HT Correspondent
MARGHERITA, July 20: A significant organisational meeting of the Assam State Committee of the Bharatiya Chah Mazdoor Sangha (BCMS) was held on Sunday at the office of the Purvottar Khadan Mazdoor Sangha in Margherita.
The meeting was chaired by BCMS State Committee president A Rama Rao and saw detailed discussions on the pressing issues faced by tea garden workers across Assam.
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Following deliberations, the committee resolved to submit an 11-point charter of demands to the Assam government.
The demands include payment of the Puja bonus at 20 per cent in a single instalment, issuance of land pattas to tea estate workers, enhancement of the daily wage to ₹351, and prompt clearance of pending Provident Fund dues.
The BCMS also called for provision of firewood or its monetary equivalent, an end to deductions of workers’ contributions from their wages, appointment of doctors in every tea estate, and permission for workers to attend union meetings.
Other demands included immediate steps to reopen the Nirmal Tea Estate, arrangements for medical treatment by garden authorities in cases of snake bites or accidents during work, along with ensuring the day’s wages for affected workers, and prohibition of charging workers for fuel used by company ambulances during medical emergencies.
During the meeting, a new Margherita Circle Committee of the Bharatiya Chah Mazdoor Sangha was constituted with Baiju Oraon as president and Ganesh Bauri as secretary.
The meeting was attended by BCMS working president Rajiv Bora, Tinsukia District Committee secretary Debojyoti Phukan, Purvottar Khadan Mazdoor Sangha Margherita secretary G. Amru, and trade union leaders Nipu Kalita and Shankar Gwala, among others.
