Tea bonus talks have seen dragging on, affecting festive season sales

SILIGURI: Negotiations for festive season bonus in West Bengal’s tea estates may continue for some time with planters and workers deadlocked on the question of how much to expect.

Experts say the uncertainty over the issue is likely to hit sales of low-cost items in the region’s Rs 200-crore rural market in the upcoming festival season, and could even dampen sentiments in larger markets nearby.

The negotiations involve over 300 organised tea gardens in the region and th ..