India has mandated 100 per cent auction of dust tea from north Indian gardens from April 1. A gazette notification issued by the Union commerce ministry on Monday evening said the order will cover gardens or factories from Assam, Bengal, Sikkim, Tripura, Himachal Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh among others. However, mini tea factories will not be covered by this order.

The decision was welcomed by exporters and producers. Mohit Agarwal, director of Asian Tea Company, said the move will help testing for pesticides and strengthen compliance. “The samples drawn will be authentic and without influence or manipulation,” he said.

Anshuman Kanoria, chairman of the Indian Tea Exporters Association, said the auction will ensure testing for maximum residue level, leading to better quality compliance and help boost tea exports.

Monday’s decision follows a direction from commerce minister Piyush Goyal on January 6 when he met stakeholders of the industry in Calcutta.