Say Cheers! Tea is The Toast of Assam

Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi declares tea as ‘State Drink’, calls for more research to beat competitors

By Ratnadip Choudhury

The price of Indian tea has fallen in the international market. India has come down to the fourth position from first in tea export largely due to lack of research

Jorhat, Nov 23 : Tea plants are said to have been first found in Assam way back in 1824. On Tuesday, Assam finally gave its cup of hot steaming tea its due honour. Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi declared tea as the ‘State Drink’ of Assam on the sidelines of the of three-day World Tea Science Congress at the Tocklai Experimental Station (tea research centre) in Upper Assam’s Jorhat district.

Former President APJ Abdul Kalam, who inaugurated the international meet on tea research, went a step ahead urging New Delhi to declare tea as the ‘National Drink’. “Twenty-two per cent of tea produced worldwide is consumed in India; the country has been a major tea exporter and boasts of rich tea varieties. Moreover, tea is consumed by every class and community. So there is no harm if tea is declared the National Drink,” Kalam said in his inaugural speech.

The Tea Congress is a Tocklai centenary initiative aimed to deliberate on new technical and scientific methods to improve tea production at a time when prices of raw tea leaves are falling down drastically and small and marginal tea growers taking a hit. Apart from participants from different parts of the country, delegates from China, Sri Lanka, the UK, Kenya and Japan are participating in the meet.

“We have to save the tea industry and ensure its growth; it is Assam’s prestige. We have already decided to declare tea as the State Drink,” said Gogoi. “The price of Indian tea has fallen in the international market. We have come down to the fourth position from first in tea export largely due to lack of research. Some countries where commercial growing of tea started much later are now giving us a big competition,” Gogoi added.

Taking note of what Gogoi said, Kalam said that the country had to plan and finance more research projects on tea. The ace scientist also felt that the Tea Research Association (TRA) should attract private investment and come up with a “comprehensive international marketing strategy” in association with the Indian Institutes of Management and like-minded institutions.

Scientists at the Station claimed to have created a new formulation that would enhance tea production by 25 per cent. At present, average yield per hectare of tea in India is about 2,000 kg. With climate change taking a toll on the tea industry, TRA feels that the new formulation will be a great boon. “The increase in temperature, erratic rainfall and the rise in carbon dioxide emissions are the latest problems the industry faces. Scientists from the tea-producing countries agree that climate change could adversely impact the tea industry,” said TRA Chairman DP Maheshwari. He added that the tea industry would have to think out of the box to devise a better marketing strategy.

Time for tea-based soft drink

A tea-based soft drink, the first of its kind, was test-launched on Tuesday at the Tocklai Experimental Station of the Tea Research Association (TRA) on the sidelines of the inauguration of the three-day long World Tea Science Congress in Jorhat.

The drink was ‘soft launched’ by former President APJ Abdul Kalam and Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi. The drink will have a shelf life of six months and will be promoted as a health drink. “It is tea liquor-based non-carbonated soft drink targeted for the younger generation as a health drink," informed Station Director Mridul Hazarika.

“Work on the tea-based soft drink was launched a decade ago by the research station to present something unique to the tea industry during its centenary year and research was undertaken in several non-conventional areas,” Hazarika added.

On 30 October, Tocklai had passed on the technology to Green Gold Assam Pvt Ltd, which will produce and market the product. A MoU has been signed between Green Gold Assam and Tocklai station for this purpose. Price and packaging of the product would be decided by Green Gold, but pricing would be competitive. “Ninety-five per cent of the drink contains tea and water and rest other permissible flavours,” Hazarika added.

Ratnadip Choudhury is a Principal Correspondent with Tehelka. ratnadip@tehelka.com

YMA Warns Bru Insurgents

Aizawl, Nov 22 : Young Mizo Association (YMA) today gave stern warning to the Bru insurgents who sent extortion notes to the Mizo residents of three villages inside Assam's Hailakandi district.

The YMA, in a press statement, said that such illegal activities against Mizos would adversely affect communal harmony in the area and in Mizoram.

"The Mizo people demanded that the Bru insurgents should withdraw extortion notes or they would be ready to face the consequences," the YMA warned.

