CHAPTER VI
LABOUR CHARACTERISTICS AND TURNOUT IN SMALL HOLDINGS OF TEA
CHAPTER VI
LABOUR CHARACTERISTICS AND TURNOUT IN SMALL HOLDINGS OF TEA
Introduction
This chapter focuses on labour characteristics in small holdings of tea 1 in
the district of Nilgiri in South India and the Tea Region of Low Elevation
(TRLE} in Sri Lanka. These two regions hold respectively the largest share
of small tea holdings in India and Sri Lanka.2 The samples were selected
from the Taluks (Tehsils) of Coonoor and Kotagiri in the district of Nilgiri
and from Divisional Secretariats of Ratnapura and Kotapola in the
TRLE.3 The map 1:3 and 1:4 in the appendix shows the location of the
sample selected for the study. The first section of this chapter gives a
brief account of the nature of small holdings of tea in these countries. In
this chapter we have examined the impact of adoption of high yield
varieties on the expansion of tea land, recruitment of labour and
production of tea in the small holdings of tea in India and Sri Lanka.
6.1 Small holdings of Tea in Nilgiri and TRLE
The small holdings of tea basically are individual privately owned tea
estates in these countries. The total area under small holdings of tea in
India is 25,134 hectares which is 5.52 per cent of the total tea land in
India. Of this, 17, 103 hectares are found in the district of Nilgiri in (Tamil
1 The terms 'Small tea holdings' and 'Small holdings of tea' are used interchangeably in this study. 2 The tea land up to 8.09 hectares in size (roughly 20 acres) in India and all private sector tea lands in Sri Lanka are considered as smallholdings of tea. Therefore, a smallholding of tea constitutes a part of tea land, one or more adjoining tea lands, managed as one operational unit owned by one or more persons which is not less than 20 perches (a perch is 272.25 square feet, 160 perches is equivalent to one acre and 395.2 perches is equivalent to one hectare) in extent and with more than a density of 2400 tea bushes per hectare. These definitions are derived from The Nilgiri Small Tea Growers' Association, in Coonoor and Tea Commissioner's Division, (October 1996), Tea land Survey of Tea Small Holdings and State owned Estates in Sri Lanka 1994/95, Sri Lanka Tea Board, p. 6. 3 The divisional secretariat in Sri Lanka is more or less local level administrative body like taluks in the district of Nilgiri in South India.
175
Nadu) South India. In Sri Lanka, the total area under small holdings of
tea is 82,921 hectares which is 44.11 per cent of the total tea land in the
country. Of the total small holdings, the TRLE holds 56,069 hectares.4
Earlier policy makers and researchers assumed that tea could be
grown economically and efficiently only on large-scale plantations,
whereas later studies tend to suggest that no obvious economies of scale
exist to give superiority to large estates over smaller ones. This analysis
further indicates that the location along with other inputs are significant
parameters in determining optimum size of an estate and its productivity
level. Ben Crow and Mary Thorpe5 suggest that small estates can be more
efficient if given proper institutional support. The Kenya Tea Development
Authority (KTDA), which was established as a parasol agency in the early
1960s, has indicated assistance guidelines for producing, processing,
marketing and fmancing small holdings of tea. The KTDA is recognised
internationally as one doing the most successful small holder operation
in tea producing countries. The Tea Small Holdings Development
Authority (TSHDA) of Sri Lanka is role modelled on the lines of KTDA.6
Most of the small tea holdings in the TRLE in Sri Lanka were plots
of 4.5 acre7 in 1940s, which were reduced to plots of 2.25 acre in the
1960s. These plots particularly in the southem area of Sri Lanka were
distributed for general cultivation and habitation. Initially, the cultivation
of tea in small scale was discouraged in TRLE. Most of them were mainly
involved in small-scale cultivation of coconut, areca nut, pepper and
other spices. Subsequently, the implementation of land reforms during
1972-75 and their impact has been a boost to the development of small
4 Tea Statistics, Tea Board of India 1999/2000 and Annual Report 2000, Tea Board of Sri Lanka. 5 Ben Crow and Mary Thorpe (1988), Survival and Change in the Third World, New York, Oxford University Press, p. 160. 6 Patrick Mendis (1991), 'A Survey of Estate Size and Tea Productivity Debate in India Sri Lanka and Kenya', Marga, Vol. 11, No.4, Colombo, pp. 73-79. 7 The term 'acre' and its fragmentation are used invariably in the case of the small tea holdings in both Nilgiri in South India and TRLE in Sri Lanka in order to measure tea plots.
176
tea holdings in this region. The marginal rubber land has also converted
into tea producing land in Sri Lanka.s
Several ancillary bodies were established m order to sustain the
landholders in producing high yield variety of tea. 9 The Tea Small Holding
Development Authority (TSHDA) provided effective support for such
development during the 1970s in Sri Lanka. Subsidies for high yield
varieties, fertilisers and extended services were activated. This helped the
small tea holding sector to expand and the cultivation of tea has become
one of the prime economic activities in the southern region of Sri Lanka.
The TSHDA continued to assist the tea industry by providing
subsidy for replanting and planting of new bushes of tea. They also
provided advisory and extension services. One of its major activities is the
Tea Shakthi scheme, which covers insurance, savings and investment, as
well as pension benefits for the small tea holders. The 1998 budgetary
allocation of Rs. 200 million for the scheme was completely utilised for
upgrading the transport network and for purchasing machines for the
factories. The target was to establish 21 tea factories in selected locations
for the benefit of the tea growers in TRLE in Sri Lanka. The small tea
growers were also provided with credit facilities to purchase necessary
inputs under the 'Development Fund'. As a result, the TRLE record yield
level reached 2,300 kilograms of tea mainly contributed by the small tea
holdings in this region in Sri Lanka.lO
The recent development of small holdings in the district of Niligiri
has been accelerated after the distribution of virgin lands to repatriated
Tamil tea plantation workers from Sri Lanka in 1968. This step
8 The extension of total Rubber Plantation was 270,000 hectares in 1965 and it declined to 199,048 in 1990 and further declined to 159,097 in 1999. The decline is around 40 per cent in Sri Lanka in a period of 34 years. 9 The extent of total Rubber Plantation was 270,000 hectare in 1965 which declined to 199,048 in 1990 and further declined to 159,097 in 1999. There was around 40 per cent decline of area under Rubber Plantation in Sri Lanka during last 34 years.
