GUWAHATI: In a shocking incident, the Assam Tea Tribe Students Association (ATTSA) activists have reportedly, rescued six minor girls from a Doom Dooma small tea grower's garden who employed them as leaf pluckers in his garden violating the Labour Laws.
ATTSA sources informed that Tim Sarma, a local small tea grower employed the minor girls against pitiable wages to earn more profit.
The girls are 9 to 12 years old.
"They could earn a meagre amount of Rs. 20-25 per day each plucking tea leaves at his garden. He paid daily wages only Rs. 20-25 to per minor labour," a local alleged.
He further alleged that Sarma also deprived the regular labours working in his garden of the benefits like ration, PF, gratuity, medical among others. "The gardener also cuts Rs. 10 from each tea worker's wages every month promising them a bonus.
He paid only Rs. 120 to each labour of his garden as daily wage. We demand step against him,'' the ATTSA leader added.
On the other hand, The district administration is going soft against the president of Hatijan Gaon Panchayat (GP), Doomdooma," alleged Assam Tea-Tribes Students' Association (ATTSA), Longsowal- Hokonguri sub-branch.
In a statement to the press, the tea-tribes student body said that as per their memorandum dated July 6, 2021, the Deputy Commissioner of Tinsukia had ordered an inquiry into the corruption charges against the president of Hatijan GP, Ranjit Baraik through the District Development Commissioner (DDC). Accordingly, the DDC conducted the inquiry against him. But surprisingly, to date no action was taken against him, alleged ATTSA.
According to ATTSA, the gaon panchayat president was involved siphoning off money by drawing more than the required amount allotted under different heads and doing business by himself in the name of supplying the materials through a firm named 'Baraik Enterprises' that belonged to him. The ATTSA demanded the district administration to take strong action against the GP president, else they would resort to severe agitation, the students' body cautioned.
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