Mizo residents of B.Tlangnuam, Zion and Hachhek inside Mizoram were told by a group which called itself United Liberation Front of Bru Land (ULFBL) to pay Rs ten lakh.

The ULFBL warned that the Mizo residents should pay the amount or their lands and other properties would be destroyed.

The outfit was reported to have demanded formation of a Bru land by carving out Bru inhabited areas of Tripura, Assam and Mizoram.

CSWO Lambasts Meghalaya Police For Reinstating 'Tainted' Officer

Shillong, Nov 22 : A women's organisation in Meghalaya today lambasted the state government for revoking the suspension order of a police sub-inspector who was arrested on the charges of raping a minor girl.

Sub-Inspector S N Roy had fled to Bihar on April 13 after taking an unauthorised 'sick leave.' He, however, surrendered before the Court of Judicial Magistrate after three months while evading arrest for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl.

Lambasting the Meghalaya police for reinstating Roy, Civil Society Women’s Organisation (CSWO) president Agnes Kharshiing said, ''Roy is known for trafficking women and young girls to Kolkata. His reinstatement shows that he was providing girls for some big influential people in the home department.'' The women’s organisation also demanded that the law department take such crimes seriously and then forward them to Fast track Courts.

Ms Kharshiing also claimed that the reinstatement of the police officer might be because Roy must be in the know of some infamous crimes perpetrated by some very senior police officers and they may have been obliged to him.

Confirming that the suspension order of Roy was revoked, East Khasi Hills district Superintendent of Police AR Mawthoh, however, said, ''the criminal charges against the accused have not been dropped.'' However, the powerful CSWO strongly felt that the case should have been charge sheeted in the case.

''How can the police now investigate a rape case seriously when the very perpetrator in uniform is being safeguarded and rewarded for his job,'' Ms Kharshiing said.

Farm-Fresh Veggies Can Cause Cancer in India

By Johnlee Abraham

Bangalore, Nov 22 : Beware! The farm-fresh vegetables you buy from vendors may cause you deadly diseases such as cancer.

For these alluringly green vegetable are irrigated with untreated sewage water that contain high levels of lead, cadmium, chromium, mercury and arsenic, a research by Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR) suggests.

According to the study, the menace takes alarming proportion as consignments of such unsafe vegetables are making inroads into the city market uninterrupted from adjoining areas in the absence of a system to check the edibility of such items.

As per the IIHR research conducted over a period of fours years in suburban areas of Bellandur Tank, Varthur Tank, Nagawara Tank and Byramangala Tank the vegetables irrigated with sewage water contain high levels of lead, cadmium, chromium, mercury, arsenic and other  heavy metal contents.


The study further said the prolonged use of untreated sewage water for irrigation has also contaminated the soil. Rampant use of pesticides has also added to the problem.

The research stated that the toxic levels in the soil of the study areas were more than 6 mg, which is way above permissible limits.  While the study has brought to light an alarming reality, the State Horticulture Department seems to be playing down the issue.

Instead of taking some serious efforts to curb this menace, the department has taken refuge in a blame-game. "It is mainly the small-time vendors, who operate around the Bangalore Urban, sneak in toxic vegetables into the city.

They buy their stuff from farms that use untreated sewage water. And since they are very few in numbers, it's difficult to keep a watch on them," said Shanmukhappa, Managing Director, Horticultural Producers' Co-operative Marketing and Processing Society (HOPCOMS).

What's the solution?
Is there no way to put a curb on these vendors at all? "If we have a doubt that the produce might be contaminated, it is then we send it to the testing labs," added Shanmukhappa.

He also added that the only way to tackle the entry of toxic vegetables into the market was through close vigil. According to experts, until and unless, the vegetables are screened for finding residual traces of toxic chemicals, there is no way to differentiate these vegetables from normal ones.

"The health hazards caused by consuming vegetables contaminated with heavy metals are many.

It may vary from simple complications such as headache, body cramps, nausea to more severe disorders like cancers, renal damage, cardiovascular diseases and even damage to nervous system," said Dr Thuppil Venkatesh, Principal Investigator, National Referral Centre for Lead Poisoning in India.

Buffy, ‘The’ Facebook Phone coming soon

After denying for years that it is not interested in entering the hardware space, Facebook is indeed working on its own phone, AllThingsD reports. The phone will be manufactured by HTC and will be run on a heavily customized version of Android.

