Work came to a halt at a tea estate in Jalpaiguri since Thursday as its workforce abstained from their duties after not being paid their wages and salaries.

In Joypur tea estate, on the outskirts of Jalpaiguri town, 683 workers have yet to get paid their dues for two months.

“We have not received our wages. Still, we were carrying out our usual annual maintenance work during the ongoing lean season like pruning and watering the tea bushes. However, a few days back, the manager left the garden. We don’t know if we will get our wages if we continue with our work. That is why we stopped working since yesterday (Thursday),” said Karmamaya Chhetri, a worker.

Others said that although they had not been paid for two months, they were relying on the manager. "But as he abandoned the garden, we decided to stop working,” said Ananda Das, an employee.

Shyam Chhetri, a driver in Joypur, said they informed the Jalpaiguri district administration about the impasse. “The management has not yet paid us last year’s bonus. On Tuesday, we were supposed to get a part of our dues but got nothing. Some of us are visiting nearby towns and villages in search of jobs,” he said.

The situation has prompted the state labour department to intervene. Subhagata Gupta, the deputy labour commissioner of Jalpaiguri, said they convened a tripartite meeting on January 15 to end the stalemate.

“We have called the management and the trade unions to resolve the situation. The garden should function normally and preparations should be made for the next season,” said Gupta.

Amitangshu Chakraborty, the principal adviser to the Indian Tea Planters’ Association of which Joypur is a member garden, said tea production was hit last year because of adverse weather.

“That is why some temporary financial problems have cropped up. We expect some positive outcome at the tripartite meeting,” Chakraborty said.