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Informist, Thursday, Jun. 25, 2026

 

--Sources: West Bengal govt mulling comprehensive tea policy 

--Sources: West Bengal govt in talks with Tea Board to frame new tea policy

--Sources:West Bengal considering tea subsidy, fiscal incentives for tea cos

--Sources: West Bengal govt's tea policy may be modelled on lines of Assam

--Sources: West Bengal govt mulling incentives to boost orthodox tea output

By Avishek Rakshit

 

KOLKATA – The West Bengal government is in talks with Tea Board India to come up with a comprehensive scheme that will boost production of quality tea in the state and financially incentivise tea plantation companies to develop quality varieties, industry officials aware of the development told Informist.

 

While the discussions are at a preliminary stage, the West Bengal government may model its tea incentivisation policy on the lines of Assam, which had rolled out the Assam Tea Industries Special Incentives Scheme in 2020 to help companies boost orthodox type tea production and procure machinery.

 

If the scheme is finalised and implemented, it could financially boost tea plantation companies operating in West Bengal such as Jay Shree Tea and Industries Ltd., The Goodricke Group Ltd., and Tata Consumer Products Ltd.'s associate company Amalgamated Plantations Pvt. Ltd. 

 

While Assam is the largest tea producing state in the country, usually accounting for around 51% of the total tea production, West Bengal is the second-largest with a share of about 29%. During Jan-Apr, Assam produced 73.8 million kg of tea and West Bengal produced 61.4 million kg. 

 

Assam has over 300,000 hectares of land under tea cultivation and the initial budgeted outlay for the Assam Tea Industries Special Incentives Scheme was INR 5.5 billion, with the funds being disbursed in tranches. Comparatively, West Bengal has nearly 115,000 hectares of land under tea cultivation and has allocated over INR 3 billion in its Budget for 2026-27 (Apr-Mar). 

 

Officials from tea plantation companies said Assam offers a subsidy of INR 10 per kilogram for plantations that produce orthodox, green, white, Oolong and other speciality teas. Eligible tea estates also receive 25% subsidy, capped at a maximum of INR 3 million, on the cost of plant and machinery procurement. Moreover, the Assam government also provides a 3% per annum interest subvention on working capital loans taken from scheduled commercial banks, and also gave a three-year agricultural income tax holiday to tea planters.

 

"The West Bengal government is mulling to roll out a scheme modelled on the lines of the Assam government, but it needs support from the Tea Board India and banks as well. So, discussions are currently on and a policy or scheme can come anytime," an industry official aware of the development said. 

 

Industry officials said such a scheme in Assam has yielded positive results and encouraged tea estates to focus more on production of orthodox tea, which fetches better prices in the domestic market as well as abroad. In West Bengal, orthodox tea production is limited mostly to Darjeeling. Tea producers in the Dooars and Terai regions in the northern part of the state mostly focus on Crush, Tear, Curl tea production.

 

The orthodox tea production method is used to make tea in the traditional manner. Comparatively, the Crush, Tear, Curl, or CTC tea as it is referred to by the industry, employs machinery to produce tea from leaves that are granular. CTC teas are usually priced lower than orthodox tea. 

 

Arijit Raha, secretary general of the Indian Tea Association, said, "The association had sought a financial revival package and continuation of fiscal relief measures. We remain hopeful that the exemptions from Green Leaf Cess and Agricultural Income Tax announced in the West Bengal Interim Budget 2026 will continue." 

 

In its Interim Budget for FY27 in February, the former Trinamool Congress government in the state had extended exemption for tea gardens from agricultural income tax on green tea leaves and cess on tea production till Mar. 31, 2027. However, in the Budget for FY27, the newly elected Bharatiya Janata Party government did not explicitly clarify if these exemptions will continue. 

 

Officials at tea estates noted that climate change and a drastic shift in weather patterns have wreaked havoc on tea production in West Bengal this calendar year, with the yield during the second flush severely affected. In Darjeeling, the second flush, or the second yield of the season is considered the second-most important as it fetches high selling prices. The renowned Muscatel tea from Darjeeling can be made only during the second flush.

 

Estimates from Tea Board India show that tea production in West Bengal fell around 18% on year to a little over 27 million kg in April. The Terai region was the worst affected, followed by the Dooars region in northern West Bengal. Production in Darjeeling, however, increased on year, according to the data. 

 

The first and second flush, basically the tea harvested during Feb-May, is of superior quality and contributes significantly towards the top line and profitability of tea plantation companies in West Bengal and Assam. The produce during Jun-Oct, which is the monsoon and autumn flush, is priced much lower and its sales are mainly volume driven. 

 

"The second flush in Darjeeling has been seriously impacted this year and very few estates have been able to produce Muscatel tea this year," Anshuman Kanoria, owner of the 127-year-old Goomtee Tea Estate in Darjeeling, said. 

 

In its Budget 2026-27 (Apr-Mar), the West Bengal government has proposed to constitute a Tea Workers Development Board and implement the Pradhan Mantri Cha Shramik Protsahan Yojana for tea garden workers. The state government has also proposed to set up tea and agro-processing clusters in Siliguri and Darjeeling in northern West Bengal to improve tea garden infrastructure. A Common Tea Processing Centre at Siliguri will also come up as part of the cluster. 

 

"The proposed Tea Processing Zone in collaboration with Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Trust and the focus on promoting Darjeeling's tea heritage and tourism potential through heritage mapping of Darjeeling tea bungalows are important initiatives that can strengthen value addition, market access and global visibility of Indian tea," Raha said.

 

However, the West Bengal government has reduced the permissible commercial utilisation of tea estate land under the Tea Tourism Policy from 30% to 15%, which industry officials and hoteliers alike said will not impact tea tourism or hospitality investments in tea estates. 

 

In its Interim Budget for FY27, the Trinamool Congress government had increased the permissible commercial land utilisation of tea estate land under the Tea Tourism Policy to 30% from 15%.  End

 

Edited by Avishek Dutta

 

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