Kanan Devan operations hit as strike enters 7th day

The ongoing strike by around 4,000 tea plantation workers in the Idukki High Ranges demanding an increase in wages and bonus has hit the operations of the Kanan Devan Hills Plantations Company Ltd.

KDHP, the first employee owned plantation company in India, said the strike by the workers, which entered the seventh day on Friday , is causing huge damage to standing crop.

KHDP, the biggest tea plantation firm in south India, has 16 tea manufacturing units with an annual production of 22 million kg (mkg) and employs close to 12,000 people. It was formed in April 2005 after the exit of Tatas from tea plantation operations. More than 97.8 per cent of the workers are shareholders in KDHP that has seven tea gardens in Munnar spread over 23,000 acres .

The plantations workers, especially women tea pluckers are on an agitation path resorting to blocking roads in Munnar, a move that has affected the movement of all vehicular traffic including tourists in the hill station.

Bonus cut KDHP pointed out that tea plantations in Kerala are going through a worst financial crisis in their history and if this situation continues, it could affect the very existence of the company. The crop damage due to workers absence since September 7 would result in huge loss running into several crores.

According to senior officials, majority of the workers rejected the bonus of 10 per cent offered to them on August 25, demanding a bonus of 20 per cent.

Due to a sharp drop in tea prices last year, the KDHP clarified that there was a steep fall in profits to ₹5.02 crore against ₹15.55 crore in the previous fiscal. In view of the poor profits, the statutory bonus payable for the year was the minimum bonus of 8.33 per cent.

However, the company had voluntarily and as a matter of goodwill, added another 1.67 per cent to the statutory bonus and declared a bonus of 10 per cent. 

Several company divisions as a mark of protest resorted to ‘go slow’ tactics. KDHP later posted an appeal notice in the divisions concerned to return back to normalcy considering the financial crisis in the industry.

Unions out While the company was in talks with the recognised unions regarding the bonus issue on September 7, majority of workers did not report to work and several thousands of workers blocked the roads and started protests in front of the head office.

There were also allegations that certain militant outfits are behind the agitation and striking workers have kept trade unions at bay.

Tourism hit The talks convened by Kerala government on Thursday at Thiruvananthapuram remained inconclusive. Meanwhile, the Cochin Chamber of Commerce and Industry expressed concern over the strike, which is affecting the tourism industry.

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