Question

Give reasons for the following statement.

Tea cultivation requires lot of manual labour.

Answer 1

Tea cultivation requires lot of manual labour because:

1. The delicate plucking of the leaves cannot be easily mechanized, as machines cannot selectively identify and pick only the topmost two leaves and a terminal bud.
2. The undulating, steep hill topography prevents the smooth operation of heavy machinery, making manual walking and working on slopes a necessity.
3. The plantation bushes require continuous, skilled hand-pruning to keep them at a flat plucking surface and a manageable waist height.
4. The processing stages require intensive human monitoring, including the careful handling of leaves during withering, rolling, and drying inside the factory.
5. The regular weeding and maintenance of the estate must be done by hand to protect the sensitive tea root systems from damage.
6. The sorting and grading of processed tea leaves are heavily dependent on manual inspection to separate premium whole leaves from broken grades.