Tea trade union not in favour of ATCL property sale

Dibrugarh, Nov 22: The Assam Chah Mazdoor Sangha (ACMS), the largest trade union of the plantation workers of the State, is not in favour of having the properties of the State- owned loss-making Assam Tea Corporation Limited (ATCL) sold by the State government.

Hailing the recent instructions issued by the Supreme Court to ATCL with regard to the issue of outstanding wages and other benefits of the workers of some 14 tea estates of the Corporation, former Union Minister and ACMS president Paban Singh Ghatowar said that the Supreme Court has given a verdict in favour of the poor workers.

"The workers who have toiled hard deserve their dues and the State government must ensure payment of all the legal dues like unpaid wages, arrears, ration, provident fund, gratuity, and other pending statutory benefits," he said.

Ghatowar has asked the State government to come up with some realistic plans to settle the outstanding dues of the poor workers and also revive the tea estates to secure the livelihood of several thousand workers. He said that the trade union does not endorse the idea of selling the properties of ATCL to raise funds to settle the outstanding dues.

"If the State government cannot ensure security of the poor workers in its own tea gardens and adhere to plantation laws, how can one expect a private party to comply with the laws governing the operation of the tea estates? After the government's failure, we have doubts that a private company will run the tea estates with integrity and trust-worthiness. Instead of setting an example as a model employer, it is a pity that the State government is acting in a conflicting manner and even violating its own orders and notifications, particularly with regard to paying the minimum wage," said Ghatowar.

Ghatowar further said that if the government goes its own way by ignoring the opposition from ACMS, the government ought to guarantee that the workers toiling in the ATCL gardens will receive wages and other statutory benefits similar to workers engaged by other tea companies. The workers must also be assured of medical and other welfare facilities, he said.

The veteran trade union leader also suggested initiation of legal action against the defaulting managements of ATCL gardens and also against those responsible for converting the ATCL into a loss-making entity.

The reaction comes after the Supreme Court sought details of all the assets of the Assam Tea Corporation Limited (ATCL) by December 7.

Directing the Chairman and Managing Director of ATCL to file a detailed affidavit by December 7, a bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and AG Masih expressed that it will order sale of the assets so that the proceeds can be used to pay the dues of the tea garden workers.