Photography: Salman Saeed
Tea is an important export item in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh ranks tenth among the ten largest tea-producing and exporting countries in the world. In the year 2000, the country’s tea production was 1.80% of the 2,939.91 million kg produced worldwide.
Most of the 163 tea estates in Bangladesh are located in the North-eastern region of Bangladesh-Maulvi Bazar, Hobiganj, Sylhet, Brahmanbaria districts. There are a few number of tea estates in Panchagar District and in Chittagong,a South-eastern district.
Owners of tea gardens include both foreign and local companies. While four Sterling companies own 27 estate, Bangladeshi companies and individuals own the rest of the tea gardens. The four foreign companies are James Finlay, Duncan Brothers, Deundi Tea Company and The New Sylhet Tea Estate.
All the 163 tea estates are managed by five different categories of management:
(i) Sterling companies
(ii) National Tea company
(iii) Bangladesh Tea Board
(iv) Bangladeshi Private Limited Companies
(v) Bangladeshi Proprietors
The estates are categorised into three according to their production capacities. They are:
- Category A: All the ‘A’ category estates that have the highest productivity belong to the British companies (fully or partially).
- Category B: The Bangladeshi government, Bangladeshi tea companies or Bangladeshi individuals own this category of estates.
- Category C: The family owned small and low productive estates belong to this category. Wages and working conditions are at their worst in the tea estates under this category.