10 Compiled from Sri Lanka, Annual Report 2000, Tea Board of Sri Lanka, Colombo.
177
accelerated small holding tea cultivation in this region within a short
period of ten years (1969-1978). Initially the forest department extended
cultivable land for tea and took the responsibility of settling the
repatriates under what is now called Tamil Nadu Plantation Corporation
Limited (TANTEA).
6.2 Area and Production
The distribution small tea holdings in India and Sri Lanka is given in
Table 6.1. We find that the district of Nilgiri in India and the TRLE in Sri
Lanka are major domains of small tea holdings in these countries
representing 68.04 per cent and 67.61 per cent respectively of the total
land under small tea holding .
Table 6.1
Area and Production of Small Holdings of Tea ( 1998-99)
Category India Sri Lanka Total Nilgiri Other Total TRLE Other Total
Distric India Regions Sri ts Lanka
Number of 25,539 7,957 33,496 159,66 47,123 206,787 240,28 Holdings (76.24) (23.76) (100.00) 4 (27.79) (100.00) 3
(77.21) Area 17,103 8,031 25,134 56,069 26,850 82,919 108,05 under Tea (68.04) (31.96) (100.00) (67.61) (32.39) (100.00) 3 (in Hectare) Productio 37,822 14,379 52,201 NA NA NA -n (in Kg.) (72.45) (27.55) (100.00) Yield 2 271 1,784 2,076 NA NA NA -Source: Tea Statistics, (1997 /98), Tea Board of India, Calcutta, and Plantation Sector Statistical Pocket Book 1999, Ministry of Plantation Industries, Colombo. Note: NA- Not Available
This section deals with how extension of area and inputs impact on
employment opportunities in the sample of small holdings of tea in Nilgiri
and TRLE in Sri Lanka. There is a wide range of disparity observed in
terms of land distribution of small tea holdings in these countries. The
sample households of small tea holdings were proportionately selected
from all size groups. As mentioned earlier the total sample household is
69 representing 32 from Nilgiri and 37 from TRLE Sri Lanka. For the
178
purpose of the sample selection, the information for the Nilgiri Small Tea
Growers' Association in Coonoor and the Tea Small Holding Development
Authority (TSHDA) of Sri Lanka were considered along with the report of
Tea Land Survey of Tea Small Holdings and State Owned Estates in Sri
Lanka 1994/95. Table 6.2 gives the classification of land and number of
households selected for the study.
Table 6.2
Distribution of Tea Land in the Sample of Small Tea Holdings
Category Nilgiri TRLE Total Less than 0.25 6 (18.75) 9 (24.32) 15 (21.74 0.25 to less than 11 (34.36) 10 (27.03) 21 (30.43) 0.5 0.5 to less than 1 8 (25.00) 6 (16.22) 14(20.29) 1 to less than 2 3 (9.38) 9 (24.32) 12 (17.39) 2 to less than 4 2 (6.25) - 2 (2.90) 4 to less than 10 1 (3.13) 1 (2.70) 2 (2.90) 10 and above 1 (3.13) 2 (5.41) 3 (4.35) Total Sample 32 (100.00) 37 (100.00) 69 (100.00)
Source: Field Survey. Notes: The Nilgiri Small Tea Growers' Association, No.9 Mount Road, Coonoor, was kind enough to assist us in selection of the samples in the district. Tea Small Holding Development Authority and The Report of Tea Land Survey of Tea Smallholdings and State Owned Estates in Sri Lanka 1994/95 were mainly used for the selection of the samples in Sri Lanka. Figures in parentheses are percentage distribution of smallholdings of tea.
Figure 6:~ A
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Size Distribution of Small Holdings of Tea (in Percentage)
Less 0.25 to 0.5 to 1 1 to 2 2 to 4 4 to 10 10 and than 0.5 above 0.25
Size
C E!iJNilgiri fliJTRLE J
179
The small holdings with less than 0.25 hectares of tea land
constitute 21.74 per cent in these countries. This category of tea land has
plots with land size of twenty perches in TRLE in Sri Lanka, and 'one
cent' or '1200 bushes of tea land' as the smallest size of the small tea
holdings in the district of Nilgiri. Around 30 per cent of them have tea
land with size ranging from 0.25 hectare to 0.5 hectare. The largest
number of households in the sample are found in this category of
holdings. Table 6.3 shows the distribution of land in each category of the
sample households.
Table 6.3
Distribution of land in Each Size Category of Small Holdings of Tea
Category District of TRLE in Sri Total Nilgiri Lanka
c c - c 1-< 0 Q) 1-< 0 Q) 1-< 0 0 Q) v v v ..s:: .n ..... Cil "Ci) c ~ .o ..... ] "Ci) c ~ .n ..... v Cil "Ci) c ~ s 0 t)C . ..-.4-> s 0 0 c ..... 4-J s 0 r/) "b c.,..4-' v-u v-u ::J ::J Q)-() ::J E-<4-> Q) ::J E-<4-> Q) E-<4-> v z ~ ..s:: z ~ .c z 0 ~ ..s:: :r::
Less than 0.25 6 1 9 1.25 15 2.25 (1.95) _(2.02) (1.99)
0.25 to less than 11 4.50 10 4.25 21 8.75 0.5 (8.78) (6.85} (7.73} 0.5 to less than 1 8 5.25 6 5 14 10.25
(10.24) (8.06) (9.05) 1 to less than 2 3 5 9 14 12 19
(9.76) (22.58) (16.78) 2 to less than 4 2 5.50 - - 2 5.50
(10.73) (4.86) 4 to less than 10 1 8 1 7.5 2 15.50
(15.60) (12.10) (13.69) 10 and above 1 22 2 30 3 52
(42.94} (48.39) (45.90) Total Sample 32 51.25 37 62.00 69 113.25
(100) (100) (100) Source: Field Survey
We find that 15 households together hold a total of 2.25 hectares of
tea land. It is common in both the countries that most of the small tea
holders have tea land with size ranging between 0.25 and one hectare.
