.

“I had the opportunity to brief the minister who appeared to be an attentive listener,” Paul said today. “He immediately instructed the district magistrate (of Jalpaiguri) to make necessary arrangements and said he would be at the garden gates on the specified date. This is indeed an exemplary act, which would encourage other planters as well.”

Surendragar has been the focus of attention for quite sometime. Last week, Citu supporters from neighbouring Redbank Estate prevented Paul from entering Surendranagar, which has a majority of Intuc supporters. Redbank, too, is owned by Paul. The district administration, which failed to provide any escort to Paul despite a high court order, has now set up police camps at the garden.

“The minister expressed surprise when I pointed out the highhandedness of a trade union. He insisted that Citu leaders, too, should be present at the reopening programme. We have already instructed workers to arrange a befitting welcome for the minister,” he said.

Some trade union leaders are as optimistic as Paul. “We appreciate the way Ramesh addressed the issue,” said Aloke Chakravorty, the joint general secretary of the Intuc-affiliated National Union of Plantation Workers. “He adopted the strategy of inviting stakeholders and discussing each closed garden. We don’t understand why the state government could not convene such meetings and waited for the Centre’s intervention instead. Such inaction is bound to raise doubts about the sincerity of the state to reopen the estates,” the trade union leader said.

However, labour leaders like Chitta Dey, the convener of the Coordination Committee of Tea Plantation Workers — an umbrella organisation of trade unions — reacted differently. “It is definitely good news, but unless all the gardens re-open and run for a few months, we cannot relax,” Dey said. “Several issues, including workers’ dues, are still pending and have to be sorted out.”

Dey also said nothing good has come out of meetings at Kanthalguri, Ramjhora and Dekhlapara gardens, the leases of which have been cancelled. “The state could not present any buyer,” he said. “The deadlock still persists as nothing specific has been decided.”

Representatives from planters’ community have sought more help from the Centre. “Along with the closed gardens, there are some sick estates too. The Centre should extend some relief to these gardens as well,” said N.K. Basu, the convener of the state committee of Consultative Committee of Plantation Associations.

Source: The Telegraph

MP voiced tea garden workers' problems in Parliament

Kalimpong: The Congress MP from Darjeeling, Dawa Narbula, has raised the problems faced by workers in tea gardens and cinchona plantations in the Parliament.

Narbula has demanded stringent measures against managements found violating the Plantation Labour Act, Factories Act, Payment of Bonus Act, Industrial Disputes Act, Gratuity Act and Employees’ Provident Fund Act.

A recent workshop on exploring alternatives in closed and abandoned tea gardens held in Siliguri also suggested changes in the legal and institutional instruments governing the brew industry.

Narbula had blamed the Bengal government for the plight of the workers at the cinchona plantations in the Darjeeling hills.

“There is a huge demand for cinchona and other medicinal plants, but the government is doing nothing to tap the market,” The Congress MP told The Telegraph over phone from New Delhi.

Government meet over closed tea gardens

The Centre, for the first time, has decided to explore the feasibility of reopening closed and abandoned tea gardens in the Dooars.

Following instructions from the Union commerce and industries ministry, the Tea Board of India has invited owners of closed tea estates, bankers, trade union leaders and Bengal commerce and industries officials to a meeting in Calcutta on May 11.

“Union minister of state for commerce and industries Jairam Ramesh will be present at the meeting, where the officials will go through the possibilities of reopening closed gardens of north Bengal,” Basudeb Banerjee, chairman, Tea Board of India, told The Telegraph. “We hope the planters, union members and government officials will help the Centre find a way to solve the problem.” At present, 14 gardens are closed in the Dooars.

Though the state has granted money to closed estates and tried to implement work schemes for the unemployed labourers, it has maintained that only the Centre can reopen them. State finance minister Asim Dasgupta, who visited Jalpaiguri on April 3, said: “We can cancel the lease of such estates, but only the Centre can acquire them.

Trade union members have agreed to help the governments resume work at the estates. “We have even suggested forming workers’ cooperatives to run the gardens as we don’t think that the owners will ever reopen them,” said Chitta Dey, convener, Coordination Committee of Tea Plantation Workers. “We will propose it at the meeting.”

Representatives of planters’ associations, however, said they have not been invited to the meeting. “We have heard that the only agenda of the meeting is reopening of closed tea gardens. That is why the tea board has invited individual planters and owners of closed estates only,” said Monojit Dasgupta, the secretary-general of Indian Tea Association.

Source: The Telegraph

Tea Garden kids drop out of school

Jaigaon: Ratan Lohar, a father of four and a worker at the closed Bharnobari Tea Estate, does not know what to do about his children’s education.

