Protests rocked the Kohinoor tea estate at Samuktala in Alipurduar district since Monday night as workers locked up the manager’s chamber as well as the garden’s office, alleging non-deposit of their provident fund for over a year and over the demand for a new management.
The protests continued throughout Tuesday, and none of the workers walked into the plantation to pluck tea leaves.
“It has been almost a year now that the management has abandoned the garden. A person has been assigned to buy the tea leaves from us, and he pays our wages. However, he is not the owner of the garden. During these months, we have been receiving our wages, but as there is no owner, not a penny has been deposited in our provident fund accounts,” said Sudarshan Chaki, a worker.
Altogether, there are 888 workers in the garden.
“On one hand, the PF has not been deposited. On the other hand, 28 workers were forced to leave their jobs. This cannot go on,” he added.
After locking down the offices yesterday night, many workers, including women, assembled in front of the factory today. They demonstrated against the management, alleging that the factory had been closed for a year.
“The only solution is to find a new management. The state government should take necessary steps so that the garden runs properly. There are around 200 workers who have retired but have not yet received their provident fund and gratuity,” said Kedar Newar, secretary of the local branch committee of Trinamul Cha Bagan Sramik Union.
Officials of the state labour department said they were aware of the situation. “We are taking initiatives to resolve the problems at the Kohinoor tea estate,” said Gopal Biswas, the deputy labour commissioner of Alipurduar.