Date:27/06/2008 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/06/27/stories/2008062750851300.htm

Back Tea Board to invite fresh bids to open closed gardens

Norms being relaxed for bidders

Santanu Sanyal

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Kolkata, June 26 Tea Board is to soon invite fresh bids under Section 16E of the Tea Act 1953 for reopening 17 closed tea gardens — 10 in West Bengal and seven in Kerala.

Stringent ones

Giving this information to Business Line here on Thursday, Mr Basudeb Bandopadhyaya, Chairman of Tea Board, said the norms were now being relaxed.

The earlier bid to invoke the relevant provisions of Section 16E for reopening four closed gardens in West Bengal did not succeed.

“It was not that we did not get response to our earlier invitation for bids but we felt that the response we received would have materialised into concrete offers but for some stringent conditions which are now being relaxed,” Mr Bandopadhyaya observed.

In West Bengal, the number of closed tea gardens now is 12, down from earlier 14. But land of two closed gardens being with the State Government, Tea Board could not invite bids for them. In Kerala, seven gardens belong to two groups — five under one group and two under another.

However, there are court cases pending in respect of two gardens which the Tea Board would try to vacate. Reports have it that new owners are believed to have shown interest in acquiring three closed gardens.

Tea industry circles, however, are sceptical about the success of the move initiated by the Tea Board to reopen closed gardens under Section 16E.

Who is going to shoulder the liabilities of the closed gardens, they ask.

The prospective bidders will be reluctant to shoulder the burden.

Unless the liability issue is resolved satisfactorily, the reopening of the gardens will remain a distant dream, it is pointed out.

Power woes

Meanwhile, the new owners of Bharnobari Tea Estate in Jalpaiguri district met the Tea Board Chairman on Thursday and drew his attention to various problems they faced with regard to getting electricity connection, settlement of bank dues, and PF dues among other things.

An estimated Rs 23 lakh has to be paid by the new owners to have the electricity connection restored, it is learnt.

Bharnobari reopened in April after having remained closed for more than two years.

Its total dues would come to about Rs 8-9 crore.

The total area under tea crop is over 700 hectares and the number of workers over 1,400.