Amid ongoing protests by a section of tea workers in Darjeeling Hills, who have halted plucking of green leaves over pending bonus payments, labour minister Moloy Ghatak has stepped in to resolve the crisis. He has called for a meeting on 3 April in Siliguri to address the issue.
In a notification issued by Additional Labour Commissioner (ALC) Shyamal Datta, eight trade unions active in the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) area have been invited to participate in the discussions. The notification mentions that this meeting will be a follow-up to the joint session held on 16 November, 2024, in Siliguri.
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Notably, the labour department had initially called a meeting on 6 November last year in Kolkata, but tea estate owners failed to attend, prompting the government to schedule another round of talks on 16 November.
The core issue remains the Durga Puja bonus for the financial year 2023-24. While trade unions and workers demanded a 20 per cent bonus, planters refused to comply, leading to widespread agitation and strikes. The state government eventually intervened, issuing an advisory recommending a 16 per cent bonus payment.
Although most planters paid the advised 16 per cent bonus, protests continued, with workers demanding the remaining 4 per cent.
Saman Pathak, convenor of the Joint Forum of Hill Trade Unions, stated, “Our one-point demand is that the state government must finalise the bonus rate for FY 2023-24.”
With production now affected, the upcoming 3 April meeting is expected to be a crucial step in resolving the dispute.
