Morcha to plan movement demanding land rights to tea and cinchona workers

7:38 AM

•

Roshan Giri

Writes: Vivek Chhetri

The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha has decided to start a movement demanding land rights for tea garden and cinchona plantation workers and minimum wages for tea estate labourers.

The party will form a 50-member committee that will have Morcha representatives and apolitical people from tea gardens and cinchona plantations, to chalk out the course of action.

The decision was taken at a meeting of members of the Morcha central committee, representatives of Darjeeling Terai Dooars Plantation Labour Union (tea and cinchona units) and elected GTA Sabha members at the Gorkha Rangamanch Bhawan today.

Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri said: "It has been decided that a 50-member committee will be formed on May 15 to pursue the demand of land rights and minimum wages for tea garden workers. The committee will chart the future course of agitation."

Morcha representative handing over demand for Land rights to Union Commerce and
Industries Minister Nirmala Sitharaman

Morcha sources said this was the first time in "three-four years" that a joint meeting of the party central committee and the union leaders from gardens was held. "It is probably an outcome of opposition parties mobilising support in the hills," said a union leader.

The hill tea gardens have around 55,000 permanent and 20,000 temporary workers and nearly 5,000 people work in the cinchona plantations.

After its formation, Harka Bahadur Chhetri's Jana Andolan Party had laid stress on demanding land rights for tea and cinchona workers. Some JAP leaders from the Teesta Valley region in Darjeeling subdivision who took up the cause, however, joined the Morcha before the Assembly elections.
Today, Giri said: "The Left Front government had called a meeting in Calcutta on July 22, 2009, to look into the issue of granting land rights to tea garden workers. The meeting had been attended by land and land reforms commissioner and the principal secretary of commerce and industries department among others. Representative of the Consultative Committee on Plantation Associations had, however, expressed their opposition, after which the issue was not pursued. The TMC government did not hold a single meeting on this."

Giri said the Morcha would consult legal experts to see if the GTA could grant land rights to the cinchona workers.

"The GTA Act states that matters related to settling land rights and renewing lease of cinchona plantation lies with the GTA," he said.

Section 26 of the GTA Act says the hill body will have "administrative, financial and executive powers in the region in relation to cinchona plantation and settlement of land in possession of plantation inhabitants; management of lease of cinchona lands etc."

The state government has formed a committee to look into the minimum wage issue.

Meanwhile
Workers of Dooteriah tea estate, 25km from Darjeeling, have threatened to block NH55 on May 18 if the management fails to clear their dues by May 14.

"The garden is owned by Trinamul Rajya Sabha member K.D. Singh and wages have been due since January. If it is not cleared we will block NH55 at Ghoom on May 18," said Ashok Rai, a garden employee. The estate has 1,372 labourers.

Source Telegraph

READ MORE

JAP's first meeting in Darjeeling decides to hold dharna for Land Rights for Tea and Cinchona Workers

10:03 PM

•

Politics

Vivek Chhetri

The Jan Andolan Party today held its first meeting in Darjeeling and decided to organise dharnas across the hills to demand land rights for tea garden and cinchona plantation workers.

Most of the 87 tea gardens in the hills are in Darjeeling and Kurseong subdivisions. The issue of land rights is likely to touch the majority of the people in the two subdivisions as tea garden workers, who comprise more than 70 percent of the population in the two subdivisions, do not have any right over the land where they have been living for generations.

Amar Lama, a member of the JAP's bureau, said today: "During the meeting, it was decided that dharnas would be organised to demand land rights as this is an important issue for our people living in tea gardens and cinchona plantations. Even though we plan to hold the dharnas soon, the date and venues will be announced later."

Jan Andolan Party today held its first meeting in Darjeeling

During the meeting, the JAP, launched by Kalimpong MLA Harka Bahadur Chhetri in January, formed an ad hoc committee of the Darjeeling subdivision. Salim Tamang has been appointed as the convener of the subdivisional committee, while Pranay Rana has been made the convener of the party's subdivisional youth wing.

"Various GTA constituency-level committees have already been created. Trade union units have also been formed at Liza Hill, Rangmook, Cedar and Ging tea gardens," said Lama.

The bureau member said the party had decided not to impose decision from the top. "We are empowering respective committees to take their own decision. For example, the subdivisional committee will not interfere in the formation of constituency committees," said Lama.

The various committees have also been asked to start membership drive across the hills. "We are also launching a signature campaign on granting land rights. We want to collect at least 1 lakh signatures in the campaign," said Lama.

Simultaneously, JAP leaders have started visiting different places in the hills to hear the grievances of the public. "We have started the drive in Kalimpong subdivision and are launching the same in Darjeeling and Kurseong subdivisions soon," said Lama.

Mahendra P. Lama, the chairman of the bureau, when asked about the coming elections, said: "Our party will be contesting the elections."

The JAP is also looking at opening an office in Darjeeling town. "We have recently opened a contact office at Ghoom and are looking at opening a party office in the town soon," Amar Lama said.

Source: Telegraph

READ MORE