Rishehaat Tea Estate Will Reopen On March 28

Wepen, 28 March 2019 : Risheehat Tea Estate on the fringes of Darjeeling town will reopen on March 28. This was decided in a meeting between the Management and Trade Unions in a meeting convened by the Assistant Labour Commissioner, Darjeeling on Wednesday.

The management of Risheehat Tea Estate near Darjeeling town had declared a suspension of work on 19th March, 2019. The suspension of work had come on the heels of Himalayan Plantation Labour Union (HPWU – affiliated to the GNLF) stopping the plucking of first flush tea leaves.

According to a report on Millennium Post, the HPWU had stopped the plucking of leaves demanding that their arrears be immediately paid. In January 2018, the daily wages of tea garden workers had been increased by Rs 17.50. In the majority of the tea gardens in the Hills, the increment took effect from March 2018. Though a year has passed, the arrears have not been paid in around 60% of the tea gardens in the Hills, claimed the union.