Mineral Springs and Selimbong

Abandoned by former owners, the Mineral Springs tea garden has been reclaimed by the Sanjukta Vikas co-operative in partnership with other pioneer organic tea farmers from the nearby Selimbong estate. This area of Darjeeling is spectacular, with rolling hills and views of the Himalayas.

The factory has been in ruins since the late 1960s, when Nar Bir Rai, a third-generation field hand on the estate, returned home after serving a 16-year military stint abroad.

The British owners had quit the tea garden in the wake of Indian independence, leaving behind the descendants of 19th-century immigrants from Nepal who first planted “the champagne of teas” on Darjeeling’s steep hillsides. The workers continued to pluck and sell tea to neighbouring estates, but the bushes grew gangly and unproductive. As hope for Mineral Springs’ revival faded, starving villagers uprooted most of the tea to make way for subsistence farms of millet and maize. Selling milk and firewood gave little relief to a worsening poverty.

Making a comeback

Four decades later tea farming has made a comeback. Many families live in Mineral Springs growing tea and a variety of other crops such as; oranges, ginger, and maize. The terrain is difficult, with small houses perched precariously amongst the hills. There is some small respite taken however in the breathtaking views of majestic Kanchenjungha.

Stone paths exist in harmony between the crops and other homes, providing the means of getting about. The bounty of Mineral Springs is sent to the factory in Selimbong as green leaf in order to be processed.

Delicious teas

This beautiful, delicate tea is used to make our Earl Grey, Darjeeling, Darjeeling Green, Bergamot Green, Jasmine Green, and Lemon Green teas.