State asked to share social security costs

The tea industry has asked the state to share a part of its cost of providing social security to workers. "The state sector should share a part of the cost of social security of the Indian tea plantation sector," said Aditya Khaitan, the chairman of the Indian Tea Asoociation (ITA). This would help the industry to concentrate its energies on producing quality tea at the most competitive rates, and expanding and servicing markets, he said. The Indian tea industry has been bearing, somewhat disproportionately, the burden of welfare and social cost largely by statutory provisions that were framed around the time India gained independence, said Khaitan. These laws, he said, were framed at a point of time when the state had not developed infrastructure and delivery systems to address these vital areas.

The Indian tea plantation sector continues to be largely regulated by the Plantations Labour Act 1951 to ensure social security and welfare provisions by the way of housing, medicare, education for the vast number of workers that remain the backbone of this industry.

The Indian tea industry has a annual turnover of around Rs 6,500 crore. The industry has an employment base of about 1.25 million and provides socio-economic support to another 1.2 million dependants.