Abstract

Monitoring tea plantations in North Eastern India using GIS
Track: Agriculture
Authors: RAJIB BHAGAT, Saikia Minerva

Tea is grown in North Eastern India on a little over 3, 50, 000 ha. It grows from steep slopes in Darjeeling to plains of Assam. Both Darjeeling as well as Assam teas are known as premium teas the world over. However, it is very difficult to monitor such extensive plantations by ordinary means, because tea growing extends to many inhospitable areas with low communication links in North Eastern India. An attempt was made to develop thematic maps for area and production, so that the trends can be visualized quickly. Since tea is grown in North Eastern India under shade, hence shade monitoring is also extremely important as we recommend 30-50% shade trees. Satellite imageries of multiple dates (IRS 1D, LISSIII) were geo-referenced and suitable image enhancement was applied for the delineation and interpretation of shade. The study provided detailed tea plantations monitoring solutions on area, production, shade and management.