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BANGLADESH

Nestled in the picturesque Surma Valley amidst scenic tea plantations and lush green tropical forests, lying between the Khasia and the Jaintia hills on the north, and the Tripura hills on the south, in the district of Sylhet is the Sylhet valley,. It is formed by a beautiful, winding pair of rivers named the Surma and the Kushiara both of which are fed by innumerable hill streams from the north and the south. Its rich potentialities became easily attractive and the 18th century Englishmen made their fortune in tea plantation. About 80 km. from Sylhet town connected by road and rail, Srimangal, which is known as the tea capital of Bangladesh, is the actual tea centre of the area. For miles and miles around, the visitor can see the tea gardens spread like a green carpet over the plain land or on the sloping hills. A visit to the tea plantation in Sylhet is a memorable experience. Sylhet, the tea granary of Bangladesh, not only has over 150 tea gardens but also proudly possesses three largest tea gardens in the world both in area and production.

The quality of Bangladesh's tea, grown in the Sylhet hills area, is not competitive with tea grown elsewhere in Asia, and during the Pakistan period sales were increasingly restricted to West Pakistan. The war of independence raised a question about whether alternative markets could be found for Bangladesh's tea. Production in FY 1973 was 24 million kilograms, down from 31 million kilograms in FY 1970. Pakistan remained interested in Bangladeshi tea and again became the chief customer, followed by several Arab countries. In the 1980s, production returned to the pre-1971 level and was relatively stable from year to year, but prices were not. Bangladesh received less than half the value in FY 1986 for virtually the same amount sold in FY 1984 (US $33 million versus US $69 million). As with jute, Bangladesh could hope for little more than to preserve--but not expand--its small niche in the world's tea trade.