Dibrugarh: The Assam Tea Tribe Students’ Association (ATTSA) held a two-hour dharna at Rajabari Tea Estate in Lakwa in Sivasagar district on Wednesday, demanding the immediate distribution of land pattas to tea garden workers. A large number of workers joined the protest.The protesters expressed resentment over the delay in implementing the Assam Fixation of Ceiling on Land Holdings (Amendment) Act, 2025, which was passed by the Assam Legislative Assembly on Nov 28, 2025. The law seeks to provide land ownership rights to tea garden workers living in labour lines.They said nearly a year had passed since the legislation was enacted, but workers at Rajabari Tea Estate were yet to receive their land pattas.“Despite the govt passing a landmark legislation promising land rights to thousands of tea garden families, workers are still waiting for the actual implementation of the Act. Passing a Bill in the assembly is not enough; the govt must ensure that the promised land pattas reach the beneficiaries,” ATTSA leader Prahlad Gowala said.The association demanded that the state govt expedite the land settlement process and ensure that eligible tea garden families are not deprived of their legitimate rights.The protest also highlighted the longstanding land insecurity faced by tea workers, many of whom have lived in labour lines for generations without legal ownership documents. The workers said the absence of land titles had left their families vulnerable and deprived them of permanent ownership over their homesteads.The Assam Fixation of Ceiling on Land Holdings (Amendment) Act, 2025, aims to provide land rights to more than 3.33 lakh tea garden worker families residing across 825 tea estates in the state. The amendment excludes labour lines from land classified as ancillary to special cultivation, allowing the govt to acquire and settle the land with eligible workers from the Tea Tribes and Adivasi communities.The legislation provides for settlement of homestead land, with eligible families entitled to receive up to one bigha, subject to the prescribed conditions. The allotted land is also subject to restrictions on transfer.
