Siliguri, March 23: The Bengal urban development and municipal affairs minister, Asok Bhattacharya, today criticised the planters for denying workers the benefits of the Plantations Labour Act 1951 and middlemen for profiteering from tea prices.

“Under the act, you are supposed to have provided workers with basic amenities related to health, education, drinking water and sanitation,” Bhattacharya said. “But you have not been able to uphold the rights of the workers.”

The minister was addressing the 81st annual general meeting of the Terai Indian Planters’ Association (Tipa).

According to Bhattacharya, every garden should have a doctor and offer free medicines to workers. But that is not found in most of the gardens. “Births still take place at workers’ homes, presenting a worrying picture. The level of superstition among workers is very high. The management, which has been neglecting this so far, should take the help of the panchayat, motivate the trade unions and address the situation,” he added.

The minister said the workers’ productivity must be increased for better fortunes of the tea industry, but at the same time, the management should also think of their health and living condition. “If you do not take care of the labourers, how will the productivity increase?” he asked.

The workers have been “tolerating” the injustice for fear of total closure of the gardens. “They are rendering themselves to exploitation because they are afraid that the gardens will close and they will have to lose whatever little they are getting now,” Bhattacharya said. “And many planters are taking advantage of this situation and denying workers their rights.”

The minister also accused the management of not taking steps for rejuvenating and replanting tea bushes.

Taking a dig at the middlemen, Bhattacharya said: “We hear that planters are getting lower prices for the tea. But as consumers, we are still buying it at higher prices. Who is benefiting from the crisis?”

Ajit Prasad, the Tipa vice-chairman, said the planters have been facing exorbitant rise in production cost. “Diesel prices have risen by 310 per cent, coal by 150 per cent, and wages by 60 per cent. We have not been able to pass on the cost of production to the buyers in the same manner.”