There were 19 households from Nilgiri and 16 from TRLE in Sri Lanka in
this category of tea lands. However, 4.35 per cent of the small holdings in
the sample (see Table 6.2) have tea land of 10 hectares and above. But
180
the extension of land of this category of small tea holders varies between
10 hectares 100 hectares, especially in TRLE in Sri Lanka. In nutshell,
we find that a large number of small tea holders have little extension of
tea land in Nilgiri and TRLE in Sri Lanka.
As far as the social background of the owners of the small tea
holdings are concerned, the Sinhala community in Sri Lanka owns most
of the smallholdings of tea, but in the case of Nilgiri holdings of more
than one hectare largely belong to Badaga community. In Nilgiri, a
minimum of 'one cent' of tea land plots (one hundredth of an acre, and it
is also known as 1,200 tea bushes) were distributed to the Tamil
repatriates from Sri Lanka. Besides, Kanarese, Keralites and Tamils also
have considerable extension of not only tea land, but also vegeTable (attz)
gardens in the district of Nilgiri.
The variety of tea bushes m small holdings of tea is also an
important factor which influences not only yield but also utilisation of
workers. Table 6.4 gives the distribution of varieties of tea in the sample
area.
Table 6.4
Distribution of Varieties of Tea Bushes in the Sample (in hectare
Category Nilgiri TRLE Total VP ST Total VP ST Total
Less than 0.25 0.75 1.20 1.95 1.25 - 1.25 2.25 0.25 to less 4.25 0.25 4.50 4.25 - 4.25 8.75 than 0.5 0.5 to less than 5.25 - 5.25 5.00 - 5.00 10.25 1 1 to less than 2 5.00 - 5.00 14.00 - 14.00 19.00 2 to less than 4 5.50 - 5.50 - - - 5.50
.•
4 to less than 8.00 - 8.00 12.00 - 12.00 15.50 10 10 and above 21.00 1.00 22.00 30.00 - 30.00 52.00
Total 48.80 2.45 51.25 62.00 - 62.00 113.2 5
Percentage 95.22 4.78 100.0 100.0 100.0 distribution 0 0 0
Source: Fteld Survey
181
/
Table 6.4 clearly shows that the small holdings of tea heavily
comprises of the variety of Vegetatively Propagated (VP) tea bushes, i.e.,
high yielding varieties in these countries. The large portions of the new
tea bushes are in the small tea holdings. However, unlike the TRLE in Sri
Lanka, the Nilgiri has a small portion (4. 78 hectares) of seedling tea as
well. This is largely found in the small tea holdings with about '1200 tea
bushes' in the district. The old variety tea, i.e., Seedling Tea (ST) exists
mostly in the category of less than 0.5 hectares in Nilgiri, particularly in
the '1200 tea bushes' category. Almost all tea plots in TRLE in Sri Lanka
cultivate VP tea.
The possibility of replanting with the HYV like VP tea bushes in Sri
Lanka cannot be neglected. The TSHDA is giving financial support to
their members for replanting activities. As far as replanting of tea in the
small tea holdings in Sri Lanka is concerned, the tea growers state that
their problem is withdrawal of the 'TRI 2023' by_ the Tea Research
Institute. The TRI 2023 is a kind of VP tea bush which is vulnerable to
drought conditions. The Tea Research Institute (TRI) in Sri Lanka has
recommended to use TRI 2025, which is relatively of low yield (2025-2925
Kg per hectare) but drought resistant. The transformation from TRI 2023
to TRI 2025 has created problems for the small holders in the TRLE, as
they were offered subsidy (including for the gestation period) but it was
not given in time. However, no such fmancial support was offered even on
principle for those solely depending on TRI 2023 variety.
It should be noted that, though the small tea holders in our sample
m Sri Lanka invariably plant HYV, this is not true for the other tea
regions in Sri Lanka. A recent study shows that only Sabaragamuwa and
Southern Provinces, areas covered in this study, constitute 78.69 per
cent and 92.76 per cent of VP tea areas· respectively. The other provinces
like Central, North Western and Uva have an average of 21 per cent ofVP
182
tea plants.ll Thus, regional variation can be seen in Sri Lanka as far as
the distribution of HYV plants is concerned.
In Nilgiri, most of the small tea holders who have more than one
hectare of tea land are showing keen interest in terms of replanting with
HYV bushes. The depth of this interest is clearly displayed by the fact
that some small tea holders in the sample survey mentioned that they
have undertaken replanting with the fmancial support of banks.
However, those who come under the category of less than 'one cent' were
found to be very poor. These holders did not have the required financial
assistance for replanting and gestation.
A further impediment in Nilgiri in terms of replanting is the delay
m getting the financial assistance. For instance, quite a few small tea
holders who had applied for financial assistance from the scheme had
uprooted their old plants and were waiting for the payment of subsidy. It
appears that there is an administrative bottleneck in the subsidy scheme.
Yet another problem with regard to replanting is the non
availability of sufficient quantity of good planting materials. There are a
good number of nurseries run· by the small tea holders both in Coonoor
and Kotagiri. However, the small tea holders seem to be neither aware of
the required quality nor the cultural practices specially required for
nurseries. Therefore, quality of these plants is often sub-standard.
