Highlighting the government’s failure to protect the rights of tea plantation workers, the Paschim Banga Cha Majoor Samity (PBCMS), a non political trade union representing these workers in West Bengal, has sought international intervention by filing a representation before the International Labour Organization.

“The representation documents a persistent and deliberate failure of the government to secure compliance with binding international obligations under ratified ILO Conventions, including those prohibiting forced labour, mandating equal remuneration, prohibiting discrimination, and protecting the rights of indigenous and tribal populations among others,” the PBCMS said in a statement.