State Must Answer Why There Is No Sincere Effort To Pay Dues Of Tea Garden Workers: Supreme Court Summons Assam Chief Secretary

The Supreme Court on Monday (October 21) ordered the Chief Secretary of Assam to appear before the Court on November 14, 2024, to provide an explanation for the lack of sincere effort in settling the long-pending dues of the workmen employed in the state's tea gardens.

A bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih expressed concern over the unpaid dues of tea estate workers in Assam and criticized the Assam government and Assam Tea Corporation Limited (ATCL).

“We direct the Chief Secretary of State of Assam to personally remain present in the Court on the next date, i.e., 14th November 2024. The state will have to seriously answer the question why there is no sincere effort made to pay the dues of the workmen who have worked in tea estates owned by the state of Assam.”

Justice Oka said that unless harsh orders were issued, the workers would continue to suffer.

“We will tell you, we agree with your criticism that it is harsh. We are dealing with dues of poor workmen. Unless we pass harsh orders, they will not get the money. We accept your fair criticism that we are harsh”, he added, when the Counsel for Assam said that it is a harsh order.

During the hearing, Justice Oka noted noting that while the corporation had earned Rs. 38 crores from rental income, the workers remained unpaid. The Court sought clarification on whether any part of the balance Rs. 4 crores will be used to pay the workers' dues.

Justice Oka emphasized that ATCL being an instrumentality of the state, is obligated to ensure that the workers' salaries and allowances are paid.

The counsel for the Assam government submitted that there had been significant financial losses. The counsel claimed that many lessees of the tea estates failed to maintain profitability and eventually returned the gardens to ATCL, exacerbating the financial losses.

Justice Oka proposed that if the state could not manage the tea estates, all properties should be sold to ensure the workers receive their dues. The Counsel explained there were restrictions on the use of tea garden lands for any purpose other than tea cultivation.

The Court ordered the Chief Secretary of Assam to appear in person at the next hearing on November 14, 2024, to provide a explanation for the lack of sincere efforts being made to pay the dues.

The Court further issued notice to the Union Ministry of Commerce, after the Counsel for Assam stated that the central government also had a role to play in ensuring the workers' dues were paid.

“See, unless we pass harsh orders, money will not come. So therefore. There are 2 governments before us and one agency and instrumentality of the The state government. We will see how one of them pays”, Justice Oka remarked.

In 2023, the Supreme Court had directed both the state and central governments to disburse Rs. 645 crores to 28,556 workers from 25 tea gardens. Fifteen of these gardens are managed by the state-owned ATCL.

In 2006 when the International Union of Food and Agricultural Workers filed a petition before the Supreme Court demanding payment of overdue wages and benefits. Despite a Supreme Court direction in 2010 ordering the disbursement of the dues, compliance remained incomplete, leading to the present contempt petition in 2012.

In 2020, the Supreme Court had constituted a one-person committee, headed by retired Justice AM Sapre, to calculate the dues owed to the workers. According to the committee's findings, Rs. 414.73 crores were owed to the workers, while an additional Rs. 230.69 crores were due to the Provident Fund Department.

Case no. – Contempt Petition (C) No. 16/2012

Case Title – International Union of Food Agricultural & Ors v. Union of India

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