Tea unions seek changes to PMAY-G norms for tea gardens : Meeting held at Darjeeling DM's office

Amitava Banerjee, MP, Darjeeling, July 7, 2026 : Stakeholders of the tea industry on Tuesday unanimously agreed that a survey should be conducted in all tea gardens before implementing the Prime Minister Awas Yojana (Gramin) (PMAY-G) in the tea gardens.

A meeting in this regard was held at the conference hall of the Darjeeling District Magistrate's office.

Representatives of different tea unions also demanded changes in the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), especially for the Hill tea gardens, citing unique socio-economic conditions and topography.

"It is a complicated situation in the tea gardens. Workers with kutcha houses (thatched roofs, mud or bamboo walls) are entitled to PMAY-G. There are no such houses in the tea gardens now. This may have been the situation before the 1960s but not today. This criterion needs to be changed. In the Hills, there are no labour quarters either," said J.B. Tamang of the HTDPU, affiliated to the Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha.

Sunil Rai of the DTDPLU, affiliated to the CPRM, said: "Tea garden workers do not have land documents. Without these, PMAY-G cannot be implemented. In such cases, management has to issue NOCs. It is being stated that only permanent workers will get this benefit. For generations, temporary workers and even non-workers have lived in tea gardens in the Hills. How can they be deprived of such schemes?"

"About 70% of the Hill population reside in tea gardens and do not have land documents. We are trying to work out a system so that maximum benefit reaches the workers. Surveys will be conducted. However, seven to eight tea gardens are closed. We will form committees at the Gram Panchayat level to monitor the surveys," said Sonam Lama, MLA, Kurseong.

Representatives of tea unions from the plains echoed similar concerns.

"Many tea garden workers have taken loans to build houses. All should be brought under this scheme; otherwise, loans taken for constructing homes should be written off instead," said Jagdish Lohar, president of the BJP-affiliated Bharatiya Tea Workers Union.

He added that tea garden quarters built in the 1960s are now dilapidated and unfit for habitation.

"The management should be made part of the PMAY-G process in tea gardens as it can help identify the actual beneficiaries," said Sumit Ghosh, Secretary, Tea Association of India, North Bengal Branch.

The meeting was attended by the Principal Secretary of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, the Darjeeling District Magistrate, along with representatives of tea trade unions and management.

Courtesy & source- Millennium Post