Tea Board officials inspected a tea factory near Selas, in Coonoor, on Thursday and found more than 8,000 kg of decomposed tea leaves, which they later destroyed.
Officials said that locals had complained to them about foul stench emanating from the tea factory. To investigate, a team of officials from the Tea Board inspected the premises and found the quantity of tea leaves beginning to decompose. When questioned, the managers of the factory claimed that the tea leaves were not going to be used anyway and that they had planned to destroy the consignment.
Officials added that the intense rains in the Nilgiris could have speeded up the decomposition process of the tea leaves. However, in order to ensure that the decomposed tea leaves are not processed into tea, the board officials took possession of the tea leaves and destroyed them.
Samples of manufactured tea dust were also collected from the factory, and have been sent for tests.
The board said that investigations were ongoing as to whether the decomposed tea leaves had, in fact, been processed and made into tea dust, and that action would be taken against the factory based on the results of the tests conducted on the samples.
