The Dalshingpara tea estate in Alipurduar district will reopen on January 2 next year, bringing relief to nearly 1,200 workers hit by the garden’s prolonged closure.

According to sources, the labour department was under considerable pressure to resolve the issue ahead of the visit of Trinamool’s national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee. Abhishek will be in Alipurduar on January 3.

The tea garden, located under Jaigaon police station, has remained shut since October 2023 due to disputes over the payment of bonus.

The decision to reopen the garden was taken at a tripartite meeting on Tuesday among officials of the state labour department, the garden’s management and worker representatives.

The meeting, chaired by deputy labour commissioner Gopal Biswas, began at 11am and continued until 4pm.

“After a prolonged discussion, it has been decided that Dalshingpara will reopen on January 2,” said Biswas.

At Tuesday’s meeting, it was decided that the management would reopen the tea estate on January 2 and subsequently clear the long-pending bonus dues.

“The management has also agreed to pay the bonus arrears for 2023 soon after reopening, followed by disbursement of bonus amounts for 2024 and 2025 in a phased manner, said a source.

Workers of Dalshingpara tea estate had been receiving financial assistance to workers of locked-out industries (FAWLOI) payments from January 2024. Under the scheme, a worker receives ₹1,500 per month from the state labour department during the period of closure.

However, payments reportedly stopped from February 2025 onwards for reasons yet to be clarified. This led to multiple protests by workers, including demonstrations in front of the Dooars Kanya administrative building, demanding immediate disbursal of
FAWLOI funds.

“The impasse at this tea garden is finally over. We hope that normal activities will resume at the garden from January 2 and the management will abide by the decisions taken in today’s meeting,” said a senior trade union leader.

Workers protest

Workers of six tea gardens operated by Merico Agro Industries in Alipurduar district on Monday staged a protest in front of Dooars Kanya, demanding payment of due wages, gratuity, provident fund and other dues.

The workers continued their demonstration until 10pm, braving the bitter cold.

Following the protest, local Trinamool leaders contacted state labour minister Moloy Ghatak. The minister, in turn, directed the Alipurduar district administration to inform workers that a meeting would be held on December 31 at Dooars Kanya between officials of his department and representatives of Merico management to resolve the issues.

Based on the assurance, protesting workers dispersed after 10pm. “We are waiting for Wednesday’s meeting and expect it to be effective in addressing the problems,” said Nakul Sonar, the Trinamool Cha Bagan Sramik Union chairman.