The country's tea producers wanted withdrawal of tea cess (tax) to ensure overall development of the sector.
Bangladesh Tea Association (BTA), a non-profit organization, sent a letter to the concerned authority of the government recently, requesting them to take necessary steps to abolish the 1% tea cess levied on the tea producers, sources said.
Currently, the 1% cess from the sale of all kinds of tea produced in the country has to be paid by the producers.
The BTA said that tea production mostly depends on the condition of weather and soil.
The production of tea is good if the condition of weather is good and the rainfall is sufficient for such agricultural produce, it said, adding otherwise, the production of such items will go down to negative territory.
A total of 148 tea gardens are currently registered with the Bangladesh Tea Board (BTB).
Tea producers distribute wheat at Tk2 per kg to their workers currently, the BTA noted, demanding lifting of tea cess with an eye to converting the country's tea industry into a profitable one for the sake of all, including producers.
Bangladesh produced an estimated 96.51 million kilograms (kg) of tea in 2021, of which 95.93 million kg were consumed locally.
The government has set a target to increase tea production to 140 million kg by 2025, aiming to meet the country's growing demand and increase its exports, according to the Commerce Ministry.
The volume of export was 0.68 million tonnes in 2021.