On one hand, there is almost no work at the estate and consequently no wages. On the other, local schools have increased their annual fees to more than three times the figure fixed by the government.

“My two elder children stopped going to school last year,” says Lohar. “The younger ones have been promoted to Class V this time, but I don’t think I will be able to pay the fees to let them continue with their education.”

Lohar’s children are not alone. Students from closed and abandoned tea gardens of north Bengal are increasingly dropping out of schools and colleges because they cannot meet the expenses.

In Bharnobari alone, there are over 100 such students. “We have two schools in the vicinity, Hasimara Uchha-Madhyamik School and Hasimara Hindi High School,” said Krishna Baraik, a member of the operations and maintenance committee currently running the estate. “The annual fees at the schools are more than Rs 200 per student. We have had no work for the past fortnight, where will the families get the money from?”

Sudarshan Bhagat, also from Bharnobari, is a second-year arts student at Jaigaon Nani Bhattacharjee College. “Last year, I had to shell out Rs 2,000,” he says. “This year, with the garden closed, my family cannot afford to let me continue with my studies.”

The district inspector of schools (higher secondary), Mohim Payra, said the annual fee fixed by the government was Rs 63. “Schools can charge extra money from students under different heads but they should not do so from children of closed and abandoned tea gardens. I will definitely look into this,” Payra said.

The secretary of the governing body of Hasimara Uchha-madhyamik School, Tarun Bose, said the additional Rs 137 covered the cost of programmes like freshers’ welcome, Saraswati Puja and prize distribution and the salary of the night guard. “We have not taken any decision regarding the children from closed gardens,” Bose said.

Alipurduar subdivisional officer P.D. Pradhan said he had heard about the schools overcharging the students. “I have decided to convene a meeting with the school authorities in this regard,” Pradhan said.

The general secretary of the National Union of Plantation Workers, Prabhat Mukherjee, said there were more than 10,000 students in the 14 closed gardens in the Dooars. “I will draw the attention of the Bengal government to this problem of dropouts,” he said.

Source: The Telegraph

Orange Valley tea workers to obey order

Darjeeling: Labourers of Orange Valley tea garden have agreed not to go to work from tomorrow.

The management declared suspension of work at the garden on April 30 following an agitation by workers after Sukbir Rai, a dafadar (supervisor), committed suicide. The labourers, however, decided not to obey the order and worked till yesterday.

According to a source, at a meeting with union leaders yesterday, Darjeeling police told the workers that their decision to disregard the suspension notice might amount to trespassing into other’s property. Senior leaders today held a meeting at the garden where the workers decided to take cognisance of the notice issued by the management.

“Everyone has agreed not to go to work from tomorrow until a meeting is held at the assistant labour commissioner’s office here on May 10,” said A.R. Dewan, the GNLF leader from the area.

The labourers, however, have demanded that they be paid for working on the days the “garden has been closed since April 30”. “They have also demanded that the administration should conduct an inquiry into the death of Rai and that his dues be cleared as soon as possible,” said Dewan.

The management is looking at the development as a positive sign. “The Darjeeling police have played an important role in convincing the workers. The workers’ decision to abide by our notice may lead to an amicable settlement,” said Sandeep Mukherjee, the secretary of Darjeeling Tea Association.

Beech set to reopen

Following a tripartite meeting at the deputy labour commissioner’s office in Jalpaiguri yesterday, the Beech tea estate in Kalchini will reopen tomorrow.

The 2,100 labourers of the garden will resume work after a gap of 24 days. The garden was shut down after the management left the estate following an altercation with the workers over rationalisation of workforce.

Source: The Telegraph

Political goons attack tea woman

Jaigaon: Five persons were injured in the second round of attack on women workers at Bharnobari Tea Estate on Friday.

Kamala Bhagwar, 24, has been admitted to the Jalpaiguri district hospital, 100 km from the closed garden, with head and chest injuries.

The victims said goons owing allegiance to the CPM and the RSP — Thule Rai, Rakesh Chhetri and Polikar Chela are some of the names that figure in the FIR filed on Friday — assaulted them while they were returning to the labour colony after a protest rally.

The protest was against alleged police inaction in arresting culprits who had attacked them and members of Cini, an NGO, on May 3.

The attackers reportedly owed allegiance to Suresh and Naresh Agarwal, the financiers who had proposed to run the garden paying a daily wage of Rs 45. The women workers had rejected the offer since the operations and maintenance committee (OMC), which is running the estate now and already paying them Rs 50 per day.

