PRODUCTION -- 14:
INDIA’S JANUARY TEA OUTPUT DOWN
16.26%
BY P S SUNDAR
India entered 2016 with a shortage of 16.21 mkg of black tea
over 2015 as production dropped to 1191.10 million kg (mkg). For
the first time in many years, the country’s production had fallen over the
previous year. All these recent years,
it was a case of each year reporting a new record in output.
This falling trend has continues
in 2016 with Tea Board’s estimate of January 2016 production showing a fall of
3.47 mkg or 16.26 per cent over January 2015.
“Production has fallen in both
North and South. In the North, the
decline is marginal at 0.87 mkg to dip to 3.31 mkg but in the South, the loss
is sharp at 2.60 mkg to reach 14.56 mkg.
Consequently, production has fallen to 17.87 mkg from 21.34 mkg, marking
a decline of 16.26 per cent”, Rajesh Gupta, compiler of annual Global Tea
Digest, told me.
All tea producing districts in the
country have posted a lower output compared to January 2015 due to adverse
weather.
Cachar (-56%) and Dooars (-32%)
are the major losing districts in North India.
In the South, Tamil Nadu lost 18
per cent and Kerala 10 per cent.
(response can also be sent to: pssundar.coonoor@gmail.com)
(response can also be sent to : pssundar.coonoor@gmail.com) 
