Three tea workers dead

TT, Jalpaiguri, Jan. 27: Three workers of two shut and ailing Dooars tea gardens died yesterday.

While two of the deceased were from Bagracote Tea Estate owned by the Duncans Goenka Group, one was a resident of the closed Sylee Tea Estate.

Both the gardens are in Malbazar subdivision of Jalpaiguri district.

Sources said Rajkumar Thapa, 58, and Sushma Tigga, 32, both workers of Bagracote garden, had died yesterday.

Sushma was under treatment at the North Bengal Medical College and Hospital in Siliguri for over a week because of general illness.

Rajkumar was suffering from weakness and heart problems. He died in his home.

Family members of both the deceased have said they were not getting proper food and developed several health problems last year.

Jangari Munda, 46, a worker of Sylee Tea Estate, which has been shut for the past couple of months, was suffering from fever.

Jangari breathed her last yesterday.

Her family members alleged that she had died because of lack of treatment.

Since last Sunday, four deaths have been reported from Bagracote tea garden.

Prakash Mridha, the chief medical officer of health, Jalpaiguri, however, denied that the workers had died because of lack of food or treatment.

"None of the deaths was due to malnutrition or lack of treatment. Our health teams are regularly visiting the closed and sick tea estates. Health workers are visiting each worker's house to provide medicines and treat patients. All three workers were suffering from different health problems," he said.