The Tea Research Association (TRA) has started work on an artificial intelligence (AI) tool that will draw on more than a century of tea research to help growers tackle problems ranging from pest attacks to declining soil health.
The project, called TocklAI, is expected to be ready within 12 months. The name TocklAI comes from TRA’s Tocklai Research Institute in Jorhat, Assam, said to be the world’s oldest and largest tea research station.
“TRA Tocklai holds a century of data that no one else in the world has,” said Suneel Singh Sikand, chairman, TRA. “With TocklAI, that knowledge becomes a tool every planter and smaller grower can use. It is the first of its kind in the global tea industry, and we are proud that it comes from India.”
The AI project seeks to make scientific advice more accessible not only to estate managers but also to small growers who often lack ready access to research despite producing more than half of India’s tea.
“Small tea growers now produce more than half of India’s tea, yet they have the least access to research,” said Joydeep Phukan, secretary of TRA, who conceived and leads the project.
According to the Tea Board of India, of the 1396 million kgs of tea produced in India, 791 million kgs of tea were produced by small growers in 2025.
“TocklAI is designed to close that gap of access to research, and it will keep growing as our scientists add new findings. We have already digitised more than 2,000 scientific publications,” Phukan said.
The tool will allow users to ask practical questions on pest and disease control, soil health, fertiliser application, selection of planting material, replanting, climate adaptation, processing and food-safety compliance.
“For example, a user can upload a picture of the leaves if they think there is a pest attack. The tool will provide all necessary information,” said Phukan.
The tool will draw its answers from TRA’s verified research archive rather than general internet content. The approach is intended to keep recommendations grounded in tested tea science and Indian growing conditions, said a source.
“For a grower, this could mean easier access to guidance on managing a pest infestation, choosing a suitable tea clone or improving soil nutrition. Estate managers could also use the tool to consult research on processing practices and compliance requirements,” the source added.
The project brings together scientists at TRA’s Tocklai Tea Research Institute in Jorhat, the Tea Board of India and Vishal Misra of Columbia University.
The research underpinning the initiative dates back to 1911, when the Tocklai research station was established in Assam. Now 115 years old, Tocklai is recognised as the world’s oldest tea research station.
TRA has carried forward that research legacy, working on tea cultivation, plant breeding, pest management, soil science and processing. Apart from the Jorhat institute, it runs the North Bengal Research and Development Centre at Nagrakata in Bengal and provides research and advisory services to estates and small growers across the region.
Since 1964, its research has operated through a public-private funding model, originally structured around a 49 per cent contribution from the government and 51 per cent from the industry, though the industry’s share has been declining, sources said.