Tea Board Chairman P K Bezbaruah on Thursday said the Centre should continue to provide subsidy for making of orthodox tea, in a boost to exports.
Compared to CTC variety, orthodox tea fetches a higher price in the market, he said.
Speaking at the annual general meeting of Indian Tea Association here, Bezbaruah said, "Orthodox tea subsidy is very important as more than 60 per cent of tea exports globally are of this variety."
There is a need to incentivise purchase of equipment required for making of orthodox tea, he said.
Praising the West Bengal government for allowing tea garden owners to use a part their total land holdings for alternative purposes, Bezbaruah said that Assam should do the same as the state gives it on a 30-year periodic 'patta' which has to be renewed.
In October, the West Bengal government had decided that 15 percent of the land of a tea garden can be used for construction works.
Indian Tea Association Chairman Vivek Goenka said the production of registered tea growers has been falling while that of small planters is rising.
He said that the tea industry is facing crisis of high input costs and stagnant prices at the auctions.
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