As far as production of tea is concerned, the sample small tea
holders did not have the facility to convert the plucked tea (green leaves)
into consumable tea. Of course, the role of small tea holders ends with
selling green leaves for manufacturing. Those who have HYV bushes were
harvesting around 200 to 250 kilograms of green leaves from an average
of one hectare in six or seven days cycle of plucking in Nilgiri. In TRLE in
Sri Lanka it was around 300 to 325 kilograms of green leaves. Based on
the information collected, harvesting of 200 kilograms green leaves in
seven days cycle when processed gives out around 2400 kilograms of
11 Tea Commissioner Division, (October, 1996), Tea Land Survey of Tea Small holdings and State Owned Estates in Sri Lanka 1994/95, Tea Board of Sri Lanka, p. 10.
183
made tea per annum in small holdings of tea. This much of harvesting is
an impossible target from Seedling tea bushes. For example, the category
of '1200 tea bushes' in the district of Nilgiri was harvesting only around
50 to 60 kilograms of green leaves in 30 to 40 days cycle. Marketing of
green leaves to the tea factory, which is known as 'bought leaf factory' is
the end task of the small tea holdings in both the countries. Some of the
small tea holders have their own tea factory.
Initially, the 'green leaves' were sold to the nearest large-scale tea
estates for processing. However, several private factories were started
recently to manufacture consumable tea from the green leaves supplied
by the small tea holders. There are middlemen who broker between the
producer and manufacturer. These middlemen, also known as agents,
play a pivotal role in determining price and demand. There are 146
private 'bought leaf factories' in Coonoor and Kotagiri in the district of
Nilgiri. Increasing the number of tea factories for manufacturing of tea
has been one of the major development projects in the TRLE in Sri
Lanka.
6.3 Fertiliser Use
Fertiliser is a crucial input in the small tea holdings sector and also an
important determining factor of labour utilisation in the industry. The
recent analysis of the soil conditions of the small tea holdings in these
two countries shows that the amount of nutrients in the top soil in small.
tea holdings has decreased significantly due to the poor soil management
practices by small holders.12
In economic terms a farmer will tend to use fertiliser if his
incremental income is higher than his incremental cost due to fertiliser
use. Incremental cost of using fertiliser consists of several factors: the
major item is the cost of fertiliser itself (including transport). Cost of
12 C. Thilagamany, (1997) 'Soil Conditions in Tea Planting Area in Nilgiris: A Case study of Ettappally,' A research paper submitted to the Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, and Nimal A. Fernando and Denesha de Silva, ( 1982) 'Study of Tea Small Holdings in Derangala,' Staff Studies, Central Bank of Sri Lanka, pp. 173.
184
application (wages paid for hired labour or the opportunity cost of family
labour used for the purpose) and harvesting cost of incremental output /
are other factors. Incremental income will be equal to the product of the
farm-gate price of green leaf per kilogram and the incremental output.
The tea land survey of Sri Lanka reveals that the regular
application of fertiliser was done only in 27.3 per cent of the small tea
holdings in 1993, while 50.49 per cent did it intermittently. No fertiliser
was used by 15.19 per cent of the small tea holdings in 1993. However,
there is a marked increase in the application of fertiliser in the small tea
holdings, which amounts to 77.87 per cent as compared to 43.00 per
cent in 1982.13
The small holders are advised to test the soil quality before using
fertilisers. This is done with the intention of preserving the soil quality in
the long term. An officer complained that not many of the farm holders
make use of this facility, which is provided almost free of charge. All
what the smallholders are expected to do is to submit the sample soil to
the officer. It takes one or two days to obtain the results, as there is no
facility to test the soil scientifically within the locality. Practicability of
this process is beyond the comprehension and awareness of the users.
The small holders tend to ignore this advice and make use of fertilisers
without the required soil test. It often ruins the nutrition of soil.
The fertiliser varieties are T-1130 or U-709 and Dolomite. The
application of fertiliser is as follows for most of the small holders in Sri
Lanka.
The tea growers complain that the productivity goes down when
they follow the advice of the officials. The reason given by the
smallholders was not convincing: The small holders expect the officer to
help them by other means such as getting loans from the state banks.
They do not seem to bother about the long-term consequences of
frequent application of fertiliser. Some even said that they had no
knowledge about this problem. However, the small tea holders need to be
13 Tea Commissioner Division, (October, 1996), Tea Land Survey of Tea Smallholdings and State Owned Estates in Sri Lanka 1994/95, Sri Lanka, p. 15.
185
made aware of the importance of soil testing and proper application of
fertilisers.
Table 6.5
Application of Fertiliser in the Small Tea Holdings (an average per hectare)
Amount Frequency of Price per Variety applied application Annual expenses (In Kg) (per year) kilogram
Urea 600 2 Rs.8.00 Rs.4750.00 (15.50} (9300.00}
T-1130 300 2 Rs.9.50 Rs.2425.00 jl8.80) (4740.00)
Dolomite 125 1 Rs.1.80 (3.60) Rs.280.00 (450.00) Total Expenses Rs.7425.00
(14,490.00) Source: Field Survey. Note: Value in Sri Lankan rupees given in parentheses.
A large number of small tea holders in Nilgiri district of South India
were utilising compost supplemented with urea and dolomite. The
frequency of fertiliser use differs among the small tea holders in Nilgiri.
The small tea holders with less than a quarter hectare of land use more
compost manure while others use the combination of the compost and
urea. The respondents whom we met do not have any record on the
application of fertiliser.
The present study reveals that the smallholdings of tea in both the
countries are largely growing high yielding varieties and can produce high
level of end product. The production process shows that the small
holdings of tea regularly require labour for not only plucking of tea leaves
but also for maintaining their tea gardens. Therefore, the study firmly
confrrms that the intensive use of inputs has led to substantial increase
in output and employment opportunities in the smallholdings of tea in
India and Sri Lanka.
6.4 Availability of Labour
This section mainly focuses on the availability of labour force in the
sample households and the nature of involvement of hired labour in the
small holdings of tea sector in Nilgiri and TRLE in Sri Lanka. The total
186
number of persons covered in the sample is 371 consisting of 178
persons from Nilgiri in South India and 193 persons from TRLE in Sri /
Lanka respectively. The average family size of the sample is 5.56 in Nilgiri
and 5.22 in TRLE. The profile of the tea labour population is given in
Table 6.6.
