1. An Overview of the Provisions of Plantation Labour Act, With a special focus on status of Women and Children in the tea gardens
Mahesh Menon, Asst. Prof of Law & Coordinator Centre for Child Rights, WBNUJS
Monalisha Saha, Asst. Prof of Law, Burdwan University
Zainab Lokhandwala, Research Assistant, CGPRS, WBNUJS

2. PLA in the Indian Legal Context
It falls under the rubric of “labour law” and it is viewed as a labour legislation
Enacted in 1951 along with a bunch of important labour legislations.
It is very comprehensive – covers almost all imaginable aspects of labour control and welfare within a plantation context.
Several provisions which ensure the welfare of labourers, including the children of labourers
Quite advanced for its times and provided for many socio-economic entitlements which we now consider to be human rights
Human rights lawyers and practitioners have paid very little attention to this law!

3. What the Act Covers It applies to :
(a) to any land used or intended to be used for growing tea, coffee, rubber, cinchona or cardamom; and
which measures  5 hectares or more; and
in which fifteen or more persons are employed or were employed on any day of the preceding twelve months
It can be extended by the state government (with the approval of the Central Government) to lands used for growing any other plant, even without conditions 2 & 3 above.
It applies to all premises used in connection with a plantation, except those premises to which the Factories Act Apply.
There are other labour legislations that apply to a Plantation – Like laws dealing with maternity benefits, workmen's compensation, minimum wages etc.

4. Degree of Protection of Rights
PLA and other labour laws
International Standards
Regulation of working hours and entitlement to holidays
Working conditions
Housing
Medical Facilities to be provided
Drinking water (at the workplace)
Education for children
Recreational facilities
Creches
Maternity Benefits
Compensation for employment related injuries
Minimum wages & collective bargaining
Prohibition on Child labour
Food and Nutrition
Labour Standards
Plantations Convention
Minimum Age Convention
Weekly Rest Convention
Holidays with Pay Convention
Maternity Protection Convention
Core Human Rights Standards
Convention on the Rights of the Child
CEDAW
ICSECR
Lack of Compliance wrt :
C110 (plantations)
11(5) : requirement for immunization
12: Provide transport facilities
CRC – people below 18 years of age are allowed to work (CRC does not define a child to be a person below 18 years, but the committee on the rights of the child strongly recommends this as the position)

5. The Frame work for Implementation of PLA
STANDARDS
[Act (framework) + Rules(specifics)]
MECHANISMS FOR ENFORCEMENT
Mandate on Employer to Comply

6. The Specifics (Rules) Made by the respective States
A comparison of Four States (Assam, Tripura, Kerala, Karnataka) reveals that the specifics are more or less similar.
Medical Advisory Boards in Assam & Kerala.
Group Hospitals to have a minimum of 100 beds and ambulance facilities (Kerala)
Canteens to serve tea and snacks on a non-profit basis (Kerala and Karnataka)
Rule relating to schools more detailed in Kerala and Karnataka
More details on nutrition in Kerala Rules
Sickness benefits are better and more detailed in Kerala Rules

7. Status of Implementation??
Limitations of Data
Sketchy and fragmented data
Most studies are quite dated.
Very limited quantitative data
All studies pointed towards very poor implementation
There are clear issues of
Child labour
Water supply & Sanitation
Healthcare (including nutrition)
Education
Housing
Wages
Isolation from the mainstream

8. Concerns & Questions The basic approach of the PLA
Does it encourage the sustenance of a captive labour force?
By making welfare the primary obligation of the employer, does the PLA fall short of international legal mandates?
How does PLA standards compare to standards in other social security programmes and Schemes?
Will focusing on implementation alone be sufficient or do we need to take a relook at our whole approach?

9. THANK YOU
CENTRE FOR CHILD RIGHTS, WBNUJS