Assam: Government Files Cases against 249 TEs on the Charge of Violation of Acts

Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI: In the past three years, the Assam government has filed cases against 249 tea estates on the charge of violating various acts meant for the welfare of tea workers.

The acts that the tea estates more often violated are the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961; the Plantation Labourer Act, 1951; and the Minimum Wages Act, 1948.

According to the data of the Tea Tribe and Adivasi Development Department, the highest number of cases has been filed against 121 tea gardens in the Jorhat district, 43 cases in the Tinsukia district, 21 cases in the Dibrugarh district, 12 cases in the Sribhumi district, etc. Though some of the cases have been disposed of, a large number of cases are still pending.

According to the department, some of the gardens that have cases pending against them are Panichokua TE, Kenduguri TE, Kalpana TE, Likhabari TE, Tarajan TE, Kakojan TE, Socklating TE, Sonapur TE, Gopal Krishna TE, Bahadur TE, Dhelakhat TE, Hatikhira TE, etc. According to the department, two tea gardens in the state-Bogidhola TE in the Golaghat district and Charaideo Porbot TE-have been closed in the recent past.

The management of the Bogidhola TE closed it in 2017 following a dispute between the workers and the management. The Labour Department and the district authorities made several attempts to put an end to the deadlock but to no avail. At last, the state government referred the case to the labour court, the department said.

A law-and-order situation did arise in the Charaideo Porbot TE in July 2023 following delays in the payment of wages, and that led to the closure of the tea garden. The Labour Department had to intervene and send the report to the government.

According to the department, the government did form an advisory committee for the enhancement of minimum wages of tea garden workers. The report of the committee is under consideration by the government. However, the government resorted to interim hikes of wages-Rs 205 for the Brahmaputra Valley and Rs 183 for the Barak Valley in 2021, Rs 232 for the Brahmaputra Valley and Rs 210 for the Barak Valley in 2022, and Rs 250 for the Brahmaputra and Rs 288 for the Barak Valley in 2023.

According to the report of the Supreme Court's one-man commission, the total amount of dues to tea workers and employees of the ATCL gardens was Rs 630 crore as of October 10, 2021. The state government already released Rs 339 crore of the amount.

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