Guwahati, February 26 The Assam government on Thursday decided to increase the daily wages of tea garden workers by Rs 30, ahead of the assembly elections.
Following this decision, wages in the Brahmaputra valley will rise to Rs 280, and will be Rs 258 in the Barak valley.
Addressing a press conference, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the decision was taken at a meeting of the state cabinet.
"As an interim measure, the cabinet has decided to increase the wages by Rs 30, effective from April 1," he said.
The minimum daily wage of tea garden workers was last hiked by Rs 18 in October 2023.
The assembly elections in the country's largest tea-producing state are expected to take place in March-April this year.
The cabinet also decided to cut the Value Added Tax on Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF) by 5 per cent.
"With this decision, the price of ATF will be the same in Kolkata and Guwahati," Sarma said.
The CM said that a tripartite meeting was held earlier during the day between the state government, tea garden labour unions and owners on the issue of increasing the wages.
"As new Labour Codes were implemented by the central government, wages will have to be hiked as per them. We will probably have to sit again in the next six months," he added.
He said the final daily wages for the tea garden workers are likely to cross Rs 300.
The cabinet also decided to release Rs 9,000 as a single instalment for the flagship poverty alleviation scheme 'Orunodoi' on March 10.
"On that day, we will credit the amount to 39.7 lakh beneficiaries. This will result in an outgo of Rs 3,600 crore in a single day," Sarma said.