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The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today gave its approval for implementing the following schemes involving a total estimated outlay of Rs.93 crore from the special fund created with the collections of additional duty of excise on tea, as recommended by the Expenditure Finance Committee:
(i) Grant of subsidy for production of orthodox tea @ Rs.Three per kg for leaf grades and Rs.Two per kg for dust grades for existing levels of production with additional incentive @ Rs.Two per kg for the incremental volume over the previous year from January 1, 2005 to March 31, 2007.
(ii) Meeting the actual deficits of the two Research & Development Institutions viz. Tea Research Association (TRA) at Tocklai (Assam) and United Planters’ Association for Southern India – Tea Research Foundation (UPASI-TRF), Tamil Nadu for a period of five years with effect from 2004-05 subject to the maximum of 80 per cent of the expenditure on already agreed items of expenditure, of which 49 per cent would be met from the normal Plan outlay of the Tea Board and balance from the special fund.
Implementation of the above schemes will contribute towards the overall modernisation and development of the tea plantation sector. This will impart vigour and health to a number of individual gardens and also the industry as a whole in terms of increase in production, productivity, quality, higher unit value realisation, exports, etc. There will also be additional support for research in tea, which would be helpful to the industry.
RK:DS:LV
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