Wage-hike issue generating heat in Assam tea gardens

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Along with the surging heat of the Assembly election, the issue of wage hike among the labourers in the State tea gardens is also generating heat. It is to be seen as to how the State government tackles this issue in the backdrop that the labourers are demanding that their daily wage must be Rs 351 as against Rs 226 recommended by the Committee set for the purpose.

Spearheaded by the ACMS (Assam Chah Mazdoor Sangha) and the AATTSA (All Assam Tea Tribe Students' Association), there have been agitations demanding hike in the daily wages of garden workers in the tea estates across Assam.

In the run-up to the 2016 Assembly election in the State, the BJP assured the garden workers that they would hike their daily wage up to Rs 351 soon after coming to power. Now the ACMS and the AATTSA have demanded that the State government must hike the wage as promised earlier.

The backdrop is that in 2019 the State government formed a committee with the then Additional Chief Secretary Kumar Sanjay Krishna as its Chairman to see as to how much the wages of tea garden labourers could be hiked. Holding discussions with all stakeholders on various matters — including daily intake of nutrition by tea garden labourers — the Committee suggested to the State government to hike the wages of garden labourers up to Rs 193 in cash, which — including other perks — will be up to Rs 226.

The Committee submitted its report to the government, but it has been lying with the Department of Labour. During the recently held Autumn Session of the State Assembly, Labour Minister Sanjay Kishan informed the House that the report of the Kumar Sanjay Krishna Committee on tea garden labourers' wage was under discussion of the government.

According to sources, the Committee feels that if the daily wage of the garden labourers is hiked more, the managements of a number of tea gardens will face fund crisis and that may lead to the closure of many tea gardens.

Meanwhile, the AATTSA is of the view that they are in the dark as to what the Committee suggested. It, however, asserts that since the BJP — before coming to power — did assure the tea tribe voters of hiking their daily wages up to Rs 351, it should hike the wage as assured. The demand from the AATTSA came with a note of warning that if the daily wages are not hiked as demanded and promised, their agitation would continue.

Sources in the ACMS said that in July 2018, the State government gave an interim relief of Rs 30, thereby raising the daily wages of garden workers from Rs 137 to Rs 167. The Sangha, however, demands Rs 351 as daily wage.

"The minimum wage of tea garden labourer in Kerala is Rs 310, Rs 263 in Karnataka, and Rs 241 in Tamil Nadu; whereas it is just Rs 167 in Assam," said an ACMS source.

With the Assembly election coming closer and tea garden voters becoming the deciding factors in 24 LACs (Legislative Assembly Constituencies) in nine districts, the ACMS and the AATTSA have again raked up the wage issue. Now the hike in tea garden labourers' wage is an election issue. The workers of a number of tea gardens have even asked some of the ruling MLAs not to enter their garden areas.

The ACMS said that the State government has announced some schemes for tea garden managements recently. "Why can't the government take similar schemes for the TE workers as well?" questioned the Sangha. 

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