Nepali Congress Whip Nischal Rai Highlights Tea Industry Crisis Amidst Export Hurdles

Kathmandu. Nepali Congress Chief Whip Nischal Rai has stated that the government is not paying attention to the tea sector, which contributes significantly to the economy by exporting more than 30 million worth of processed tea annually.

Speaking during an urgent session of the House of Representatives, Chief Whip Rai sarcastically remarked about Prime Minister Balen Shah, saying, 'The Prime Minister is busy making the country with two ministers. He is seen visiting tea stalls and drinking tea on social media, but he has no time to solve the problems of the tea industry and farmers.'

He mentioned that neighboring country India has imposed new cumbersome standards on tea exports, causing hardship to tea industrialists and farmers in Ilam. Rai stated that due to the new provisions imposed by India in the name of quality testing, 83 tea factories in Ilam have been shut down for three days.

According to MP Rai, the Indian Tea Board has implemented a new standard called 'Standard Operating Procedure'. He explained that this leads to tea testing reports taking more than two weeks to arrive, and tea cannot be sold until the report is received. He further stated that due to the mandatory rule to destroy produced tea if there are minor issues in the report, 53 industries in Suryodaya Municipality and 83 industries across the district have been locked.

Rai stated that with the closure of industries, the green tea leaves plucked by farmers are going to waste, workers are losing their employment, and entrepreneurs are unable to even pay bank interest.

MP Rai demanded that to resolve the problem immediately, efforts should be made for G2G (Government to Government) to open tea exports, a long-term solution for tea exports should be sought through diplomatic practice, the process of establishing a tea testing lab within Nepal should be expedited, and a new path for export should be opened by ensuring the market for tea in third countries.