Assam govt planning social inclusion of tea tribes

Deb Kanti Tanti, a third generation worker from the tea tribe at a lower Assam tea estate, has four sons. One is pursuing BA and two have cleared school. None of them works in a tea garden as it is socially incompatible for the ‘educated’.

As his retirement is approaching, Tani should now ask his youngest son to give up studies and join the garden as his badli (replacement). Otherwise, the family will be asked to vacate the labour quarters, their only address in the State.

Assam contributes half of India’s 1,200 million kg production, entirely by employing tea tribes or Adivasis from Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Odisha. The community constitutes 15-16 per cent of Assam’s population.

However, barring some exceptions, they depend on tea for shelter that comes against low wages (₹126 a day) and supply of cheap staples. Add to it the lack of development in the tea region and the cycle is complete. Many school drop-outs are found in every tea garden. Most of the young workers dropped out in classes IX and X.

“They should have been given land rights long ago. Today, the community suffers from insecurity. There is an incentive to drop out from school. And, very often, parents try to push underage children into work,” said a garden manager on condition of anonymity.

The six-month Sarbananda Sonowal government in Assam promises a course correction. “This government will work for the tea community and the beginning will be made in the January 2017 budget,” said Labour Minister Pallab Lochan Das.

Having started with a financial inclusion programme following demonetisation, the government is preparing the blueprint for social inclusion of the community. Parts of the programme may be announced in January.

A meeting of labour, health, education and finance ministers as well as top bureaucrats discussed ways to involve all MLAs from tea garden areas and prepare garden-wise action plan to develop roads, build hospitals, schools and others.

“Tea workers in Assam are suffering from social and economic exclusion. There are no good roads, schools, hospitals and no land rights,” Labour Minister Das admitted. “If a villager can ask for roads under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna (PMGSY), old-age pension and other benefits, why cant a tea labourer?”

Das’s forebears used to work in a tea garden.

Indian Tea Association, a leading producers’ body, welcomed the Sonowal government’s initiative. However, they don’t see any vulnerability as the workers are retaining the quarter through their family members “in perpetuity.”

“Giving land to the landless has been a long-standing desire of the Assam government. So, there is nothing new here,” Arijit Raha, secretary general of ITA, told BusinessLine .

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