Table 6.6
Profile of the Sample Household Population in Small Tea Holdings
Age Nilgiri TRLE Total Category
Male Female Male Female 0-5 8 (10.26) 9 (9.89) 7 (7.53) 8 (7.34) 32 (8.63) 6-10 11 (14.10) 11 {12.09) 13 (13.98) 16 (14.68) 51 (13.75) 11-14 11(14.10) 14 (15.38) 14 (15.05) 16 (14.68) 55 (14.82) 15-30 22 (28.21) 23 (25.27) 25 (26.88) 29 (26.61) 99 (26.68) 31-55 21 (26.92) 24 (26.32) 24 (25.81) 26 (23.85) 95(25.611 56-70 05 (6.41) 08 (8.79) 7 (7.53) 10 (9.17) 30 (8.09) 71 & - 2 (2.26) 3 (3.22) 4 (3.67) 09 (2.42) above Total 78 91 93 109 371
(100.00) (100.00) (100.00) _(100.00) (100.00) Source: Field Survey. Note: Figures in parentheses denote percentage.
The age group of 15 years and above (up to 70 years) is included in
the labour force, and they (the age categories 15-30, 31-55 and 56-70
clubbed together) constitute 60.38 per cent (224) of the total population
of the sample. Unlike large-scale tea estates, the members of age group of
56 years and above (10.51 per cent) in the sample of smallholdings of tea
are also directly or indirectly involved in the tea estate work. The total
number of persons in such category is 10.51 per cent of the sample
population. The children below 6 to 14 years of age constitute 28.57 per
cent and most of them are school going children. The group of people
aged above 71 years constitutes 2.42 per cent of the sample population
~nd they comprise largely of women. One more aspect observed in the
distribution of infants (0-5 years) is that the new generation in the offing
is less in the sample population of TRLE in Sri Lanka (7 per cent)
compared to that in Nilgiri where it is around 10 per cent, perhaps owing
to active family planning measures existing in Sri Lanka. All age
187
categories in the labour force are not involved in jobs. Table 6.7 gives the
numbers of tea workers, outside workers and the unemployed in the /
sample.
Table 6.7
Distribution of Labour and their Occupation in th 1 h h ld e samp.e ouse o s
Region Family Outside Unemployed Total labour* Workers Labour force
Nilgiri 85 13 5 103 South India (82.52) (12.62) J4.86) 1100.00) TRLE 61 42 18 121 Sri Lanka (50.41) (34.71) (14.88) (100.00) Total 146 55 23 224
(65.18) 124.55) (10.27) (100.00) Source: Field Survey. Note: *excludes the category of school going children but includes
persons above 55 years and still engaged in jobs. Figures in the parentheses are percentage shares.
100
Distribution of Labour in Small Holdings of Tea (in Percentage)
Family Labour Outside Workers Unemplyed
~ Nilgri ~ TRLE
Figure 6:B
The Table 6.7 and figure 6:B explains that the entire labour force in
the sample households is not directly employed in their own small tea
holdings in these countries. Among them 65.18 per cent workers are
engaged in tea estate jobs. In Nilgiri, 82.52 per cent of the workers were
doing their tea estate work, while in TRLE in Sri Lanka only 50.41 per
cent did this work. So it is clear that there is a distinct variation between
188
these two regions as far as involvement of family labour in their own plot
of tea is concerned. It is clear that the owners of small tea holdings in Sri /
Lanka involve labour other than the family labour.
As far as the distribution of unemployed persons m the two
regions is concemed the TRLE recorded the highest rate which was 14.88
per cent, whereas Nilgiri recorded a low rate of unemployment which was
4.26 per cent in the sample. The unemployment rate in the sample
households in Sri Lanka is higher than the national rate. The
unemployment rate in Sri Lanka was 8. 9 per cent in 1999 which slightly
declined to 7.6 per cent in 2000.14 Most of the unemployed in the sample
were in the age group of 15 to 25 years, majority of them being the
children of the tea estate owners with secondary level of education. Some
in this age category were also graduates and were looking for jobs other
than tea estate jobs. The unemployed in the sample households in Nilgiri
were comparatively fewer than in TRLE in Sri Lanka. Most of them were
children of Badaga families and had completed secondary levels of
education and were looking for better jobs in the outskirts of the estates.
6.5 Labour Utilisation
The distribution of land 1s also a major factor, which determines the
utilisation of different categories of labour in the sector. For instance,
persons who have less than one hectare of land generally depend on
family labour. The category that has more than one hectare employs
hired ·labour along with family labour. The category with higher acreage
wholly depends on hired labour. The distribution of sample households
employing different categories of labour is given in Table 6.8.
14 Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Annual report 2002, Colombo, p. 164.
189
Table 6.8
Holdings Depending on Different Categories of a our1n e ampJe Lb •thS 1/
Nilgiri in South India TRLE in Sri Lanka s:: 0 't:$ "0 '.;::1
§ "0 5 >.~ § "0 5 ~ >.~ cU 't:$ ~ u Q) :::s :;:: :::s ~ 't:!;:s :;:::::S ~ tP >.Vo ~ 0 ~~ .1-J >,Vo Q) 0
~.8 .1-J
cU ·~ :;:.::: .~ ..0 ..... ..0 0 :;:: .~ .0 .!:: .0 0
~:tj :t cU E-< ~:tj :tj r,z.j E-< Q) cU ~ r.z.~ ~- r.z. r.z. ~0
Less than 02 - 04 06 04 03 02 09 0.25 0.25 to less 11 - - 11 03 07 10 than 0.5 0.5 to less 08 - - 08 02 04 06 than 1 1 to less 03 - - 03 - 09 09 than 2 2 to less - 02 - 02 - - 00 than 4 4 to less - 01 - 01 - 01 01 than 10 10 and - 01 - 01 - 02 02 above Total 25 04 03 32 09 26 02 37
Percentage 78.13 12.50 9.37 100.00 24.32 70.27 5.41 100.00 distribution Source: Field Survey
6.5.1 Family and Hired Labour
Size of individual holdings is the determining factor in the choice of
labour force. According to Table 6.8 the households solely depending on
family labour were 9.37 per cent in Nilgiri and 5.41 per cent in TRLE. The
small tea holdings, up to of 0.25 hectares, used adult family members for
all the plucking of tea leaves, which is done only four to five times in a
month. In a few cases the elderly persons and children also participated
in this work, particularly in Nilgiri. An average of 50 to 60 kilograms of
tea leaves can be plucked from a well-maintained VP tea plot of 0.25
hectares in a week (every six or seven days cycle).
