Duncans gives date to start paying dues - Company to normalise gardens from February 1

The closed factory gate of Hantapara Tea Estate owned by the Duncans’
Goenka Group near Madarihat in Alipurduar district. Telegraph picture

TT, Jan. 22: Tea company Duncans Industries Ltd, which was unable to pay labourers in its 14 gardens since April last year, today told the state government it would clear a part of its workers' dues by January 31 and work would start in its estates from February 1.

Labour minister Malay Ghatak who attended a tripartite meeting of the state, the tea group and labour leaders in Calcutta today said: "A schedule on payment of wages due since April 2015 in the Duncan tea gardens has been prepared. The first installment would be paid by the owner by January 31, and the tea gardens would open subsequently from February 1."

The lack of pay and rations affected over 20,000 workers in tea gardens in the Dooars and the hills, leading to many deaths that labourers said were because of lack of food.

The gardens were not shut, although the labour minister mentioned that the gardens would "open subsequently from February 1". However, because of lack of wages and rations and no supervisory management officials in the gardens, work had stopped completely.

Winter is the lean season in tea gardens as no leaves are plucked at this time.

Although workers had repeatedly complained of malnourishment-driven deaths in the tea gardens, the state government never accepted this as the reason for the loss of lives.

But as the number of deaths rose - since April 2015 over 70 people had died - the state government intervened by distributing relief. Recently, the government had planned to provide cooked food under the mid-day meal scheme to children dwelling in the tea gardens on Sundays and holidays.

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee and Union minister of state for commerce and industry Nirmala Sitharaman spoke to G.P. Goenka, who heads the group, and advised him to normalise operations in the gardens and pay wage for the workers.

But as nothing happened, workers of the Duncans tea gardens, along with those of closed estates, planned to block NH31 in Alipurduar district. After the announcement of the tripartite meeting decisions, the garden workers said they would hold back their indefinite agitation to wait and watch what happens on the ground.

This is the first time that the tea company has announced a specific date when activities would be regularised in the gardens. It has also mentioned a schedule of dates on which the arrears would be cleared in phases.

A senior Duncans official also confirmed today that activities would be regularised in the gardens soon. "An agreement has been reached about the regularisation of operations (in the tea estates)," the official said.

The reactions of tea unions were mixed.

"It is a breakthrough as the company has come up with specific dates (which are yet to be announced) for the wage and ration clearance. We believe it would abide by the agreement and pay workers' dues. The state's intervention has yielded results," Alok Chakraborty, the working president of the INTTUC-backed Trinamul Tea Plantation Workers' Union, said.

Citu leaders were sceptical.

"We hope for the best but would prefer to wait and watch. The onus is on the management now and it will have to prove that it is adhering to the proposals to which the trade union leaders assented today in the interest of workers," Ziaur Alam, the Jalpaiguri district Citu secretary, said.