Since childhood, Harihar loved listening to people and engaging with them. Growing up in a hostel, vacations for him meant festivals and meeting people from his community. Harihar belongs to a family of tea estate workers residing in Bhatkawa Tea estate in Alipurduar, West Bengal, and has been an active member of various organisations like the Dhumkuria Trust working for…

Harihar Nagbansi

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Video Volunteers'community correspondent Harihar Nagbansi reports from Madhu Tea Garden located in North Bengal. The tea estate has been shut since 2014 which forced a lot of local residents to migrate outside in search of work.

Despite being in possession of job cards, villagers interviewed by our correspondent say that they are not being provided with a minimum of 100 days of work under the scheme. Some have loans to pay while others have families to look after.

Now, in times of Coronavirus lockdown and no work, Madhu tea garden villagers are protesting to get jobs under the MGNREGA scheme of the government. A protest was organized on 29th June 2020, also celebrated as the MGNREGA Diwas. The workers demanded 200 days of work and an increase in payment to Rs. 600 per day.