Facebook was apparently tapping both HTC and Samsung but eventually sided with the Taiwanese OEM-turned-smartphone-vendor. It will also support HTML5 as a platform to run Facebook apps and is apparently still 12-18 months from launch.

The project has been in works for about two years but has changed in scope and size. Facebook has earlier partnered with both HTC and Motorola to make smartphones with keys dedicated to Facebook. Recently, it partnered with MediaTek to bring a better Facebook experience to low-cost feature phones.

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Jessica Clement at the Beach in a Watermelon Bikini

Jessica Jane Clement hit the jungle with "I'm a Celebrity, Get me Out of Here" she's just EVERYWHERE. I especially love the impromptu beach photoshoot that is just a little to set up to be realistic.

Northeast India's Largest Power Project To Ease electricity Woes

By Sujit Chakraborty

Agartala, Nov 22 : The electricity crisis in northeastern India is set to ease when the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation's (ONGC) first mega power project -- the largest in the region -- starts generating power by April next year.

"State-owned ONGC's 726-MW generating capacity first major power project in India will start producing electricity from April next year," a Tripura power department official told IANS.

The gas-based thermal power project will resolve the power crisis of Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland, Mizoram and Tripura states. It is being commissioned at southern Tripura's Palatana, 60 km from here.

"State-run National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) has been working to extend the power transmission line from Palatana to the national power grid at Bongaigaon in western Assam," the official said.

"From the national power grid at Bongaigaon, the electricity will be disseminated in Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Nagaland and Mizoram," he said.

"Subsequently, the project will be able to generate 1,000 MW of power if additional machineries are integrated with the operational turbines," he added.

Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar Saturday reviewed the progress of the works for commissioning of the Rs.9,000-crore power plant, for which Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had laid the foundation stone in 2005.

The meeting also assessed the progress of works for commissioning of another 104 MW capacity combined cycle power project, being installed by the public sector company North Eastern Electric Power Corp (NEEPCO).

NEEPCO's power plant is being set up in West Tripura's Monarchak, 65 km from Agartala. The Rs.625-crore project will start power generation from January 2013. The ONGC had agreed to provide natural gas for the project.

The oversized heavy turbines and other heavy machines for ONGC's Palatana project, carried on massive 132-wheeled trucks, had reached the site from Haldia port in West Bengal after being trans-shipped through Bangladesh.

An ONGC official said transporting the heavy equipment to Tripura over a few thousand kilometres of surface routes within India - through the mountainous northeastern states - was extremely difficult, and the Indian authorities were forced to carry the power plant's equipment through Bangladesh.

"Work on commissioning the power project is in full swing despite the transportation difficulties," the official said.

A consortium comprising US-based General Electric and India's state-run Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) has been contracted to supply the all-important gas turbines for the thermal power project, the official added.

ONGC owns significant quantities of natural gas reserves in Tripura. However, these reserves are not yet sufficiently commercially exploited due to the low industrial demand in the northeastern region.

The complexities of logistics and costs limit the economic viability of transporting gas to other deficit parts of the country.

It is to optimally utilise the gas available in Tripura that ONGC proposed developing the 726-MW Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) thermal power plant close to its gas fields in the state to supply power to deficit areas of northeastern India.

15 Injured in Tripura College Clashes

Agartala, Nov 22 : Tension has gripped the colleges in Tripura after 15 students were injured in clashes between various groups following the announcement of students’ council polls slated to be held on Dec. 2.

“At least 15 students were injured in clashes between factions of students in several colleges during the past three days,” a state higher education department official told reporters here on Monday.

“Following the incidents of clashes, huge security forces have been deployed in and around all the colleges in different parts of Tripura,” the official said.

The state’s ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) backed Students Federation of India (SFI) and opposition Congress’ student wing National Students Union of India (NSUI) have filed complaints with police against each other.

The state higher education department Saturday announced elections to students’ councils in 15 colleges across Tripura.

“Polling would be held for altogether 527 seats in 15 students’ councils on Dec. 2 in Tripura. Necessary notification was issued on Nov 19 for the elections,” the official said.

Of the total of 527 seats in the 15 councils, the SFI had won 525 seats in 2010.