A group of around 150 workers of a tea estate in Alipurduar reached the district magistrate’s office here on Wednesday and sought administrative intervention to stop land sharks from grabbing a portion of the garden’s land.

Led by leaders of the CITU and the INTTUC-backed tea trade unions, the workers of Srinathpur tea estate took a march to Dooarskanya, the district collectorate and submitted a memorandum on the issue.

Srinathpur is a small tea estate located in Alipurduar-II block. Around 500 workers are there in the garden which doesn’t have any factory unlike other tea estates. They sell the tea leaves to other gardens.

“A gang of land mafias are eyeing a 38-acre plot of the garden and putting all efforts to grab it. As the chief minister has passed a clear instruction to stop illegal encroachment of government and private land, we have brought it to the notice of the administration today and want it to act,” said Bheema Minz, president of the garden unit of Trinamul Cha Bagan Sramik Union.

He mentioned that a couple of weeks back, they learnt about the intent of the land mafias.

“We have CITU and the INTTUC-backed trade unions at the garden. To address the issue, we formed a common committee to save the garden’s land. The management has a plan to expand the plantation area by using the land but the land mafias are obstructing it,” added Minz.

Bidyut Gun, the district secretary of CITU in Alipurduar, said as the management has expansion plans, additional employment opportunities would be generated in the garden.

Later in the day, sources in the administration said the BDO of the block concerned has been instructed to take necessary steps.