The current convener of the OMC, Madan Sarki, a Citu member, claimed that he was receiving threats from workers, who have sided with the vested interests.

Additional superintendent of police K.B. Dorji said five persons had been arrested on the basis of the first FIR. But they have been let out on bail, a source said.

“If men who mercilessly beat up women go scot-free, we will get together and give them a proper hiding,” said Krishna Baraik, a worker and the vice-president of Jalpaiguri-Hashimara Adivasi Mahila Sudhar Samiti, an apolitical organisation.

Lalita Toppo, another worker, said: “A number of ministers and MLAs are attending Citu and RSP conventions nearby. They are busy discussing the fate of closed gardens, but don’t have time to find out why we were attacked by their supporters twice last week.”

Joseph Kujur, the zonal secretary of the Cha Bagan Mazdoor Union, a Citu affiliate, was adamant in his stand. “Those who are opposed to the financiers running the garden should either take charge of the estate themselves or leave it to us to get the financiers,” Kujur said.

Source: The Telegraph

NALSA's special plans for Dooars' Tea Gardens

The National Legal Services Authority (Nalsa) has chalked out special plans for tea gardens of the Dooars, 13 of which are either closed or have been abandoned.

Other than helping to provide food, security and protection of fundamental rights, the objective of Nalsa under its newly introduced “Save the Garden, Save Workers” campaign is to rescue and rehabilitate sick and ailing workers and their families.

Under the project, a helpline (9933946884), a relief collection and distribution centre, a legal aid and advice cell, a hospice and geriatric care centre, ambulances and other services have been introduced. The centres will operate from the premises of Matrisangha Janakalyan Ashram here, a welfare organisation headquartered in Calcutta.

The implementing partners include NGOs, community-based and voluntary organisations, trade unions and district and subdivisional legal service authorities.

Nalsa was constituted on December 5, 1995 (though it effectively started working five years later) as an outcome of the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987. The act had been introduced to give a statutory base to legal aid programmes throughout the country in a uniform manner.

A five-member Nalsa delegation, led by its adviser and head of national programme implementation Sreerupa Mitra Chaudhury, was here to launch the initiative yesterday. M.K. Sharma, the Chief Justice of Delhi High Court, and Justice Indira Banerjee of Calcutta High Court were some of the others who were present.

Mitra Chaudhury said a Lok Adalat would be held after the registration of every 300 complaints for the settlement of disputes. If conciliatory efforts do not work out, cases will be initiated and the ruling of the judges of the Lok Adalat would be “as binding as any other court”.

A discussion on the state of the tea gardens was held today. It was attended by the divisional commissioner, Jalpaiguri, the district magistrates, sabhadhipatis, social welfare officers and the BDOs of Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar. Trade union and NGO representatives as well as some garden workers were among the 350 participants.

“The DMs presented the work their administrations had done in the gardens, which was challenged to an extent by some trade union leaders. Some NGOs complained of lack of security in the gardens. We have collected all versions and will take up follow-up measures,” Mitra Chaudhury said.

Administration and trade union sources are, however, sceptical about how effective the initiative will be. “The Lok Adalats may help in minor cases like theft or land disputes. However, they may not be a solution for industrial and labour disputes,” said Chitta Dey, a trade union leader .

Source: The Telegraph

Darjeeling Tea to be called just Darjeeling

Darjeeling: Dylan and Sarah Cameron — from Leeds (UK) — are planning their 15th wedding anniversary, sometime in mid-June, in Darjeeling. “Dylan is a great lover of tea,” Sarah told HT over email. “When he read on the web that Darjeeling tea has been given Geographical Indication (GI) status, he jumped.”

The Camerons are one of the foreign ‘tea-tourists’, whose tribe will now increase given that Darjeeling’s brand equity has gone up several notches after the tea growing in the region has been accorded the international GI mark. It happened in Champagne, Bordeaux and Tequila — so, why not Darjeeling?

Last week, Forbes reported that high-end travel planner Abercrombie & Kent (A&K) was organising 14-day packages to Darjeeling and Bhutan priced at $7,000-plus per head. Bookings are full up till the beginning of October. “With Darjeeling tea being accorded GI, tea tourism is the best bet,” said Sandeep Mukherjee, secretary, Darjeeling Tea Association (DTA).

“Earlier, tea gardens were producing and selling teas but lately the gardens are diversifying towards tea tourism.” Gardens like Glenburn Tea Estate are even organising helicopter charters “on request”.

And the Ministry of Tourism has sanctioned Rs 388.98 lakh for the integrated development of the Tea Tourism Circuit in North Bengal — a big chunk of which would be allotted for Darjeeling Hills.

