Dry spell, rising temperature may take a toll on premium Darjeeling tea

Rains unlikely to unlikely to make up for the prolonged dry spell, says one expert

Darjeeling’s tea estates fear lower production of the premium first flush as the hill town faces a dry spell with temperatures higher than usual for this time of the year.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Monday issued heat wave warnings for several parts of India, including West Bengal. The temperature in Darjeeling nowadays is 3-4 degrees Celsius higher than normal, said B K Laskar, senior advisory officer, Tea Research Association (TRA), Darjeeling Advisory Centre. “That has reduced atmospheric humidity which is the main culprit.”

“Rains are crucial for Darjeeling tea harvest. There were isolated rains on Monday but only