Celebrations to mark 200 years of Assam tea underway

Celebrations to mark 200 years of Assam tea have started in Jorhat with the release of a monogram by eminent author Arup Dutta and a book by tea researcher and writer Pradip Baruah recently, highlighting the genesis and growth of the industry. The monogram titled 'Genesis of Assam Tea Industry' traces the growth and development of the sector, and the book 'Two hundred years of Assam Tea 1823-2023:The genesis and development of Indian Tea' have been published by the North East Tea Association (NETA).

Both were launched by Bidyananda Barkakoty and Swapna Sarmah, both belonging to old Assamese tea planters' families along with former Tea Board Chairman Prabhat Bezboruah on January 7.

Coinciding with 200 years of Assam tea celebrations, NETA has launched a 'tea academy' with Manoj Jallan as its first director.

The facility will carry out long-term and short-duration courses to create trained manpower for the industry.

Barkakoty, a prominent tea planter and a former office bearer of NETA, told PTI that plans are on for year-long celebrations with the screening of a documentary on tea, inauguration of a tea museum in Dibrugarh, development of the upcoming tea park at Chaygaon.

Efforts should be made to get recognition of tea as a national drink and the historic occasion should be leveraged for the generic promotion of the beverage to boost consumption in the country.

India's G-20 Presidency can also be an opportunity to highlight and showcase the unique feature of tradition, culture, health benefits and tourism potential of tea in Assam and other parts of India, NETA said.

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