Guwahati: If the Indian tea industry was looking for a permanent customer, count on Union Commerce and Industry minister Piyush Goyal.
“I am your permanent customer,” said Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal to stakeholders of the Indian tea industry on the 69th foundation day of Tea Board India on April 1.
Goyal spoke on the prospects and roadmap of the Indian tea industry in his virtual address on April 1.
He said tea plays an important part in the lives of a daily Indian, starting from the cup of tea in the morning.
“Tea in India is not just a beverage, it’s a feeling, and it binds us all,” Goyal said.
“Tea is my fixed daily ritual, and I am your permanent customer,” he said in his virtual address.
Referring to the head office of the Tea Board located in Calcutta, Goyal said the location of the headquarters does not matter, whether it is in West Bengal or Assam. BJP MP Rajdeep Roy had said Tea Board headquarters be shifted to Guwahati as Assam produces more than half of the tea in the country.
“India is one country, and we are beads of one necklace”, he said.
“Wherever we may stay, the office of the Tea Board is for all of you,” Goyal said.
Production and productivity have also increased, and tea is now sold through e-auction.
There is no denying that a massive transformation of the sector has taken place, but this should not make us complacent from doing even better. We need to improve more in terms of quality,” he said
India has a huge domestic market where 70 per cent of the total tea production is consumed, but exports are “going down” despite the country being the second largest producer of the beverage in the world, Goyal said. New export destinations have to be found.
“There has to be out of box thinking, and the future is in your hands,” he said, adding there has to be modernisation.
He talked of the different teas and tea blends now available in the country. He referred to Assam tea as a “tea which wakes you up.”
The minister talked of the startups coming up in tea, who are coming out with new ideas and new blends.
He spoke of TheChaiBox, a US tea company that helped Indian tea to make its global debut at the Oscars.
The ChaiBox was included as a part of the Everyone Wins Oscar gift bag gifted to all nominees of the 94th Academy Awards held on March 27 in Los Angeles. The ChaiBox gifted the nominees the Ultimate Chai Lovers Gift Set which was featured in Oprah’s Favourite Things 2021 holiday gift set.