A considerable number of families having 20 perches of land also
come under the category of less than 0.25 hectare in TRLE of Sri
190
Lanka. 15 Approximately 15 kilograms of green leaves can be harvested in
a well-maintained 20 perches plot in a given week in Sri Lanka and the
total/ production of green leaves is around 20 to 30 kilograms of green
leaves per month. This is entirely different in the case of Nilgiri. The
families who have only '1200 tea bushes' mostly cultivate old variety of
tea bushes (Seedling Tea), which are poorly maintained. Ten to fifteen
kilograms of tea leaves can be plucked in a month's cycle from this
category of bushes in Nilgiri.
As far as the income of small holders is concerned, those in TRLE
are in the position to sell their total production at the rate of Indian
Rs.l2.05 to Rs.13.25 (Sri Lanka Rs.23.50 to Rs.26.50) per kg. Those who
have 20 perches and pluck 60 kilograms of 'green leaves' obtain a net
income of around Rs.600 per month (Rs.1200 Sri Lankan rupees),
whereas a harvest of around 15 kilograms per month in Nilgiri can only
be sold at Rs.75 (Indian rupees) on the basis of existing price of Rs.5 to 7
per kilogram.
Moreover, the use of family labour for cultivation depends on a
multitude of factors such as size of the family, its age structure, sex
composition, level of education of the family members, etc.
The farm holders have diversified the earning sources in TRLE in
Sri Lanka. They engage in a range of activities to supplement the income.
The tree crops like coconut, arecanut, jack fruit and spices like pepper
and cloves are grown in their field, and this gives substantial income to
them. But this is not the case in Nilgiri. The soil conditions and climate
are not suitable for such crops in Nilgiri. Therefore, the family members
of small tea holders with one cent of tea land in Nilgiri generally seek
outside jobs for their survival in addition to tending to their own tea
farms.
Thus, low levels of production, low income from this production
and no supplementary income from the tea land are the major problems
of the Nilgiri farmers, unlike their counterparts in Sri Lanka. Moreover,
15 One perch is equivalent to 272.42 square feet and 43587.20 square feet is one hectare.
191
the small holdings of tea with less than 0.25 hectares (1200 tea bushes)
do not accommodate the hired labour in any substantial scale in Nilgiri. /
The distribution of family labour supplemented by hired labour is
influenced by a complex set of factors. According to Table 6.8, the
combination of family cum hired labour constitutes 78.13 per cent in
Nilgiri and it is only 24.32 per cent for smallholdings of tea in TRLE in Sri
Lanka. In this category the family members along with hired labour do
the plucking of tea .leaves. Hired labour is also widely used for the
application of fertilisers and pruning, which is considered as a skilled job
to be done by trained· males. This tendency is found in both the
countries. It should be noted that the involvement of family labour is
confined to estates with less than one hectare of tea land in Sri Lanka
and up to 2 hectares in the Nilgiri.
6.5.2 Hired Labour
The available data tends to indicate that most of the small holdings rely,
to a significant extent, on hired lab~ur particularly in TRLE in Sri Lanka.
The hired labour involved in TRLE is 70.27 per cent while it is only 12.50
per cent of the total labour force in small holdings in Nilgiri. The holdings
with above 2 hectares exclusively used hired labour in Nilgiri, but in case
of Sri Lanka this trend is applicable even from 0.25 hectares onwards.
The gender based division of labour follows the pattem of large-scale tea
estates. The females do the plucking of tea leaves, while the males are
involved in sundry work.
It has been observed that small tea holders show a strong
preference for male labour while hiring labour. The demand for hired
labour for weeding is determined to a significant extent by the farm-gate
price of green leaves. When farm -gate price is lower, the demand for hired
labour for weeding tends to be low. It appears that when prices of green
leaves drop, the first cut in the farm budget is made on hiring labour for
weeding. This situation is observed often in both the countries.
As we mentioned earlier, apart from the size of small tea holdings,
the engagement of family members in outside jobs is also a major reason
192
to seek hired labour. The family members of the small tea holdings, who
are engaged in outside work are willing to act only as farm managers,
particularly in Sri Lanka.
Another factor that influences the demand for hired labour is the
wage rate.l6 The relationship between the wage rate and demand for
hired labour tends to be on the basis of factors such as price variations of
green leaf in the sector. The average market price of one kilogram of
green tea leaves varied between Rs. 5 to Rs. 7 during our survey in
Nilgiri, while it varied between Rs. 12.05 to Rs. 13.25 (Indian rupees) in
TRLE in Sri Lanka.
Two types of wage rates exist in the district of Nilgiri. One is
determined on the basis of amount of tea leaves plucked by the hired
workers (piece-rate) and the other is based on the time spent in the field
by them (time-rate). The hired workers who pluck 25 to 30 kilograms of
green leaves are supposed to get a wage of Rs. 50 per day and the
workers who pluck between 8.30 a.m. and to 5.00 p.m. are given Rs. 70.
in Nilgiri. In contrast, the hired tea pluckers are paid Rs. 200 to Rs. 225
per day (six to seven hours of work from 7.30 am in general) in Sri Lanka
which is equivalent to Rs.102.50 toRs. 115.25 in Indian Rupees.
