Indian tea plantations get a boost through CCEA's special fund

New Delhi, Dec 28 (UNI) In a bid to boost global competitiveness of Indian tea, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs today approved setting up of the Special Purpose Tea Fund (SPTF) under the Tea Board for funding replantation and rejuvenation activities to improve the age profile of tea plantations.

"The scheme is expected to result in increasing the yield, lowering the cost of production and in improvement in quality of tea leading to higher price realisation," an official spokesperson said here.

It was also expected to lead to increased collection of tea cess, sales tax/VAT, and income-tax.

Additional employment of 22 million person days per year will be generated through the scheme yielding gainful employment for dependents of permanent workers residing in the tea plantations, the spokesperson added.

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