UPSC Prelims 2022 Q79: Tea Board of India — Explained
With reference to the "Tea Board" in India, consider the following statements:
1. The Tea Board is a statutory body.
2. It is a regulatory body attached to the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
3. The Tea Board's Head Office is situated in Bengaluru.
4. The Board has overseas offices at Dubai and Moscow.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
- 1 and 3
- 2 and 4
- 3 and 4
- 1 and 4
Answer: (d) 1 and 4
Statement-wise explanation
- 1: correct — The Tea Board was set up on 1 April 1954 under Section 4 of the Tea Act, 1953, an Act of Parliament. A body created by an Act of Parliament is a statutory body. The Act also gives the Board its powers, such as regulating tea cultivation, improving quality and collecting statistics.
- 2: incorrect — The Tea Board works under the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, not the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. Tea is managed as an export-oriented plantation commodity, like coffee, rubber, spices and tobacco, whose Boards also sit under Commerce. The Board does have regulatory functions, but the ministry named in the statement is wrong.
- 3: incorrect — The Tea Board's head office is in Kolkata, at 14, B.T.M. Sarani (Brabourne Road). It has zonal offices at Guwahati in Assam and Coonoor in Tamil Nadu. Bengaluru is the headquarters of the Coffee Board, which is the swap this statement relies on.
- 4: correct — The Board keeps overseas offices to promote Indian tea exports. Its annual reports list offices in London, Dubai and Moscow, and the 2014-15 report records a decision to close the London office. That left Dubai, serving West Asia, and Moscow, serving Russia and the CIS, which are among India's largest tea markets.
How to eliminate
You can get to the answer with two facts. First, the Tea Board takes its name and powers from the Tea Act, 1953, so 'statutory body' sounds right. Statement 1 is correct, which leaves only the options that pair 1 with something else, here '1 and 3' and '1 and 4'. Second, Bengaluru is the city of the Coffee Board, and Kolkata, the old tea-auction and trading hub, is where you would expect the Tea Board. Rejecting statement 3 leaves '1 and 4'. You can also cross-check statement 2: all five commodity boards (Tea, Coffee, Rubber, Spices, Tobacco) come under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry because their main job is export promotion. If you rule out 2 and 3, only one option remains, and it contains neither, so you never need to know about the Dubai and Moscow offices. Facts to remember: Tea Board = Tea Act 1953, Commerce Ministry, Kolkata.
Know more
Commodity Boards are statutory bodies under the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Each one is created by its own Act of Parliament. Each Board covers one plantation or export crop from end to end: research, extension, quality control, licensing, statistics and overseas promotion.
| Board | Parent Act | Headquarters |
|---|---|---|
| Tea Board | Tea Act, 1953 | Kolkata |
| Coffee Board | Coffee Act, 1942 | Bengaluru |
| Rubber Board | Rubber Act, 1947 | Kottayam |
| Spices Board | Spices Board Act, 1986 | Kochi |
| Tobacco Board | Tobacco Board Act, 1975 | Guntur |
Why Commerce and not Agriculture? These crops are grown mainly for export, and they earn foreign exchange. So their pricing, auctions, export licensing and brand promotion are run as trade matters.
The Tea Board in brief
- It began on 1 April 1954 under Section 4 of the Tea Act, 1953. Its roots go back to the Indian Tea Cess Bill of 1903.
- It has a Chairman and members appointed by the Centre, drawn from growers, manufacturers, dealers, labour, Parliament and the governments of tea-producing states.
- It has zonal offices at Guwahati and Coonoor and overseas offices for export promotion.
- Its functions include licensing tea manufacturers, brokers and exporters, regulating cultivation, running the e-auction system, and promoting labels such as the 'Darjeeling' GI.
Statutory vs. executive bodies. A statutory body is created by an Act, for example the Tea Board, SEBI or NHRC. An executive body is created by a government resolution or order, for example NITI Aayog. UPSC often tests this difference directly.
NCERT Concepts to Revise
- Statutory body: Statement 1 depends on whether the Tea Board was created by an Act of Parliament or some other way.
- Executive body: The contrast with bodies set up by government resolution helps you test the Tea Board's legal status in statement 1.
- Tea: Tea is a plantation crop grown for export, and that bears on which ministry statement 2 assigns the Board to.