Recently, a two-member team from Help Tourism - an agency that organizes tour packages in the northeast -- visited France's Champagne District to understand 'Champagne Tourism'. "On the lines of Champagne Tourism, we have decided to promote tea tourism in three categories: tea tourism revolving around the old tea garden bungalows, dating back to the Raj days, tea tourism revolving around the workers' quarters and tea tourism for day-visitors," said Help's Raj Basu. All categories will involve plantation and factory visits and tea tasting. The agency promoted the idea in London and talks are on with big tea retailers who have promised a tie-up. "Watch out for www.teatourindia.com soon," added Basu.

"There's always been high-end business traffic to Darjeeling, thanks to the bulk tea purchasers, but with the GI status, Darjeeling can definitely hope to cash in on tea tourism," says Ankur Bhatia, executive director, the Bird Group, that tracks inbound tourist footfalls in India.

GI for Darjeeling tea means that it's now officially recognised that the tea grown and produced in 87 gardens in the region has special and inherent qualities, that cannot be replicated and imitated. Darjeeling tea will now be called just Darjeeling, just like Champagne (wine produced in Champagne district), Bordeaux (wine produced in Bordeaux region), Tequila (spirit made in Tequila, Mexico) or Cognac (brandy produced in Cognac).

By Amitava Banerjee and Sushmita Bose

Source: Hindustan Times

CITU to protest against closing of tea gardens

The Citu’s Darjeeling district leadership is set to launch a movement in the hills and the Terai, demanding the reopening of closed factories and gardens as soon as possible.

The trade union does not seem to be bothered by the fact that they have very little support base in the hills.

“Some planters in Darjeeling and the Terai are evading their responsibilities by keeping their factories closed and selling tealeaves to other gardens. The same thing happened in the Dooars, where several estates have shut down,” said Ananda Pathak, the president of the Citu’s Darjeeling district committee, at a newsmeet here today.

Pathak named Ringtang of Sonada and Merryview of the Terai, where the owners are reportedly selling tealeaves to other gardens, instead of making the produce at their own factories.

“At Ringtang, the 1,200-odd workers are paid only against plucking of tealeaves. Dues like provident fund and gratuity have been pending over years. Labourers at Merryview do receive their wages, but the factory is closed,” said Pathak, who is a senior leader of the Citu-affiliated Darjeeling Jilla Chai Kaman Mazdoor Union.

According to Citu leaders, the management of Ringtang closed down the garden two years ago, when they launched a movement for the workers’ right then. Since that time, nothing has improved at the estate, they said.

“We had demanded that the management should run the estate properly. Instead of listening to us, the owner left the garden and now the factory is closed,” said Ajit Sarkar, the Darjeeling district Citu secretary. “At present, around 6,000-7,000 kg of tealeaves is sold from four divisions of the garden everyday.”

The leaders sought government intervention in re-opening Sepoy Dhoorah, another garden in the hills, which has been abandoned for more than five years. They also said the Tea Trading Corporation of India should hand over three of its gardens, Putung, Peshok and Vah-Takvar, to the state. “These gardens have been shut down over years and the Centre has done nothing to reopen them. Many prospective entrepreneurs are interested in taking over the estates,” Sarkar said.

Source: The Telegraph

Honey at Makaibari Tea Estates

Buzz is the word at the Makaibari tea estate.

After offering home stay to tourists, workers at the garden, located 3 km from here, have found a new way to earn that extra bit — beekeeping and selling honey.

With encouragement from the proprietor of the estate, Raja Banerjee, and help from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Darjeeling, nine workers have set up an apiary, which they hope will soon become a major source of additional income. “We have nine members in our co-operative society who have started beekeeping. Almost two years ago, our sahib (Raja Banerjee) gave us around Rs10,000 to form the co-operative, buy beehives and set up the necessary infrastructure,” said Santosh Rai, the secretary of the Buzz Co-operative Society.

“We had started at a very low scale, but it has grown over the years. Today, we have around 35 hives from where we extract honey and sell them at Rs 200 per bottle,” said Rai, who is a security guard at the factory. And of course, the money comes handy. “We find it the most beneficial at the beginning of new sessions in schools when we have to buy books, uniforms and other necessary items for our children. The extra money kind of eases the burden and we do not have to worry about our wards’ education,” said Janak Chettri, a member of the society.

Initially, the co-operative granted loans — from the money given by Banerjee — to interested workers to install beehives on the plots in front of their homes.

