Silchar, Feb. 7: The impasse at Roopacherra tea estate in south Assam?s Hailakandi district is likely to continue, as the talks held here yesterday between the delegates of the Calcutta-headquartered tea garden and the Cachar Cha Sramik Union, representing the workers, failed to yield any positive results.

During the three-hour talks, both the management and the Intuc-affiliated workers? union refused to budge from their stand, belying hopes of an early resolution that could restore normality to the 755-hectare tea garden. The estate produces nearly 7.5 lakh kg of tea annually.

The workers? union reiterated their demand for the withdrawal of the lockout, which was clamped by the authorities on January 19, dubbing it ?unethical and illegal?. The management, on their part, set a number of conditions for withdrawing the lockout.

Lowering the daily wages of its 1,400-strong workforce from Rs 46.25 to 40.25, slashing the salaries of its staff members by 13 per cent and doling out subsidised food to only three members from each labourer?s family were some of the demands put forward by the management.

Sumit Das, a consultant with the Roopacherra Tea Company Ltd, and general manager Sumit Sarkar represented the management, while the union was represented by its president Joynath Roy.

The management stressed that the garden was facing losses with the falling tea prices at the auctions and the spiralling costs of various inputs.

Therefore, it is difficult at this juncture to hike the wages of the workers, the management added.

The management of the estate had declared a lockout in the wake of alleged mass abstention from work by the garden labourers.

This conciliation meeting was organised by the state government?s assistant labour commissioner. The stalemate has caused considerable hardships for the labourers, who are currently not receiving any wages or food ration. Desperate to survive, the workers have become a part of the migrant labour force in nearby towns. The union said no date has been fixed for the next round of talks.

In a related development, workers in two other gardens of Cachar district ? Craigpark and Kallinecherra ? have threatened to block National Highway 44, located near the twin gardens, for 12 hours from 7 am on February 18. They are protesting against non-payment of wages and salaries.

The management of both the gardens, reeling under the recession that has hit the local tea industry, has not deposited Rs 16 lakh in the workers? provident fund accounts, according to the workers? panchayat and employees? union. ?They have also failed to deposit Rs 84 lakhs which the workers are supposed to receive as gratuity after retirement.?