The Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad lifted the tea embargo from gardens in theTerai and the Dooars

Siliguri/Jaigaon, Aug. 1: The Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad-affiliated tea workers’ union today lifted the embargo on the despatch of tea from gardens in the Dooars and the Terai after it had got a letter from the planters’ association, saying a settlement would be reached on the demand for a hike in wages through negotiations.

The Progressive Tea Workers’ Union had yesterday sought a letter from the estate owners to lift the embargo that had begun in 208 gardens in the plains on July 26. The letter was sent by the Consultative Committee of Plantation Associations (CCPA) — the apex body of tea garden owners’ forums.

“We had launched the agitation in the interest of the workers. But we are equally concerned about the well-being of the tea industry,” said Tezkumar Toppo, the general secretary of the Parishad and a union leader.

“We had sought a letter from the planters, requesting us to lift the embargo and promising the consideration of our demand through talks. The letter reached us today and after holding a discussion among senior leaders of the Parishad and the union, we decided to lift the embargo and allow the despatch of tea from the gardens from today.”

Toppo, union chairman Shukra Munda and Parishad leader John Barla discussed the contents of the letter at a meeting in Malbazar this morning.

The decision to withdraw the agitation was announced with a rider. “We want to make it clear that the agitation was withdrawn on the basis of the request made by the planters and north Bengal development minister Gautam Deb,” said Toppo.

“In case, no decision is reached on the wage hike demand at the next tripartite meeting on August 4, we will launch an intensive movement across the Dooars and the Terai and bring normal life to a standstill. There would be blockades, demonstrations and strikes if the talks fail.”

The union wants the daily wage of the workers to be increased to Rs 250 from Rs 67. The duration of a three-year agreement on the wage revision ended on March 31 and a new deal was to have come into effect from the next day. When a new agreement is reached on the wage hike, it will have a retrospective effect from April 1.

The letter written by CCPA secretary general Monojit Dasgupta also says when talks are in progress, such forms of agitation are not desirable. The CCPA urged the union to lift the embargo.

The withdrawal of the agitation brought relief to the planters who had been counting a daily transactional loss of Rs 20 crore since July 26. “It would have been difficult for us to make cash payments to workers this weekend if the halt in the despatch of processed tea had continued,” said a planter in the Terai. “It is a relief to learn that the agitation has been withdrawn. We are keeping our fingers crossed to see that the wage agreement is signed on August 4. Another movement will only cripple the tea sector.”

The Coordination Committee of Tea Plantation Workers’ and the Defence Committee for Plantation Workers’ Rights, two apex bodies of around 30 unions, have jointly called a three-day strike in the tea industry from August 10 to 12, in case no decision is reached on August 4.

~The Telegraph