A CORRESPONDENT
DIBRUGARH: Assam's organised tea sector is facing mounting competitive pressure from small tea growers (STGs) and Bought Leaf Factories (BLFs), with industry representatives alleging that the two segments are not subject to the same level of labour and welfare obligations as large tea estates.
The concern has gained prominence as the STG sector has expanded rapidly in the state and now accounts for a substantial share of tea production. Industry representatives contend that the disparity in statutory welfare costs is creating an uneven playing field for organised tea estates, which are required to provide a range of benefits to their workers under the plantation labour framework.
"Some small tea growers have 500 to 1,000 bighas of land under tea cultivation, but they do not provide minimum wages or welfare facilities to tea workers. There are no insurance or medical benefits in many cases. In contrast, organised tea estates are required to provide a range of facilities to workers, including Provident Fund (PF)," an industry source said.
The issue of wages has also emerged as a major point of contention. Industry sources said the latest notified minimum wage for tea workers was Rs 405 per day, but alleged that workers engaged by some BLFs were not receiving the prescribed wage.
A tea garden manager said the Labour Department needed to strengthen inspections and enforcement in the STG and BLF segments.
"Small tea growers and Bought Leaf Factories are not providing the same level of statutory benefits, including ESI and medical facilities, to workers. The Labour Department should inspect these establishments and ensure that applicable labour laws are enforced," the manager said.
STG sector expands: Small tea growers have emerged as a crucial component of Assam's tea economy, contributing significantly to green-leaf production and providing employment to around 1.22 lakh people in the state.
According to data from the Tea Board of India, Assam has around 3.12 lakh hectares under tea cultivation, of which approximately 1.14 lakh hectares, or 36.78 per cent, are under small tea growers.
Small tea growers in India are generally defined as tea plantation owners with holdings of less than 10.12 hectares. Their green leaves are sold either through green-leaf agents or directly to Bought Leaf Factories, which process the leaves into made tea.
While the STG sector has become an important source of employment and raw material for the tea industry, organised-sector representatives said its expansion had also intensified competitive pressures on established estates.
Rising cost burden on organised estates: Large tea estates operate under a significantly higher statutory and welfare cost structure. Apart from wages, estates are required to provide various worker welfare measures and social-security benefits, adding to their overall cost of production.
Representatives of the Tea Association of India (TAI) said the growing contribution of STGs to overall tea production could pose a serious challenge to the organised sector if the regulatory and cost disparities were not addressed.
"Small tea growers are no longer a marginal segment. They have become a major force in tea production. If the disparity in welfare and compliance costs between the organised and unorganised sectors continues, the organised sector could face further pressure and some estates may eventually find it difficult to remain viable," a TAI official said.
The organised tea sector remains a major employer in Assam, with more than 10 lakh workers engaged across 856 tea estates. The estates collectively account for around 55 per cent of India's tea production.
Industry stakeholders are now calling for a more equitable regulatory framework that protects workers while ensuring that both organised estates and the STG-BLF sector remain economically sustainable.
"We are not getting a good price for the green tea leaves. We are demanding a Maximum Support Price (MSP), but we are not getting it. Our income is less compared to big tea gardens, so how can we give the workers the benefit? If a person has 30 bighas of land and is doing tea cultivation, he is a small tea grower according to the government. According to our organisation, up to 75 bighas is considered a small tea grower," said Rubul Hatibaruah, Dibrugarh district president of the All Assam Small Tea Growers' Association (AASTGA).
He said, "The small tea growers don't have any permanent workers; they take workers from outside. We are not getting the right price for the green tea leaves which we cultivate."
"We only produce green tea leaves and give them to Bought Leaf Factories for producing tea, which goes to the market. There is a lot of difference between small tea growers and big tea garden management. We don't come under the purview of the Plantation Labour Act," said Ranjit Gogoi, a small tea grower.
"We demand that the Bought Leaf Tea Factory owners and the small tea growers should look after the welfare of the workers. The Bought Leaf Factory owners should give Rs 405 per day to workers as per the new notification. But they are not doing that. They are not giving any PF or medical facilities to workers," alleged Lakhindra Kurmi, assistant general secretary of the Assam Tea Tribe Students' Association (ATTSA).
"We are not big factories like the organised sector. We can't provide the benefits which are given by the organised tea gardens. Most of the big tea gardens have their own tea factories and they can give all benefits to the workers. We are small tea factories compared to them," said an owner of a Bought Leaf Tea Factory.
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