Tea declared India's national drink
Sunday, April 22, 2012 » 07:46pm
India is to declare tea as its national drink to celebrate the life
of a pioneering tea-planter who was hanged by British colonial rulers
for taking part in the rebellion of 1857.
Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Saturday announced the decision while on a visit to Assam, the tea-producing northeastern state that borders on Bhutan and Bangladesh.
Assam was the home state of Maniram Dewan, who is celebrated for introducing commercial tea production to the region and for his role in a plot to throw the British out of Assam during the 1857 mutiny.
The uprising, which is often called the Sepoy Mutiny, started in Meerut, a city close to New Delhi, and spread across northern India before being brutally crushed by British forces with many Indian soldiers and civilians killed.
'The drink would be accorded national drink status by April 17 next year to coincide with the 212th birth anniversary of first Assamese tea-planter and Sepoy Mutiny leader Maniram Dewan,' Ahluwalia said.
He added that tea should also be celebrated as 'half of the tea industry labour comprises women and is the largest employer in the organised sector'.
The Asian Age reported that awarding tea the status of national drink may stir up trouble among 'naturopaths' who suggest popular Indian beverages such as coconut water, lemon water and yoghurt-based lassi are healthier options.
Tea is generally served in India with milk and plenty of sugar, and often spiced with cardamom.
Coffee, which is grown in the southern states of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, is becoming rapidly more popular among young urban Indians.
Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Saturday announced the decision while on a visit to Assam, the tea-producing northeastern state that borders on Bhutan and Bangladesh.
Assam was the home state of Maniram Dewan, who is celebrated for introducing commercial tea production to the region and for his role in a plot to throw the British out of Assam during the 1857 mutiny.
The uprising, which is often called the Sepoy Mutiny, started in Meerut, a city close to New Delhi, and spread across northern India before being brutally crushed by British forces with many Indian soldiers and civilians killed.
'The drink would be accorded national drink status by April 17 next year to coincide with the 212th birth anniversary of first Assamese tea-planter and Sepoy Mutiny leader Maniram Dewan,' Ahluwalia said.
He added that tea should also be celebrated as 'half of the tea industry labour comprises women and is the largest employer in the organised sector'.
The Asian Age reported that awarding tea the status of national drink may stir up trouble among 'naturopaths' who suggest popular Indian beverages such as coconut water, lemon water and yoghurt-based lassi are healthier options.
Tea is generally served in India with milk and plenty of sugar, and often spiced with cardamom.
Coffee, which is grown in the southern states of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, is becoming rapidly more popular among young urban Indians.
紀念先烈 印度定茶為國飲
〔國際新聞中心／綜合報導〕印度將宣布茶為其國飲，以紀念茶葉種植先驅戴萬。戴萬曾參與1857年的反殖民起義，遭英國統治者以絞刑處死。
革命家戴萬 身兼種茶先驅
計畫委員會副主席艾魯瓦利21日訪問盛產茶葉的東北部省分阿薩姆時，宣布這項決定。阿薩姆省是戴萬的故鄉，他為當地引進商業茶葉生產，並因在1857年將英國人逐出阿薩姆省的計畫中擔任要角而受到讚揚。
艾魯瓦利說：「印度將於明年4月17日宣布茶飲為印度國飲，以紀念戴萬212歲冥誕。他是第一位種植茶葉的阿薩姆居民，也是土兵叛變（Sepoy Mutiny）的領袖。」他表示，茶葉產業一半的勞動力由婦女組成，也是雇用最多人的組織部門，因此茶飲更應受到頌揚。
印度「亞洲時代報」報導，將茶定為國飲，提倡自然療法者恐有異議，這些人士認為，椰子水、檸檬水及lassi優酪乳等受歡迎的印度飲料，都比茶來得健康。
茶在印度通常搭配牛奶、大量砂糖飲用，而且往往加入小豆蔻提味。在印度南部幾個省分種植的咖啡，則越來越受到印度的年輕族群歡迎。
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