“Every member has four hives, from which we extract honey twice a year. We get around four bottles of honey from one hive,” said Rai, who has seven beehives at his place. “Usually we get the extract once in April-May and again in November-December.”

A training camp will be held this November or December, for which the WWF has promised to send an expert to teach the volunteers the know-how of beekeeping.

In a bid to increase the production, the society now plans to raise the number of beehives to at least 1,000. “Our sahib, who is very interested in the project, told us that we can get a machine for bottling the honey and labelling the containers. One day, we hope to make it big in the market, set up a company and get a patent for our produce,” Rai added.

Though Banerjee was not available for comment, deputy manager Debarata Majumdar told The Telegraph that inspired by the hard work put in by the workers, the management is now planning to export honey.

“Since ours is an organic garden, the bee population is pretty high here. With encouragement from Mr Bannerjee, the labourers have utilised the opportunity well,” Majumdar said. “For export, we have to produce around 10,000 bottles of honey every year. We think we can make it within the next two years.”

Source: The Telegraph

Furious tea workers wage meeting

Nine persons were injured when a section of workers of the closed Bharnobari tea estate, 16 km from here, beat them up during a wage meeting this morning.

Among the nine were two children and four women workers, who had opposed the new wage structure that was announced today. The remaining three were members of an NGO, who were conducting a training programme in another part of the garden.

The attackers, owing allegiance to a financier, also ransacked a clinic run by Child in Need Institute (Cini). A complaint has been lodged with the Hashimara police outpost, 3 km from the garden. Cini, which was running a nutritional programme for children, has decided to withdraw its Bharnobari unit.

Rupan Mahali, one of the injured women, said today’s meeting was held to discuss the new wage set-up proposed by Suresh and Naresh Agarwals, the financiers who have offered to run the garden instead of the operations and maintenance committee (OMC). The garden with a workforce of 2,100 had closed down in 2005.

“We opposed their offer as we were already getting Rs 50 from the OMC as against the Rs 45 they had proposed. But the minute we dismissed the proposal, some workers from among us, all men, started beating us,” said Mahali who is also a leader of the Jalpaiguri-Hashimara Adivasi Mahila Sudhar Samity.

“These men claimed they had formed a new committee and that the Agarwals would pay us wages from May 7 to December,” added Mahali. Like her, many women at the garden feel that in the absence of a legitimate owner, the financiers were fighting among themselves to take possession of the plucked tealeaves. “In the process, they are making us victims,” said Sita Lohar, who was also injured.

Some workers on conditions of anonymity said a section of OMC members might have got money for backing the new financiers. “Otherwise, why will they go for lower wages?” a worker asked. Madan Sarki, the OMC convener admitted that a section of workers within the committee were backing the Agarwals.

Tushar Bhattacharya, a spokesman for Cini, said: “They have attacked three of our members and taken away Rs 25,000 in cash. This was the first garden where we had started the project, but we will not work here anymore.”

Joseph Kujur, an OMC member, who has been named by some workers as the mastermind of today’s attack, was unavailable for comment.

Source: The Telegraph

Darjeeling Tea History

Dr. Campbell, a civil surgeon of the Indian Medical Service, was transferred from Kathmandu to Darjeeling in 1839 as Superintendent of this new territory and of the Sanitarium. His first problem was to attract settlers. In 1841, Dr. Campbell brought China Tea Seeds from Kumeon and planted near his residence in his garden at Beechwood, Darjeeling, 2000 m above sea level. He must have been successful in raising the plant because the government, in 1847, elected to put out tea nurseries in this area.

The experiment was followed by several others, for example Dr. Withcombe, Mr. James Grant, of the Civil Service, and Captain Samler. The plants, by their healthy and vigorous growth, gave much promise of the experiment succeeding. Dr. Hooker planted tea in 1848 at Lebong, a thousand feet below Darjeeling where also the tea plants succeeded admirably.

By 1852 several plantations in various stages of advancement, both of Assam and China plants were found including the ones at Kurseong and Pankhabari established by Mr. Martin.

Commercial Tea Gardens
The first commercial tea gardens were Tukvar, Steinthal and Aloobari tea estates. This was in 1852 and all these plantations used seeds that were raised in the government nurseries. By 1856 the experimental stage had been passed and development was rapid. According to Darjeeling Gazetteer, Alubari Tea Garden was opened by the Kurseong and Darjeeling Tea Company and another on the Lebong spur by the Darjeeling Land Mortgage Bank. Several hundred ha of forest land was cleared, from 750 m elevation above the sea to 1800 m. By 1857 25 or 30 ha was planted , besides six nurseries, in which a ton of seed has been sown during 1857.

