Guwahati, Assam — Plantations across upper Assam are facing an acute labour squeeze as climate-related disruptions, stagnant tea prices and rising input costs make estate work less reliable and less remunerative, industry figures and workers said.
Climate and economics squeeze workforce
Recent storms and floods that damaged more than 50 tea gardens in the state have compounded a longer-term trend of heat stress and erratic weather that is reducing productivity and disrupting harvest schedules, workers and owners told DW in interviews. The combined pressures are prompting experienced pickers to consider leaving the sector for more stable jobs.
Assam produces about 52 per cent of India’s tea and the plantation economy supports roughly 700,000 plantation workers and 140,000 small tea growers. For generations, tea plucking by hand has underpinned output, but that labour model is now under strain.
“Life has become unpredictable. The weather can disrupt work, while wages remain low and work is not as dependable as it once was,”
— Sumitra Tanti, a tea worker quoted in the source reporting.
Costs up, prices down, small growers hardest hit
Owners and small growers say oversupply in global markets has pushed prices down, while costs for wages, fertiliser and fuel have risen. Sanjiv Gogoi, owner of a 400-acre tea estate, said productivity has fallen and labour supply is becoming unreliable because the work does not pay sufficiently.
Smallholders, who account for nearly half of Assam’s production, are especially vulnerable: they often lack bargaining power and are forced to sell freshly plucked leaves to factories at low prices, reducing their resilience to climate shocks and market volatility.
- Climate impacts: Floods and storms have directly damaged gardens and disrupted plucking; rising temperatures reduce yields and alter crop cycles.
- Economic pressures: Global oversupply has depressed prices while domestic costs — wages, fertilisers, fuel — have increased.
- Labour response: Experienced workers are considering alternative livelihoods, undermining the skilled workforce that sustains quality production.
Consequences for production and communities
The loss of experienced pluckers affects both quantity and quality of tea. Tea quality is closely tied to the skill of pickers and timely harvests; erratic weather and diminished labour availability may reduce factory throughput and the value realisable for growers.
Beyond estate owners and smallholders, hundreds of thousands of local residents depend on the tea industry for wages and related services. A sustained outflow of workers would have wider socio-economic consequences for tea-belt districts, where alternative employment opportunities are limited.
| Metric | Value (from reporting) |
|---|---|
| Share of India’s tea produced by Assam | 52% |
| Plantation workers supported | 700,000 |
| Small tea growers | 140,000 |
| Gardens damaged in recent storm | More than 50 |
| Size of one estate cited | 400 acres |
Industry actors noted that without policy support and adaptation measures, the sector’s vulnerabilities could deepen. Potential responses include improved climate-resilient agronomy, better prices for smallholders through cooperatives or direct market linkages, mechanisation where feasible, and targeted social protections for displaced workers. However, each measure carries trade-offs: mechanisation can affect employment; price support requires fiscal or market interventions.
For now, tea estate managers and smallholders are navigating an uncertain transition. “Tea is not as profitable as it once was, and there is less certainty about the work,” a long-time picker said, reflecting a sentiment echoed across plantations. The balance between sustaining livelihoods and adapting to a changing climate remains the central challenge for Assam’s tea belt.
As Assam supplies a majority of the country’s tea, developments in the state will have implications for the national tea economy and for the millions connected to the value chain, from pickers to exporters.
