The Present and The Future of Darjeeling Tea

Darjeeling tea is known worldwide for its delicate taste and for being one of the most expensive teas. Despite this, when we look at the tea laborers we find how little their condition has changed over time. They still have to protest for days to increase a few rupees in their wages. Although there is still rising demand for Darjeeling tea in the foreign market, its tea industry still fails to provide the desired lifestyle to its laborers. Sandip C Jain who himself is a journalist and the editor of Himalayan Times has closely witnessed the Darjeeling tea industry over many years. This interview with him throws light on the present scenario as well as the expected fate of Darjeeling and its tea industry in the future