The sky is nearly cloudless, the breeze is bracing, and the tea plantation where Yao Kunxue works resembles a giant green amphitheater absorbing the last rays of a setting sun. The tea itself ? No thanks, he says. He grows it

The time has come for the north Indian tea industry to focus its attention on the production of more of quality tea than before, according to Mr C.S. Bedi, Chairman of Tea Research Association (TRA). "While the yield has always been a factor in profitability, quality consciousness is need of the hour,' Mr Bedi observed while talking to Business Line here on Friday.

Andy Redfern, co-founder of the website Ethical Superstore.com, has no illusions about consumers who claim to be green. "We had a rush last year on solar iPod charges . . . and most of them were going to Glastonbury," he says. Even if people who buy things with an environmentally friendly claim do so for selfish purposes, there is no doubt that people are buying more of them.

The Darjeeling Tea Association (DTA) has mounted efforts to increase the production of organic tea so that the majority of the champagne of teas is organically produced by 2010.

Though time and again the Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi promised steps to help revival of the tea industry, the incentives offered in this year's Budget have fallen far short of the expectations of the

Assam hopes to revive the tea industry's flagging fortunes using the Internet. TERESA REHMAN reports from Guwahati

INDIA'S tea production has gone up, and so has its consumption in the country. However China still beats India in tea consumption. However, India can take advantage of its increase in tea output and bridge the gap as a result of lower production in Kenya which is affected by political problems. According to the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), minimum quality standards and improved strategies would help countries like India, Vietnam, etc which have overproduction.

your morning tea contains chromium, which may cause cancer and skin diseases. The heavy metal gets into the leaves when tea leaves are processed using the

Kalavati Barai of Raipur Tea Estate in Jalpaiguri has been watching the consistent deterioration of her family of six over the past four years. In March this year, her husband succumbed to severe