KOLKATA — Tea Board India launched National Council of Vocational Education and Training-approved skilled courses on tea tasting at the Darjeeling Tea Research and Development Centre in Kurseong on Monday to expand professional education in the sector.
The programme aims to establish a qualified group of tea tasters and tea sommeliers to support quality enhancement, value addition and market competitiveness for Indian teas. It also seeks to encourage tea literacy among youths and create employment opportunities within the industry.
The Agriculture Skill Council of India assisted in developing the courses. A formulation committee comprising representatives from the Department of Commerce, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and industry professionals designed the curriculum for the sixty-hour and 210-hour programmes under the National Education Policy 2020 and the National Skill Qualification Framework.
The inaugural batch kicked off with the sixty-hour certificate programme titled ‘Essentials of Tea Sommelier’. The curriculum covers tea appreciation, professional tasting techniques, blending, and future-forward practices.
Speaking on the occasion, C Murugan, deputy chairman of Tea Board India, emphasised that the initiative will contribute significantly towards building a skilled workforce capable of enhancing tea quality, ensuring scientific sensory evaluation, strengthening quality assurance systems and promoting tea appreciation among consumers.
Students will receive practical training spanning tea cultivation, manufacturing, professional tasting methodologies, sensory evaluation, grading, blending techniques, and industry best practices through classroom lectures and experiential learning.
PIB release | This report was drafted with the assistance of AI and verified by a human editor.