Bengal govt announces aid scheme for reviving tea gardens

Siliguri, Apr 6 (UNI) The West Bengal government has declared a special grant of Rs 16 crore to help revive the dying tea garden industry in this part of the state.

About 14 tea gardens in Dooars are closed now for the past four years with more than 78,000 workers rendered jobless for an indefinite period.

State Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta's aannouncement came two days ago in the wake of the tea garderns' pathetic condition.

The Finance Minister also warned of punitive action against the tea garden owners, who abandoned the gardens. He said the state government would soon, along with the Provident Fund Department, take action against the faulty planters, who had fled, leaving crores of ruppes of PF dues.

The government's announcement of special allotment for the closed tea gardens has evoked a mixed reaction.

The Coordination Committee of Tea Plantation Workers' (CCTPW) has welcomed the initiative of the government. CCTPW convenor Chitta Dey, however, cautioned that the scheme would not help the workers unless the administration did not take concrete steps to implement it.

The workers of the tea gardens, mainly in Jalpaiguri district, said they were not in the aid scheme until the promise was implemented on the ground level.

UNI