Few Notable Contributions Of Tocklai To The Tea Industry (60 YEARS)

• In the nineteen fifties, Tocklai established the necessity of shade trees in tea plantation in the plains of North-East India.
• McTear Rotorvane in the fifties greatly contributed towards improvement of tea manufacturing process.
• In the sixties, longer pruning cycle was introduced from annual pruning for higher yield and better distribution of crop.
• Borbora Continuous Leaf Conditioner and Continuous Tray Drier were invented in the sixties.
• In the seventies established the need of land planning and drainage to achieve higher productivity plant population, spacing, manuring, use of micro-nutrients, etc. were standardized.
• Boruah Continuous Roller was invented in the seventies in the field of manufacturing.
• In the eighties, balanced manuring of Nitrogen Phosphate and Potash was standardized. The optimal plant population for tea cultivation was also arrived at.
• Young tea management and bringing up techniques were developed in the eighties which reduced the gestation period after planting and resulted in achieving higher and sustained yields within a short period.
• Tea Breaker-cum-Stalk Separator Device were invented in the eighties.
• Use of biotechnology in tea culture has been extensively undertaken since nineties.
• Use of satellite imagery for water management in tea plantations was applied since nineties.
• Use of mechanical aids in tea harvesting and pruning was standardized in the nineties.
• Studies on use of bio-pesticides and bio-agents were extensively undertaken since nineties to reduce the chemical load on the pest and disease control with the ultimate aim of offering the customer a safe cup of the ‘health brew’.
• After the turn of the century, significant contributions have been made in the field of genetic market, gene mapping, gene cloning, limiting use of harmful pesticides in tea, advancement in the method of tea propagation, biotic and abiotic stress management, Integrated Pest Management (IPM), bio-fertilizers and bio-pesticides, product diversifications with inventions of range of tea value added products like tea tablet, tea toffee, flavoured tea, canned tea, etc. and application of GIS and remote sensing in tea cultivation and threats faced due to climate change, etc.

Acknowledgement: Dr. M. Hazarika, Director, Tocklai Experimental Station.