In India, climate change, reduced production and wage increases have forced at least 20 tea factories in West Bengal state to close down. This has left hundreds of tea workers looking for other jobs as they struggle to make ends meet.

West Bengal

Extreme weather events are occurring more frequently amid rising sea-levels and increasing temperatures.

Climate Crisis

In India, a significant number of tea factories have ceased operations due to a confluence of adverse factors impacting the industry. The closures have directly affected the livelihoods of numerous workers associated with these facilities. At least 20 tea factories in West Bengal state have shuttered, attributing their shutdown to climate change, decreased production levels, and the necessitation of increased wages.

This situation has resulted in a dire predicament for hundreds of tea workers in the region. The former employees of these factories are now faced with the challenge of finding alternative employment opportunities. The abrupt cessation of their primary source of income has thrust many into a struggle to financially sustain themselves and their families.



Tea factories in west Bengal state close down

Bishnu Thanthi is trying desperately to provide for his family of five. He's one of hundreds of tea workers who don't have work due to estate closures. He's applying for an $18 monthly allowance the government pays when tea estates close. It's very hard to pay for the children's education and manage our daily expenses. Many drop out of school before their high school exams, and their future and ours seem dark and bleak. Inadequate rain in recent months has left tea plantations dry and dusty. Lower yields combined with pest attacks and salary increases for workers have made it difficult for estates to stay afloat. About a dozen tea factories in Duas and Darjeeling hills have closed so far. Once the drought happens, then the pest happens. So it becomes a vicious cycle of drought, pest, spring, pest. So by the time you get over that cycle, the monsoons come. And if you enter the monsoons with the pest activity still on the bushes, then the crops also go down. With few options, many, like Thanthi, work crushing stones at the riverbank for just over a dollar a day. It's backbreaking work in sweltering conditions. But for many, it's the only way to make a living. A scheme to help the unemployed has been suspended due to a dispute between the state and central governments. Atul Asthana says yields have been falling for the past four years. He says tea prices have not increased in proportion to wages, which account for 70 percent of production costs. But unions see another side. The estates are shutting down because the owner's mindset is more into trading than running the industry properly. Last year, India's premium tea growing region, Darjeeling, recorded its lowest production in 50 years. And with the conditions becoming increasingly difficult here, many fear the world's second largest tea producer will suffer more plantation closures and job losses. Minal Fernandes, Al Jazeera.

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