Chandmoni Tea uprooted for Siliguri's first township

Luxmi Tea Company (LTC), which bought the ailing Chandmoni Tea Co along with its 700-acre tea gardens for Rs 2.5 crore in 1992 with the idea of bringing the company back on the track, has now decided to turn a major portion of the tea garden into a township on ownership basis.

It would be the first developed township project in Siliguri town, the gateway rail and road hub to north-eastern India.

The tea estate had a capacity of around 80 lakh tonnes of tea production per year.

"The Chandmoni tea estate was a loss making company with huge liabilities. We could not turn the company into a profit making one and have decided to convert 400 acres of tea garden into real estate," explained Dipankar Chatterjee, managing director, Luxmi Tea.

The area has been handed over to Harshavardhan Neotia's Bengal Ambuja Housing Development Ltd for developing the area into a township under a management contract.

"The company's liability was around Rs 3 crore which included provident fund of Rs 1 crore and salaries another Rs 1 crore, was subsequently settled," he explained.

Of the total 700 acres tea estate, 400 will be used for township development while another 150 acres will continue to be a tea garden employing around 150 workers.

"As many as 60 employees from the tea estate has been declared surplus as a result of the conversion and transferred to Phulbani tea estate also owned by the group," explained Chatterjee.

He said the company would invest around Rs 500 crore in the township. No investments have been lined up for the tea garden. "We will retain the 150-odd acres under the tea garden," the managing director explained.

However, since apartments and houses will be sold at a profit to homeowners, investments will be required in the township only to fund start-up costs, which would be recovered from sale proceeds once properties were sold.

The township will also include a sports stadium which will be built at a latter stage on the adjoining low lying areas.

Luxmi Tea Company has paid Rs 1.75 crore as stamp duty for the project, Rs 2 crore to pay off workers and another Rs 2 crore on other settlement costs relating to the tea estate. Tea plants have already been uprooted.

Luxmi Township Ltd currently had paid-up equity of of only Rs 1 crore but this would be increased to Rs 20 crore, said Chatterjee.