The wage rate for the hired tea workers is less when compared to
the existing wages in other sectors in the district of Nilgiri. For instance,
the workers who work in the vegetable gardens or in the construction
work are able to get Rs. 80 per day. The workers engaged in fetching
firewood get around Rs. 90 to Rs. 100 per day. The silk worm industry
( sericulture) and the horticulture plantations also pay more than Rs. 100
per day, though they recruit only trained labour for the tasks. The
workers involved in plucking of tea do not need any training. Moreover,
availability of jobs other than tea plucking is very rare. Therefore, the
opportunity in the small tea holding is the only viable employment left for
the hired workers though it is low pajd in Nilgiri.
16 The Wage Board of these countries does not determine the wage rate for the tea workers in the small tea holdings. It is determined on the basis of market forces.
193
This is not true in the case of hired workers in TRLE in Sri Lanka.
The daily wage of the small tea holdings is almost double the wage rate of /
the large-scale tea estates in Sri Lanka. As already mentioned, the
minimum daily wage for the tea workers in the large-scale tea estates is
Rs. 125 (including the allowances), while it is around Rs. 230 (115 Indian
rupees) per day along with one meal in the small tea holding sector in the
TRLE in Sri Lanka. However, a considerable number of large-scale tea
estates in the tea region of mid elevation allow the workers to move
towards small tea holdings in the country. This is not true in case of
TANTEA estate in Nilgiri of South India. Only few large-scale tea estates,
which are in the tea region of low elevation, free their labour for other
works in the outskirts of the estates.
However, the small tea holders like to get experienced labour from
the large-scale estates to do the jobs at their gardens. Therefore, the
small tea holders are prepared to pay more than the daily wage rate paid
by the large-scale tea estates to attract labour so that they cari get the
workers at the appropriate time. Therefore, the small tea holders in TRLE
are able to get sufficient number of workers for their task. However, no
such incentives are offered to the workers in Nilgiri.
It should be noted that the source of hired labour for small tea
holdings is not only from the large-scale tea estates, but also from the
resident workers from the small tea holdings which have more than 5
hectares. The small tea holders who have more than 10 acres keep 3 to 5
families as permanent labourers for their work and also allow them to
. work in other estates. Some private tea estates in TRLE engage 80 to 100
families of workers for the operations of tea and rubber cultivation. Of
course, the rubber estate workers tend to migrate to small tea holdings,
because they do not obtain regular work in the rubber plantations. The
persons who have '1200 tea bushes' of small tea holdings in Nilgiri also
use hired workers. They seek jobs in other small tea holdings, because
they do not get substantial income from their own property.
The demand for hired labour is also linked to the availability of
credit facilities and the access of the small tea holders to such facilities.
194
Often, those small holders who depend almost entirely on income from
their tea holdings tend to maximise the input of family labour. Thus, for
these farmers who do not have adequate resources of their own, credit
may be a critical constraint to seek hired labour. Most of the small tea
holders having two acres or less of land fall into this category of credit
constrained farmers, and activities other than plucking are relatively kept
at low ebb. In general, lack of easy access to institutional credit
discourages hiring of labour, and this is true in the case of a considerable
number of small tea holdings in both the countries.
Thus, it is clear that the unavailability of substantial amount of
well paid jobs is the 'push factor', which leads the workers to take the low
paid jobs in the small tea gardens in Nilgiri, whereas, availability of
comparatively better paid jobs in the small tea holdings is the 'pull
factor', which attracts the labour from large-scale estates to the small tea
holdings in the tea region of low elevation in Sri Lanka.
Educational attainment of family members of small tea holders is
another factor which determines the recruitment of hired labour. Table
6. 9 gives the educational achievement of the small tea holders in the
sample.
Table 6.9
Educational Attainment of Labour force in rna ea 0 mgs S II T H ld"
Level of Number of Number of Education Persons in Persons in TRLE
Nilgiri Illiterates 19 (18.91) 5 {3.92) Primary 24 {23.24) 68 (56.86) Secondary 46 (44.321 42 (34.64) Tertiary 14(13.53) 6 (4.58) Total 103 (100.001 121(100.00) Source: Field Survey. Note: Figures in parentheses are
the percentage of the total number.
Total
26(11.16) 93 (39.91) 93 (39.91)
.• 21 (9.02}_ ___ 224 (100.00)
In terms of educational attainment, the significant difference that
could be observed was about the percentage of illiterates. In Nilgiri, the
illiterates constituted 18.91 per cent as against only 3.92 per cent in
TRLE in Sri Lanka. The persons, particularly the females, who were in
195
the category of illiterates largely made up the family labour. The persons
who obtained secondary education constituted 39.91 per cent of the total /
sample. Despite low literacy, the educational attainment of workers is
better in Nilgiri than in TRLE of Sri Lanka. The strength of post
secondary educated is also high in Nilgiri ( 13.53 per cent). However,
illiteracy is less in Sri Lankan sample where primary educated is found
more than double the percentage available in Nilgiri. As mentioned above
the educated persons in the family of small tea holders in both the
countries go outside the tea sector for better employment. Therefore, the
reluctance of younger generation for the manual work or petty jobs in
small tea holdings will be major future obstacle faced in these countries.
It is also worthwhile to mention that a considerable number of the
children of Nilgiri workers who studied up to secondary education seek
employment in other sectors such as garment factories in Erode,
Thirupur and Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu.
It is 9bvious that the educated children of tea workers are aware of
potential fu~ure prospects and are able to make their choice. Given the
treatment of the society towards the working class children, they do not
like to be identified as plantation workers. Further, the parents take great
trouble in educating their children. In the absence of facilities for tertiary
education in the locality, the parents in Sri Lanka send their children to
cities like Matara and Colombo with a view to provide higher education.
The supply of hired labour is mainly from the large-scale tea
estates and there are workers residing permanently in some of the small
tea holdings with more than 5 hectares, in the case of Sri Lanka.
However, in Nilgiri the hired workers are largely from the colonies in the
vicinity of small tea holdings.
