Gogoi wants subsidised ration for tea workers

Bijay Sankar Bora

Tribune News Service

Guwahati, December 22

Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to continue providing subsidised foodgrains (rice and wheat) to the state’s tea workers till the National Food Security Act comes into force.

In a letter to the PM, Gogoi said stopping the practice without any alternative might lead to law and order problem in the state.

He said under the present system, which has been continuing for more than 60 years, the state government provides APL rice and wheat to the tea industry at subsidised rate. The management of the tea gardens, in turn, provides the same to the workers at 50-55 paisa per kg. Nearly 20 lakh tea workers are benefitted by the scheme.

Gogoi pointed out that as per the directive of the Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, the Assam Government has stopped monthly allotment of 7,600 MT of APL rice and 5,000 MT of APL wheat to tea garden managements with effect from January 1.

Since the National Food Security Act, which also covers tea workers, could not be implemented in Assam before January, the state tea workers will neither get subidised ration nor foodgrains.

The state government has not been able to implement the Act because of the additional pre-condition of end-to-end set by the Centre. This pre-condition was not there in NFS Act, 2013.

Gogoi requested the PM to allow Assam to implement the Act immediately as the state was ready for it and also continue the existing system of providing subsidised ration to tea workers till the Act was implemented in the state.

Supply of the food grains to tea garden workers was started by the British in 1946 and a new act was passed in 1955 for its continuance. Under the scheme, an adult worker gets 3.26kg of rice or wheat every month, while 2.44kg is given to an adult dependent. A minor dependent gets 1.22kg of rice or wheat.