Feb 20, 1983 ... Tata Global Beverages, formerly Tata Tea is a global beverage business and the
world's ... innovative regional and global beverage brands.
TATA GLOBAL BEVERAGES LIMITED An Overview : Tata Global Beverages, formerly Tata Tea is a global beverage business and the world’s second largest tea company. The company focuses on ‘good for you’ beverages and has a stable of innovative regional and global beverage brands. India is a large market for Tata Global Beverages and one in which the company has volume leadership. Tata Global Beverages Limited commenced its operations with the setting up of the Instant Tea Factory at Munnar and the Packeting Division at Bangalore and incorporated itself as Tata Finlay Limited in 1964 and thereafter went on to become the largest integrated Tea Plantations Company with the company taking over plantations of the erstwhile sterling companies both in North East and South West India in 1976. The company subsequently changed its name to Tata Tea Limited on 20th February 1983 and again as Tata Global Beverages Limited on 2nd July 2010. During the year 2005, onwards the company started restructuring its plantations operations by initially facilitating the Employees Buyout Model which resulted in the formation of Messrs. Kanan Devan Hills Plantations Company Private Limited in the South and thereafter the formation of Amalgamated Plantations Private Limited in the North. With the successful transformation of its plantations business into sustainable business, the company is now being transformed from a plantation-based tea company to a global company focused on ‘good for you’ beverages, through its brands such as Tata Tea,Tetley, Good Earth, Eight O’ Clock, Himalayan, etc. as well as through its strategic alliances. Since the Company was historically a plantation based company, it has always been sensitive to the upliftment of the employee profile wherein majority of the working class were from the AA communities namely the Scheduled Caste & Scheduled Tribes. Activities/Initiative undertaken High Range School Primarily employment to AA communities was undertaken and thereafter the vision of the company was upliftment of its employees and their dependants by way of Education and Training for Employability and Entrepreneurship. This vision led to setting up of the High Range School, during the year 1984, wherein the children of employees of the Company including the AA community were provided opportunity for a holistic education. The school now is one of the best CBSE affiliated Institutions in the State of Kerala. The School since its inception has been imparting quality education to the children of the AA Community along with others and thereby creating a model of quality education in an egalitarian environment. The School currently has a total strength of 587 students of which 173 students belong to the SC/ST Community. There are 133 students who are the children of the general workers and they avail free education. 381 students who are the children of the Non-Staff, Staff and High Range School Teachers avail highly subsidized education and so also 48 students who are the children of Management Staff and 25 students who are the children of outsiders avail partial subsidized education It was found that to enable students to appear for CAT, there was an urgent need for Professional Entrance Coaching at plus two level. . Accordingly every year, based on applications, we have
provided coaching for professional entrance classes for eligible students at the cost of Company. Over the last 3 years out of 38 students facilitiated by the Company, 31 students have been selected for professional courses. These include two children from the AA communities. To enable the AA community children with further education after they leave High Range School – Tata Global Beverages Limited sponsors their further higher education. 9 students have benefited from the scheme out of which 5 students are from AA communities. Till the year 2008-09 the percentage of AA community children was 15.85 %. During the year 2009/10 and 2010/11 the percentage increased to 24.24%. The admission policy has been broadened to ensure thatnot less than 50% of the students admitted to the lower Kinder Garden every year will be from the general workers category.
Srishti Welfare Centre - Caring for the specially abled
As a part of our continued welfare vision, Tata Tea moved on to specialised care, by providing education, training and rehabilitation of children and young adults with special needs, , who are essentially the dependants of the under privileged communities, whose parents were employed by the Company. Our Company found that there were cases of Physical and Mental challenges in the dependants of our employees and their immediate families. Traditionally, children and youth with handicap were considered a curse to the family and were kept away from all social functions. In many cases, the young children were kept locked in their houses causing severe psychological stress. Having had information on such cases, we felt that as a corporate moral citizen, the needs of such Specially Abled Persons must also be addressed. To facilitate the same, Srishti Welfare Centre was initiated as a project. The persons with Physical and Mental challenges - as we call ; the Specially Abled Persons, are the most disadvantaged in the community and the initiative to start a project for their education and rehabilitation was to ensure that they were trained to become wanted/respected members of the community. This survey as early as the late eighties amongst the dependants of our employees, to identify persons with special needs; persons with physical and mental challenges resulted in special education entering our agenda of social welfare and thus was born the philosophy coined ‘SRISHTI’, in Sanskrit meaning ‘Creation’. The Centre includes Project DARE, ATHULYA, and ARANYA. The wives of the Management Staff on a voluntary basis assist in the day to day functioning of the Welfare Centre. DARE School: The School was founded in 1991 and starting with 29 children, the school now has 52 students. The school provides individualised instructions based on the capability of the each child. Trained instructors provide full-fledged training in functional academics and training in self-help skills and
social skills such as gardening, cooking, tailoring and so on. Admissions to regular schools/Vocational Training Centres for those found suitable are also facilitated by DARE School. Children are also taught painting and some of the paintings done by the children are printed as greeting cards and the sale proceeds are ploughed back to the Units for furtherance of Welfare activities. The support and training provided at DARE School with 52 students out of which 36 students are from AA communities and 7 teachers to train them and the Vocational Training Centres attached to Srishti go a long way in making the people and children and youth with special needs to be independent. The fact that they become earning members helps them to lead a normal life. Strawberry Preserve Unit: This Unit was founded to impart vocational training to the challenged young adults in the making of a hundred percent natural strawberry preserve. The preserve is made using fresh strawberry grown by the employees of the company, from whom the fruits are purchased, augmenting their family income. Athulya: Two Units function in this center and cater to the needs of both physically and mentally challenged persons. •
Vocational Training Centre: This Centre imparts training in making stationery – envelopes, folders, letter pads, note books, files and so on. Of recent the Unit has been manufacturing paper bags in different sizes and in the process trying to discourage the use of plastics at Munnar.
