Assam Tea Garden Workers To Get Land Rights Under New Law As State Begins First Phase Across 103 Estates

Guwahati, January 16: In a move expected to bring long-awaited security and dignity to thousands of tea garden families, the Assam government will begin granting land rights to tea garden workers in 103 tea estates under the first phase of the Assam Fixation of Ceiling on Land Holdings (Amendment) Act, 2025. The decision follows the passage of the legislation by the Assam Legislative Assembly on November 29, 2025.

Wage hike from January 1, 2026

The Labour Welfare Department conveyed this during a meeting with representatives of tea producers in Guwahati on Thursday. Alongside the land rights initiative, the state government also announced that wages of tea labourers will be revised upward with effect from January 1, 2026.

The legislation aims to provide land titles (patta) for homesteads in tea garden labour lines to workers and their descendants. These lands will be excluded from plantation ceiling limits, a step that could also prevent diversion of such land for at least 20 years, offering long-term stability to tea garden communities that have lived for generations without formal ownership.

Phase-wise implementation plan

According to the minutes of the meeting, the first phase of implementation (November 10 to February 28) will cover 103 tea gardens, including all ATCL gardens, one tea garden from each Legislative Assembly Constituency (LAC), and other willing gardens that agree to relinquish land. Notices in Form X have already been issued to the selected estates.

The second phase, covering all remaining gardens, is scheduled to begin after May 2026.

The meeting, convened to discuss both land patta distribution and wage revision, was presided over by Labour Minister Rupesh Gowala and attended by the Chief Secretary, senior officials from the Labour and Revenue departments, and representatives of major tea industry bodies, including TAI, ITA, NETA, BCP and ATPA.

Interim wage revision framework

Officials made detailed presentations on the modalities for implementing land rights in tea garden labour lines, as well as on wage revision and the application of minimum wage norms. It was clarified that pending the notification of Assam Wage Rules under the new labour codes, plantation workers’ wages would be revised on an interim basis from January 1, 2026. A regular wage structure will follow once the national floor wage is finalised by the Government of India and state rules are notified.

Industry representatives, while welcoming dialogue, flagged concerns on three key issues—administrative challenges in managing tea estates as composite units, continuation of statutory obligations such as housing, water supply and recreational facilities for resident workers, and compensation at market rates for relinquished land.

Government response awaited

Government officials acknowledged these concerns but did not make immediate commitments. The industry was informed that Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma would hold a detailed meeting with stakeholders after January 26, and was advised to refrain from any legal action in the interim. The Chief Secretary urged industry bodies to cooperate with the government, indicating a positive outlook on reviewing statutory obligations, while noting that compensation mechanisms could be complex.

The Labour Minister said the Chief Minister is keen to engage with the industry and address its concerns, adding that the response from tea garden workers has been overwhelmingly positive. “The workers are happy after the notification, and we seek the industry’s support in taking this historic step forward,” he said, adding that a separate meeting would soon be convened to discuss the interim wage hike.

For thousands of tea garden families across Assam, the announcement marks a potential turning point—transforming generations of uncertainty into the promise of land ownership, stability and improved livelihoods.