In Assam tea workers wage hiked ahead of Lok Sabha elections

Guwahati: The Assam Cabinet has approved a hike in the minimum wages of tea plantation workers in the state ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The initiative is expected to benefit more than one million tea workers in Assam’s 800 plantations, which produce about 55 percent of the country’s tea.
The management will continue to supply grain to the workers as usual.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma told reporters after chairing the cabinet meeting, “The cabinet has increased the wages of tea workers from the current Rs 232 to Rs 250 (in Brahmaputra Valley) and Rs 210 (in Barak Valley). It has been decided to increase it to 228 rupees. Monday (October 02) night at the Gandhi Mandap in Guwahati.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the new wages will be effective from October 1.

The Assam cabinet decided to increase the wages of tea garden workers in the state after the Mamata Banerjee government announced a hike of Rs 18 in the wages of tea workers.
On September 22, the Chief Minister of Assam presided over a meeting of tea planters’ organizations to fix the wages of tea workers.
The meeting was attended by Indian Tea Association (ITA), Assam Tea Planters Association (ATPA), Assam Branch Indian Tea Association (ABITA), Tea Association of India (TAI), North Representatives of Eastern Tea Association (NETA) and Bharatiya Chah Parishad (BCP).
In the last hike, which took effect from August 1, 2022, tea garden workers in the Brahmaputra Valley received Rs 232 per day, up from Rs 205 per day.

Gardeners in Valley Barak saw their daily wages increase from Rs 183 to Rs 210 per day.

Sarma also said that the state government has already directed to pay 20 per cent bonus to tea garden workers under Assam Tea Corporation (ATC) ahead of Durga Puja festival.

The state government has already decided to reserve 3 per cent of Grade III and Grade IV posts in government departments for tea garden workers in the state.