Tea garden workers in Amtala stage protest demanding Tk500 daily wage

The workers of Sylhet's Amtala tea garden staged a demonstration today, demanding their daily wage to be set at TK500.

At the core of the protest was a government notification issued on 10 August, which outlined minimum wages and benefits for tea garden workers at TK 170. 

SM Shuvo, coordinator of the 10-point Bastabayan Sangram Committee of Tea Workers, said the government notification favoured the interests of plantation owners at the expense of the workers.

He demanded the immediate rescission of the existing gazette and issuance of a new one, stipulating a daily wage of Tk500.

The committee conveyed that if these demands remain unaddressed, they would resort to intensified agitation, pressuring the government to retract the "controversial" gazette.

Sabuj Tanti, convener of the committee, echoed these sentiments in his speech, saying that the government appeared to prioritise the interests of plantation owners over those of the tea workers. 

Following the rally, a protest march paraded the main roads of Sylhet sadar upazila office. 

There, the committee presented a memorandum to the Minister of Labour, a document channelled through Sylhet Sadar Upazila Nirbahi Officer.

Prominent figures within the tea worker community, including adviser of 10-point Bastabayan Sangram Committee Srivas Mahali, Coordinator SM Shuvo, Panchayat President of Burjan Tea Factory Bilas Banerjee, and Khadim Cha, voiced their concerns during the rally.

The rally witnessed the participation of other individuals, such as Bagan Panchayat Committee General Secretary Amal Naik, Local Union Parishad Member Ataur Rahman Shamim, Teacher Bikash Bauri, Burjan Tea Factory Panchayat Committee Treasurer Sushant Chaja, as well as Tea Workers Leaders Anita Basak, Kumkum Naik, and Madhu Bhumij.