The Chinchula tea garden in the Kalchini block of Alipurduar district, which was closed due to bonus distribution issues in September, will reopen from the first week of December.

A source said the decision was finalised at a meeting held on Friday at the office of the district labour commissioner (DLC), Alipurduar. Gopal Biswas, DLC, confirmed: “There was a meeting regarding the reopening of Chinchula tea estate. Subrata Sarkar, the garden manager, was also present. He informed us that the garden will reopen on
December 5.”

The Chinchula tea garden, with around 1,300 workers, is located around 35km from Alipurduar district headquarters.

It had been shut since September 26, 2025, after the management allegedly refused to pay 20 per cent Puja bonus, which was the state labour department’s advisory to all north Bengal tea estates.

Workers surrounded the manager’s office for hours on September 26, prompting the management to leave the garden that night "for safety".

A source said the management had assured authorities that pending bonus will be cleared by November 30, along with two fortnights of wages for workers and one month’s salary for staff and sub-staff.

Omdas Lohora, central committee member of the Trinamool Cha Bagan Shramik Union, welcomed the decision but cautioned: “We are happy that the garden will reopen as the management has agreed to our conditions. But if bonuses and wages are not paid on time, there will be trouble again.”

Dole verification

In another meeting held at the DLC office in Alipurduar on Friday, it was decided that labour department officials will begin on-ground verification so that workers of Dalshingpara tea garden can start receiving Financial Assistance for the Workers of Locked Out Industries (FAWLOI) benefits.

Under FAWLOI, each worker of a closed tea garden is entitled to ₹1,500 per month.

A recent report in The Telegraph highlighted that Dalshingpara workers have not received FAWLOI funds since February for unspecifiedreasons.

The garden was shut in October 2023, and workers received assistance till January 2025.The prolonged delay led to anger among the workers, who threatened to block the Asian Highway if the estate was not reopened this month.

Friday’s meeting was focused on investigating the delay and resuming the unpaid FAWLOI aid to the workers of Dalshingpara.

DLC Biswas stated: “We have started the verification process in a few closed gardens, including Dalshingpara. The workers will receive the amount soon.”

The tea garden is located about 55km from Alipurduar and has around 1,200 workers.