Unpaid over 3 months, impoverished workers face grave situation

As many as 536 permanent workers of Kaliti tea garden in Moulvibazar's Kulaura upazila are passing days amid utter hardship as they have not been paid for the last 13 weeks.

Many tea workers' families are surviving on liquid extract from boiled rice taken with mashed tea leaves and chilli while the tea estate authorities are receiving their full-time labour during the ongoing plucking season.

"We have to borrow for survival as we are not getting wages for over three months. My husband, who became paralysed two months ago, could not even arrange his treatment," said Munni, who joined as a worker in place of her ailing husband Jagannath Almik, 34, two months ago.

Tea worker Munni and her ailing husband Jagannath Almik look hapless in front of their hut in the garden area. Photo: Mintu Deshwara

"My husband lost his ability to speak a few days. A storm badly damaged our tiny house early Sunday, making us even more helpless," said a tearful Munni.

Tea worker Biswajit Das, former president of the garden Panchayat ad hoc committee, said Kaliti tea garden was earlier leased by the government to 'Jobeda Tea Company Limited'.

Each worker receives a meagre daily wage Tk 102 and the payment is supposed to be made on Thursday every week.

"But workers are not getting wages for 13 weeks. Previous wages of many workers also remained unpaid. Retired workers are not getting provident fund," Biswajit said.

"We are not getting any payment despite work. We are not getting any mask and other safety measures for protection from coronavirus infection. We demand our dues, not any relief in the crisis period. People are passing their days unfed or half-fed; some have fallen sick," said tea worker Doyal Almik.

Besides, around 1000 'no work, no pay' based workers at the garden are virtually jobless now.

Uttam Kaluar, secretary of the garden's panchayat committee, said, "Seven percent from each worker's wages is kept for future funds while the owners have to add another seven percent to the Labour Department. But the garden authorities are not doing it."

There are no doctors or treatment facilities in the garden, he said.

Shamvu Chowdhury Das, president of the panchayet committee, said they made a written petition to the deputy director of the Labour Department in Srimangal on January 5, seeking solutions to the problems prevailing in the garden.

"But the problems are yet to be solved, although we observed different programmes including bhukha michhil (march of hungry people). We will go for tougher movement if the government does not take any action within 24 hours," he said yesterday.

Kaliti tea garden's Manager Pranab Kanti Das told this correspondent, "Fourteen officials and employees of different levels at the garden, including me, have not got payment for nine months."

Nahidul Islam, deputy director of the Department of Labour at Sreemangal office, said, "Around 50 lakh taka, meant for the provident fund for the tea garden workers, has not been deposited by the tea garden authority. The managing director and the manager of the tea garden have been warned several times for the payment of arrear wages to workers and the provident fund money but to no effect."

Kaisar Ahmed, managing director of Kaliti tea garden, said, "It is not possible to pay the workers' wages as we are in financial trouble, which is worsened due to the lockdown. However, they are being given ration facilities."

"All the problems of the garden will be solved quickly when the situation becomes normal. I request the government to provide relief to the workers of the garden," he said.

AKM Shafi Ahmed Salman, chairman of Kulaura Upazila Parishad, said, "We will take initiative to solve the problem of the tea garden workers within 24 hours."