Up until the early 19th century, China remained the only tea exporting country of the world. However, due to the demands of the Chinese for silver currency and certain political changes in the country, created friction between the British and the Chinese. This friction led the British to search for new areas like India, to grow tea.
In 1774, a consignment containing Chinese tea seeds was sent to India as an experiment and originated in Calcutta. This experiment, however, didn’t gain any fruition. A few decades later,
Robert Bruce, an agent of the East India Company found wild tea plants growing in the Brahmaputra Valley in 1823. But Robert Bruce died in 1824, leaving his brother, Charles Alexander Bruce to pursue his adventure forward. After the East India Company’s trade with Chinese ended in 1833, the British Government established tea plantations in India. Lord Bentinck, Governor General of India, laid the foundation of the Tea Committee, on 1st February 1834.
The Assam Company set up in 1839 was the first private enterprise which undertook the mission of growing and making tea in India. With the formation of this company there came a turning point in the fortune of tea business in India, with the Company proving that growing tea in Assam could be a profitable venture. Hence, leaving fertile grounds for other avenues in the newly formed industry.
The second half of the 19th century witnessed an exceptional growth in the Indian tea industry, with experimental tea plantations gaining impetus in regions like Kumaon, Darjeeling, the South Indian regions.