In 1859 the Dhutaria garden was started by Dr. Brougham and between 1860 and 1864 four gardens at Ging, Ambutia, Takdah and Phubsering were established by the Darjeeling Tea Company and the gardens at Tukver and Badamtam by the Lebong Tea Company. Other gardens which were started at this early period were those now known as Maksibari, Pandam & Steinthal Tea Estates.

Tea Among the Natives
The Government distributed 725 kg of tea seed to the natives of the hills round about the Sanitarium. At this time the native tribes in the Himalayas drank tea that was imported from Thibet (Tibet), which was transported thousands of km. It was a coarse, harsh, black tea, which arrives in blocks or bricks of 2,7 kg, or 3,1 kg weight, and 20 cm in length and 10 cm deep, and was sewn up in raw kidskins, where the tea appeared through the stitches at the sides. It costed two shillings a pound.

This tea was made in a large iron cooking-pot full of boiling water, perhaps holding three gallons. A quantity of black tea was chopped from the end of a 'Thibet brick' and thrown, together with a little salt, butter, and parched barley meal. This tea, after having been well stirred, was served up in a metal teapot. Each partaker of the tea produced his or her own wooden teacup from the bosom folds of their capacious clothes, and when the cup had been frequently filled, and as rapidly emptied, it was licked clean by the owner and replaced whence it was taken. Everyone was supposed to carry a teacup about the person and ten or twelve cups full was considered no extraordinary drink for a tea-loving Bhotia.

Tea Labourers
Dr. Campbell’s first problem was to attract settlers to this unpopulated area. At this time a nobleman from Nepal, named Sri Dakman Rai had come to Darjeeling with a caravan of twenty pack ponies loaded with foodstuffs and other essentials. Dr. Campbell requested Sri Dakman Rai to help him by immigrating laborers from Nepal and by the end of the year Sri Dakman Rai came back to Darjeeling with thousands of immigrants. In recognition of the helpful work done, Sri Dakman Rai was given the grants of freehold lands presently known as Saurene, Phuguri and Samripani.

This first lot of laborers was not enough and Mr. Christison, one of the Directors of D.C.T. requested Sri Dakman Rai to supply more laborers from Nepal and promised him supply of tea seeds to establish his own plantations in the lands already received by him as a gift from the East India Company through Dr. Campbell. This is how Sri Dakman Rai was able to start his own plantations at Saurene in 1878, Phuguri in 1880 and Samripanee in 1883. By this time each garden had a team of labor recruiters who used to go to Nepal and Sikkim for labor recruitment every year in winter but there were still a labor problem in Darjeeling. Ill sanitation, improper water supply and inadequate medical arrangements could wipe out whole villages in of some of the gardens.

Improvements
The first pioneers suffered a lot while cleaning vast jungles, making roads, terracing hillocks and erecting factories. They lived in bamboo and thatched houses without proper medical and other facilities. By 1870, almost all the plantations began constructing factories with local materials like bamboo, planks, stones and thatch at the lowest levels of the plantations. Some of this factories where driven giant water wheels made either of steel or wood.

Whatever machinery were available then had to be transported by bullock carts and wheeled trolleys pulled and pushed by men and on many occasions there were casualties. The first factory to be mechanized was Tukvar in 1870. Three generations later life was much easier. The planters had a well organized Sports Association and had teams of cricket, tennis, hockey and football.

Production of Darjeeling Tea
Withering used to be done on bamboo racks and rolling was done manually by feet and hands till rollers came to the gardens. Drying was done in a very crude way in big cauldrons which gradually changed to chullis and sorting was done by hand in winnowing fans. Packing was done in boxes of local planks.

Cultivation
In the early days there was no supply of artificial manures. Cattle dung was the only manuring. The diseases known then were only two: "Sinduray" (Red Spider) and "Phokay" (Blister Blight). These were treated by sulfur and wood ask.

Transportation When Sri Dakman Rai came back to Darjeeling he got the contract first to construct Pankhabari Road to Kurseong and then the Old Military road to Jorebunglow and Darjeeling. None of the plantations had motorable roads and the main means of transport for managers and assistants was ponies. With the improvements of roads during the years the transports changed to motor cycles and then to jeeps and later cars and now even trucks go to the gardens. A railroad with three sections was constructed in 1881 which solved many of the transport difficulties of the tea gardens. The Gailla Khola line ran along the bank of the River Teesta and was a great work of engineering. This line the tea gardens lying around Geille Khola, Kalimpong Sub-division and Sikkim. The line was damaged beyond repair during the disaster of 1950 and is no longer in existence.

