Siliguri,
May 14: The elements are conspiring against the tea industry,
pushing it to the brink of another year of recession. A pest
problem is plaguing the estates, threatening to decimate whatever
bushes had survived the hostile weather during the first flush.
Pesticides have done little to keep the
red spider, looper caterpillar and thrip, the scourge of tea
bushes, from overrunning the gardens. High temperatures and
low rainfall, that have threatened to reduce tea production
by more than 40 per cent in the Terai and Dooars belt, are
providing ideal breeding conditions for the pests.
`Pest attacks are not unusual at this time
of year. What is unusual is the magnitude of the problem.
Almost every garden in the Dooars has been affected. Rainfall,
besides promoting tea growth, also keeps pests in check,`
said P.K. Bhattacharya, the secretary of the Dooars Branch
of the Indian Tea Association.
`If the weather brought down production
by almost 50 per cent, the pest problem will reduce output
by around another 20 per cent. Agro-pesticides are being sprayed,
but rampant use will adversely affect the quality of tea,`
said M. Bhattacharya, the chairman of the Terai Branch of
the Indian Tea Association. A blend of rain, sunshine and
fairly high temperature, but below 35 degree Celsius, is ideal
for tea growth.
`This year, there was almost no rain in
January, February and March. It rained in April, but then
there was no sun and the temperature was low. Tea bushes lost
their immunity and are succumbing to pest attacks,` M. Bhattacharya
said. `We do not know what the second flush, which produces
the bulk of tea, has in store for us. A high level of production
and good prices alone can bail the industry out of crisis,`
he added.
Courtesy
The Telegraph |
Home
| About Us | Contact
Us | Site Map | Feedback
