India's Rating agency ICRA's vice president Kaushik Das said the reduction in tea production in Sri Lanka benefitted Indian tea producers in 2022.

Sri Lanka's tea producton suffered severely due to former President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa's decision to ban chemical fertilizer overnight.

Although former President Rajapaksa reversed his decision months later after fierce resistence from the farming community, the damage was already done.

"The quality and quantity of tea from crisis-hit Sri Lanka, a major producer of orthodox variety, is "in question", Das said.

"With the economic crisis in the island country, Indian tea producers have benefitted in the 2022 calendar year and going forward, they need to work on maintaining such benefits on a sustainable basis," he said.

The Indian Tea Board said Shipments to India's traditional importers in the 20-nation bloc (G20 countries) have picked up, according to year-on-year comparison

Sri Lanka produces around 300 million kg of tea annually and exports around 97-98 per cent of it. India produces around 110 million kg of orthodox tea, and of that 90 per cent is exported, he said.