Source: www.darjeelingnews.net

Trouble paying school fees

Jaigaon: The future of school and college students in the closed Bharnobari tea estate hangs in balance as bureaucratic red-tape threatens to choke the promised relief.

The students, who have to pay their annual fees within a week, were pinning their hopes on a promise made by Jalpaiguri zilla parishad sabhadhipati Banamali Roy a month ago.

“We had gone to meet the sabhadhipati at the block development office at Kalchini on March 22. At that time he was discussing the problems of closed tea gardens with the district magistrate and the subdivisional officer of Alipurduar. He had assured us that the zilla parishad would provide money for our fees if we apply in writing. Now if the promise is not fulfilled, it will be impossible to continue our studies,” said Sunita Lohar, a second-year arts student at Birpara College.

Lohar said she and her friends had submitted the written requests with the block development officer just as the sabhadhipati had asked them to do.

Jalpaiguri district Congress secretary Sanjib Biswas also claimed that on April 11, 32 applications were submitted at the Kalchini block office. “The district administration should follow up the matter and help the students,” he said.

Roy, however, said he had not received any of the applications. “I had asked the students to submit written requests to avail of the monetary help, but I have not received a single letter till date,” Roy said when contacted today.

Raju Sherpa, the Kalchini block development officer, said he had received not 32 but 17 applications. “I am yet to receive any order from the zilla parishad to forward these applications to them. I will do so as soon as I get the directive,” Sherpa said.

A member of the operations and maintenance committee of the Bharnobari tea estate, Krishna Baraik, said more than 100 boys and girls had been forced to leave their studies in the 18 months since the garden closed down.

The situation is similar in the Raimatang tea garden, which is also closed and falls under the same block as Bharnobari. Sources said more than 50 young men and women there had been forced to migrate from the garden for jobs.

Source: The Telegraph

Workers at Orange Valley continue to work

Darjeeling: Workers of the Orange Valley tea garden attended to their duties for the second day today, defying a suspension of work notice issued on April 30.

The management is of the opinion that the decision of workers to take control of the garden could amount to “trespassing into other’s property”. They added that they are considering legal recourse to end the impasse and are consulting experts to frame specific charges against the labourers.

“We are contemplating legal action. In a labour-intensive industry such action can have grave consequences for the garden’s future and we will not allow ourselves to be dictated by them,” said Sandeep Mukherjee, the secretary of Darjeeling Tea Association, of which Orange is a member.

The workers’ decision to run the garden without managerial supervision also raises questions on the manufacturing process and the quality of the highly-priced first flush. Observers feel this could have serious repercussions on the brand image of the garden in the days to come.

Local GNLF leader A.R. Dewan confirmed that work had resumed in the garden today. He, however, said members of the garden management could take up the reins of the garden any time they wanted.

The management, however, has stuck to its guns and said they would return only after normality is restored.

“A section of the workers are against resumption of work in the garden. The process of cooling off has not happened at Orange Valley,” said Mukherjee.

The management also wants the workers to withdraw the non-bailable cases lodged against two managers, Nipen Sharma and Jhawar Singh Chowdhury, for “compelling (Sukbir Rai) to commit suicide”. Rai had committed suicide last Wednesday allegedly goaded by the humiliation at the hands of the accused duo.

Observers feel that withdrawal of the cases would not be easy as CPM and CPRM-backed unions are present in the garden along with the GNLF-backed body. The rivalry between the three unions could delay an immediate solution to the impasse.

Source: The Telegraph

CTC tea by self-help groups

Siliguri: Start your day with a hot cup of Diya.

The first branded CTC tea to be merchandised by self-help groups (SHGs) of Siliguri has been named Diya and the project only awaits a formal inauguration now.

Under the project, perhaps for the first time in the country, SHGs will purchase roasted CTC tea from gardens and later from auctions, process it and sell it under a new brand name. Their target will be the middle-class and lower-middle class customers of Bengal.

“We have conducted a survey with the help of the district rural development cell and got satisfactory response from the market for such a brand,” Mani Thapa, the sabhadhipati of Siliguri Mahakuma Parishad, told reporters today. “Our aim is to maintain quality and at the same time make the product affordable.”

The mahakuma parishad will allow the SHG members to use its premises for processing, blending and packaging the tea. For marketing, a meeting was today held in the presence of urban development minister Asok Bhattacharya, representatives of different trade bodies like Focin, Jalpaiguri Merchants’ Association and different tea merchants’ organisations and officials of the sales tax and commercial tax departments.