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Hand Made Paper Unit: This Unit was added as an extension to the VTC in the year 1997 and training imparted to the physically challenged persons in the art of making recycled paper using waste paper/waste board, hosiery cut waste, etc. They are taught how waste paper can be recycled and made into various colourful and eye-catching products.
Aranya: This Unit was started in 1994 with 2 boys and 2 girls and now has 35 trainees. The Unit was started to introduce a fresh dimension in the lives of the disabled and also with an objective of reviving the ancient art of Natural Dye, which is non-toxic, eco-friendly and azofree. Natural dyeing symbolises craft practices which reflects a harmonious, sustainable, relationship with the eco systems and the local plant reservoir. It is the unique repository of community knowledge and inherited skills, wherein every region in the world has its own techniques and specialised process in the art of natural dyeing. This Unit imparts training in this ancient art and dyeing is undertaken in cotton, silk, wool, jute, linen, yarn and so on. Apart from dyeing, block printing, Shibori (Japanese style of Tie & Dye), Tie & Dye, Batik and so on are also taught at the Unit.
Product of a project
A girl undergoing training at one of the Centres
Garden Project: During the year 2008-09, a Garden Project has been initiated in Srishti to enable training in Horticulture & Floriculture to hyper active young adults, fostering them to learn and understand a revenue earning vocation. During the year 2007, a new canteen has been set up at the Centre to give a wholesome meal to all trainees at a subsidised rate of Rs. 3/- per meal. In addition a new crèche has been set up in the Centre to look after the children of the married trainees.
Confectionery Unit – the deli During the year 2009 it was envisaged that a new Vocational Training Centre should be set up and established so as to enable training of the Specially Abled persons in the vocation of making confectionery products and fast foods. Accordingly, Srishti Welfare Centre in tie up with Taj President, Mumbai of the Indian Hotels Company Limited set up the Confectionery/Hot Kitchen
Unit at Srishti. Initially four Specially Abled trainees were sent for training to Taj President, Mumbai and has subsequently been provided regular employment at the Confectionery Unit itself. The unit currently has a Programme Co-ordinator, a Bakery Chef, Assistant Bakery Chef and 5 Specially Abled Employees. The vision for the Confectionery Unit is to scale up its operations and provide training to Specially Abled Persons for rehabilitation elsewhere, taking into account the actual need in the State of Kerala for kitchen trained personnel. The initial products of the deli has been well accepted both in terms of quality and in hygiene.
Training in Progress
Pre School In 2011 we have started a preschool for the children of the employees of Srishti so as to teach them the basics and help them to get admission in good schools. These children face certain disadvantage because of the handicaps of their parents and therefore this school has been started. 96 of the specially abled trainees have been rehabilitated into employment and these include 62 persons from the AA community. The most heartening aspect is that 27 of the specially abled employees have since married and settled down and among them 20 are from the AA community. To enable exposure and improvement in the careers of employees attached to Srishti Welfare Centre along with the Programme Coordinators. 10 employees have been deputed to attend various workshops, seminars and symposium abroad and in India out of which 9 employees are from AA Communities. Srishti initiatives to the members of the AA community having Mental and Physical Challenges by facilitating them to settle down into main stream employment is a shining example of Education, Training for Employability and Entrepreneurship and hand holding to ensure that they have been enabled to be productive and recognized members in the society.
Awards and Recognition: •
Most outstanding Institution for Handicapped in Kerala Award, 1997 – by Government of Kerala – for DARE Project
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FICCI Award – 1997/98 – in recognition of corporate initiative in Training and Placement of Persons with disability
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Helen Keller Award from National Centre of Promotion of Employment for Disabled People, 2000 – As an Organisation which shares Vision and demonstrates its belief in equal rights and gainful employment for persons with disabilities.
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Mother Teresa Award for Corporate Citizen – 2002, instituted by the Loyola Institute of Business Administration, Chennai, for the Company’s outstanding social commitment and commendable involvement in programmes of corporate responsibility far beyond the call of duty.
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Tata Tea was recipient of the Businessworld FICCI-SEDF Corporate Social Responsibility Award – 2007 (Corporate Citizen II) and received the award at a ceremony held at New Delhi on 16th May, 2008.
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