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TINSUKIA: Panic gripped the employees of Talup Tea Estate, a debt-ridden and attached tea garden of Apeejay Tea Group under Doomdooma co-district, over uncertainty about their future service security due to the management contemplating selling the garden.
The garden management owes several crores of rupees as outstanding in respect to the Provident Fund (PF), gratuity and other pension benefits. While the selling and purchasing of tea gardens have been regular affairs, the new managements often fail to implement the agreement deeds and decline to honour the commitments and liabilities of predecessor managements, which often leads to legal tussles with the associations.
According to a source, the Talup TE has PF liability of Rs 11 crore, including default interest of Rs 3.5 crore, while the gratuity liability against 350 workers is Rs 3 crore. The management of Apeejay Tea owes Rs 2 crore to 300 workers of Badlabhata TE as gratuity, while the outstanding figures in other gardens stand at Rs 1.80 crore for Hapjan TE against 250 workers and Rs 2.50 crore for Kharjan TE against 300 workers. The company pension for 18 employees who have either resigned/retired/expired or taken voluntary retirement has been pending for the last year, and ironically one cancer patient, Dibangkar Bora of Talup TE, has been deprived of his gratuity and company pension. Even the salary of staff and sub-staff is not regularised, added the source.
The Assam Tea Employees Provident Fund Organisation (ATEPFO), Tinsukia Zonal Office, had twice attached the Talup TE within a span of 3 years for defaulting in the payment of PF, in March 2022 and February 2024 (Rs 7.1 crore and 6.36 crore, respectively). As per rules, the garden is unable to sell, transfer or lease out the movable and immovable property of the tea estate during the period of attachment.
It is intriguing that with Rs 14 crore in liabilities, cumulatively both PF and gratuity together, apart from company pension liability, the management of Apeejay Group is opting for sale/transfer. With already an observer from a prospective buyer stationed at Talup supervising the transfer, the questions that raised apprehension among the employees are as to how Talup TE, which was attached by ATEPFO for PF default, and with a mandatory NOC still to be issued by the Assistant Labour Commissioner, could be sold or transferred.
The Apeejay Surendra Group has a total of 17 gardens spread over 3 divisions – Assam Frontier (9), Singlo (4) and Empire (4) – with a registered office at Talup, which is almost defunct and partially shifted to Kolkata. Out of 9 gardens under Assam Frontier, 7 lie in Tinsukia district and one each in Chabua (Kharjan TE) and Sonitpur (Badlapara TE).
According to a source, barring Kharjan TE, the Apeejay Group is planning to dispose of all the gardens in a phased manner and desires to exit from the tea plantation business.
Meanwhile, the Assam Chah Karmachari Sangha (ACKS), Talup TE Unit, submitted an 18-point charter of demands to the GM Director Operation Apeejay Tea Ltd, the copies of which were sent to the Chief Minister, Labour Minister, Labour Commissioner, Tinsukia District Commissioner, and others that primarily sought protection and safeguarding of service conditions of all the staff, including clerical, medical, and artisans currently employed in the tea estate. It demanded that all the contributions and liabilities be deposited to the ATEPFO along with interest before transferring the ownership of the garden, or the purchaser of the garden will have to take responsibility for making all payments. The demands also included that the gratuity and salary liability should be treated in the same manner while the existing staff pension scheme must remain in force. The ACKS demanded immediate release of pension to the retired employees, including cancer patient Dibangkar Bora.
Also Read: Assam: Protests Erupt at Talup Tea Estate Over Salary Issues
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