Tea workers leaders have welcomed the decision to increase daily wages by Tk 50. They expressed gratitude and thanks for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s initiative. He also said that they will join the work soon after discussing with all the garden workers tomorrow Sunday. This is going to end the long 19-day deadlock in the tea industry.
A meeting of tea garden owners started with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina demanding a daily wage increase of Tk 300 at Ganobhaban on Saturday afternoon. 13 large tea plantation owners of the country were present in it. In the meeting, the daily wage was increased from Tk 120 to Tk 170 .
Raju Goala, President of Tea Workers’ Union, Sylhet Valley, said, “Since the tea workers said during the agitation that they will accept the instructions given by the Prime Minister, they are supposed to return to work from tomorrow.”
However, Ajit Roy Baraik, the leader of the ongoing agitation in Sylhet, said, ‘I learned about the new wages. But I cannot say whether we will return to work from tomorrow morning or not. In the morning, the tea workers of all our Sylhet gardens will sit in a meeting. Our next step will be according to the decision taken in the meeting.’
President of Srimangal Balishira Valley Vijay Hazra said, ‘Bangabandhu’s daughter Prime Minister’s love for tea workers has been revealed. We have accepted the daily wage of Tk 170 announced by the Prime Minister. A joyous procession is taking place in the garden to welcome the Prime Minister’s announcement.’
Acting General Secretary of Bangladesh Tea Workers Union, Nipen Pal said, ‘We will accept whatever the Prime Minister of Mankind determines the daily wage. We have accepted. I have held meetings in every valley and told them to accept the Prime Minister’s decision with pleasure. The prime minister has done what we could not do in bilateral talks. We have asked all the leaders of the valley to call off the strike and join the work of the tea workers.’
Meanwhile, since the meeting started in the afternoon, hundreds of tea workers had their eyes on the media. They were waiting for the Prime Minister’s decision, wet with rain. Later in the evening, when word of the Prime Minister’s decision reached Bagan, they burst into joy.
