Policy Dialogue with Private Sector in North Bengal, India 

SAAPE, in collaboration with the Progressive Plantation Workers Union (PPWU) organized a four-day campaign from 27 to 30 August 2025 in North Bengal to press for long-standing demands of tea plantation workers, including statutory minimum wages, social protection, and land rights.  

The programme began with dialogues with the Indian Tea Planters’ Association (ITPA) in Jalpaiguri on 27 August and the Dooars Branch of Indian Tea Association (DBITA) in Binnaguri on 28 August. On 29 August, PPWU met Additional Labour Commissioner Partha Pratim Biswas in Siliguri, welcoming his directive for a 20% bonus to be paid by 15 September while stressing broader structural reforms, where memorandums were submitted highlighting workers’ urgent needs. The campaign culminated in a mass gathering at Nagrakata on 30 August, attended by over 400 workers and leaders from multiple unions and community organizations, who emphasized unity and collective struggle. 

Planters’ associations assured implementation of minimum wages and extension of Employees’ State Insurance (ESI), but PPWU resolved to continue mobilizing workers to ensure promises are fulfilled. The campaign underscored that demands for fair wages, healthcare, and land rights are not only economic but vital for dignity and survival, reaffirming the union’s commitment to building a united workers’ movement in the tea plantations of North Bengal.