Mithu Nandi, Mamata Roy and Swapna Chikbarai are members of three of the 30 SHGs that are collectively known as Jagriti Mahila Unnayan Sangha. The CTC tea project will start with this cluster of SHGs and Nandi, Roy and Chikbarai sounded excited, expressing happiness at being involved in something that can potentially improve their living standards.

“The main objective is to promote tea, which is a key factor in regulating the economy of this region. Besides, the project will also offer job opportunities to a large number of people,” said Biswajit Das, the secretary of Focin.

Source: The Telegraph

Workers will still work at Orange Valley Tea Estate

Darjeeling: The management of the Orange Valley tea garden today ordered suspension of work in the estate on disciplinary grounds.

Rajesh Kaushal, the manager, along with his colleagues, left the garden early this morning, following which the suspension notice was issued to the workers.

Santa Rai, on behalf of the labourers, said though they had seen the notice, they went ahead with their duties. “Of the 567 labourers, 464 worked today. Tomorrow is a holiday. We will continue to come to the estate from Wednesday as usual and the management should pay,” Rai said.

“The management decided to leave because it is not finding the atmosphere conducive for the running of the estate, as a section of workers has been trying to disrupt the proceedings in the garden,” said Sandeep Mukherjee, the secretary of the Darjeeling Tea Association.

Trouble started in the estate, situated around 15 km from here, last Wednesday when the body of Sukbir Rai (57), a dafadar (supervisor) there, was found 300 feet down a jhora. “Some labourers started blaming the management for the death. The post-mortem report is yet to come, but before that, a charge has been brought against two assistant managers,” said Mukherjee. Following a complaint lodged by Amit Rai, a resident of the garden, police have started a case under Sections 306 and 34 of the IPC against assistant managers Nipen Sharma and Jhawar Singh Chowdhury, for “compelling (someone) to commit suicide”, a source said.

Citing the other reasons behind abandoning the garden, the management said K.K. Chowdhury, the factory in-charge, was manhandled on Thursday for “no apparent reason”. “After Sukbir’s body was recovered, Kaushal, who was away, returned to the garden on Saturday, following which, the workers gheraoed him,” said Mukherjee.

The labourers, however, said they did not mean any harm to the manager. “We were surprised that Kaushal has left the garden. We do not have anything against him,” said Solomon Rai, a worker. “All we want is that those responsible for Sukbir’s death should be punished.”

GNLF leader A.R. Dewan, also the former councillor of the area, declined to comment. “I will first have to find out what has happened,” he said.

Source: The Telegraph

Legal action against the Management at MerryView

Siliguri: Hundreds of workers of Merryview Tea Estate, 20 km from here, are contemplating legal action against the management for its non-compliance of the bipartite agreement on the opening of a renovated garden factory.

The garden, located in the Naxalbari belt with a plantation area of 479 hectares and a workforce of 546 permanent labourers, was purchased by Tezpur Tea Company Limited in 2004.

“After the new management took over, a bipartite agreement on March 17, 2004, decided that the management would deduct Rs 4.10 from the wage (Rs 45.90 at that time) of each permanent worker everyday. The deduction started from April 1, 2004, and continued till March 31, 2005, as per the agreement,” said Aloke Chakravorty, the joint general secretary of the Intuc-affiliated National Union of Plantation Workers.

“Not only that, proportionate deductions were also made from the salaries of five clerks, two medical, two technical and 43 sub-staff members for the same period. The intention was to use the accumulated amount along with the contribution of the management for refurbishing the factory in 2005. The factory, however, remains closed from the first day of the takeover,” the trade union leader alleged.

Workers of the garden, which produces around 15-16 lakh kg of tea annually, now want their money back.

“We had parted with our wages to help the management in its attempt to make the garden viable. The management, however, has failed to keep its word,” said Albis Tigga, a worker.

Chakravorty said the management has been given a deadline of May 15 within which they will have to start work at the factory or else face legal action.

Reacting to the allegations, U.B. Das, secretary of Terai Branch of the Indian Tea Association of which Merryview is a member, said: “It is true that the workers had contributed a portion of their wages. But at the same time, they need to consider the ongoing crisis in the industry. Once things improve, the management will surely consider the issue.”

Intuc plea

The Intuc-affiliated National Union of Plantation Workers has written to the state labour minister requesting him to take over the closed Kanthalguri and Ramjhora tea estates via the West Bengal Tea Development Corporation, reports our correspondent.

Union secretary Pravat Mukherjee said: “The lease of Kanthalguri and Ramjhora expired in 2004. Now that the government is the owner of the two gardens, it should be its responsibility to stand by the workers.”

Source: The Telegraph