Tea traders threaten stir from July 1

MUMBAI, June 17: Tea dealers in Mumbai have threatened to go on an indefinite strike from July 1 to protest eight per cent excise duty on packaged tea in the budget.

Said Harendra S Shah, president of the Federation of Tea Traders of Maharashtra, the members have decided not to purchase tea from the gardens and auction centres. The Federation has also decided to file a writ petition against the definition of "manufacturer" and "trader", as well as "loose tea" and "packed tea". These definitions are very vague, Shah said.

Suman Seth, ex-president of the Mumbai Tea Traders’ Association, said the crop which was 77.5 crore kgs last year is expected to cross 80 crore kgs this year. Due to this, prices are expected to go down, but the government has levied duty which which will lead to a price rise from Rs 12 to Rs 15 per kg.