Dibrugarh: The North East Confederation of Small Tea Growers’ Association (NECSTGA) has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking the introduction of a fair and remunerative pricing system for green tea leaves to protect small growers from sharp market fluctuations and exploitation by buyers.
In the letter, dated November 13, the association urged the Centre to introduce either a Minimum Support Price (MSP) or a Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) for green tea leaves, similar to mechanisms already in place for crops such as sugarcane.
The growers argued that such a policy would provide price stability and ensure sustainable livelihoods for thousands of small farmers engaged in tea cultivation across the Northeast.
“Tea is half agriculture and half industry. Small growers, who cultivate and harvest green leaves, are essentially farmers. Like other agricultural producers, they deserve protection against market volatility,” NECSTGA president Diganta Phukan stated in the letter.
The association said the current Price Sharing Formula (PSF) and the Tea Board’s Average Green Leaf Price (AGLP) system, declared on a district and monthly basis, have failed to benefit growers.
Instead, they have caused friction between small tea cultivators and tea manufacturers.
The NECSTGA, representing small tea growers from Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Meghalaya, and Tripura, further sought the extension of all Agriculture Ministry schemes to the tea sector.
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They demanded government support in providing plucking and pruning machines, fencing, irrigation facilities, and subsidised fertilizers and pesticides for small tea growers.
Leaders from regional associations — Narayan Lahon (All Assam Small Tea Growers Council), Tadak Gab (All Arunachal Small Tea Growers Association), N. Paul Kikon (All Nagaland Small Tea Growers Association), Thomas Mallai (Meghalaya STG Association), and Rashik DebBarma (All Tripura Small Tea Growers Forum) — jointly endorsed the appeal.
The growers expressed hope that the Prime Minister would intervene to establish a fair pricing mechanism and strengthen policy support for the small tea sector, which plays a vital role in the rural economy of the Northeast.
