Darjeeling MP Raju Bista and MLA Neeraj Zimba met Governor C.V. Ananda Bose on Wednesday (February 26, 2025) and raised their concerns about the West Bengal government’s decision to allocate 30% of land of tea gardens for tourism and allied purposes.
“I wanted to complain about Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to him. The West Bengal government never listens to the voice of Darjeeling. Mamataji’s decision to give 30% or above of the tea garden land to the gardener and the investor is illegal. Governor has assured me that he will look into this,” Darjeeling MP told journalists after meeting the Governor.
During the Bengal Global Business Summit earlier this month, Ms. Banerjee announced that 30% land of tea gardens will be allocated for non-tea purposes. On Tuesday (February 25, 2025), the Chief Minister assured that the State government will not disrupt tea cultivation while granting approvals for tourism-related activities.
Mr. Bista, who is two-time BJP MP threatened of agitation of north Bengal if the State government goes ahead with its plan.
“North Bengal is facing a serious problem during Mamata Banerjee’s tenure. Over one acre of tea garden land is being given away to the industrialists. The quantum of land is more than that of Singur and Nandigram. From 1955 till today, unused land in the tea garden area has not been recovered.” the MP said.
Meanwhile, the Paschim Banga Khet Majoor Samity in a press statement addressed the issue of diversion of land from tea gardens and said it will displace workers from homes.
“The policy allows existing labour quarters to be shifted and reconstructed for tourism or any other business projects. This means workers, who have lived on these lands for over 150 years, can be forcibly evicted in the name of “development. These lands are not just houses – they are communities, culture, and history,” the statement by the samity said.
The tea garden union said the tea industry is already struggling due to declining production.
“Instead of supporting plantation revival and increasing employment, the government is pushing for permanent diversion of plantation land,” the statement added.
According to the union, no tourism project or business can generate the level of employment that tea plantations do.
