Registration, Fixed Wages, Pakka Houses: State Accepts Before Bombay HC Suggestions To Improve Working Condition Of Migrant Sugarcane Workers

In relation to a suo motu PIL on the conditions of sugarcane workers, the State government told the Bombay High Court that it has accepted all the suggestions made by the amicus curiae to improve the conditions of the workers and safeguard their rights.

A division bench of Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice MS Karnik took note of the State counsel's statement that the State government has accepted all the suggestions and would implement them this year from sugar cane cutting season.

The following suggestions have been made by the amicus curiae to improve the working conditions of sugarcane cutters and workers:

Registration Of Workers:

• Workers should be registered at the place of their permanent address as well as the place where they migrate to.
• Mandatory registration of contractors under Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition Act), 1970 to ensure accountability between the sugar mills, contractors and the workers.
• All migrant workers coming in from outside of Maharashtra ought to be provided benefits as have been guaranteed under the Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service Act, 1979.

Living Conditions:

• 'Pakka houses' should be provided to workers wherever possible. Sugar mills should ensure sturdy, strong and waterproof material for the houses that the sugarcane workers will live in.
• Facilities like cooking gas and electricity should be provided in the houses of the sugarcane workers.
• Workers should get adequate toilets and washing area facilities near their houses as well as the sugarcane fields.
• Workers must be provided with safe and clean drinking water along with adequate water for cleaning, cooking and other household purposes. Sugar mills must ensure supply of safe water through water connections, standpipes, boreholes tube wells, protected mud wells, etc.
• Creche facilities must be provided in sugar factories that have fifty or more employees as mandated under Section 11 of the Maternity Benefits (Amendment) Act. Failure to provide the same should be met with adverse consequences including revoking or suspending of licenses.
• Sugar mills should provide ration to the workers in case they are unable to do so due to address issues on the ration card.
• Community kitchens: A community kitchen system be put in place where a mukadam recruits people for cooking, to reduce the workload on the women workers who majorly cook for the entire family.

Wages:

• Abolish 'Koyata system', under which one couple (husband and wife) gets paid by the factory owners 'collectively'. Abolishing the koyata system would ensure that women workers get paid separately and not collectively with their spouses and would foster an increased agency and financial independence within the women workers.
• Wages should be fixed not merely based on Fair Remunerative Price but also on working conditions of the cutters, nature of the work, working hours, etc. The intervention of State is necessary in the negotiating process.

Health:

• Conduct thorough health check-ups of workers when they are being registered at the time of leaving their place of permanent residence. Details of the check-up should be noted in a health card, which would be useful for subsequent health check-ups.
• Conduct Medical camp every week as the sugarcane cutters suffer from several health ailments including cuts and bruises, severe body aches, fever and weakness.
• Hysterectomies: Implement district, state and national level hysterectomy monitoring committees. Take steps to blacklist hospitals/clincs which carry out hysterectomies without the informed consent of the patient.

Sexual and Domestic Abuse:

• Provide appropriate redressal mechanisms under the Protection of Women from Sexual Harassment Act, 2013 and the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005.
• Domestic Violence Redressal centres ought to be established at every village/taluka and the women workers need to be made aware of such centres.

Children of Workers:

• 'Sakhar Shalas', for educating children of migrant sugarcane workers need to be made operational.
• Children need to be issued Education Guarantee cards to ensure the continuity of their education as they shift bases every 15- 20 days and migrate every 6 months.

In view of the above, the Court asked the State government to strictly adhere to the suggestions made for the coming sugar-cutting season from October 2025 to March 2026. It directed the State government to file a compliance report by the end of November 2025.

It may also be pertinent to note that during a previous hearing in July 2023, the State government told the Court that the Labour Department had formulated an action plan for time-bound implementation of various labour laws for the ensuing sugar industries season of 2023-24.

Case Title: High Court on Its Own Motion v. State of Maharashtra and Ors. (SMWP/1/2023)

Appearances:

Mr. Mihir Desai, Senior Advocate (Amicus Curiae) a/w Ms. Devyani Kulkarni.

Mrs. Neha S. Bhide, Govt. Pleader with Mr. O. A. Chandurkar, Addl. Govt. Pleader and Mrs. R. A. Salunkhe, AGP for respondent nos.1 to 4.

Report containing suggestions authored by: Advocate Devyani Kulkarni & Advocate Rishika Agarwal and submitted by Amicus Curiae Mihir Desai.