Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 150
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 151
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 148]
Warning (2): Cannot modify header information - headers already sent by (output started at /home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php:853) [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 181]
LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Storm in teacup: Food Security Act may leave 19 lakh families in Assam's tea gardens hungry -Simantik Dowerah

Storm in teacup: Food Security Act may leave 19 lakh families in Assam's tea gardens hungry -Simantik Dowerah

Share this article Share this article
published Published on Dec 13, 2014   modified Modified on Dec 13, 2014
-FirstPost.com

Uncertainty over the supply of subsidised foodgrain to over 19 lakh families in Assam whose livelihoods are linked to work in the tea gardens is threatening to not only spark dissent among workers but has got the industry leaders worried.

To understand the impact, consider the case of Deepak Daori and Monica Daori - both workers at Mokalbari Tea Estate in Dibrugarh district.

"We are worried that the our monthly ration might be stopped from next month. But the management has not told us anything so far," said Deepak.

Deepak and Monica get 6.5 kg of rice and wheat each every month besides another 17 kg of foodgrains for their four children.

"We get Rs 96 as wages for 12 days a month. The garden gives us medical facility, tea, quarters and firewood. So if the ration becomes expensive or is stopped it would be very difficult for us," said Monica, who plucks tea leaves at Mokalbari.

The tradition of providing workers with subsidised rations has been on for the last 60 to 65 years, but Assam's Industries Minister Pradyut Bordoloi recently dropped a bombshell, saying that the scheme would be discontinued from 2015 on instructions from the Centre. The reason? Assam is going to implement the National Food Security Act (NFSA) from January which replaces the Targeted Public Distribution System (TDPS).

"We have approached the state and the Centre on the issue and urged them to continue with the age-old tradition. More than the financial implications it is the fear of uneven distribution that will cause a lot of discontentment and chaos among workers. You may not get the same quality of foodgrain in all the districts. The subsidised rations from FCI should continue," the Chairman of the Assam Branch of the Indian Tea Association (ABITA), Abhijit Sarma, told Firstpost from Guwahati.

Different tea garden workers' associations have protested the move and warned of massive agitations if such a scheme is implemented. The decision also threatens to affect law and order in the state that has over over 850 tea estates.

Assam's tea sector is already reeling as many gardens fail to generate quality products. Old gardens, scanty rainfall, rising production cost and falling prices, orthodox farming techniques, poor infrastructure and competition from Sri Lanka, Cuba, Kenya and China are making it harder for the industry.

As per Tea Board of India estimates, the production of tea in the state is likely to fall this year as compared to 2013. Assam produced an estimated 629.05 million kg of tea in 2013, the first time production crossed the 600 million kg mark. This year, the board estimated production at 523.79 million kg till October and the labour-intensive industry can ill afford a disgruntled workforce.

Some believe that the tea industry is apprehensive because they might be forced to pay more for the workers' ration, They have paid a very nominal amount so far to procure it from the Food Corporation of India (FCI). Currently tea garden managements procure rice at Rs 8.30/kg and wheat at Rs 6.10/kg which is then distributed among permanent and temporary workers at 56 paise/kg. The hike in cost would be a huge blow to underpaid tea garden workers, say some.

"As per the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, the minimum wage today should have been Rs 169 but they are paid only Rs 94 daily. The management deducts Rs 75 from each worker everyday as ration cost whereas they procure it for Rs 43.20 for 12 working days. They are looting Rs 900 from each worker in every 12 working days," the Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) president, Akhil Gogoi, told Firstpost from Guwahati.

"The tea garden management should immediately cancel this deduction as charge for foodgrains as they are spending nothing. They are only duping the workers by not giving the money that rightfully belong to them," he said.

According to the KMSS, the garden management spends Rs 3.6 every day as ration cost for the workers. "It clearly proves that the gardens are collecting an additional amount of Rs 71.30 each day from the workers which turns out to be Rs 1,713.60 a month," Gogoi alleged.

While attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi for showing apathy towards tea garden workers, the KMSS did not spare the Congress-led state government.

"The NFSA was framed by the UPA government and it is surprising that the Congress government in Assam failed to include the 'tide over' clause in the new Act. The state is trying to blame the Centre but they did not mention before that the tea garden managements are bound to supply rations to their workers whether it is available through FCI or not. I am wondering if the state is trying to protect the tea garden management at the cost of the workers," Gogoi said.

