The detailed discussion speaks to the dilemma of the loss of sustainable and heterogeneous characters in Assam’s tea plants. Tea plants borne from tea seeds having a vast gene pool are preferred over the homogeneity of tea plants propagated from a limited number of tea clones, that would be genetically alike, and susceptible to adverse conditions.
In this video, Raj Barooah, Director of Rujani Tea, speaks to Dr Pathak, who retired from Tocklai Tea Research Institute in 2017 as its Deputy Director. Dr Pathak believes that by bringing back the old tea seed jats of Assam, we can maintain the quality of Assam tea for generations to come.