Tea garden worker dies, union cites poor economic condition

A tea garden labourer of Birpara tea garden in Alipurduar district today died with family members and trade union claiming that he perished as a fallout of economic hardship plaguing the tea garden workers.
The 58-year-old tea garden labourer, Somari Oraon, died at his quarters at Park Line of the tea garden, family members said.
They said with no wages, ration, hospital facilities at the Duncan Industries-owned tea garden for the last nine months, Oraon was in acute financial hardship and had no money even to buy medicines or visit a hospital.
He had retired recently and had not got his dues, they claimed.

INTUC leader Prabhat Mukherjee also echoed similar views.
When contacted a district official said the death was due to some ailment and not "starvation-related."

Birpara tea estate was one of the seven tea estates whose management the Tea Board had been asked to take over by the Union ministry of Commerce and Industry recently.
The move was initiated on January 28 as per provisions of the Tea Act, 1953.
After the Union ministry asked the Tea Board for taking over of the management of the seven tea estates, it was understood to be in process of seeking a Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR) nod for the takeover.

Meanwhile, the Duncan Industries on February 3 filed a petition in the Calcutta High Court challenging the decision of the Commerce Ministry to take over seven of its tea gardens.