Assam replies to Centre Clean chit for tea industry on labour act

Assam replies to Centre

A STAFF REPORTER

Guwahati, April 9: The Assam government has given a clean chit to the tea industry saying it has implemented the various provisions of the Plantation Labour Act. The report prepared by the state labour and employment department will now be placed in the Supreme Court in response to a petition filed by the International Union of Food, Agriculture, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco, Plantation and Allied Workers’ Associations (IUF) and others in the apex court in 2006. The Centre had asked the Assam government to file a reply. The organisation in its petition had said in most of the gardens in the state the Plantation Labour Act was not implemented. The tea industry has always been under fire from various quarters on the non-implementation of the Act. Several organisations representing the tea community blamed both the government and the industry for not abiding by it. On the accommodation facilities, which is compulsory under Section 15 of the Act, the report said no worker was living in open air and the backlog of housing accommodation had been temporarily compensated by providing non-standard kutcha quarters. In Barak Valley tea gardens, it has been found that the workers and their families occupy a huge plot of garden land for residential purposes and are living comfortably. The total requirement of standard quarters in tea gardens in the state is 265,914 of which the employers could so far provide 239,220 quarters with the backlog of 10 per cent. The water supply issue has been taken care of since there is no shortfall on providing water points in the labour lines. “At present there are 95,799 water points in the labour lines leaving apparently no shortfall on this score,” the report said. It, however, said the source of water and quality of water in some cases was not up to the mark. Regarding the state of medical facilities, the government said the required drugs and the medical apparatus are being maintained and provided by the management in general. The medical inspectors of plantations visit the garden hospitals and dispensaries on regular footing and taking necessary steps as and when required. On educational facilities, the report said all the garden lower primary schools in six districts — Cachar, Karimganj, Hailakandi, Golaghat, Jorhat and Sivasagar — have been taken over and provincialised by the state. In the remaining districts, the schools are well maintained. The implementation and enforcement activities of the Act are being carried out and the Commissionerate of Labour ensures its compliance through its officers. “Regular inspections and follow-ups are carried out and defaulting employers are brought to the book,” the report said. During the past three years, inspection machinery conducted 468 inspections and launched 53 prosecution cases against the defaulting employers. It, however, said the pace of implementation status under the Plantation Labour Act in Barak Valley tea gardens in comparison to other areas is low.