Paid holiday for tea workers on Karam Puja, Cong leader urges CM

Guwahati: Congress leader Debabrata Saikia wrote a letter to Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on September 20. In his letter, Saikia expressed the concern raised by the tea workers of Assam regarding the celebration of ‘Karam Puja’.
In the last few days, a demand base has emerged from the people, advocating the declaration of workers’ holiday on the occasion of ‘Karam Puja’.
Acknowledging the importance of the festival to the tea workers, Saikia requested the Chief Minister to declare a holiday with ‘Karam Puja wages’ for the tea garden workers.
Saikia expressed deep concern over the announcement of the holidays, which did not include wage arrangements. Instead, he allowed the workers to take leave on the day of ‘Karam Puja’ and work in the garden on the following Sundays or holidays.
He strongly condemned the move, calling it anti-labour and a grave injustice to one of Assam’s most prestigious tea-growing tribes.
In his letter, Saikia has requested the government to declare an official holiday for the tea section during this festival and issue government orders to the garden authorities to uphold the decision.
He stressed the need for tea garden workers to respect the sentiments of the tea community during this national event.