Keep 100% import duty on tea intact: CCPA to Piyush Goyal

GUWAHATI: The Consultative Committee of Plantation Associations (CCPA) has sent a missive to Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal requesting him to maintain 100 per cent import duty on due.

The CCPA, the apex body of tea associations in India, wrote to the Union Minister that any move to reduce the import duty on tea would have an adverse impact on the demand-supply equilibrium with concurrent erosion of domestic prices, thereby adversely affecting the economic viability and livelihoods of the tea producers and the 1.2 million workers employed by the Indian tea industry. India is one of the world's largest producers and consumers of tea accounting for 23% of the world production and around 13% of the world tea export. The industry provides direct employment to more than 1.2 million workers out of which more than 60% are women.

In conclusion, it is submitted that reducing import duty on tea and granting easier access to the Indian tea market will be detrimental to the interests of the Indian tea industry and have adverse financial fallouts on the plantation sector. Concession in imports in any form will enable other tea producing countries to flourish at the cost of Indian tea which has a vast domestic market and provides livelihood to millions of people.

The CCPA would therefore urge the following (1) maintaining status quo with regard to 100% import duty on tea and (2) strengthening the inspection regime in India to ensure that teas which are being imported into India to comply with the FSSAI guidelines and other compliances.

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