Planters are banking on Members of Parliament Raju Bista (Lok Sabha) and Shanta Chhetri (Rajya Sabha) when it comes to resolving problems plaguing the tea industry. Planters and owners have sought help from Mr Bista and urged him to plead for them in Delhi.
Similarly, stakeholders associated with the tea industry have also sought help from Mrs Chhetri, a Trinamul Congress leader from Darjeeling Hills, to criticise the Centre and to inform the state about the problems in the tea industry and finding solutions.
A few days ago, as the Terai Indian Planters’ Association (TIPA) refuted statements made by the Tea Board on financial assistance to gardens, including the longpending subsidy amount, Mr Bista immediately took up the matter with the Union minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal. On the other hand, another section of tea garden owners have decided to woo Mrs Chhetri in writing against the Centre’s orders to stop import of tea from Nepal during the lockdown.
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