On 8 December, a delegation of the Assam Tea Tribes' Students' Association (ATTSA) met with Union Minister for Food and Public Distribution, Ram Vilas Paswan, in Delhi to update him about the situation.

"Paswan told us that the ration supply can go on even after the implementation of the NFSA but the state will have to buy it at economic rates of Rs 20 per kg and hand it over to tea managements for distribution," ATTSA general secretary Ashok Orang told Firstpost over the telephone from New Delhi.

There is no clarity yet on who will foot the extra cost for the supply of foodgrains to tea garden workers to continue. As of now the tea garden managements are shying away from paying more and the state government is looking to pass the burden on to the Centre while the latter is still to agree to it.

The Assam government had, on 1 September 2014, written to the Centre warning of discontent among workers in tea gardens if the current scheme was altered.

"The tea industry and the workers' union are apprehensive of major discontentment in the tea garden areas due to the changed system of supply of foodgrains to the tea garden workers and demanded that either present system of allocation to tea industry should continue or an additional allocation of 12,590 tonnes of rice and wheat may be made over and above the NFSA allocation to the tea industry to facilitate distribution of ration to their workers as per the Plantation Labour Act at rate fixed by tea garden labour union and management," S Mewara, principal secretary in the Assam's department of food and civil supplies wrote.

What raised eyebrows is the response from the Centre to the state. In his response on 18 September, under secretary in the Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Manoj Kumar Sharma, said no separate allocation is being made to Assam for tea garden workers. He also sought clarifications on how tea garden workers could be beneficiaries of the TDPS scheme as "it implies that foodgrains are either not being provided, or provided in lesser quantity to some or all of the existing BPL or APL cardholders".

The Centre also expressed surprise how the state and Centre could play a role in this context.

"If foodgrains to workers are to be provided in lieu of wages, the responsibility for the same should lie solely with the tea garden management. Rationale for the state government providing subsidised foodgrains to the tea garden management, out of TDPS allocations, is not clear. This may also please be clarified," Sharma said in the letter.

The Assam government has been able to ensure foodgrain supply from the 'tide over' quota that is available under the TDPS. 'Tide over' is a provision under the TDPS where a state can request for more foodgrains to mitigate an extra requirement. There is no provision for 'tide over' in NFSA and if foodgrains are bought from the Central pool of foodgrains, it would be at a higher cost.

However, the lack of clarity still holds out hope for the Assam Tea Planters' Association (ATPA).

"There is no clear indication either from the state or the Central government but there has to be a solution. It is tough to quantify immediately the financial aspect as there is no official communication from the government yet. Till now we got the rations from the government and we distribute it through shops that we have set up on the fair-price model. We have appointed staff to monitor the distribution," ATPA chairman Raj Barooah told Firstpost from Kolkata.

Unwilling to give any estimate on how much costs will escalate if the scheme is implemented in full, Barooah said, "We are not sure if the government will supply us foodgrains, and if they agree to, then at what cost. But if we have to collect it from the open market, we have to restructure the different slabs we have for distribution among various age groups," he said.

As this quandary persists, Deepak and Monica will continue to work like lakhs of their compatriots in the tea gardens of Assam only with the hope that in January next year that they don't have to battle for food.

FirstPost.com, 11 December, 2014, http://firstbiz.firstpost.com/economy/storm-in-teacup-food-security-act-may-leave-19-lakh-families-in-assams-tea-gardens-hungry-112566.html


Related Articles

 

Write Comments

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*

Video Archives

Archives

Im4Change.org हिंदी वेबसाइट का परिचय. Short Video on im4change.org...

Im4Change.org हिंदी वेबसाइट का परिचय. Short Video on im4change.org...

"Session 1: Scope of IDEA and AgriStack" in Exploring...

"Session 2: Farmer Centric Digitalisation in Agriculture" in Exploring...

"Session 3: Future of Digitalisation in Agriculture" in Exploring...

Objectives | About Us | Workshops | Disclaimer
share on Facebook
Twitter
RSS
Feedback
Read Later

Contact Form

Please enter security code
      Close