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State Govt asked to fix wages, perks

By Correspondent

BONGAIGAON, Sept 7 - Leaders of the All Adivasi Students� Association of Assam (AASAA) have urged the State Government to take up the responsibility of fixing wages and perks of the tea labourers in all the tea gardens of the State as per law.

A tripartite committee consisting of the leaders of Assam Chah Mazdoor Sangha, garden owners and the labour commissioner, has been fixing the wages of the tea labourers since the past many years.

�This committee always protects the interest of the garden owners and ignores the needs of the labourers before deciding their wages and perks, which goes against the rights of the labourers. Hence we demand that the Government dissolve this committee and take full authority in this matter�, AASAA president Pradip Nag said.

Tea labourers, who are mostly Adivasis, currently are paid Rs 126 as their daily wages in all the 850 gardens of the State by the garden authority, said Hiru Bagdi, the adviser of AASAA.

The student group demanded hike in the wages to Rs 330 with 20 per cent annual bonus, considering the price rise of essential commodities in the market.

The student group also demanded to ensure basic facilities to tea labourers in all the gardens of the State.

Addressing a press conference on Tuesday at Greater Bongaigaon Press Club here, the leaders of the student body raised burning issues of the tea gardens.

The meagre amount of wages have forced many youths of the gardens to migrate to other States for jobs, women and girls become the victim of trafficking and children drop out from schools after primary education, the student leaders said.

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