The small tea holders in TRLE who solely depend on trained
workers from the nearest large-scale tea estates complain that the labour
is sometimes not available even during slack periods because they like to
idle away for most of the time. The small holders find it extremely difficult
to recruit workers. Even the small tea holding sector cannot assure work
during the whole year. However, even though the farm holders say that
196
the wage rate is high, it is not so from the point of view of the workers. In
some cases, the workers are expected to perform other domestic duties as
well, such as plucking coconut for the farm holders.
At least three small holders in the sample from TRLE possess 5-10
families of workers for regular employment. The workers in these families
are allowed to offer their labour for the other small holders outside
normal working hours and on Sundays. This is the only reliable source of
labour for the small· holders in this region. The families are provided
basic facilities and the children are educated in the surrounding schools.
The small holders in TRLE prefer the Indian Origin Tamil labour to
Sinhalese workers. In some cases, the farmers said that they don't
entertain hired labour for plucking, as they don't trust that the hired
labour will pluck the best quality leaves which is important for fetching a
good price. They like to manage plucking on their own with the help of
the family members.
Dearth of labour was witnessed also in another arena of operation
which is lifting the green leaves. The green leaves are is collected between
3 p.m. to 4 p.m. and the farmers have to be ready with the leaves when
the leaf collectors come.
In the case of Nilgiri, most of the small holders recruit hired labour
from the colonies. There are around 250 colonies each consisting of
around 300 families that supply labour for the tea sector. There is no
apparent shortage for hired labour in South India. The large-scale
plantations hold the resident labour in the estates. Some of the small
farm holders also possess resident labour in their estates. The South
Indian small holders do not face labour .'shortage due to regular supply of
labour from the adjoining villages. The Sri Lankan repatriates, se~tled in
this region, further supplement the labour market. In Sri Lanka, no such
colonies exist in the sample region except a few families that are
scattered in the region. As only a handful of families offer their labour for
the small holding sector there is a big demand for hired labour in Sri
Lanka.
197
The parents want to see their children employed in the government
sector. This has reduced the scope of expansion of the land under tea
cultivation although wealthy people acquire lot of land for various
commercial purposes. Vast areas of cultivable tea land remains unfilled.
The labour from Tamils of Indian origin faces a different problem in
TRLE. Unlike in the tea region of high elevation, they are a discriminated
minority and the small tea holders are Sinhalese. Although there is high
demand for hired labour the Tamils do not feel secure. The ethnic tension
in other parts of the country has its negative repercussions in this region
also, especially against the working Tamils.
The Indian Origin Tamils do not get equal social acceptance
although the workers have almost adopted the culture of the majority.
The ethnic polarisation is deep-rooted. Therefore, it can be concluded
that the non-economic factors largely influence the labour availability
and utilisation in our sample region in Sri Lanka.
As far as the Nilgiri is concerned, a large number of hired workers
are the repatriates of Sri Lankan Tamils residing in the colonies. The
small tea holders prefer generally the repatriates who had enough
training in the tea estates of Sri Lanka. However, a considerable number
of repatriates, eng~ged in TANTEA are unable to provide labour supply to
the small tea holders, whereas other repatriates who reside in the
colonies are the potential suppliers of hired labour for the small tea
holders in this district. Interestingly, the supply-line of hired labour for
the small tea holdings from the indigenous Indians remains active in
Nilgiri, irrespective of the availability of migrates from Sri Lanka. Though
the hired labourers have enough exposure in tea cultivation, they have ...
not been able to become owners of small tea estates. Economic mobility
in terms of ownership of small tea holdings is absent in both the
countries.
The discussion so far shows that the requirement of labour for
small tea holdings depends on the size of tea lands. The small tea
holdings with extension of less than one hectare generally manage the
tasks with both the family and hired labourers. However, the tea holdings
198
with more than one hectare need hired labour. Comparatively the
expectation of hired labour is higher in TRLE in Sri Lanka than in the
district of Nilgiri in South India. Hired labourers for small tea holdings
come largely from resident workers of the large-scale tea estates both in
Sri Lanka and Nilgiri. In addition, potential labourers also come from
small tea holdings as well. In Nilgiri, colonies neighbouring the
smallholdings also supply hired labour.
6.6 Conclusion
The small tea holdings in Sri Lanka invariably plant HYV bushes
whereas Nilgiri produces seedling tea, especially in the land category of
'1200 tea bushes' (one hundredth of an acre). The small tea holders are
also very much concerned about the protection of tea bushes.
The harvesting of green leaves from the tea bushes and selling it to
the manufacturers is the major engagement of the small tea holders. The
sample households in Nilgiri with HYV bushes harvest around 200 to 250
kilograms of green leaves from an average of one hectare in six or seven
days cycle of plucking. In TRLE in Sri Lanka it is around 300 to 325
kilograms of green leaves. Harvesting 200 kilograms of green leaves in a
seven days cycle can contribute about 2400 kilogram of processed tea per
annum. Such a harvest is not possible from seedling tea bushes. Hence
the small holdings of tea in both the countries are largely growing HYV
bushes. The production practices in the small holdings of tea require
labour regularly not only for plucking of tea leaves but also for
maintaining the tea gardens. The intensive use of inputs has led to a
substantial increase in output and employment opportunities in the
smallholdings of tea in India and Sri Lanka.
The demand of labour for small tea holdings depends on the size of
the individual farms. The small tea holdings with less than 0.25 hectares
depend largely on family labour in the Nilgiris whereas in Sri Lanka they
depend on labour other than the family labour. The unemployment rate
in the sample households in Sri Lanka is higher than the national rate.
Most of the unemployed in the sample are in the age group of 15 to 25
199
years. By and large they are children of the tea estate owners and have
completed secondary level of education. Some are also graduates and are
looking for better jops outside the tea sector.
Most of the hired labour in the Nilgiri district consists of Tamil
repatriates from Sri Lankan tea estates. These trained workers migrate
not only to the small tea holdings but also to vegetable plots. The size of
the estates and multifarious works needed on it decides the requirement
for hired labour. Hired labour rather than family labour is more prevalent
in the smallholdings of tea both in India and Sri Lanka.
200