As a brand created by early British planters, Darjeeling, in the Eastern Himalayan region, is famous for tea and has earned a geographical indication (GI) tag in short, for it.
But the closure of several tea gardens in the Northern Bengal region (Terai, Dooars and Darjeeling), around 40 in total, is impacting the industry. To an extent, it is due to climate change impacts. Driven by erratic rainfall and temperature changes, Darjeeling’s tea production dropped to six million kilogrammes in 2024 from 12 million kilogrammes. This happened within just ten years.
In such a situation, Nepal is being viewed as a competitor, putting Darjeeling’s tea legacy in a tight spot. A source, who did not wish to be named, claimed that due to the reduction in Darjeeling’s tea production, Nepal has filled the void. Its main advantage is younger bushes when compared to Darjeeling.
As a measure, a few trade unions in Darjeeling have been up in arms against duty-free tea imports from Nepal, which they feel is harming the marketing and branding of Darjeeling tea, considered iconic worldwide. Some famous Darjeeling gardens are going the ‘tea tourism’ way to tide over reduced profits.
At present, many tea factories in Jhapa and Ilam districts of Nepal have closed down and suspended operations, following the imposition of strict testing procedures for consignments crossing the border and entering India. This has impacted its imports to India. “But how long this will hold cannot be commented on at this juncture. I don’t think the closure will continue for a long time. Ultimately, things will ease through bilateral talks. But if Nepal tea doesn’t enter, Darjeeling’s market will surely be robust,” said a planter based in Darjeeling and not willing to be named.
Aditya Parajuli, president of the Nepal Tea Planters' Association, told Down To Earth that at present 83 tea factories are closed in Jhapa and Ilam and this has badly impacted the women workers who are mostly from Indigenous or tribal communities.
"Government level talks are on, but no decision has been reached as of now. The checking is being down in Indian godowns which is wrong. All checks should be completed at the border."
He added that Nepal doesn't want its teas to be destroyed in India. India and Nepal have always shared a special relationship. Nepal always exports its teas as Nepal teas and to tide over the production decline, Darjeeling should increase its production.
Nepal and India have maintained fair relations as neighbours, but the issue over tea can add a bitter note to the geopolitical situation in a fast-changing geography during times of climate stress. There have been reports of Nepal tea being mixed with that of Darjeeling, with allegations that even top brands are marketing Nepal tea under the brand name of Darjeeling.
Two managers from top tea companies pointed out that teas labelled ‘Himalayan’ sometimes have Nepal tea leaves mixed in them, though it is difficult to say to what extent. “It is because Nepal produces a similar kind of tea as Darjeeling, but often inferior in quality. At times, it is even implied that it is Darjeeling, not exported, but sold within the country,” one of them claimed.
Rajeev Gurung, who works in J Thomas and Co Private Limited, and is based in Siliguri, admitted that he had heard the mix is happening. The company conducts tea auctions online on behalf of sellers and also conducts sampling, tasting and valuation of tea.
A tea taster from a top tea brand, which has five gardens in Darjeeling, shared that India has a free trade agreement with Nepal. “Once the tea enters India, there is no traceability and one cannot make out if it is blended and mixed. Some 15 years back, tea tasters could make out the difference due to the smell and character of the teas, but today its manufacturing has been improved by those very people who worked in Darjeeling’s gardens earlier.”
He lamented that duty-free entry of tea from Nepal and mixing is killing Darjeeling tea, despite the GI tag, because Nepal’s tea price is half of the former’s price. “A lot of trucks enter India through the border. There are blending units in Siliguri and Kolkata. So, checks have to be made at the border itself. There should be raids and random tests,” he added.
As it is mostly exported to the US and the EU, tea growers in Darjeeling have to comply with the plant protection code (a set of agricultural guidelines) set by the Tea Board of India as well as the FSSAI rules.
The tea taster claimed that there are no such rules in Nepal. He pointed out that earlier, teas arrived on horseback, and the aroma could be smelled from even at a distance. But now, there is no such advantage. “The Centre should intervene but there are geopolitical compulsions.”
Shiv Saria, whose family manages the Gopaldhara tea estate in Darjeeling planted as early as 1881, shared that the tea bushes had grown old as they were planted in the British times. Most gardens are not in a position to do uprooting and replanting due to the huge cost involved. However, in Gopaldhara, almost 50 per cent of the garden was replanted from 1981 onwards.
“As Darjeeling’s elevation starts from 2000 feet upwards, the yield is achieved after 14 years. The gestation period (total time taken by tea plants to reach harvest time) is longer compared to that of the Dooars and Terai. Moreover, there is an uneven distribution of rainfall which is gradually coming in concentrated showers in two to three months while the other months remain dry. Besides climatic problems, there is labour migration happening to the cities due to low wages in tea gardens,” Saria said.
He pointed out that amidst this crisis, the duty-free import of Nepal tea has hit Darjeeling hard in the past 25 years. Apart from younger bushes, Nepal’s production cost is also less and labourers there receive lesser wages as compared to Darjeeling.
Sources mentioned above pointed out that as Nepal is modelled like Darjeeling and makes similar kind of teas, mixing has become almost impossible to identify. But amidst such claims, Atul Wal, who worked for a while in Nepal, clarified that these are two different tea growing regions and said that tea tasters could find out the difference, despite those on the Indian side who said otherwise.
“I worked on the other side of the Mechi River dividing India and Nepal and tasted both the teas and they taste different. A big plus point for Nepal is that it has small tea growers whereas in Darjeeling, the gardens are big and the social cost (fringe benefits given to workers apart from wages like housing in labour lines etc) are high,” said Wal, who worked as the general manager in the Nepal Tea Development Corporation.
Apart from Nepal, Sri Lanka and Kenya are exporting teas giving tough competition to Darjeeling. “Kenya doesn’t have pest issues as the plantations are new and have higher productivity. Darjeeling is really having a difficult time,” Jaideep Singh, the former deputy general manager at Amalgamated Plantations, said.
Malay Bhattacharya, who works in the Department of Tea Science, University of North Bengal, shared that before exports, tests happen for 150 different kind of pesticides and every pesticide has a legally defined permissible limit. Rejections happen if the levels are crossed leading to blacklisting. But nearly all of Darjeeling’s 87 gardens are certified organic.
Over the years, 13 tea gardens closed down in Darjeeling impacting workers, especially the female workforce. When the Peshok tea garden in Darjeeling was functional, Sushila Rai used to pluck leaves there. It officially closed in 2019.
Rai shared that for most women in the region famous for tourism, tea gardens offer a steady source of income, despite the meagre wages. But when they shut, workers stare at a bleak future. The wages stop, leading to migration to Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru for work. Like many others, Rai also tried her luck in Delhi for five years as a momo seller. However, she decided to return.
“I missed home amidst alienation in a big city. My self-respect was compromised when some questioned my identity. A few people had no idea about Darjeeling even though its tea is so famous. When my tolerance level was crossed, I returned home,” Rai said.
Now, in her own native place, the woman is part of a one-year-old self-help group with others. The focus is on chilli cultivation on a plot of land. The chilli is the locally cultivated Dalle Khursani, which is used to make pastes and pickles.