Rehab package to revive 33 tea gardens; benefit 30k workers

New Delhi, July 6 (UNI) The Rs 4,500-crore special purpose tea fund (SPTF) floated by the government is expected to revive 33 closed tea gardens which employs more than 30,000 workers.

The fund was aimed at replanting and rejuvenating the country's aging tea bushes that will increase the quality of production.

Of the closed tea gardens, the central government has decided to takeover the management of three sick gardens in West Bengal located at Sikarpur, Bandarpur and Raipur.

Of the remaining, leading tea companies such as McLeod Russel India, Warren Tea, Assam Company, Apeejay Tea, Dhunseri Tea and Tata Tea have applied for the fund set up by the Commerce Ministry.

Asom will get 46 per cent of the fund, followed by West Bengal (28 per cent) and Kerala while Tamil Nadu will get 25 per cent. The Centre will give 25 per cent subsidy, tea garden owners 25 per cent and the balance will come from SPTF.

Commerce Minister Kamal Nath today said it is necessary to step up the rate of replantation and rejuvenation which holds the key to competitiveness of the Indian tea industry, given the high age profile of tea bushes throughout the country. '' Over two lakh hectares, which fall in the vulnerable category of low-yielding areas is to be targeted for replantation and rejuvenation,'' he added.

The Commerce ministry aims to bring in 11,000 hectares under replantation and another 2,800 hectares under rejuvenation in the current financial year.

Mr Nath said ''On revival, the gardens would infuse additional capital in plants and machinery resulting into increasing in the crop yields and total tea production for domestic and export purposes.'' The rehab package announced by the Tea Board provides for restructuring of existing outstanding bank loans of closed tea gardens by converting them into term loans with a moratorium period of five years, an official statement said. The recovery of converted loans would start from sixth year and completed by the tenth year.

The accumulated penal interest on the loans will be waived.

The banks will charge a simple rate of interest of 11 per cent per year on the restructured loan.

There will be a moratorium of one year for payment of the interest. The accumulated simple interest is to be shared equally by banks, central government and beneficiaries to the extent of one-third each. The loans advanced by the Tea Board to such gardens would be waived, the statement said.

After financial restructuring, these gardens will become eligible to get loans and subsidy from the Tea Board under the Rs 4,500-crore SPTF scheme. They will also become eligible to get 25 per cent subsidy for upgradation and modernisation of their factories. An interest subsidy at the rate of three per cent on the working capital loans would be provided by the government for a period of five years on the working capital loans that will be taken by such gardens for resumption of their operation.

Tea Board Chairman will be the nodal officer for implementing the rehabilitation package, the statement added.

The process of loan disbursement under SPTF will kick off later this month in Asom, the largest contributor to tea industry. This will be followed in West Bengal where 14 tea estates employing about 17,000 workers are lying closed.

UNI