GJM to request SS Ahluwalia to raise tea workers’ death issue in Parliament

The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha is preparing to raise tea workers’ starvation deaths in Parliament and has urged the BJP government to take necessary steps to prevent further deaths. The Morcha leaders have decided to request Darjeeling MP Surendra Singh Ahluwalia to put forward the issue during a parliamentary session.
If necessary, the Morcha leaders will contact the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry seeking a solution to the ongoing crisis at the tea gardens in the Dooars.
After remaining closed and defunct for several months, Raipur Tea Estate finally opened Thursday. The garden has witnessed several deaths due to starvation. Other closed tea gardens in the region facing acute financial crises including Redbank, Dharanipur, Surendranagar, Bandapani and Dheklapara and they are still waiting to be reopened. Many have died in these gardens due to malnutrition caused by chronic hunger over the past few months, but the state and central governments have taken no step to stop the deaths and resume production. (EOIC)