SC Directs Centre To Proceed Against Tea Companies For Recovery Of Wages To Workmen [Read Order]

The Supreme Court bench of justices S.A.Bobde and L.Nageswara Rao, on July 21, while hearing a contempt petition, directed the Centre to proceed against the erring tea companies, by calling upon the statutory authorities to issue notices to them, for recovery and payment of wages to the workmen, who lost their livelihood, due to closure of tea estates in Assam, West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

On August 6, 2010,  a three-Judge Bench of the Supreme Court took note of the plight of the workers of abandoned tea estates, and directed the Central Government to carry out its statutory duties under the provisions of the Tea Act, 1953 [sections 16B, 16C, 16D, and 16E] within a period of six months, and disposed of the writ petition filed by the International  Union of Food & Agricultural Workers.

The petition concerned about 3 lakh workers in the sick and closed tea gardens in West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal.  240 workers died of starvation between March 2002 and February 2003. As the supply of rations and drinking water to the tea estates had been stopped, the workers were drinking water from the contaminated river streams.  As the hospitals were closed, treatment was not possible.  Provident Fund, Gratuity, and earned wages were not paid to the workers for years.

A committee on plantation labour, appointed by the Centre, found in 2003 that out of the 4819 registered plantations, 1367 were defaulting in the payment of workers’ dues, the largest default occurring in the plantations of Kerala, Assam and West Bengal.

The Centre has adequate powers under the Tea Act, 1953 to grant relief to the workers.  However, the Tea Board continued to look at the plantation crisis purely on the marketing end and failed to fulfil its regulatory role as enshrined under the Tea Act, and did not make the estate managements accountable for the wage and provident fund defaults.

The Centre, through the Tea Board, introduced a Tea Quality Upgradation and Product Diversification Scheme for the period from April 1, 2007 to March 31, 2012 where Rs.1500 crores were allocated for the tea gardens. Workers of sick and closed tea gardens did not benefit from this.

On July 21, the Additional Solicitor General, P.S.Narasimha assured the bench that the August 6, 2010 order would be complied within a period of four weks and a report submitted about the steps taken.

The bench issued notices to Advocates General of Assam, West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, asking them to submit a report on the present status and the steps that need to be taken for recovery of the workers’ dues.

The bench also asked the Director, Tea Plantation Division, Ministry of Commerce, Department of Commerce and Industry, of the Central Government to remain present in person during the next hearing.

Read the Order Here