In the year 1834 Government of India formed a tea committee consisting of 12 members of whom 10 were Europeans and 2 Indians to explore possibilities of profitable tea cultivation in Assam.
Tea cultivation originally started in Darjeeling district of West Bengal during 1839 by Dr. Campbell, whereas it was spread in terai and duars region of West Bengal in 1862 and 1874 respectively.
In the early 1820s, the British East India Company began large-scale production of tea in Assam.
In 1837, the first English tea garden was established at Chabua in Upper Assam; in 1840, the Assam Tea Company began the commercial production of tea in the region and thereafter, the tea industry rapidly extended to other parts of the country.
In 1838 the first twelve chests of tea from Assam were received in England. On examination tea was found equally good with that of China.
Crush Tear and Curl (CTC) tea is more widely consumed than green tea. CTC teas generally produce a rich red-brown color when they are boiled by the Indian method. CTC tea manufacturing is the contribution of Sir William Mckercher, Superintendent of Amgoorie Tea Estate. He invented CTC machine in 1930. The CTC machine consists of two stainless steel engraved rollers with circumferential helical grooves.
Method of manufacturing CTC tea started gaining importance during 1950s. The process spread throughout India and Africa. In recent days, more than 85% of teas produced in West Bengal belong to this category.
History of tea processing in India
