Majority of Darjeeling tea to go organic

By Indrani Dutta

KOLKATA: The Darjeeling Tea Association (DTA) has mounted efforts to increase the production of organic tea so that the majority of the champagne of teas is organically produced by 2010.

Industry sources say that at present about 37 per cent of the total crop grown on the slopes of the eastern Himalayas is organic tea, as per certifications given by European and Japanese agencies.

“Efforts are on now to cover at least two more gardens that contribute 13 per cent of the total yield under the organic cultivation norms,” a source at the DTA, the apex industry body, told The Hindu.

Given the fact that the annual Darjeeling tea crop averages at about 9.5 to 10 million kg in volume terms, India would be offering around five million kg of the brew as an organically grown product. However, initially the crop would be lower as the conversion process reduces output by half.

Top news in Himalaya Darpan Today!

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Morcha elects civic head

Darjeeling, April 2: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha’s Pemba Tshering Ola was today elected as the chairman of the Darjeeling Municipality, ending a four-month impasse at the civic body.

The Bengal government had earlier called for a fresh election to the post of the civic chairman, cancelling the one held on January 14 and won by the GNLF.

This morning, 16 of the 28 ward councillors — all of them owing allegiance to the Morcha — attended a meeting and unanimously voted for Ola.

The remaining 12 “independent” councillors, however, stayed away from the meeting, which was convened by Darjeeling subdivisional officer S. Deb and overseen by government observer Pranita Pariyar nee Sewa.

Probe into result row

Siliguri, April 2: North Bengal University will carry out a fact-finding exercise in all its colleges offering BBA and BCA courses in the wake of widespread protests by students who got abysmal marks in the first, third and fifth semester exams.

“We have formed a committee that includes the inspector of colleges and the deans of the faculty of science as well as arts, commerce and law,” said registrar Dilip Sarkar. [Inset: Students of BCA demand better infrastructure. A Telegraph picture]

“The team will take stock of all aspects of teaching and learning in the colleges and the university, focusing on infrastructure, strength and quality of faculty members and availability of library and laboratory facilities. They will also study the attendance of teachers and students,” the registrar added.

The drive will look into the handling of finances too. “Colleges are expected to use a major portion of the fees collected from self-financed courses for the benefit of the students,” Sarkar said.

Canadian walks the earth for peace

Siliguri, April 2: Jean Beliveau is not a die-hard fan of Bob Dylan. But he seems to be the “man” that Dylan sang of in “How many roads must a man walk down before you can call him a man”.

Fifty-two-year-old Beliveau, a former employee of an ad agency in Montreal, Canada, has been walking for the past eight years to disseminate the message: “peace and non-violence for children of the world”. [Inset: Beliveau with his trolley in Jalpaiguri on Wednesday. Picture by Biplab Basak]

Trotting across 51 countries and traversing around 50,000km, the Canadian arrived in Jalpaiguri from Nepal today. “I took up walking to impart the message of non-violence following the UN declaration to observe 2001-2010 as the International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-violence for the Children of the World,” he said while walking briskly with a three-wheeled trolley towards the district collectorate.

Growers’ tips to stop theft

Siliguri, April 2: Small growers have proposed restriction on free movement of tealeaves to stop the theft from gardens.

A section of pluckers in cahoots with local goons have been stealing leaves from the small plantations at night from the time the price of tea reached Rs 9 per kg from Rs 5. Thefts were reported almost everyday in the past fortnight from 100-150 plantations. With losses averaging about Rs 15,000 a month, small growers in Jalpaiguri have come forward with a number of suggestions, police intervention being another.

“Free movement and sale of tealeaves in the small sector are encouraging the thieves,” said Bijoygopal Chakraborty, the joint secretary of the Jalpaiguri Zilla Kshudra Cha Chashi Samiti. “Leaves carried individually or in vehicles are not accompanied by any authentic document and so it is difficult to identify stolen leaves,” he said.

The growers have proposed that any tealeaf transported to a broker or a bought-leaf factory (BLF) from the plantation should go together with a challan or a document with details like the name of the plantation and the quantity.

Pay Rs 2 lakh: Panel to LIC

Kalimpong, April 2: The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) has directed the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) to pay the insured value of Rs 2 lakh to the widow of Kishori Lal Agarwal, a resident of R. C. Mintri Road here, who had died in a fire in 1997.

Giving its verdict on an appeal filed by Geeta Devi, widow of Agarwal, the commission said the money should be paid with nine per cent interest from the date of completing three months after the claim was made till the day of payment. The LIC was also asked to pay Devi Rs 10,000 for legal costs. [Inset: Geeta Devi. Picture by Chinlop Fudong Lepcha]

The long road to justice began for the Agarwals immediately after their patriarch Kishori Lal died on November 12, 1997 when their house got engulfed in a fire. Two of his grandchildren had also perished in the blaze. On July 28 the same year, Kishori Lal had submitted a proposal to insure his life for a sum of Rs 1 lakh with double accidental benefits. However, a day before the LIC accepted his proposal on November 13, 1997, he met with the fatal accident.