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Nepal tea inflow puts India in a bind over Darjeeling and diplomacy
As duty-free tea varieties from Nepal flood the domestic mkt, challenging the iconic Darjeeling tea, India walks a tightrope, weighing geopolitical calculations and domestic political considerations
Ishita Ayan Dutt Kolkata
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Falling production, shrinking global footprint, and a flood of cheaper imports from neighbouring Nepal – Darjeeling tea, celebrated as the 'Champagne of teas', is losing its aroma.
The Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government has sounded the alarm urging the Centre to invoke the safeguard clause in the India-Nepal trade treaty, seeking protection for Darjeeling tea from the surge of unregulated Nepalese imports.
Signed in 2009 and renewed every seven years, the India-Nepal treaty provides for a safeguard clause, which can be triggered if imports
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