NewsClick

NewsClick
  • हिन्दी
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Covid-19
  • Science
  • Culture
  • India
  • International
  • Sports
  • Articles
  • Videos
search
menu

SUBSCRIBE AND SUPPORT

image/svg+xml
  • All Articles
  • Newsclick Articles
  • All Videos
  • Newsclick Videos
  • हिन्दी
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Science
  • Culture
  • India
  • Sports
  • International
  • Africa
  • Latin America
  • Palestine
  • Nepal
  • Pakistan
  • Sri Lanka
  • US
  • West Asia
About us
Grievance Redressal Mechanism
Newsletter
Facebook - Newsclick Twitter - Newsclick Instagram - Newsclick Youtube - Newsclick RSS - Newsclick
close menu
×
You deserve independent, critical media. Subscribe and Support
Labour
Protests & Movements
Politics
India

WB: Over One Lakh Brickfield Workers and Their Dependents Face Crisis as Industry Closes

On Tuesday, a mass deputation of brickfield workers arrived at the North 24 Parganas district administration office to highlight their demand of reopening the brickfields of Basirhat.
Sandip Chakraborty
05 Nov 2021
Brick field workers rally

Brick field workers rally

Kolkata: Over one lakh brickfield workers and dependents are in dire straits after Brickfield owners of Bashirhaat area of North 24 Parganas of West Bengal declared the closure of their units bypassing government-stipulated norms in the thick of the festival season.

There are over 150 brickfields on the side of river Icchamati in the district, each employing over 350 to 400 persons. All workers and their families now face immense financial hardships owing to the sudden decision of closure.

Talking to NewsClick, Gargee Chatterjee, district secretary of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), who has closely participated in the brickfield worker movement in the state said that the workers in the sector were terribly exploited.

“Workers were getting Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 as monthly wages (Rs 150 per day), much below the minimum wage declared by the State government pertaining to this industry. They do not even get a provident fund or any statutory benefits and are sacked from work without any hesitation by the brickfield owners. The brickfield owners have now cited excess stock of materials and lack of sale of bricks before the festivals as the major reason for the closure.” Chatterjee said.

She added that “While indeed the construction industry due to the Corona outbreak is in a difficult stage, however, the allegations that bricks are not selling is a false campaign launched by the owners to increase their profits by creating an artificial crisis of materials.”

Earlier the State government used to purchase bricks and stone chips for building up roads in the state. These procurements have halted now, leading to further troubles for the industry.

On November 2, a mass deputation of brickfield workers arrived at the North 24 Parganas district administration office, to highlight their demand of reopening the brickfields of Basirhat subdivision along with 8 other demands, including a provident fund for the workers.

Organised on behalf of the district’s brick and talee-bhata worker unions, the rally started from Pramod Dasgupta Bhawan in Kolkata. Workers decried the one-sided closure of brick kilns and sloganeered how the closure was anti-worker. The rally ended at Basirhat ghat, where the demands of the unions were highlighted.

The unions also demanded that a minimum wage of Rs 18,000 be fixed in the brickfield industry, vaccination of all brickfield workers of the state and that only law-abiding contractors be provided with tenders by the state administration.

In the rally, Chatterjee, along with Shankar Ghosh and Mirkashim Mollah of CITU addressed the workers. Chatterjee called on the subdivisional officer of Barasat to take responsibility for starting the brickfields after the bhaiphonta festival concludes in the state. During the rally, a five-member delegation also went to meet the administrative officials of the area and submitted a deputation to the deputy magistrate of the district administration.

Get the latest reports & analysis with people's perspective on Protests, movements & deep analytical videos, discussions of the current affairs in your Telegram app. Subscribe to NewsClick's Telegram channel & get Real-Time updates on stories, as they get published on our website.
North 24 Paraganas
CITU
Brickfield workers
Exploitation
COVID-19
Minimum Wage
West Bengal
Related Stories
West Bengal: Huge Protests Against Agnipath Scehem Across the State

West Bengal: Huge Protests Against Agnipath Scheme Across the State

chc

WB SSC Scam: High Court Orders Immediate Appointment of Babita Sarkar in Place of Ankita Adhikari

West Bengal Municipal Workers Protest Delay in Meeting Demands

West Bengal Municipal Workers Protest Delay in Meeting Demands

Supreme Court draws a parallel between 2002 Gujarat pogrom and the COVID second wave to rule out criminal conspiracy

Supreme Court Draws a Parallel Between 2002 Gujarat Pogrom and the COVID Second Wave to Rule Out Criminal Conspiracy

biri

Bengal's Bidi Workers Struggle With Poverty While Companies Reap Huge Profit

CHICAGO

Labour Notes 2022: US Workers Pushing Unions Into Mainstream

wb1

Bengal: What Ails Govt School Education and how Pandemic Made it Worse

DREU

Bharat Gaurav Train ‘Loots’ Passengers, Step Closer to ‘Privatisation’ of Railways

trans

Transgender People Struggle to Make Ends Meet Amid Pandemic Woes

WB: Tea Workers Upset Over Paltry Wage Hike, Warn of Strike Action

WB: Tea Workers Upset Over Paltry Wage Hike, Warn of Strike Action

Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on WhatsAppShare via EmailShare on RedditShare on KindlePrint
Share
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on WhatsAppShare via EmailShare on RedditShare on KindlePrint
Share
You deserve independent, critical media. We want readers like you. Support independent, critical media. Subscribe to Newsclick.

Subscribe and Support


Latest

  • Agneepath Does not Honour Indian Army: PDP Chief Mehbooba Mufti

    Agneepath Does not Honour Indian Army: PDP Chief Mehbooba Mufti

  • chc

    WB SSC Scam: High Court Orders Immediate Appointment of Babita Sarkar in Place of Ankita Adhikari

  • UN Human Rights Office Points to Israeli Forces in Al Jazeera Reporter's Death

    UN Human Rights Office Points to Israeli Forces in Al Jazeera Reporter's Death

  • Karnataka: Pourakarmikas Announce Statewide Strike From July 1

    Karnataka: Pourakarmikas Announce Statewide Strike From July 1

  • Load More
Newsletter
About us
Grievance Redressal Mechanism