Like wastelands': Sri Lanka tea plantations suffer Cyclone Ditwah's wrath

"Cyclone Ditwah left a huge trail of destruction across the island, killing at least 635 people and affecting more than two million people, or a 10th of the country's population. Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake declared a state of emergency last week and named 22 of the island's 25 districts as disaster zones. Central Sri Lanka the country's tea and vegetable heartland was the worst hit, with official data on Monday showing at least 471 deaths in the region,"

"Sundaram Muttupillai, 46, had been working on a tea estate in Thalawakelle in Sri Lanka's central district of Nuwara Eliya since he turned 17. However, a devastating cyclone last week, the worst to hit the Indian Ocean island in a century, has left him without work or a home. We do not have the essentials, nor any hope of overcoming the cyclone's impact, Muttupillai told Al Jazeera."

"Tea is a key Sri Lankan export and the second largest source of its export revenue after apparels. Ranked the world's fourth-largest tea exporter by value, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), Sri Lanka is globally known for its unique tea blends and value-added products such as tea bags and packaged tea, often commanding higher prices. Despite economic challenges and political upheavals, the country's tea industry has retained an annual revenue of $1.3bn in recent years."

Cyclone Ditwah, described as the worst in a century, devastated Sri Lanka and killed at least 635 people while affecting more than two million, about one tenth of the population. The president declared a state of emergency and 22 of 25 districts were named disaster zones. Central Sri Lanka, the tea and vegetable heartland, recorded at least 471 deaths and extensive damage to hilly plantations, roads and railways. Fully grown tea crops were uprooted, disrupting deliveries and livelihoods. The tea industry, a major export earning over $1.3bn annually, faces severe losses and economic disruption for workers and communities.

Read at www.aljazeera.com