'Sudden' lockout in Assam tea garden; 500 workers in agitation
Hailakandi (Assam) (PTI): About 500 labourers of a tea garden in Assam's Hailakandi district have launched an agitation after the authorities allegedly declared a "sudden" suspension of operation.
The workers of Gaglacherra tea garden, located about 20 kilometres from Hailakandi town, have been protesting against the garden authorities' decision since Thursday following the lockout declared on the previous day.
Local administration officials as well as a tea association have initiated steps to sort out the matter between the two sides.
A team of officials, comprising magistrate Jhintu Bora and labour officer PK Malakar, visited the garden on Friday and assured the labourers of taking up the matter with the district deputy commissioner.
The garden authorities could not be contacted.
President of the local panchayat Radheshyam Kurmi alleged that the tea estate authorities secretly put up the lockout notice on Wednesday night and left the premise.
"Thursday was the payment day and the authorities fleeing in this manner has agitated our people," he said.
Kurmi also alleged that the labourers used to get a daily wage that is lower than the government rate and women workers were forced to pluck more tea leaves than mandated daily.
"We have now no one to address our grievances," he claimed.
Planters' body Tea Association of India's Barak Valley General Secretary Saradindu Bhattacharjee said they were aware of the incident and expressed hope that the issues will be sorted out soon.
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Man arrested with Rs 2.54-crore heroin in Mumbai
Mumbai (PTI): Police have arrested a man and seized over 500 grams of heroin worth Rs 2.54 crore in the illicit market from him in Mumbai, officials said on Friday.
The police's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) made the drug seizure in Santacruz in the western suburbs. The operation was conducted by the Kandivali unit of the ANC on Thursday as part of a special crackdown against drug trafficking in the area, they said.
Acting on specific inputs, an ANC team conducted a raid in Santacruz (East) and intercepted a man. During a search, the team recovered 508 grams of high-grade heroin from his possession, an official said.
The seized contraband, a highly addictive, opioid drug derived from morphine, is estimated to be worth Rs 2.54 crore in the international market, he informed.
Following the seizure, a case was registered against the man under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985, and he was formally placed under arrest in the early hours of Friday.
The police are currently investigating the source of the drug and trying to identify the intended recipients of the consignment, he said.
