There is a clamour for fresh initiatives to reopen the North Bengal Tea Auction Centre in Jalpaiguri that has been closed since 2015 because of less inflow of the produce.

The demand has come ahead of elections to the Jalpaiguri municipality.

Although K.K. Kalyani, the vice-chairman of the tea directorate under the Bengal government, and Jalpaiguri BJP MP Jayanta Roy had held a meeting in 2019 to discuss the steps needed to make the centre operational again, nothing has been done.

“It is the responsibility of the Tea Board of India to ensure the resumption of the auction in Jalpaiguri. Despite our political differences, I had a meeting with BJP MP of Jalpaiguri last year. I had requested him to make necessary communication with the Tea Board for the centre’s reopening,” said Kalyani, who is also the president of Trinamul’s Jalpaiguri district committee.

He also suggested that leaf tea could be sold off through the Siliguri auction centre, while CTC could be auctioned off in Jalpaiguri.

“The auction centre in Jalpaiguri was established much later than the Siliguri centre. There are many reasons for tea planters’ reluctance to sell the produce through the Jalpaiguri facility. They auction off tea at the Siliguri centre. I had requested the MP to get the Tea Board issue a directive for the sale of tea from the Dooars through the Jalpaiguri centre,” said Kalyani.

Te North Bengal Tea Auction Centre in Jalpaiguri had been opened in 2005.

MP Roy said he had already raised the demand for the centre’s reopening with the Union ministry of commerce and industry and the Tea Board. “It will take time to reopen the centre,” he added.

The Confederation of Indian Small Tea Association demanded that the entire produce go through auction centres.

“Small tea growers are not getting proper price for tea leaves across the country. The small tea sector accounts for around 40 per cent of the total production in the country. If 100 per cent of the total manufactured tea can be auctioned off, small tea growers will be able to realise fair price for their produce,” said Bijoygopal Chakraborty, the president of the association.

Arun Roy, the deputy chairman of the Tea Board, said: “Efforts are being taken for the revival of the tea auction centre in Jalpaiguri by improving its auction system.”

Purojit Buxi Gupta, the vice-chairman of the Jalpaiguri Tea Auction Committee that runs the centre, expressed hope that the facility would reopen soon.