Centre to takeover 3 gardens, handover to new owners: Ramesh

Kolkata, Jun 14 (UNI) With the backdrop of trade union and ownership problems, the Centre is liekly to handover the ownership of the closed tea-gardens to prospective buyers through bidding, first time in five decades.

Union Minister of State for Commerce&Industry Jairam Ramesh told mediapersons here that atleast two closed gardens would envisage change of ownership through intervention of Tea Board under Section 16 D of Tea Board Act.

''We will call bid for the three gardens -- Raipur and Sikarpur-Bandapur gardens,'' he said.

About 33 gardens have been shut for the more than two years in West Bengal, Assam and Kerala, after yields from their ageing tea bushes plummeted.

The government has held several rounds of talks with the owners, but had failed to reopen the plantations.

UNI