Workers protest transfer of 52 bighas of land in Rojabari tea estate

A CORRESPONDENT

BOKAKHAT: After the Golaghat district administration issued a notification to hand over 52 bighas of land from the Rojabari tea estate in Numaligarh to AIDC (Assam Industrial Development Corporation Limited), resentment has been growing among the workers of the estate.

Meanwhile, the Golaghat District All Assam Tea Tribes Students Association (ATTSA), in solidarity with the workers, staged a strong protest in front of the Morangi revenue circle office.

As a result, on Thursday, a meeting was held between Golaghat Deputy Commissioner Pulak Mahanta and representatives of AATSA’s Khumtai unit, Morangi sub-unit, along with the Rojabari primary unit of the Assam Chah Mazdoor Sangha (ACMS) and district-level leaders.

Following this meeting, on Friday, the workers of the Rojabari tea estate spontaneously came out onto the streets, organized a protest rally, and staged a sit-in demonstration in front of the estate office. The protestors shouted slogans like ‘ATTSA Go Back,’ ‘ACMS Go Back,’ and ‘Not an Inch of Land Will Be Given,’ making their agitation intense. The protestors alleged that ATTSA and ACMS, without informing the workers of Rojabari, held talks with the Deputy Commissioner and engaged in a conspiracy to hand over the estate’s land to AIDC.

They further pointed out that earlier, when 600 bighas of tea land were transferred to Numaligarh Refinery, a 26-point agreement was signed. However, the workers strongly alleged that till today, the refinery authority has not implemented the clauses of that agreement.

The workers warned that only after the 26 demands of that earlier agreement were fully fulfilled would they agree to sit for fresh talks. Moreover, they asserted that neither ATSA nor ACMS had the authority to go outside and negotiate over selling land. If discussions are to be held, they must be held peacefully inside the Rojabari tea estate itself, they said.

Meanwhile, Sumit Dweep, Secretary of the Khumtai unit of ATTSA, told reporters on Saturday that ATTSA cannot sell the estate. He said that the owners of the Rojabari tea estate had already signed an agreement to transfer the land, but ATTSA only joined the talks on behalf of the workers and had not accepted the condition of land sale.

Furthermore, the student leader alleged that a third party had become involved in the entire issue and was instigating the workers.

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