GUWAHATI, May 21 -- More than 1.24 lakh small tea growers and 10 lakh tea labourers working in these small gardens in Assam will have to suffer as the 350 bought-leaf tea factories will down their shutters from June 1 for an indefinite period.

Theshutdownwas called bythe AllAssam Bought Leaf Manufacturer's Association (AABLTMA) in protest against a Central government's gazette notification mandating a 100 per cent auction of dust tea grades from the Northeast.

"Our factories will not be opened till the withdrawal of the gazette notification," AABLTMA president Chand Kumar Gohain said on Tuesday.

The closure of bought-leaf factories will affect more than 1.24 lakh registered small tea growers in the state.

According to the Tea (Marketi...