Hill Tea Workers Not to Pluck First Flush if Diversion of Tea Garden Land to Business Is Not Stopped

EOI, DARJEELING, FEBRUARY 24, 2025 :  Trade unions of tea gardens in the hills under the aegis of the Joint Forum have announced workers would not pluck the first flush tea leaf to create pressure on the West Bengal government to stop the allotment of 30 percent land for business activities other than tea production and survey of land.

On Tuesday, JF spokesperson Sunil Rai warned the agitation would intensify if the West Bengal Government failed to look into their demand. "Workers will not pluck the first flush tea leaf. Workers will report for duty on the first day to submit a memorandum of demands to the garden management," he said. Harvesting of the first flush tea leaf commences from February 27 and lasts till April in the hills.

The JF spokesperson has given the West Bengal government and the garden owners a 15-day window to fulfill its demands or risk facing more intensified protests. "We will wait for 15 to 20 days for the government to act on our demands. We will intensify our agitation if we fail to get a positive response. We will even continue to boycott plucking of the first flush tea leaf," said Rai.

The first flush is the most sought-after product and commands a premium price in the international market. Several tea gardens depend on the first flush to make up for the entire year to get over alleged issues of absenteeism and low production. "We are left with no option. If the government and the management remain indifferent to the worker's demands, then let the first flush rot or get damaged," said Rai.

The JF has a four-point charter of demands that it wants the West Bengal government to work on at the earliest. The first is the disbursement of the pending four percent bonus to workers immediately. Only 16 percent of the 20 percent bonus for the year 2023-24 has been distributed to the workers.

"We were assured that the remaining four percent would be distributed soon. However, only a couple of meetings took place, and the matter has now been kept on the back burner," said Rai. Tea garden workers are given 20 percent on their annual earnings as bonus before the Durga Puja festival each year. However, the catch is that the bonus is negotiated between the management and the operating trade unions a month before the Puja festival.

The second demand of the JF is the implementation of the Minimum Wage Act in the tea gardens in the hills. The third demand of the forum is the recall of the ongoing survey of land by the West Bengal government in the tea gardens. The State Government intends to provide five decimal of land to workers after the survey of the land.

Lastly, the JF is against the decision of the West Bengal government to allot 30 percent of tea garden land to industrialists for non-tea production activities. The allotment was earlier for 15 percent land. The decision was announced by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee during the recent Bengal Business Summit, and a notification was issued on February 7.

"Land rights for not five decimal but the entire land owned by the workers must be given. The survey has to stop till the government issues a notification. We are also against the decision of the West Bengal government to provide 30 percent tea garden land to industrialists. Our identity and future are in danger," Rai said.

Most political parties of the hills, including the ruling Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha and BJP MP Raju Bista have spoken against the decision of the West Bengal government and have taken up the issue in different forums.