Representative image | Photo credit: Getty Images
GUWAHATI
The Advisory Committee of Planters’ Association (CCPA) has laid down certain conditions for the proposed distribution of patta (ownership) land of tea plantations among plantation workers in Assam.
On November 25, the Assam government introduced the Land Ceiling Fixation (Amendment) Bill, 2025, which aims to remove labor lines from the category of ‘subsidiary land’ in tea plantations. This would guarantee “land protection” for 3.33 lakh families of tea workers in 825 tea plantations in the state, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said.
Work lines are rows of dwellings for plantation workers in specified parts of the tea complex.
The CCPA, which covers tea, coffee, rubber and cardamom plantations, pointed out that Assam’s plantation labor rules preclude setting aside any garden land to be divided as a ‘patta’ for distribution. It was also stated that labor quarters and line areas are part of the statutory establishments mandated by the Plantation Labor Act 1951 and cannot be converted into transferable land tenure.
The growers’ body said the state government had acquired large areas from tea gardens under the Assam Fixation of Ceiling on Land Holdings Act, 1956 and allowed these estates to retain land only for special tea cultivation and ancillary purposes (factories, houses, hospitals, etc.).
“…the land now available with tea estates is residual land after surrender of surplus land. Therefore, any further acquisition would adversely affect the long-term viability of the tea sector…,” the CCPA said.
However, he said that if land is acquired, the compensation must be governed by the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. The proposed amendment to the law prescribes compensation, but under the relevant section.
Social burden
The CCPA further said that tea estate management should be exempted from providing social facilities, including water, sanitation and electricity supply, in areas acquired for distribution of patty to workers. These facilities form part of the daily wages of a tea plantation worker who receives an average of ₹250 per day in cash.
The planters’ body suggested that the owners of tea estates should be allowed to get rid of the social burden along with land acquisition.
A bill to make tea plantation workers the owners of the tea plantation land they live in was expected to be tabled in the 126-member House with a view to the 2026 polls. Tea plantation workers, mostly Adivasis or “tea tribes”, are a powerful electoral force in the tea-growing belts of central and eastern Assam.
Adivasis, once seen as a Congress vote bank, have been a major factor in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Assam since 2016. They are among the six communities seeking Scheduled Tribe status and have threatened to derail the NDA government if their demand is not met.
Published – 26 Nov 2025 23:06 IST
