Lok Sabha Question No. 4796 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2021-03-24
Subject: Tea and Cinchona Plantation Workers
Ministry: COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
Asked by: Raju Bista

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE)

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4796 TO BE ANSWERED ON 24 th MARCH, 2021

## TEA AND CINCHONA PLANTATION WORKERS

## 4796. SHRI RAJU BISTA:

Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY ( वािण�य एवं उ�ोग मं�ी ) be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the COVID-19 pandemic has brought acute financial distress to tea and cinchona garden workers, who are already paid lesser than minimum wages;
- (b) if so, whether any provisions have been made by the ministry towards extending financial assistance to the tea and cinchona plantation workers during/after the COVID-19 lockdown;
- (c) if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether  the  Darjeeling  Tea  Industry  is  still  awaiting  payment  of  subsidies earmarked for them under various schemes;
- (e) if so, the time when the Tea Board of India is likely to clear all subsidy payments due to the tea growers, both small and large in the Darjeeling hills, Terai and Dooars region; and
- (f) the steps that are being taken by the Government to provide relief to tea growers, both large and small, following the COVID pandemic?

## ANSWER

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THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND I NDUSTRY (SHRI HARDEEP SINGH PURI)

(a) to  (c):  Plantation  workers  are  covered  by  the  Plantation  Labour Act,  1951  which  inter-alia provides for the welfare of plantation workers including tea workers and cinchona workers. The Tea Board is also extending certain welfare measures for the tea workers and their wards/dependants,  which  are  supplemental  in  nature.  The  labour  welfare  measures  are  being undertaken within the ambit of the Human Resource Development (HRD) component under the Tea Development & Promotion Scheme.

The  workers  are  also  covered  by  various  industrial  and  social  security  legislations  such  as Employees Compensation Act, 1923, Payment of Gratuity Act,  1972,  Payment of  Bonus Act, 1965, Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, Payment of Wages Act, 1936 , Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, Industrial  Disputes  Act,  1947  and  Industrial  Employment  (Standing  Order)  Act,  1946  as applicable.    The  fixation  of  minimum  wages  for  workers  falls  under  the  purview  of  State Governments, which are the appropriate Government to fix/revise the minimum wages as per the provision under the Minimum wages Act, 1948. Moreover, the wages of tea garden workers are fixed as per agreement reached between producer associations and workers' unions.  The Central Government has announced a special scheme to be implemented during 2021-22 to 2025-26, with budgetary outlay of Rs.1000 cr. for the welfare of tea workers especially women and their children in the States of Assam & West Bengal

(d) & (e): Subsidy claims received from Tea growers of the country including Darjeeling, are settled as per the guidelines of the Tea Development and Promotion Scheme. Subsidies related to long term development activities like uprooting & replanting, rejuvenation pruning and infilling, become due for payment after a gap of a few years, which creates some backlog. During the period 2017-18 till February, 2021, the Tea Board has provided financial assistance of Rs. 71.58 Crore in the State of West Bengal, including Rs. 8.31 Crore for the Darjeeling Hills.

(f)  In wake of COVID-19 pandemic, the Government/RBI have taken various policy measures to ease the financial stress  in various Sectors including Tea by providing relief on debt servicing, improving access to working capital, grant of moratorium till 31 st August, 2020 on payment of all installments  in respect of term  loans, etc. In addition, to ensure that farmers do not pay  higher interest  during  moratorium  period,  the  benefit  of  2%  Interest  Subvention  and  3%  Prompt Repayment Incentive were also extended to them.

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